Johnson Cements Legacy with 300th Win

Randy Johnson won his 300th game on Thursday against our friends the Nationals. A pitcher's 300th win is quite a milestone. It is more of a milestone than 500 home runs for a hitter nowadays. Before, it used to be easier to win 300 games than to hit 500 dingers because pitchers pitched every other night and hitters were hitting the dead ball or simply just didn't have enough power. Today, maybe because of the juice, 500 homers are much more common.

Congratulate the Big Unit, because we may not see a 300 game-winner for a long time. Jamie Moyer is the closest with 250-some wins but everyone knows he is not going to win 50 more games at the age of 46. Younger pitchers like C.C. Sabathia would have to win close to 20 games for the rest of their careers.

Randy Johnson is an excellent pitcher. Most call him intimidating because of his 6-10 frame and his close to 100 mile-per-hour heater. I'd half to agree with that. If I was up there against him, I'd swing like John Kruk and get the heck out of the way. After all, I don;t want to end up like the bird.

Johnson is an eight-time all-star and has won over 20 games three times. He kept an ERA under 3 for seven individual seasons. He is a clear hall of famer who will be remembered for many moments, mostly intimidating.

Magic-Lakers Final Preview

The so-called dream matchup of Lebron and Kobe was not to be. Dwight Howard and his Orlando Magic will face off against Kobe and the Lakers. The Magic proved in the Eastern Conference Finals that they are a very good team. They are by far the best team in the East (maybe next year Sixers).

This is a very interesting matchup because both teams have a player that cannot be defended. Dwight Howard is the hardest player to defend in the NBA. His height and strength combined with his explosiveness make him unstoppable.

Kobe Bryant cannot be stopped most of the time (Hint: key word is most). Kobe is a shooter who can drive to the basket. Shooters are not always consistent. Maybe the Magic will be able to stop Bryant by putting two of their best defenders on the Laker star. Bryant's driving ability will be neutralized by Howard. When Kobe drives, one sound will signal the end of a Laker possession. That sound will not be swish, it will be Swat!

Of course, everyone one knows the supporting casts will ultimately decide which team wins. Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant will both come to play like stars, but which role player will step up for each team. The Magic have a bunch of three point shooters who can put away a game when they are hot. Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis are both top notch three point men.

Will Trevor Ariza step up for the Lakers in the Finals like he did against Denver? I think he will but the Magic have to avoid the stupid mistakes Denver made. They cannot be lazy with the ball late in games because Ariza is an intense defender who is always looking for the steal. Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum are good big men but they may be stopped by the defensive proness of Dwight Howard and backup Marcin Gortat.

Overall, I think the Magic will win the series in seven games. The refs will hold the destiny of Howard in this series. They can't call the cheap fouls on Howard every time Kobe gets within one foot of him. Then again Howard has to be smart and not commit anymore technicals.

The Magic will win the championship because Dwight Howard is unstoppable and the Magic shooters can put a game away before you know it. Bye, Bye Kobe.

Sixers Hire Jordan

As I was watching the Phillies-Nationals game, an alert was put on Comcast Sportsnet reporting that the Sixers have found their new head coach. Eddie Jordan will be the coach for the 76ers next year. Jordan has coached part of eight seasons in the NBA, with the Kings and Wizards. So Jordan definitely has the experience.

Jordan made the playoffs with the Wizards four consecutive seasons, form 2005 to 2008. But he has only reached the second round once in his career. His best season was in 2005 when he lead the Wizards to 45 wins and made it to the second round.

Do I think this is a good hire? Well, you can't really tell until next season. I am not going to come and say that this is a great hire or a mistake. We simply don't know until the next season.

Sixers Stun the Magic

The Philadelphia 76ers have just finished a great thriller of a game in Orlando against the Orlando Magic. It was Game 1 of the series and the Sixers won the game, 100-98. Andre Igoudala hit the game winning shot with 2.2 seconds left in the game. The Magic are the big favorites in the series.

I missed the first half of the game, but I saw the whole second half. The Sixers were came back from 18 points in the second half to win the game. The Sixers played great defense in the fourth quarter and executed great on the offensive side of the ball.

Andre Igoudala hit a fade-away jumper from the foul line to win the game for the Sixers. Hopefully, this fantastic win will fuel the Sixers throughout the series.

Eagles Land Star Lineman Peters

The Philadelphia Eagles have finally made a big move this offseason. It was reported today by Comcast Sportsnet that the Eagles have traded three draft picks (1rst, 4th, 6th in 2010) to the Buffalo Bills for offensive lineman Jason Peters. Peters was having contract disputed with the Bills and will probably work out a new deal with the Eagles.

I have to confess: I have never heard of Peters. Of course, most Eagles fans probably haven't either. I hear he is good though, and he definitely filled one of the Eagles needs at the left tackle position.

Peters is a two time Pro Bowler at left tackle. The Eagles did give up a first rounder for him, but they were likely to use that pick on a lineman anyway. Instead, they traded that pick for a proven player. I think this is an excellent move by the Eagles because you never know if a rookie is going to work out the way you want.

Flyer Lose Tough One in OT

The Philadelphia Flyers lost tonight to the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2, with Bill Guerin of the Pens scoring the game-winner in overtime. The Flyers are now down 2-0 in the series heading to Philly.

The Flyers did play much better in today's contest than they did on Friday in Game 1. They looked unbelievably slow in Game 1, but tonight they showed improvement. The Penguins are tough to beat. The Penguins are impossible to beat when the refs are against you, as they were tonight.

The supposedly bipartisan officials were decidedly partisan. When you give a team (the Penguins) at two man advantage in overtime on chippy penalties, there was no way the Flyers could win. I call what the officials did cheating the game. You never hear of a two man advantage in overtime IN THE PLAYOFFS. Give me a break.

The Flyers need to be more aggressive and physical in Game 3. They need to hammer Penguin star (I use the term "star" lightly here) Sidney "Baby" Crosby. I mean take him out of the game. He needs to be in the locker room injured, or afraid to be hit. I take the injured option myself.

It will be hard for the Flyers to come back in this series. But if they can win the two home games, they will tie the series and have a chance to beat the Pens.

We Will Never Forget HIM!

Harry Kalas, Hall of Fame broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies, has died at age 73. I was shocked when I heard the news. I got the message from a friend and I was stunned. Kalas was in the booth and sounded fine for yesterday's game in Colorado. As tragic as it is, I will miss Harry the K.

Harry has been the voice of the Phillies since they opened Veterans Stadium back in 1971. He was Phillies baseball. Fans will remember Harry far better than they remember any player. Kalas was in our ears every night during the Spring, Summer, and (sometimes) Fall. You felt like you knew the man with the booming voice who would describe every play vividly.

At least he was able to see the Phillies win a World Championship while he was in the booth last year. No Philly fan will ever forget his call of the final out of the 2008 World Series. "The oh-two pitch. Swing and a miss! Struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are the 2008 World Champions of Baseball! Brad Lidge does it again, a perfect forty-eight for forty-eight saves on the year. And let the city celebrate!" That's right off the top of my head.

Of course, Harry is famous for calling home run balls using his famous words, "Outta Here!" There will be so many things everyone misses about the way Kalas calls a ball game. Everyone in Philadelphia was spoiled by the great narrating of Harry the K.

Watching a Phils game will not be the same without ya Harry. He is the voice of the Phillies and the voice of baseball and spring for so many Philadelphians like me. He has always been there, but now things will be different. And they never will they be the same.

To see a list of Harry's accomplishments click here.

Myers Blows Opener

The Philadelphia Phillies opened the 2009 MLB season last night when they hosted the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park. It was a joyous occasion for most Phillies fans, thinking a repeat would be sweet. Last night, every Phils fan was celebrating, until the game started. The Phils lost 4-1 to the Braves, thanks in part to Brett Myers.

Myers gave up all of the four runs the Braves scored in the first two innings. Brian McCann, Jeff Francoeur, and Jordan Schafer all homered off Myers. For Schafer, it was his first major league hit.

Derek Lowe baffled the Phillie hitters all night. Lowe pitched eight innings, sacrificing only two hits. The Phillies finally scored their first run of '09 in the ninth off Mike Gonzalez. The Phillies recorded a measly four hits in the game. I hope this doesn't mean another bad April.