Philly sports news update:
...I know the Phillies will be repeating their recent great performances and getting back on top in the race for the Pennant:
How sweep it is: Phillies take three from Nationals
By DAVID MURPHY
Philadelphia Daily News
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g2...mmyRollins.jpghttp://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g2...ryanhoward.jpg
The natural inclination is to look for a turning point, and there are several from which to choose. Start with the Phillies' struggles in Queens, when they lost two out of three games to the Mets and forfeited first place for the first time in 53 days. Fast forward to the closed-door meeting prior to the series opener against the Braves Friday, when manager Charlie Manuel implored his team to shake out of its slump. Then there was the Phillies comeback win over Atlanta the following day, when they shook off a six-run deficit, rebounded to win 10-9, and haven't lost since.
Whatever the true reason for the Phillies recent revival may be - an informal straw poll of player in the clubhouse chalk it up to simply playing better baseball - it continued last night with an 8-4 win over the Washington Nationals.
The once-embattled Phillies offense scored at least eight runs for the fourth time in 5 days, and Kyle Kendrick turned in his second straight solid start, allowing two runs in 6 2/3 innings.
The Phillies have now won five straight games to improve to 59-49, tying their longest streak of the season.
"[The losses to the Mets] might have shaken us up a little bit," said Jayson Werth, who hit his 15th home run of the season in the second inning off Washington lefthander John Lannan. "We've got veterans in here and nobody likes to lose, especially the Mets. But I still think we were just kind of in a lull offensively there for awhile."
Granted, the Phillies were playing a Washington team that entered the night 20 games out of first place in the National League East. In fact, things have apparently gotten so bad for the Nationals that after the game general manager Jim Bowden released veterans Paul Lo Duca and Felipe Lopez.
But they've struggled against the Nats in the past - they entered the series having lost three of six this season to Washington, including an 11-6 defeat on Opening Day at Citizens Bank Park - and needed a sweep to carry some momentum into a big weekend series with the contending Cardinals.
"It was huge," said Kendrick, who improved to 9-5 and lowered his ERA to 4.59. "Definitely after the first two games we wanted to come here and get a sweep. It was huge for us to win tonight. It was a big win."
Shortstop Jimmy Rollins was the offensive impetus, hitting a two-run home run off Lannan in the fourth and finishing the night 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored. Shane Victorino, who earlier in the day was relieved to hear he had not been traded at the July 31 deadline, went 2-for-4 and scored a run and extended his hitting streak to 11 games. Ryan Howard, meanwhile, went 2-for-5 to lift his batting average to .239
Kendrick, on the other hand, was solid on the mound. Since allowing seven runs in a 9-5 loss to Florida two starts ago, he has allowed just three runs in 12 2/3 innings. One of those runs came in the second inning on a wild pitch. In one of the more amazing statistics, it was the first wild pitch of Kendrick's season-and-a-half major league career. But it came on a changeup with a man on first base, a pitch he likely would not have thrown in that situation in the past. So even on one of his few mistakes of the night, there was a silver lining.
"He did a pretty good job," Manuel said. "Six and two-third innings, 110 pitches . . . he did OK."
But the big story was the offensive performance. The Phillies rapped out 11 hits. Pat Burrell was the only Phillies regular without one.
"It doesn't matter what the competition is, when you hit the ball you hit it, and that's what we've been doing," Manuel said.
And to round out my triple photo montage, even though the Eagles' defensive line is still somewhat unsettled, here's my favorite recent local sports acquisition:
Eagles cheerleader Janelle
By Peter Mucha INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
What a whirlwind ride for Janelle Stangl.
The topper is today, when the September issue of Maxim - the one with tennis' Anna Kournikova on the cover - officially hits newsstands, and inside, there's Stangl, touted as one of the NFL's four "most gorgeous" cheerleaders.
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Not bad for an Eagles rookie.
Less than four months ago, Stangl, 21, who hails from Bethlehem, Pa., was a junior studying dance at the University of Arts. Then she got picked to join the Eagles cheerleading squad. Soon, it was off to Punta Cana for annual calendar shoot - which led to her being chosen to be August 2009. Then Maxim called the Eagles and requested the 5-foot-2, blue-eyed blonde Stangl for its 2008 NFL guide, with "the best match-ups, the craziest predictions" and "the 2008 All-Maxim Team." That roster of players includes ex-Eagle Al Harris, the New York Giants' Brandon Jacobs and the Dallas Cowboys' Flozell Adams - but no Donovan McNabb or Brian Westbrook. Stangl's the only Eagle mentioned. The other three members of Maxim's "Pom Squad" are from the Washington Redskins, the Miami Dolphins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. National recognition isn't new for the sideline squad. In February, Janipher Choi represented the Eagles in Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue. Maxim sent a classy chauffeured car to drive Stangl from Bethlehem to a Manhattan studio for the shoot. She was shown a picture and asked to replicate a pose, using an Eagles flag - in size somewhere between a blanket and a towel, she said. She was excited and nervous, because it was only her second professional photo shoot ever, the calendar being the first. "It was very well organized," she said. "I was only there a few hours." Last week during practice, Stangl was surprised by who was texting - her mom. She'd found an early copy at a bookstore, and was quite excited. The cheerleader said seeing the actual picture in a national magazine "was a little bit of shock." But the jazz dance major was pleased. "I'm very critical of myself, but I like the picture. It's flattering." Maxim actually refrained from picking one of the photos that showed more skin, to her relief, she said. Not that she has strong reservations. In the Eagles "eco-sexy" calendar photo, only her arm and hand cover her upper torso. "I'm proud of my body and I feel like the shot was completely tasteful," she said. Her suit, designed by Aaron Chang, was made of polyester fibers from recycled plastic soda bottles. She was also bitten by bugs during the shoot, and suffered "the worst itching I've ever felt," she told Maxim. Perhaps her favorite moment so far as a cheerleader, though, came during Thursday's game against Carolina at Lincoln Financial Field. The skies opened up, and lightning forced the players, coaches and cheerleaders off the field - and sent many fans scurrying to their vehicles. But after toweling off, the cheerleaders went back out - to applause from some appreciative fans. The squad members "really are dedicated fans, just like them," she said. "... I think it meant a lot to them." Some spectators who'd headed for the exits decided to turn around and stay. For the cheerleaders or because the rain was letting up? "Maybe a little bit of both," she said. Clearly, Stangl is an upbeat sort, as is especially evident on her recent video blog that's on the Eagles website. "I'm a really easy-going person," she said. "Nothing really fazes me. Life is too short."
