Hiatus

Hey everyone, I apologize for being on hiatus for so long. I am really going to try this time to make semi-regular posts to the blog. I have a lot going on with school and job hunting but I need to get our my frustrations with politics and my insights on sports so I will be back posting soon

Philadelphia Phillies Playoff Preview

Season recap

For the third consecutive year, the Phillies won the NL East. They finished with a record of 93-69 and we’re never really threatened by anyone in the division.

Starters

The Phillies have one of the best starting rotations in the league. Despite underachieving this year, Cole Hamels is still the ace of this staff and has shown how good he can be in the Phillies World Series run. The acquisition of Cliff Lee from Cleveland this year could be the biggest trade of the year. Lee has been nothing short of spectacular since coming over from the Indians, but his late season struggles have been a little concerting for Phillies fans heading into the playoffs. Joe Blanton and Pedro Martinez have both resurrected their careers in Philadelphia this year and round out a very balanced Phillies Rotation.

Relievers

One word describes the Phillies relievers this year, awful. After having a great year last year, the Phillies bullpen has struggled mightily. After posting a perfect 2009, closer Brad Lidge has a 7.21 ERA this year and can’t seem to get anyone out. Scott Eyre, Ryan Madson, and JC Romero have also underachieved and unless the Phillies get their bullpen in order, they will have a hard time repeating.

Lineup

The Phillies have a solid lineup from top to bottom but will need more production from some of their big names come playoff times. Jimmy Rollins has been awful this year hitting just. 250 from the leadoff spot, and Raul Ibanez has really struggled since the All-Star Break. Shane Victorino, Ryan Howard, and Chase Utley have all had great all around years and will hope to keep up their success in the post-season. The Phillies also have all-around player Jayson Werth who always seems to come up clutch despite his mediocre stats. Pedro Feliz and Carlos Ruiz are both low-average hitters that round out the Phillies lineup.

Defense

The Phillies have one of the better defenses in the National League. Jimmy Rollins is probably the best fielding shortstop in the league, Chase Utley always plays solid at second, and Shane Victorino’s speed makes him a huge asset in center field

Bench

The Phillies biggest plus may be its bench. In the run to the World Series last year, the Phillies got big hits from Greg Dobbs and Matt Stairs. Both of these bench players are back to pinch hit if needed in the playoffs. Throw in all-around player Ben Francisco, who was acquired with Cliff Lee from Cleveland, and the Phillies have the best bench out of any team in the playoffs.

Coaching

The verdict on Charlie Manuel as a manager is still out. Many in Philadelphia were calling for his head last year, but he turned around and won the Phillies their first world series in over 20 years. One thing Charlie Manuel excels at is putting his players in a position to succeed, and always seems to know who to call on in big situations (see Matt Stairs).

Reason why they will win the WS

The Phillies are the most experienced team in the National League, and coming off a World Series title last year, they already know what to expect. While experience may be overrated, the Phillies will use this along with their potent offensive lineup to compete. The one good thing about the Phillies is that they can win any kind of game, they can score 11 runs if necessary but they can also win a 2-1 game.

Reason why they won’t win the WS

One word, bullpen. As stated above, the Phillies starting pitching is great, but the bullpen hasn’t been able to hold leads all year. If the Phillies do not win the world series, I guarantee Brad Lidge and company will be at least partially to blame

I'm Back

Hey guys, I apologize for the long break, I had a very busy summer and start of Fall but I am back now and will try to post things as regularly as possible. I'm sure I lost some of my audience but I'll work as hard as I can to get them back. I hope you guys are ready for some more great articles

Arlen Specter to Become a Democrat

The big news out of Washington today is the Pennsylvania senator Arlen Specter has decided to switch from a Republican to a Democrat. This comes as big news because it will give the Democrats their 60 filibuster proof majority assuming the Al Franken ruling holds up. Arlen Specter is a knieving, arrogant politician who only cares about getting elected and will do whatever he can in order to do that. Arlen Specter decided to become a Democrat only after Republican Pat Toomey challenged him in the primary and Specter realized that his political life was in serious jeopardy. Specter has no morals and will vote whatever way he has to in order to stay in power, and I would like nothing more than him to lose in the Democratic primary. No matter what party you are, the people of Pennsylvania and the United States deserve better than this piece of trash.

Here is Jason Edwards stance on the issue

Breaking news today Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania said he would be switching parties. Senator Specter has always been a moderate republican. He has often been frustrated with the very conservative stance of the republican party. Specter was facing a challenging re-election bid in 2010. This gives him a better chance of winning and also a better outlet to stand for what he believes in.
"I am unwilling to have my twenty-nine year Senate record judged by the Pennsylvania Republican primary electorate. I have not represented the Republican Party. I have represented the people of Pennsylvania," Specter said in a statement. "I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election."
The democrats are more than happy to welcome Specter to the party because once Al Franken officially wins the senate race in Minnesota. The democrats will then have the 60 votes needed to stop the republican filibuster. This will give the democrats an easier time in passing their legislation.

GM Is Becoming a Royal Debacle

This article is by Jason Edwards

No wonder the king's mediation of 40 years of stalemated labor and business issues in the auto sector isn't going so well. There's a reason royal discretion has long been outmoded as a way to run an economy: Things just work better if a realm's subjects are left to resolve their own disputes and interests through the impersonal mechanism of the markets and the law says Jenkins in the WSJ today. The president should have never took over GM or Chrysler (GM is worst out of the 2). Let them go into bankruptcy! I don't know what else needs to happen for the president to realize that the market and consumers decide what kind of cars they want not the government. This is not the job of the president. GM is just drowning faster and faster while the government stands by their side attempting to help (key word attempting). Go into chapter 11, restructure, and when the market returns so will the auto industry. The problem is that they are not making a profit (GM was number 6 in Forbes 500s). People are still buying cars. The problem is that they are paying billions in health care to retirees (a reason we need to reform health care) and the UAW wages are the highest out all the automakers. In chapter 11 all this can be fixed. There is no need for government intervention.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124035637935940943.html

Please Just Let the Automakers Go Into Bankruptcy

This article is written by Jason Edwards

The government is set to give another $500 million to Chrysler and another $5 billion to GM. This needs to stop now! There comes a point when you just need to say enough is enough. These companies are never going to get their act together because they know the government will just keep dishing out the money. Because the government keeps giving them money they have no motivation to change. Ford on the other hand is doing all that it can to change its companies policies because they know they have nothing to fall back on (in the long run Ford will be a viable company I believe). This is exactly what the Tea Parties were about; throwing money at a bad situation. It is not helping the auto companies at all. Let them go into chapter 11 and restructure. In the short term it will be hard to watch employees losing their jobs (even though with government money employees are still losing their jobs) but in the long run it will make for a more viable auto company.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090421/bs_afp/uscompanyautopublicaidgmchrysler_20090421173310

NBA Playoff Update (Western Conference)

Here is the Western Conference Playoff picture so far.

#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. #8 Utah Jazz (1-0 Lakers)

The Lakers got out to a 22 point lead at halftime of game 1, but the Jazz made a spiritied comeback and had it down to single digits in the 4th quarter before ultimately losing by 13. Lakers are the favorites to win the NBA Championship but this series is going to be much closer than people think. I think both teams hold serve at home and the Lakers take this one in 7.

#2 Denver Nuggets vs #7 New Orleans Hornets (1-0 Nuggets)

The Nuggets drilled the Hornets in game 1 but this series is far from over. Chris Paul and David West will both play much better throughout the series. This series features two very even teams despite the difference in seeding and the play of JR Smith off the bench for Denver could be the deciding factor in this series. I like the Nuggets in 7.

#3 San Antonio Spurs vs. #6 Dallas Mavericks (1-1)

The Spurs came back after their disastrous game 1 performance and looked like a completely different team. Obviously the loss of Ginobli hurts them, but they showed in game 2 that they aren't going to go down in this series without a fight. The Mavericks and Spurs have both been inconsistent at times this year but both teams are very talented and I expect this to be a hard fought series. Mavericks in 6

#4 Portland Trailblazers vs. #5 Houston Rockets

The Rockets blasted the Trailblazers in game 1, and believe me that was no mirage. The Rockets are a more talented, savvy, veteran-led team and I expect them to have no problem with the young Blazers. I'm taking the Rockets in 5

NBA Playoff Update (Eastern Conference)

The NBA Playoffs have been nothing short of spectacular so far, and here is my update of all the Eastern conference series.

#1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #8 Detroit Pistons (Cavs 1-0)

The Cavaliers demolished the Pistons is game 1 and I expect the series to be more of the same. This is not the same Pistons team from years past and without Chauncey Billups, they cannot even be competitive with the Cavs. I like the Cavaliers to take this series in 5 games

#2 Boston Celtics vs. #7 Chicago Bulls (1-1)

This series has been absolute must-see TV so far. The Bulls came out on fire game 1 and beat the Celtics in overtime behind Derrick Rose's heroics. Game 2 was also an incredible game, as a late Ray Allen 3 (shown in the video above) propelled the defending champs to a 1-1 series tie. This series has been the most entertaining series so far in the playoffs and shows how awesome playoff basketball can be. I think Derrick Rose, Ben Gordon and the Bulls take this one in 6.

#3 Orlando Magic vs. #6 Philadelphia 76ers (76ers 1-0)

In what might be considered the biggest upset of the playoffs so far, the 76ers came out in game 1 and shocked the heavily favored Magic on the road. Andre Iguodala hit the game-winning shot with 2.2 seconds left to give the 76ers a 1-0 lead in the series. I think the Sixers showed a lot of heart and will continue to make this a tough series, but I just think the Magic are too talented and will take this series in 6.

#4 Atlanta Hawks vs #5 Miami Heat (Hawks 1-0)

The Hawks took it to the Heat in game 1 in surprising fashion with a blowout win. This series will be much closer than that game however. These teams are very evenly matched and I expect this series to go the distance. Dwayne Wade is going to need to step up his game 1 performance for the Heat to win while the Hawks are going to need to get consistent contributions from their normally inconsistent players like Josh Smith and Mike Bibby. I like the Hawks in 7.

Bulls vs. Celtics a Thriller

Wow what a game I just got done watching. The Bulls pulled the game 1 upset over the defending champion Boston Celtics. Derrick Rose played like anything but a rookie with 36 points and 10 assists. i was really impressed with Tyrus Thomas' shooting, and the poise of the young Chicago team. There was obviously no KG for the Celtics, but the Bulls looked like the team to beat in this series. I'm predicting Bulls in 6

Bankruptcy for GM on the Horizon

This article is written by Jason Edwards

GM doesn't seem to be able to get its act together. As I said in an earlier post they need to work with the UAW. The union is killing our American automakers. In an article on FOX news Horace Cooper says there are three things that could turn around the auto industry. Adopt a 3 Year Moratorium on UAW union representation and immediately suspend the existing UAW contract, let the consumer decided what type of products the automakers produce (NO BODY WANTS THOSE UGLY ENVIRONMENTAL CARS!), lower the cost of service and maintenance instead of having warranties backed by the government. I agree with every single one of this ideas. I am a liberal but I 100% disagreed with the government taking over the auto industry. There is a reason we have chapter 11 bankruptcy. We have seen many companies come out leaner and meaner after bankruptcy (K-Mart for example). I hope they do go into bankruptcy so only the top brands stay, re-do the contracts with the UAW, and create products consumers want to buy at reasonable price.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30264733/
http://foxforum.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/04/16/cooper_general_motors/