Time to Ditch Moments of Silence?

A great athlete dies. Fans, coaches, and teammates want to honor the deceased, and rightfully so. So what do we traditionally do when we go to a large arena, soon after the person's death? We have a moment of silence.

Time to ditch the moment of silence.

Read what the British will be doing in honor of a recently deceased football (soccer) star:

English clubs to applaud in memory of Alan Ball

LONDON (AP) -- All 92 clubs in England will applaud for a minute this weekend in memory of Alan Ball, a member of England's 1966 World Cup-winning squad who died Tuesday.

Ball made a total of 743 English league appearances for Blackpool, Everton, Arsenal and Southampton. He later managed seven English clubs in a 19-year career.

The Premier League said all players would also wear black armbands.

"Alan made an enormous contribution to league football as a player and a manager and his part in English football's proudest day will live long in the memory," said Andy Williamson, the chief operating officer of the Football League, which comprises 72 clubs. "Having a minute's applause at every match this weekend will give supporters the opportunity to pay their own tribute."

This procedure, to me, is dead on, pardon the pun. A player plays in front of thousands of screaming fans, game in and game out. Why should fans stand silently to honor this player when s/he would have revelled in a round of cheers?

Thanks for the Memories, Mellanby!

Well Flyers fans, our old buddy Scott Mellanby is hanging up the skates. He called it quits after 21 years of mucking and grinding, six of those years in the vaunted Spectrum of yesteryear. At age 40, Mr. Mellanby put in a solid career and had some memorable highlights, namely:

-364 goals, 476 assists, for 840 total points, and 2,479 minutes in the penalty box (that's almost 2 day's worth of penalties!) as a tough "never quit" right winger
-Made two trips to the Stanley Cup (one for the Flyers, one for the Panthers), though he never won it, honored as team captain, and earned an All-Star Game appearance; unfortunately he ended his career with the third most games played without winning the Cup, according to his Wikipedia entry
-A run in with a rat: He splattered a rat with his stick when it ran across the locker room, thus prompting his hometown Panthers fans to pelt the ice with rubber rats whenever he put the biscuit in the basket
-Founded Athletes Against Autism Foundation, to help fund research to cure Autism

Mellanby had a good run and played for one of the more exciting eras of Flyers hockey, from 1986-91.

A Question for the Powers that Be in the MLB

Pardon me as I take a sidestep from the world of dissecting the peculiarities that define Philly sports. Instead, I'd like to raise an issue that I have with Major League Baseball's officials.

So far this year, weather has wreaked havoc on trying to get some baseball games in. Snow-outs in Cleveland. Thirty degree temps in Flushing Meadows. Generally cold, nasty stuff to contend with in many cities east of the Mississippi. This type of weather is not conducive to baseball.

So why, then, are any games even scheduled to be played in cold weather cities in the first couple of weeks in April? There are quite a few warm weather cities (Miami, Tampa, Phoenix, LA, etc.) and domed stadiums (Toronto, Minneapolis, etc) where games could easily and sensibly be scheduled to start the season until weather hopefully clears up in the middle of the month.

On a related note, the Phils are playing the Astros this weekend in Philly. It's the middle of April and ordinarily the weather is warming up by now, but by freak of nature (no pun intended), we're going to get hit by a nasty Nor'easter storm with buckets of rain, howling wind, and possibly even snow tomorrow. So it looks like there's a 99% chance Sunday's game will be cancelled-- and if not, it will be a soggy mess with minimial attendance and probably multiple delays. Yet today was a gorgeous day-- 55 degrees or so, mostly sunny. Why not hedge your bets and play a double header today, instead of cancelling tomorrow's game and trying to squeeze it in at the end of the season? It may be short notice for fans, but offer rainchecks to those who can't make it, cut prices to encourage people to come out to the park, and voila!-- you've got yourself a game completed, some happy fans, and potential scheduling nightmares to avoid.

I'd say that argument holds water, wouldn't you?

Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Inky Signs with Hall of Fame

Pete Incaviglia, a one-time Philly cult hero, was selected yesterday for the second-ever induction into the College Baseball Hall of Fame. Yes, that Pete Incaviglia who platooned in left field for the Phightin Phils in the tremendous 1993 campaign.

In the news release, it is noted:

Incaviglia was perhaps the most imposing power hitter in college baseball history, setting the NCAA career records for home runs (100) and slugging percentage (.915) from 1983-85. In 1985, he set NCAA single-season records for home runs (48), RBIs (143), total bases (285) and slugging percentage (1.140) -- all marks that still stand.

How bout dem apples? Inky, the OK State alum, clearly overpowered pitchers in his college years, but his pro years were merely decent. In 12 years he hit 206 homers, reaching his career high for a season (30 dingers) in his rookie year, while also striking out a league leading 186 times. (Jobu no hit curveball.) He played two years for the Phillies, with 1993 being one of his best years of his career. In 368 ABs, he hit 24 homers, drove in 89 runs, hit .274 and pumped out a .530 slugging percentage. Unfortunately, he disappeared in the Phils' run for the trophy, hitting just 3 for 19 in six games played. Oh well, it was a fun run while it lasted, and surely not his fault they lost...

Anyway, for a few more fun facts, check out this interesting and humorous baseball page.

Well that's all from here. Congrats Inky on your honorary award!

Sign of the Times: Feeling Nostalgic for Veterans Stadium

So it's April and baseball season is underway. It's around this time every year that I think back to memories of our beloved Veterans Stadium, former home of the Philadelphia Phillies, Philadelphia Eagles, many brawls, and countless vermin.

But there's one thing in particular that I miss from the Vet days... the fans' creativity. I always looked forward to watching Eagles games and seeing the signs and banners that the fans held up. The signs ranged the whole gamut of feelings and emotions from passion to disgust to sarcasm to insults.

Who can forget the raggedy "Gang Green" signs that hung over the end zone during the Eagles' reign as defensive monsters? Or how about the gigantic stretch of a sign that was posted during the Eagles' dismal offensive years reading: "End Zone This Way -->"?

Sadly, the Eagles have banned this practice and have taken away a lot of the character of the fans, in my humble opinion. Even the atmosphere to me is a lot more sterile. Hopefully fans will find away to get this edginess back some day; but in the meantime, signs or no signs, I'll be happy with just having a winning team out there...

Bruce Ruffin Gets a Shout Out in the Inquirer

In a recent Philly Inquirer article recapping the Phils' opening day loss on 4/2/07, writer Bob Ford cited this Phillies' Phun Phact:

At 26, he (Phils' ace Brett Myers) is the youngest opening-day starter for the Phillies since Bruce Ruffin, the pitcher who replaced Steve Carlton on the roster but nowhere else.

That caught my attention because, well, that kind of stuff catches my attention.

I remember southpaw Bruce Ruffin being heralded as the next Phillies' ace in 1986 at the tender young age of 23. Indeed, in his rookie year he posted some tantalizing numbers: 9-4 record, 2.46 ERA, and 70 K's in 146 innings (and zero wild pitches, in case you were wondering... mind you, in 1988 he was second in the NL in wild pitches with 12). After his rookie season, he kind of slid into mediocrity... for his career with the Phils (6 years), Milwaukee (1 year) and Colorado (5 years), Ruffin was 60-82, with a 4.16 ERA, and 63 saves (he jumped to the bullpen when he landed in the Mile High City). Decent career, but he certainly didn't fill Steve Carlton's shoes, as the quote mentions. But then again, not many could.

And another tid-bit for you, Bruce "2 Minutes for" Ruffin (as Chris Berman called him) was traded from Philly to Milwaukee for that wiley Dale "Don't Call Me S-vee-um" Svuem (as I refer to him) in 1991.

And thus concludes this entry on the blonde hurler from Lubbock, Texas. Hope you learned something and keep the Quest alive!