By Pete Thompson
Fun fact…I watched a lot of “Action News” growing up, and probably viewed it the most my junior year of high school. One thing I remember vividly is that Dave Roberts, the weatherman, would always say at this time of year, “we’re going to have another day with the three H’s…Hazy…Hot…and Humid!” That definitely describes how things feel at the shore right now, but I hope you’re reading this on a beach somewhere, or in the cool air conditioning as you social distance and wear your mask.
Since I last wrote, the Phillies continue their “summer camp” and are getting closer to playing actual baseball. And wait until you learn how they plan to make their home games feel less like an “empty” stadium and more like a normal experience. The NHL teams that are going to return have done so and are getting ready to leave for Toronto or Edmonton. Most of the Sixers are in Orlando, inside the bubble, as their games are right around the corner. The Eagles are continuing to deal with the DeSean Jackson situation. In golf, I made a slight mistake last week, but it’s easily correctible. We’ll call it a “mulligan” for the columnist. Oh, and I sat down and did something last week that I rarely do regarding watching sports on TV.
From the entertainment world, I got to show a 1987 favorite movie to my girlfriend and her son that they had never seen. Hopefully you’ll check it out too, if you haven’t. I signed up for the new PEACOCK streaming service. “Tough as Nails” was everything I hoped for…you should definitely check that out too. As always though, we begin with sports, and my thoughts:
It’s been fascinating to see the Phillies get ready for the 60-game season at an empty Citizens Bank Park. Not long after I wrote last week’s column, catcher J.T. Realmuto hit a grand slam in an intra-squad game. Star outfielder Bryce Harper crossed home plate and yelled out “SIGN HIM” at the top of his lungs, knowing the cameras would be rolling. Harper has made no secret of the fact that he wants Realmuto in Philly for the long haul. The premier catcher can become a free agent after the season, and what the Phillies will do will most likely hang over the team on a daily basis until something gets done.
I completely see both sides of the Realmuto issue. He’s the top catcher in baseball and wants to be paid as such. The Phillies are trying to remind him that this isn’t a normal season and they may not have the revenue to pay him an extraordinary amount. As a lifelong Phillies fan, I just want them to find a way and not lose this guy. If there’s one thing that bothers the Philly sports fan, it’s losing a player because you didn’t want to pay him what he was worth. I mean, speaking of worth, when Jayson Werth left, I felt that price was too high. But, I think they can find a number for Realmuto and pair him with Harper as the 1-2 punch the Phillies need. Two bona fide superstars on the same team!
Of course, I’m not the GM, and I’m definitely not John Middleton, who has to answer to an ownership group that is going to see major losses in revenue this year with no fans, concessions, etc. I get it. Doesn’t mean I have to like it, but I get it. I’m with Bryce though; “Sign him!”
Speaking of no fans, the Phillies have released some of their plans on how the home game experience will be at Citizens Bank Park when baseball begins on July 24th. According to David Buck, Executive Vice President, the Phillies will pump canned crowd noise through their PA system, cardboard cutouts of fans will fill the seats, and the Phillie Phanatic will roam the ballpark alone while practicing social distancing. The plan is to take audio tracks from the popular Sony video game, MLB The Show, and to mix those in to provide a gentle background to the regular noise on the field.
One thing that some teams have already said they will do, and the Phillies appear to be leaning in this direction, is to allow fans to purchase a cardboard cutout of themselves in their seat. The Oakland A’s have already done this with the added bonus that if a foul ball hits your cutout, you’ll be sent the foul ball…! The Mets are doing the same thing with proceeds going toward a COVID-19 relief fund. I could easily see the Phillies doing something like this and think it’s a great idea.
In the NHL, as I write this, the Flyers skated as a full group at their practice facility in Voorhees for the first time in 124 days. This is Stage 3 of the NHL’s return to play, and I, for one, am stoked. The Flyers will take part in a round-robin event first before starting the Stanley Cup Playoffs. As the 4 seed currently, they can only move up and not down coming out of round-robin play, so I think this is a perfect scenario for them.
34 players are in camp, including goalie Carter Hart, but center Nolan Patrick is not on the list. There are 18 forwards, 12 defenseman and four goalies in camp right now, Patrick has been out for the entire season with a migraine disorder and it appears the plan is for him to try & rejoin the club next year. In the meantime, 20-year-old defenseman Egor Zamula was on the ice. Zamula was a free-agent signing by then GM Ron Hextall in 2018 and we’ll see if he can make enough of an impact to get onto the travel roster. I think this is more a reward and a “look-see” on a prospect that’s had some health issues and a back surgery.
Since we’re on surgery, defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere revealed that he had another minor knee surgery about seven weeks ago. The guy they call “Ghost” says it’s no big deal and he should be ready to go in Toronto.
My final Flyers item is on Mark Friedman, as the 24-year-old is generally regarded as the #8 defenseman on the roster, and he gets a new contract extension worth a reported $725,000. Friedman is a good “insurance policy” to have in case one of the top six guys gets hurt, or “Ghost” can’t go. Good move by GM Chuck Fletcher to sign him to a two-year extension.
Did you see Sixers center Joel Embiid don a full hazmat suit for the team flight down to Florida the other day? Embiid is nothing if not watchable, and you weren’t sure if his decision to do that was a joke, or was he really that scared to go to the state of Florida, which is having a huge spike up in COVID-19 numbers right now. Either way, the Sixers are hoping Embiid and Ben Simmons can be a dominant 1-2 combo during the 22-team NBA restart at Walt Disney World. The Sixers have been using Simmons at power forward, and having Shake Milton running things at point guard. At 6-10, but with extraordinary court vision, Simmons could be ideal next to Embiid down low and if Milton can deliver from the point, the Sixers could be lethal!
Free agent signee Ryan Broekhoff is not with the team right now because his wife tested positive for COVID-19, but other than that, most of the Sixers are healthy and ready to go. Their first scrimmage is on July 24th against the Memphis Grizzlies. Their first actual game is August 1st against the Indiana Pacers. Let’s go!
Since I last wrote, the Eagles fined, but did not release wide receiver DeSean Jackson. They did say the fine was only the first step in a process that they felt he should take to learn more about the Holocaust & Jewish history. As such, Jackson participated in a Zoom call with 94-year-old Edward Mosberg, who is a survivor of the Holocaust. He also accepted an invitation from Mosberg to go to Poland and actually walk the grounds of Auschwitz at some point. With the world still grappling with COVID-19 restrictions and such, it’s not clear when D-Jax will actually visit Auschwitz, but to me this is a good step in the right direction toward Jackson making an attempt to learn more and not forward insensitive or hateful comments by others again.
Remember, the Eagles coaches are already in-house now and they are under quarantine. Rookies, select vets & QB’s will report on July 22nd. The team will use both the NovaCare Complex and Lincoln Financial Field as it complies with pandemic protocols for training camp.
My need for a golf “mulligan” comes from the fact that I didn’t realize they were playing back –to-back events at Muirfield Village on the PGA Tour. See, the John Deere Classic was abruptly called off because of COVID-19, so the folks at Workday agreed to sponsor a tour stop at Jack’s Place the week BEFORE the Memorial. What a tournament too, as Collin Morikawa hung on long enough to beat Justin Thomas on the 3rd playoff hole to win. The finish had multiple dramatic moments and even though there’s no gallery, I continue to be mesmerized each week by the drama that the PGA Tour can create. I felt bad for Thomas who was three strokes up with three to play, but man was it fun to watch.
Now, they’ll have the regular Memorial, on the same course, but it won’t be anything like last week. The greens will be faster, the rough will be a little higher, and a guy named Eldrick is playing. That’s right, Tiger Woods is scheduled to return to regular competition at this weekend’s Memorial. He’s paired in a group with Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka for the first & second round. I can’t wait!
Just like every year I can’t wait to watch the American Century Championship, aka, the CELEBRITY golf event at Lake Tahoe. They played it without fans at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course, but the folks on the boats were there, and they made just enough noise to make things fun. Former tennis pro Mardy Fish won the event by nine points over former Buffalo Bills DT Kyle Williams. They use a modified Stableford scoring system, but all you really need to know is pars or better are good!
Former Sixer and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley was there, and didn’t finish DFL…that honor went to former Titans RB Eddie George. Also, a Phillies group was included for the first time as the trio of Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins & Shane Victorino enjoyed their first time all paired together in Tahoe. Love this event and can’t wait to see it again next year when the fans can hopefully return.
My last sports item is about the Philadelphia Union. Just how starved am I to watch live & local sports? I watched the entire Union match against NYCFC the other morning on ESPN when it started at 9 a.m. I usually save my soccer watching for when the World Cup rolls around, but here was a Philadelphia team, playing LIVE on ESPN. I simply had to watch.
As usual, I’ll close with a few items from entertainment as one of my great pleasures is showing a movie that I loved in the 80’s to my girlfriend’s 24-year-old son. So, I DVR’d and we watched the 1987 comedy “Summer School” the other day. Making things even better was that Susan had never seen it either…! I was 16-years-old when Mark Harmon & Kirstie Alley had the two starring roles in this lighthearted movie about a gym teacher who is forced to teach Summer School and actually makes a difference in his students lives. I had forgotten it was written & directed by the now late, great, Carl Reiner. There are some aspects to the plot that wouldn’t hold up today, for example 16-year-old Courtney Thorne Smith having the hots for her teacher and actually moving in with him for a brief period of time. However, the movie overall will make you chuckle and maybe remember what high school was like for you in the 80’s. “Summer School”, by Carl Reiner…I definitely give it five PT’s.
On TV, I signed up for the free version of the PEACOCK streaming service. Haven’t watched any of it yet, but I know a lot of the shows I loved in my youth were on NBC and “Must See TV”, so I figured I might as well sign up at the launch. I doubt I’d pay for the service though.
Lastly, “Tough as Nails” on CBS was awesome. If you’re not watching it, you still have time to catch up. It’s hosted by Phil Keoghan from “The Amazing Race,” and it’s a reality show competition about people who hang drywall, sheetrock, weld, etc. So far, they have team competitions and individual competitions and I will never look at a wheelbarrow or a brick paving tool the same way again. It’s definitely something I recommend watching.
As always, please stay safe & healthy as we now have our peak population swell with the summer residents here too. Please try and be kind. Nothing bad ever happened to someone who led with kindness, right? Oh, and wear your mask. Let’s all knock down this COVID-19 together.
Pete has been the local “sports guy” at the Jersey Shore since 2004. After a decade with TV 40, he joined 97.3 ESPN radio to talk Eagles, Phillies, Sixers & Flyers with Mike Gill on “The SportsBash” each day from 2-6 p.m.
Pete is proud to be a “voice” for the annual ShopRite LPGA Classic each June, and does emcee work for groups like the National Football Foundation, The Old Grad Awards, and The 200 Club of Atlantic County. You can hear Pete each Tuesday on 97.3 ESPN at 5:30p, and if you see him out & about in the community, he requests that you please say “Hi”. Send comments to PBrooksT@aol.com
