Pedro on His Way to Philly

      A report from NBC 10 in Philadelphia and from Todd Zolecki of MLB.com is saying that Pedro Martinez is coming to Philly to take a physical.  If Pedro passes the physical, he will join the Phillies organization.   He will likely not join the rotation right away because he needs to get his arm ready.

      So, the Phillies will likely sign Pedro but that doesn't mean they are done obtaining starting pitching.  Roy Halladay rumors have been flaring up all week and some sources (including ESPN) have called the Phillies "frontrunners" for trading for the ace.

Updated Phillies Rumors

        The Phillies have been all over the news this week about their quest to better their pitching staff.  Phillies scouts have been looking at Pedro Martinez in the Dominican Republic.  Pedro was scheduled to throw in front of Phils scouts today at 1pm.  If all goes well, the Phillies will likely give Martinez a physical and then a contract.

        The Phils are taking a flier on the 37-year old former Metropolitan.  Martinez is an 8-time all-star and a 3-time Cy Young award winner, but his last season with a double digit win total came in 2005.  Pedro would be a nice addition to the rotation because he could fill that revolving door 5th starter position.  He most likely be better than a combination of Antonio Bastardo and Rodrigo Lopez.

        The rumor that really excites us Phillies fans is the one that says the Phillies are the frontrunners to land Toronto ace Roy Halladay.  Halladay is 10-3 currently with an ERA under 3.  In order to get Halladay from the Blue Jays the Phillies would most likely have to give up several top prospects.

       Even if the Phillies sign Martinez, that does not mean they are done going after Halladay.  Halladay is a star who can be a big difference maker with the Phils.  The Phillies are just hoping to get a few good months out of Pedro and they will be happy.

        The Phillies front office believes that there are some "untouchable" prospects in their organization.  MLB.com blogger Todd Zolecki reports that the untouchables are pitchers Kyle Drabek and Jason Knapp, and outfielder Dominic Brown.  

        The Phillies best chance to repeat as champions would be to obtain Halladay.  They should package together prospects for him but they may have to use one of their "untouchables" to get him.  Manager Charlie Manuel has likened Drabek to a young Tom Seaver.  That's quite a complement from somebody who has been in baseball so long.

       Here's an offer I would make to the Blue Jays: Pitcher  J.A. Happ

                                                                                          Infieder Jason Donald

                                                                                          Either Dominic Brown or Micheal Taylor

                                                                                          Pitcher Joe Savery

        Now you have to realize that this is a hypothetical.  I'm not sure what the Jays actually want and who the Phillies are willing to give.  Even if the Phils gave up these players, their farm system would not be ruined.  They would still have Kyle Drabek, Jason Knapp, Carlos Carrasco, either Dominic Brown or Michael Taylor, and others. 

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.