This and that from the Sports world..
- The odds are out and the Phillies are 18-1 odds this season to win the World Series. The over/under for wins is 85 1/2 I'll take the over. New manager Joe Girardi should rise them from mediocrity and is at least worth a few wins. If the club stays free from injury they will also go up in victories. But the bullpen needs work. And who wins games in the starting rotation, other than Nola and newly-acquired Wheeler? Who hits lead-off? Who plays second and third base?
The Yankees and Dodgers are favorites to meet in the World Series. Out of the top 7 teams listed with the lowest odds, 4 are from the National League East. The Phils are in the toughest division in Baseball. Any of those four teams, Phillies, Braves, Nationals and Mets, could win the division and go deep into the playoffs, as Washington showed last season.
A good bet is Atlanta at 11-1. The Braves are primed to finally break out of their post-season funk and do well in the playoffs. They have added Cole Hamels to their rotation, Marchell Ozuna to their line-up and have drastically improved their bullpen. With the NL Central on the decline, the dodgers treading water in NL West, the Braves may break through in 2020, that's if they hold back the Mets, Phillies and Nationals in NL East.
- Joel Embiid made the NBA All-Star team as a starter but may not play due to injury. He is still on the shelf with his hand injury. The team also lost guard Josh Richardson for a few weeks with a hamstring issue. Meanwhile no deals have been made to improve the squad. Coach Brett Brown continues to walk on thin ice. Ben Simmons is wildly inconsistent. They play the surging LA Lakers tomorrow night in South Philadelphia.
- The story of Flyers' mascot Gritty punched a young fan is over-blown. There is no video footage of the incident, only a nice family photo taken with the furry orange mascot at the time of the alleged assault. The father was on WIP Sports Radio this morning claiming he has not sued the Flyers or Comcast, or even the guy wearing the Gritty outfit. I'm not sure what this family wants, other than publicity.
- Antonio Brown needs mental health help. He is out on bail after a recent incident of throwing a rock at a truck driver. Apparently, the erratic Brown failed to pay the moving van driver, and when the drivers threatened to leave brown's home without unloading the furniture, brown got pissed and allegedly threw the rock.Good thing the Eagles didn't sign the crazy ex-Steelers wide-out during the season, no matter how bad they needed a receiver.
- NY Giants Eli Manning retired after spending his entire career ( 16 seasons ) with New York. Manning will forever be known for being MVP of two Super Bowls. But he was an average quarterback at best and his win-loss record confirms that ( 116-116) Early in his career, he surprised the Eagles often, winning at the Linc when it was tough to win at the Linc. Especially under late defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, the Birds beat manning more times than not. You had to blitz Manning, make him move his feet and run out of the pocket.Manning never was at his best on the run.
I don't think Manning is a Hall of Fame QB, but playing in the Big Apple can't hurt .
- Speaking of which, former Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter deserved his Hall of Fame election. He was only one vote shy of an unanimous election. Meanwhile, Larry Walker got in as well. The ex-Expo and Rockie won three batting titles and won numerous Gold Gloves for his play in right field. Walker also had a rocket arm. He will enter the Hall as a Rockie.
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