* The Sixers lost a thrilling, triple-overtime game last night vs. Oklahoma City. They trailed most of the game before scoring the last 11 points in regulation to send the game into the first OT period.
Joel Embiid played an extended time, scoring 34 points. The young club will win close games like that down the road. They need to learn to close out basketball games ( they blew the home Golden State contest).
It's a taste of things to come. At least the 76'ers are competing against the really good NBA teams. Playoff time will be interesting.
* Howard Eskin "doesn't understand" the Phillies signing 1B Carlos Santana on Friday. I like the move for the following reasons:
- It's all analytics. Santana hits homers but also walks and has a high on-base percentage.
- $20 million a year for three years still gives the Phillies room to pursue more free agents after the 2018 season. A nice crop of free agents is due to hit the market, including Manny Machado, Bryce Harper and Clayton Kershaw.
Hey, it's not my money. And it's about time the organization started to spend a few bucks. Eskin criticizes the team for not spending money, but now criticizes them for this signing. I like Eskin and usually agree with him on sports. And I get that Santana is 31, and Rhys Hoskins may be a liability in left field.
- It gives the fans some hope. Immediately, with the Santana signing, and hopefully additional pitching from future trades ( Joseph, Rupp, Hernandez, Herrera), the Pihls may sniff at a wild card this year. The moves vaults them ahead of Miami ( who is gutting their roster), the Mets ( is their pitching rotation healthy?) and Atlanta ( ae their kids ready yet?). Second place in the NL East behind Washington this summer, if all goes well.
It's been a while since the organization has tried to win. Santana brings excitement and hope. He gives the fans another piece of the puzzle to watch in 2018.
- Santana will help the line-up, specifically Hoskins. Hitting ahead or behind Hoskins, Santana will give Rhys more fastballs to hit. As stated above, it's analytics ( which the organization is big into) to have high on-base guys all thru the line-up, including Hoskins and Crawford.
- Santana may encourage other free agents to come to Philadelphia in the future.
Meanwhile, I will miss the traded Freddie Galvis, who was a leader on the team and popular with the fans. Freddie may not have gotten on-base as preferred but he saved a lot of runs with his glove. It's a risk, as Galvis is still only 28, but the organization feels it's time to see what Crawford can do. Hopefully they feel the same way about 2B Scott Kingery.
Let's face it- the team wasn't going away with a double-play combination of Hernandez and Galvis. Solid guys but championship guys?So I can't kill GM Klentak for moving Freddie.
Finally, the Santana move means an outfielder may be out the door soon. Unless the team decides to go with a 4-man rotation in the outfield, Herrera, Altherr or Williams will need to be dealt. Starting pitching needs to come back in return.
* The Eagles take on the Giants tomorrow afternoon at the Meadowlands. QB Nick Foles will be OK. I'm more concerned about the offensive line, especially if guard Stefan Wiesnieski doesn't play.
It's nice that the Birds have three winnable games left on the schedule to acclimate Foles with the first-team offense before playoff time begins.
The Giants suck. They have nothing to play for. But it's a road division game. The Birds will win but it may take a while for the offensive to get into gear. Is till say Eagles 24 New York 20
* Steve Trevelise brought up an interesting idea on his show late last night. He thinks down the road there may be a Flag Football league. With all the concussions in the NFL, football may come to that. And it's not such a bad idea, if done right.
Lots of passing. Nifty uniforms. Maybe even shirtless players for the female viewers. High scores. Action-packed plays. No hitting. no concussions. Even older guys could be. Smallish guys can play. No helmets, so fans can see faces and identify with the players ( like basketball).
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