Scott Mathieson, who many people thought would compete this Spring for a spot in the Phillies’ bullpen, was among the first group of players to be reassigned to the club’s minor league camp. Mathieson was named the Phillies’ top right hand pitching prospect by Baseball America in 2005, but he has had two Tommy John surgeries since making his major league debut on June 17, 2006.
He has since battled back and routinely hit the high 90s while pitching with the Reading Phillies last season. Despite his recent success, GM Ruben Amaro Jr., manager Charlie Manuel and pitching coach Rich Dubee indicated early on that they believed that Mathieson still needed a lot of innings against live hitters before making it back to the big league club.
“He’s a guy we didn’t feel was going to be ready to go in April [for us] and be refined enough in his secondary stuff to be able to compete for a job at the big league level,” Amaro …
After what has been quite a lengthy absence, we here at Hot Stove Philly have returned. As tends to happen from time to time, life got in the way of our more enjoyable, and unfortunately less lucrative, pursuits.
Nevertheless, life has calmed down somewhat, and with that, we are able to focus more of our efforts to doing what we love to do, namely comment on Philly sports.
Our return is not without its changes, however. Hot Stove Philly will now be a Phillies focused sports site. That’s not to say we won’t ever comment on the goings on at the Wachovia Center or Lincoln Financial Field, but the primary concern will be what is happening within the friendly confines at One Citizens Bank Way.
The reason for this are simple. We are better at providing insight and analysis on baseball than we are at the other sports and while there has been a dramatic increase in the number of Phillies blogs with their recent success, we believe that we will be able to provide you with the …
It’s official, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Roy Halladay is a member of the Philadelphia Phillies and will be introduced at a 5 PM press conference. The Phillies are expected to announce his contract extension that will keep him in Philadelphia until 2013, as well as the news that they have traded Cliff Lee to the Seattle Mariners for three prospects.
Whew. Now we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief. The rumor mill can stop spinning, at least for a day.
The Phillies are expected to announce that Halladay has been acquired for minor leaguers Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis d’Arnaud. Likewise, they are expected to announce that they have acquired pitching prospects Phillippe Aumont and J.C. Ramirez, as well as outfielder Tyson Gillies, from the Mariners.
The blogosphere went into an online frenzy around 2 PM Wednesday after it was learned that one of the players in the deal (as of this time it is unknown who) failed his physical. Shortly thereafter …
Update: SI.com’s Jon Heyman is reporting that the deal is done and it involves the Phillies, Blue Jays and Mariners. Heyman is awaiting confirmation that Cliff Lee is the player being traded to Seattle, but that is the most likely scenario.
CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury is reporting that the Phillies are in negotiations with Roy Halladay over a possible contract extension. Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that Halladay and his agent have checked into an area hotel room.
A source also told Salisbury that Halladay is expected to undergo a physical exam with the Phillies medical staff later this week.
I’ll give you a moment to catch your breathe and compose yourself…..
OK, glad to have you back.
It is unclear, according to Salisbury, who the Phillies would trade away IF this deal were to actually happen, but there has been rampant speculation all day that one of those players could be Cliff Lee.
In an article written Monday on Foxsports.com, Ken Rosenthal wrote that while he had …
Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has repeatedly said that the team’s top priority this offseason, now that they have bolstered their bench and replaced third baseman Pedro Feliz, is to sure up a bullpen that bruised and battered for much of last season.
Brandon Lyon and J.J. Putz are both players that the Phillies were said to have had serious interest in coming into this week’s baseball Winter Meetings in Indianapolis.
Both players have since signed with other teams (Lyon with Houston, Putz with the Chicago White Sox). Scott Eyre and Chan Ho Park were integral parts of the Phillies run to the World Series last season (and particularly Eyre, who was invaluable in the team’s 2008 World Series victory), and yet negotiations with both teams appear to be at a standstill. Indications from Amaro are that there is a good chance the Phillies will move on from both players and replace them with younger talent, most likely players currently in their farm system.
So what gives?
The Phillies are …
The Eagles announced today that they have reached an agreement on a contract extension with coach Andy Reid that will keep him in Philly until at least 2013.
At the end of his contract, Reid will have coached the Eagles for 15 years, the longest of any coach or manager in Philadelphia since the vaunted Connie Mack.
As noted by 97.5 The Fanatic Eagles beat reporter Brian Seltzer, this ensures that Reid will have responsibility on deciding the long term quarterback situation for the Eagles, as Donovan McNabb’s current contract will expire before Reid’s.
Reid is the winningest coach in team history, taking the Eagles to five NFC Championship games and one SuperBowl. The Eagles have reached the playoffs seven times under Reid. He has compiled 115 wins since being named Eagles coach in 1999.
Despite his obvious success as coach and de facto GM of the Eagles, Reid has his fair share of detractors. The biggest knock against Big Red is that he cannot seem to get the Eagles …
“A 6 foot guard from Georgetown…”
Come on, tell me you didn’t get goosebumps. Whether you like Allen Iverson, or hate him, you watched Monday night. And if you’re an AI fan, you made sure to set the DVR and get home in time to turn the game on a little before 7 PM to make sure you didn’t miss the starting lineups, which you knew would be televised.
In case you missed it, the video is below.
Yea, the Sixers lost, and A.I.2 ended up stealing the show with a point performance, but it was really special seeing No. 3 back in a Sixers uniform again. True, it’s obvious he’s lost a little on his shot, and still has some work to do before he gets back to the appropriate NBA conditioning level, evidenced by his scoring only 11 points in 37 minutes and missing seven of his 11 shots….
Saturday was a tough night for Philly sports.
Peter Laviolette’s debut as the new coach of the Flyers was not exactly the first impression he was hoping to leave the faithful of the Orange and Black. It was a debut that will leave a bitter taste in his mouth for some time to come. And it started immediately.
The Washington Capitals struck in the first minute of the game, as well as on five of their first 17 shots on their way to an 8-2 win. All without star Alexander Ovechkin.
The firing of coach John Stevens was supposed to be a wake up call for the reeling Flyers; a jolt to jump start a run back up the Eastern Conference standings. Instead the Flyers looked as bad as ever. Goalie Ray Emery continued to struggle, having his worst outing of the season. He allowed five goals before being replaced by backup Brian Boucher midway through the second period, giving him a 5.36 goals-against average and .814 save percentage …
Who says you can’t go home again?
The day after the Sixers announced that Allen Iverson was coming back to Philly, it is being widely reported that the Phillies are aggressively pursuing former second baseman Placido Polanco to replace third baseman Pedro Feliz.
Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman reported on his Twitter page that the deal is said to be worth $18 million over three years. According to Heyman, the Phillies like Polanco to move over to third base and bat second behind shortstop Jimmy Rollins. Center fielder Shane Victorino would move down in the lineup to a stronger run producing spot.
MLB.com Phillies reporter Todd Zolecki is reporting that the deal includes a mutual option for 2013.
Polanco played for the Phillies starting in 2002 when he was traded by the St. Louis Cardinals for Scott Rolen until 2005 when he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Ugueth Urbina. He is a career .303 hitter with a .348 on base percentage.
The deal is expected to be finalized Thursday pending …
Sixers’ GM Ed Stefanski announced Wednesday that the team has agreed to terms with their former number one pick, Allen Iverson. The deal is reportedly a non-guaranteed prorated contract for the league minimum, meaning the Sixers would owe Iverson approximately $600,000 and would be free to cut him before January without being responsible for the remainder of his contract.
Iverson, agent Leon Rose, and his personal manager, Gary Moore met with Stefanski, assistant GM Tony DiLeo, coach Eddie Jordan and assistant coach and former teammate Aaron McKie on Monday to discuss the possibility of his return.
Stefanski and Rose met again on Tuesday.
Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider gave his approval for the deal on Monday, saying that the final decision was up to Stefanski and the basketball operations people.
The Sixers, losers of seven straight, are in desparate need of a pick-me-up. Point guard Lou Williams will be sidelined another seven weeks with a broken jaw. Starting in his place is rookie Jrue Holiday. They have the second worst attendance …
There are currently two debates raging in the Philly sports world.
First, who wants Sixers’ center Samuel Dalembert out of the city more: Dalembert, or the city? According to a report this morning by ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Sixers are in talks with the Sacremento Kings, and possibly the Boston Celtics, about a deal that would send the embattled center to the Left Coast for Kenny Thomas. The Celtics would get Andres Nocioni. Tony Allen and Brian Scalabrine would also come to the Sixers, and the Kings would get J.R. Giddens.
According to the Philadelphia Daily News’ Sixers’ beat reproter, Kate Fagan, the deal does not appear to be close to happening. She also remarked, “don’t think Dalembert is content being a Sixer. His party is actively looking for a new home for the Sixers’ center.”
On the flip side, a comment by The 700 Level’s Enrico Campitelli aptly sums up the city’s feelings on the possible departure of the former Seton Hall grad:
Okay, let’s play a game. Here’s …
Consider your suffering eased, I have returned. After a month and a half hiatus, I am back at Hot Stove Philly, and you may all now breath a collective sigh of relief. Woo. Good.
Unfortunately, it seems I may have returned to the Philly sports world with little to be excited about. The Phillies season is over. The Eagles are inconsistent at best, and embarrassing at worst. The Sixers make the Eagles look good. The Flyers are the best thing going, and they’re in fourth place in their division. Could it be possible that the Phillies’ off season is the most interesting thing in Philly sports right now?
As the kids say today, wtf mate?
Despite another incredible season that saw the Fightins get to their second straight World Series, they were clearly outmatched by a superior Yankees team. The Bronx Bombers had better hitters, better starting pitching and a better bullpen. Hard to win when under those circumstances.
The series put into sharp contract the glaring holes that need to be addressed by GM Ruben Amaro Jr. and …
