- Watching Roy Halladay's perfect game again last night, I had forgotten how good of a team the Phillies had back in 2010.The game itself was thrilling. It ended 1-0, which was good in the long run, as it had to keep Doc's attention all game. Not only could one pitch ruin the no-hitter, it could cost Halladay the entire game.
It was an 11 strikeout performance and it was dominating. Halladay did run several three-ball counts, and a few outstanding plays in the field helped to aid the cause. Once the game got into the ninth inning you knew that Halladay's will and determination would make the perfect game happen.
It was then the 20th perfect game in major league history.
Guys like Ibanez, Werth, Utley and Howard were in the line-up. Rollins was out with an injury, so reserve Wilson Valdez played shortstop. Along with the Four Aces the following year ( Halladay, Lee, Hamels and Oswald) when the Phillies won a franchise record 101 wins, it hit me last night that we should've won more than one championship during that reign. Losing to the Yankees in the World Series in 2010 should've never happened, and especially the loss to the Cardinals in the 2011 Division Series was the worst. To add insult to injury, Howard blew out his Achilles at the end of the St. Louis series, which would signal the end of a special era.
I remember switching from the Flyers- Blackhawks Finals game to the Phillies- Marlins that Saturday night. One of the greatest night in Philadelphia sports history.
- No wonder I never watch the NFL Pro Bowl. Nothing else was on TV on Sunday afternoon, so I had the Pro Bowl on. It was a total joke and an embarrassment. It was even worse than usual. Guys were being"tackled" without being touched. Offensive guys were playing defense, and vice versa. Even the plays themselves were schoolyard and circus-like.
Three things added to the creepy feeling of the ridiculous: 1) It poured all game. Raining in usual sunny Orlando, Florida. Why move the game from Hawaii? 2) The simply awful Jason Whitten and the rest of his terrible Monday Night Football crew called the game, which made it even agonizing and 3) Whitten breaks the damn Pro Bowl trophy while trying to present it to the winning AFC squad.
The NHL All-Star Game was watchable on Saturday night. The Pro Bowl is simply the worse.
- Still waiting for either Machado, Harper or both to sign somewhere. Now the White Sox have stated that they may get one, but not both. Over 100 free agents are still waiting to be signed with the beginning of spring training at hand. Trades are on hold until the logjam breaks. All indications are that it may happen this week. I still say Harper to the Phillies and Machado to the White Sox.
- NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell is a real dope. Granted, he's probably waiting until his annual Super Bowl address to talk about the blown call by the refs in the Saints' game. But he should've said something way before this week.
Speaking of which, how bad is it to be a Saints fan? Last year the Vikings beat them in the playoffs with a miracle play. This year they get robbed by the officials.
-I think about this time last year, when the entire area was gearing up for the Super Bowl. There was excitement everywhere, yet anxiety too- we couldn't lose yet again, especially to Tom Brady and the evil New England dynasty? Still, it was fun. I miss it and hope the Eagles are in a position to recapture the glory next season.
- I'll have my Super Bowl pick later this week. I ended up ahead picking games against the spread both in the regular season and in the NFL playoffs.
- The Sixers face-off with the Lakers in L.A. Tuesday night. Injured Embiid and Butler should return for Philly, while James may be back for the Lakers. A titanic tilt in Tinseltown!
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