Sports & Entertainment
By Pete Thompson
By the time you read this, preparations for the 4th of July holiday weekend will be well underway. Happy Birthday America and let me be one of the first to say how GREAT it is to be able to celebrate without masks!
In sports, since I last wrote, the Phillies could only manage a 2-4 record through a critical six game stretch. The Eagles get some good news from the NFL regarding uniform colors. Former Eagles QB Ron Jaworski is able to hold his celebrity golf event again. A former Flyers coach gets a chance to prove he wasn’t the problem in Philadelphia. The Sixers continue to try and analyze what went wrong, while Ben Simmons makes an announcement regarding the Olympics. In golf, one week after the U.S. Open, a regular tour event in Connecticut gives us a thrilling finish. Plus, on the local front, Mike Adams is on the move again in minor league baseball and now finds himself just one step shy of the big leagues.
From entertainment, a legendary singer has Citizens Bank Park on his farewell tour, but can anyone afford the price of tickets? Plus, BROOOOOCE is back on Broadway. As always though, we begin with sports, and my thoughts:
I’ll start with the Phillies as they had a critical six-game stretch of games against two division opponents and, to put it mildly, underperformed. They could only go 2-4 in those six games, and watched their bullpen blow leads repeatedly.
None was worse than the first game of a doubleheader in New York last Friday when Aaron Nola tied a MLB record by striking out ten (10) batters in a row, only to watch his teammates blow a 1-zip lead and eventually lose 2-1 in eight innings. Nola ties Tom Seaver’s record set 51 years ago with ten consecutive strikeouts, but it ultimately didn’t matter after an embarrassing two-base error by relief pitcher Jose Alvarado
We had former Phillies shortstop and manager Larry Bowa on the radio on 97.3 ESPN last Sunday to try and find out why the Phillies are such a poor team defensively. One of the greatest fielders of his time is as perplexed as the rest of us as to why the Phillies keep booting the ball at critical moments!
Also in that series, the Phillies managed to score two runs of the best pitcher in baseball this season, Jacob deGrom, but even that didn’t matter as once again, the bullpen in the bottom of the 9th. This time it was a fielding error by Rhys Hoskins and then a blown save from Hector Neris that lead to a Mets 4-3 victory.
A closer look at the numbers shows that the Phillies starting pitchers in the four-game series with the Mets had a 0.39 ERA in 23.1 innings pitched with only 1 earned run given up, 14 hits and a strikeout to walk ratio of 26 to 5…!!! I mean, c’mon…if you get starting pitching like that, you SHOULD win! And yet the Phillies are going nowhere fast.
As I write this, the Phillies have lost in Cincinnati in another game where they initially led, and, you guessed it, the bullpen faltered. Up 4-2, this time it was newcomer Neftali Feliz who gave up a grand slam to Nick Castellano as the Reds eventually won 12 to 4.
I’ll say it here first, that the Phillies will probably only have ONE all-star and it’s clearly Zack Wheeler. His final strikeout in a 4-2 win over the Mets last Sunday was his 130th of the season, lifting him into a tie with the Indians’ Shane Bieber for the big league lead. Wheeler, who lowered his ERA to 2.20, also leads the majors with 106 1/3 innings pitched.
Time to switch to the Eagles now as they got some good news off the field as the NFL is getting rid of a rule put in place in 2013 that prevented teams from using multiple helmets during the season. That paves the way for the Eagles to make the Kelly green jersey and helmet the team’s alternate uniform.
Let me say “well, it’s ABOUT time!” I’m all in favor of this, as the rule was enacted as a safety measure related to concussions, so players would practice and play in the same helmet. But that also prevented them from wearing anything but a midnight green helmet. I’ve always loved the Kelly green look, and even though this won’t take effect until the 2022 season, consider me stoked!
In other football news, I caught up with former Birds QB Ron Jaworski the other day in Galloway as they held the 37th annual Ron Jaworski Celebrity Golf Challenge. I’ve been covering this event in some form or fashion since 2004, and each year I look forward to the various celebrities and folks that show up to support “Jaws”. The big beneficiary is the area youth, as the golf event is Jaws Youth Playbook’s crown-jewel fundraiser for at-risk youth in our community and helps build playgrounds and ball-fields, donate sports equipment, distribute hundreds of bikes over the holidays, support summer meals for kids and much more! Over the years — with help from generous sponsors and donors — JYP has raised more than $6 million to support underserved youth in the Greater Philadelphia & New Jersey area.
One more bit of news from football as the “voice” of NFL Films is posthumously going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio this summer. John Facenda, a Philadelphia broadcaster who later became known as “The Voice of God,” has been posthumously awarded the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award, which is given each year to a member of the media for “longtime exceptional contributions to radio and television in professional football.” Facenda’s son, Jack, will accept the award on behalf of his father during the Hall of Fame’s ceremony in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 6th.
From hockey, did you see who the expansion Seattle Kraken hired as their first head coach in franchise history? None other than former Flyers bench boss Dave Hakstol. There are a lot of folks who thought “Hak” was a failure in Philadelphia, but I would argue that the Flyers did make the playoffs in two of his three full seasons as head coach. Plus, how many coaches in all the sports have we seen “not cut it” in Philadelphia, but then go elsewhere and win? That list is loaded with coaches who at first appeared out of their depth only to fare better in their second or third go-rounds, either because their circumstances had changed or they themselves had. To list a few, look at Gabe Kapler, Terry Francona or Andy Reid. That’s probably my greatest fear, is that Hakstol will succeed and even thrive in Seattle and we fired the guy.
In basketball, Ben Simmons agent Rich Paul met with Sixers brass not long after the Game 7 loss to Atlanta, but no one knows for sure what came out of that sit down. All that we DO know right now is that Simmons has informed the Australian Olympic Committee that he is skipping the Tokyo Games to “develop his skills”. Sixers coach Doc Rivers says the team “has a plan” to work with Simmons.
The numbers, in case you forgot, are harsh. Simmons, 24, struggled at the free throw line in the postseason, dropping from a 60% foul shooter in the regular season to 34.2% in the playoffs. He also didn’t attempt a field goal in the fourth quarter in Games 4 through 7 of the 76ers’ series against the Atlanta Hawks as Philadelphia was eliminated in seven games. Simmons scored 19 total points in the final three games of the series.
One final Sixers note as yes, that WAS center Joel Embiid walking around the city of Margate last week. In this day and age, lots of people had their cell phones out and were clicking away as it’s not every day you see a 7-footer walking near the corner of Essex and Atlantic Avenues in Margate!
Just one week after the U.S. Open in golf, I have to address what took place at the Traveler’s Championship last weekend in Connecticut. Normally the week after a major is kind of a slow week, but kudos to Harris English and Kramer Hickok for the thrilling golf they treated us all to in Cromwell. Both players birdied 18 in regulation to force a playoff, and then they proceeded to go EIGHT playoff holes until English finally won it. That’s the second-longest sudden death playoff in PGA Tour history and I was riveted.
They played 18 again — twice — and parred it again — twice. On to No. 17, then 18, then 17, then 18, then 18 again: All pars. Hickok lipped out on two long birdie putts that would have won it; on the sixth playoff hole, English missed a 7-foot birdie putt to win.
I have to admit, I was rooting for the underdog and so was the crowd too as the crowd at the 18th green chanted “Kramer!” and did the wave while it waited for the golfers to head back and forth to the tee. On the final trip down the 438-yard par-4 — their seventh of the day and 10th of the weekend — Hickok put his second shot 28 feet from the pin and two-putted. English landed his approach 16 feet away and made birdie to win. Bravo to those two men, as again, I was captivated by it all. Great drama!
On the local front I have two items and they are both baseball related. First, major props to the Tri-Cape team at the Phillies Carpenter Cup, as they win it for the first time ever. Tri-Cape featured Holy Spirit grads Jayden Shertel & Dave Hagaman, as well as Chase Petty, Mark Elliott and Cole Campbell from Mainland. Ryan Taylor & Jackson Vanesko from St. Augustine. Cole Mercado from St. Joe and David Appolonia & Justin Sweeney from EHT.
Also, congrats to Mike Adams as the Holy Spirit graduate and relief pitcher is now just ONE step away from the big leagues. Adams got the call last Thursday that he was skipping Double A and going right to the Triple-a Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. The 26-year-old was 1-1 with a 7.59 ERA for the High-A Jersey Shore BlueClaws. He struck out 13 in 10 2/3 innings. In his last four outings, he did not allow a run and struck out four and walked three in 4 1/3 innings. Way to go Mike!
As always, I’ll close with a few items from entertainment as Elton John has announced a stop at the home of the Phillies, Citizens Bank Park, as part of his Yellow Brick Road: The Final Tour. According to the press release, this will be his final stadium tour, closing out with dates at Dodger Stadium in November of 2022. My girlfriend is a HUGE fan of Elton John, but we are only going if the ticket prices aren’t outrageous. No need to take out a second mortgage just to see an artist play the piano!
Finally, speaking of legendary artists, it was nice to see Bruce Springsteen return to Broadway as shows in New York are beginning once again. His Springsteen on Broadway show resumed last week, and after easing in with opener “Growin’ Up,” Springsteen sat on a piano bench and gave words to the moment: “It’s good to see everyone together, unmasked, sitting next to one another in one room.” He then followed with a brief summation of his past year, which included one album (Letter to You), one podcast series with former president Barack Obama (Renegades: Born in the USA), and one arrest for accepting two tequila shots from fans while on a motorcycle at a federal park in New Jersey last November. To great laughter, Springsteen groused about his day in “Zoom court” and admitted to having felt no small amount of apprehension over his dauntingly named court case, The United States v. Bruce Springsteen. Of course, the whole ordeal was much ado about nothing, for one obvious reason: “New Jersey? They love me there.”
I’ll close with a word about masks. Most places are now mask OFF. However, I still encourage you to carry one with you just in case. Be courteous and check what the rules & protocols are for each place prior to entering. Summer is finally here. Let’s enjoy it SAFELY, okay?
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
