* The Sixers escaped in Dallas Saturday night, beating the lowly Mavericks, 112-110. Both Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons had 23 points. Embiid suffered a "hand contusion" during the game. X-rays later proved negative.
The team is now 2-4 on the early season. They stay in Texas for a Monday night tilt with the Houston Rockets, who beat the 76'ers in Philly last week. The Sixers have home game this week with Atlanta and Indiana before hitting the road for a West Coast 5-game swing. which includes long-awaited games with Golden State and the LA Lakers.
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* The Flyers broke their two-game losing streak with a 4-2 win in Toronto last night.It was a nice win, as the Maple Leafs are one of the stronger teams in the NHL. Claude Giroux scored his 6th goal, and the Flyers are 6-0 this year when Giroux scores a goal.
The Flyers return to their home ice tomorrow night with a clash with the only winless team in the league, the Arizona Coyotes, who stand at 0-10-1.
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* The Dodgers knotted the World Series on a busy sports Saturday night, 2-2.. Big game for LA. A loss would've put Houston in the driver's seat, with a Game 5 tonight in Houston. Instead, the Dodgers play Game 5 with their ace, Clayton Kershaw, and a chance to go back to Los Angeles with a 3-2 lead, needing only to take 1 of 2 games at home to win the world championship.
Chase Utley has now gone 0-34 in the last two post-seasons. Is this the end for Utley? Surely, the Dodgers won't resign him after the season. He had a great career, finishing up with his hometown Dodgers, and perhaps will leave with a ring.
Will Utley be a coach/ Work in the media? What will life be like for Utley after baseball?
Certainly, he will be inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame, perhaps as soon as next summer. Utley wasn't the most out-going guy but I can see him doing TV, maybe working for ESPN , or ,if he wanted to stay home in Southern California, working for the Dodgers. I don't think he would make a good manager. Too much of a perfectionist, and not a very good communicator. Utley was more of a silent leader who let his hustle and energetic play do his talking.
Another ex-Phillie, reliever Ken Giles, is having a rough post-season. He blew a lead earlier in the series and gave up more runs last night to cushion a Dodger win.
He still has the stuff, occasionally hitting 100-m.p.h, on his fastball, but it seems to be a combination of bad location and lack of confidence.
Giles is still only 27 and remains a solid closer. But, sinply put, he as failed as a closer i the most important time of his career.
Houston fist baseman Yuli Gurriel is an immature jackass. After hitting a home run off LA pitcher Yu Darvish in Game 3 of an Astro win, Gurriel made a gesture toward Darvish in the dugout that was picked up by the cameras. He raised the corner of his eyes and uttered a derogatory term toward the Asian born Darvish.
Baseball's commissioner, Rob Manford, suspended Gurriel for the first five games in 2018. He didn't want to penalize Houston in the World Series for the stupid actions of one player.
The suspension would have made more of an impact if Gurriel would've been forced to sit out the rest of the World Series. How dumb was the gesture, not only the gesture itself, but to do it in the dugout in clear view of cameras? What a clueless jerk.
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Penn State blew an 18-point lead at Ohio State and lost to the Buckeyes, 39-38. That will drop them out of the No. 2 spot in the national rankings. Having lost to Ohio State, they will need to climb over several teams now to reach the final four playoffs.
Alabama and Georgia are better. Notre Dame may overtake them too, and Ohio State will move up from No. 6 . The Nittany Lions may still play for the national title- losing by one point on the road isn't a crime- but the task will be much tougher now.
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I write this on Sunday morning, 3 hours before the Eagles take the soggy turf at Lincoln Financial Field It's pouring outside, but should let-up for a few hours before ramping up again in the second half. The football will be wet and slippery. Snaps form center will be a challenge. Having an experienced like Center Jayson Kelce is an advantage. Kicking will be tricky too as the winds pick up and swirl thru-out the game.
It will be important for the birds to get in the lead and force the 49'ers to throw the ball, especially in the second half when the weather gets even worse. As the Eagles run the ball and control the clock, their defensive pass rush can tee-off on the San Francisco rookie quarterback.
Maybe it's not the best tailgate morning, but the game should be fun to watch- as long as the Eagles win and go 7-1.
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