Philly is Center of Sports Universe
Written by B-Dub, Sunday July 31 2011
Somebody alert the national media. The center of the sports universe isn't in New York anymore, it's now located in the city of Philadelphia.
I know this will come as a shock to the morons at ESPN, but athletes aren't falling all over themselves to play in the Big (Rotten) Apple anymore. As a matter of fact, players are taking less money these days to not have to play in the cesspool that is New York.
This past winter, Cliff Lee spurned overtures from the New York Yankees to join the Phillies. He also turned down a lot more money than he eventually settled for from Philadelphia. At the time, Lee said the only place he wanted to play was in Philly, in front of what he described as "The best fans in sports". Nice to see Cliff wasn't brainwashed by the media's constant false characterizations of true Philadelphia fans.
That little transaction rocked the sports world to its core. Never before had a player turned down the truckloads of cash that the Yankees offered. New Yorkers simply didn't know how to react to being told no. They always got whatever they wanted with all that Steinbrenner cash. Maybe that's why New York fans are such arrogant jerks.
Then the NFL lockout ended last week and the teams were going to be allowed to sign free agents on Friday. Every single media outlet covering the NFL assured us that the number one free agent on the market, cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha was headed to the Jets. The Jets were clearing cap space to sign him and Asomugha was all but learning an obnoxious New York accent. The only holdup was that teams were required to wait until 6 pm on Friday to officially sign free agents. It was a done deal we were told.
And then a funny thing happened on the way to New York. Asomugha didn't follow the yellow brick road to New York after all. He went to Philadelphia and signed with the Eagles. It seems that's where he wanted to go all along.
Somewhere over the rainbow? Not exactly. But it does seem like there is no place like home in Philadelphia for the best athletes in the world these days doesn't it?
The best thing about the signing isn't that all the "experts" got this one completely wrong. No. The best thing is that Asomugha signed with the Eagles for, get this, less money than he was being offered by the Jets.
As a born and raised Philadelphia sports fan, this makes me very happy. As a born and raised Philadelphia sports fan, I don't like any New York sports teams and I sure as hell don't like their fans.
Life is good in Philly these days. Not so much a bit to the North.
Not only have these moves hurt New York teams, but they have also hurt other rival team. Getting Lee not only hurt the Yankees, but also the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets. The Mets aren't really good enough to be considered a rival, but anything that ticks off a Mets fan is a good thing for a Philly fan.
By getting Asomugha, the Eagles not only hurt the arrogant Jets organization and their even more arrogant fanbase, but it also meant a long season for the rest of the NFC East, including the hated New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys. There is nothing an Eagles fan enjoys more than watching Tony Romo and Eli Manning suffer. And boy, will those two suffer having to face Asomugha twice a season.
Networks like ESPN think that the only two cities that have baseball teams are New York and Boston. Unfortunately for them, three of the four teams with the best ERA in MLB are the Phillies, Braves and San Francisco Giants. All three of those teams picked up a major bat at the trade deadline to help their offenses. The Phillies got Hunter Pence to go along with the best starting rotation in the history of baseball. The Braves got one of the best leadoff hitters in baseball in Michael Bourn. And the defending World Series Champion Giants got Carlos Beltran to help their anemic offense.
The Red Sox acquired Erik Bedard (muffled laughter) and the Yankees got absolutely nothing at the trade deadline. That's right; the Yankees got nothing even though they aren't even in first place in their own division right now. My how times have changed. Apparently, nobody even wants to make deals with a team from New York. I love it.
It's not just the Eagles and Phillies either. The City of Brotherly Love's other two major sports franchises, the Sixers and Flyers were also playoff teams last season. Yes, it's a good time to be a sports fan in the city of Philadelphia. The city of winners.
Stud pitchers like Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee wanted to come to Philadelphia because they thought that it was their best chance to win a championship. And they were willing to take less money to come to Philly. Now, the best available players in the NFL, like Asomugha think the Eagles give them the best chance to win a championship as well. And, again, they are willing to take less money to come to Philly.
Yes, it's a whole new sports universe out there and Philadelphia is at the center of it. Get used to it New York.
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2 comments
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Hey Alan, at least the Philly teams aren't a bunch of cheating scumbag bastards like the Patriots. You STOLE that Super Bowl from us. And it's also typical of you Boston fans to live in the past. The Stanley Cup doesn't count since nobody in America watches hockey. Check the ratings, or LACK of any ratings for proof.
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You’re right about ESPN’s (CT based) bias towards their two closest metropoli (NY / Boston), B-Dub. I guess we all expect it now. Gets tiresome, though. As for “center”: Boston fans would take issue with you. Their recent success, in all four major sports, has been nothing short of mind-boggling. I’d like to see boxing rise high again in Philadelphia (and around USA). More the real version (Joe Frazier) than the fictitious (Rocky).