Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Phillies Up, Eagles Down
What a night … you had to flip between games on the TV and watch what promised to be a disastrous night for Philadelphia sports teams. With memories of 1964 dancing in their heads, the Phillies – against the St. Louis Cardinals no less – nearly blew a 11-0 lead in the sixth inning when the Cardinals roared back to score three runs in the sixth, six runs in the seventh and two runs in the eighth. Good defense by Aaron Rowand saved the Phillies from disaster.
And so the Phillies ran their record to 81-69, now just 2.5 games behind the Mets as the team from Queens, New York, dropped their fourth consecutive game, losing 12-4 to the Nationals, a loss that might come back to haunt the Mets in the future. The wildcard race remained unchanged, as the Phillies sit just 1.5 games out. Here are the standings:
N.L. East:
Mets: 83-66
Phillies: 81-69 (2.5)
Braves: 77-73 (6.5)
N.L. Wildcard:
Padres: 82-67
Phillies: 81-69 (1.5)
Dodgers: 79-70 (3.0)
Meanwhile, I wonder if the Donovan McNabb era is coming to an end … last night’s 20-12 loss to the Redskins was a mini-disaster for the Eagles. Oh sure, teams can rally from 0-2 and make the playoffs … the 2003 Eagles did that, going 12-2 down the stretch … but the Eagles just looked flat and uneven, especially on offense. McNabb seemed to have difficulty in setting his legs and getting off a good throw. Sure, he threw for 240 yards, but it took him 46 passes to get to that point, or 5.2 yards a pass.
While I think Andy Reid has done a nice job coaching the Eagles, I hate his propensity towards calling passes all of the time on offense. What was the Eagles play selection last night? About 2-to-1 in favor of the pass? Is it any coincidence that the Eagles offense clicked last season when Reid gave over the play-calling duties and the Eagles finally went 1-to-1 on the run/pass ratio? Until McNabb gets back to 100%, the Eagles have to hammer Brian Westbrook, Correll Buckhalter and Tony Hunt into the opposition. Westbrook carried the ball just 17 times last night for 96 yards. True, he caught 8 passes for another 66 yards, but the Eagles need to work him into the rushing game more.
So, a good night for one team and a bad one for another. Tonight, Cole Hamels returns to the Phillies and tries to run the Phillies winning streak to six games.
And so the Phillies ran their record to 81-69, now just 2.5 games behind the Mets as the team from Queens, New York, dropped their fourth consecutive game, losing 12-4 to the Nationals, a loss that might come back to haunt the Mets in the future. The wildcard race remained unchanged, as the Phillies sit just 1.5 games out. Here are the standings:
N.L. East:
Mets: 83-66
Phillies: 81-69 (2.5)
Braves: 77-73 (6.5)
N.L. Wildcard:
Padres: 82-67
Phillies: 81-69 (1.5)
Dodgers: 79-70 (3.0)
Meanwhile, I wonder if the Donovan McNabb era is coming to an end … last night’s 20-12 loss to the Redskins was a mini-disaster for the Eagles. Oh sure, teams can rally from 0-2 and make the playoffs … the 2003 Eagles did that, going 12-2 down the stretch … but the Eagles just looked flat and uneven, especially on offense. McNabb seemed to have difficulty in setting his legs and getting off a good throw. Sure, he threw for 240 yards, but it took him 46 passes to get to that point, or 5.2 yards a pass.
While I think Andy Reid has done a nice job coaching the Eagles, I hate his propensity towards calling passes all of the time on offense. What was the Eagles play selection last night? About 2-to-1 in favor of the pass? Is it any coincidence that the Eagles offense clicked last season when Reid gave over the play-calling duties and the Eagles finally went 1-to-1 on the run/pass ratio? Until McNabb gets back to 100%, the Eagles have to hammer Brian Westbrook, Correll Buckhalter and Tony Hunt into the opposition. Westbrook carried the ball just 17 times last night for 96 yards. True, he caught 8 passes for another 66 yards, but the Eagles need to work him into the rushing game more.
So, a good night for one team and a bad one for another. Tonight, Cole Hamels returns to the Phillies and tries to run the Phillies winning streak to six games.
Labels: Fielding, Hamels, Mets, Playoffs, Rowand
Comments:
Am I the only one who found themselves making deals with the sports gods offering up the eagles in exchange for a phillies victory during those harrowing middle-late innings? Seriously. In the middle of a super-exciting pennant race with some exceptional characters on the team (Jimmy Rollins is I think the best lead-by-example, great-attiude man in sports) WIP blathers on about eagles 40th round picks and other nonsense. Go Phils!
- Burrellfan
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- Burrellfan
# posted by 
: Tuesday, September 18, 2007 10:15:00 AM
: Tuesday, September 18, 2007 10:15:00 AM
