Phillies Baseball

The American Sportscasters Association released their poll of the top 50 sportscasters of all time as voted on by members and a special panel.

Such names that appear on the list are Vin Scully, Joe Buck, Mel Allen, Jack Buck, Jon Miller, John Madden, Brent Musberger and the Phillies’ own Harry Kalas.

Kalas appears on the list at number 41.

The rest of the list looks like this:

1. Vin Scully
2. Mel Allen
3. Red Barber
4. Curt Gowdy
5. Howard Cosell
6. Bob Costas
7. Jim McKay
8. Keith Jackson
9. Al Michaels
10. Dick Enberg Continue Reading »

The Phillies were eying former Brewers outfielder Gape Kapler as an addition to their bench as a right handed hitter but he signed with the Tampa Bay Rays today.

Kapler will battle for a backup spot in the Rays outfield. Kapler signed a one year deal with the Rays worth $1 million.

He hit .301 with eight homeruns and 38 RBIs in 2008 with Milwaukee. Kapler has played for the Tigers, Rangers, Rockies, Red Sox, and Brewers.

The Rays will need to remove a player from their 40-man roster before they add Kapler to it and it remains to be seen who will get the boot.

It had been rumored earlier this weekend that the Phillies were interested in Kapler and infielder Nomar Garciaparra as bench players for the 2009 season.

The 2008 World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies have announced their stops for their January World Series tour.

The trophy will make close to 30 appearances throughout the Delaware Valley in the month of January and more dates will be added for the month of February.

The trophy will make stops at banquets, luncheons, malls, schools, special events and recreation centers.

One of the events held in February will be FanFest, held at Bright House Networks Field, the home of the Clearwater Threshers and the Phillies during Spring Training.

The trophy will be at the stadium on February 20th, 2009. The schedule for January can be found here:

Phillies January World Series Trophy Schedule

Nomar Garciaparra and Gape Kapler are receiving interest from the 2008 World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

The Phillies would like to add a right handed bat off the bench for the 2009 season since their bench already includes left handed hitters Geoff Jenkins, Matt Stairs, and Greg Dobbs.

If Nomar or Kapler do sign with the Phillies then it might mean the end of the road for reserve infielder Eric Bruntlett.

Garciaparra has played for the Boston Red Sox, the Chicago Cubs, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Kapler recently played for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2008.

Kapler hit .301 with eight homeruns 38 RBIs. Kapler plays all three outfield positions. Garciaparra can play first base and shortstop on a regular basis.

Garciaparra has also spent some time at third base and second base; two positions the Phillies need help with at the start of the season because of surgery to Chase Utley and Pedro Feliz in the off-season.

Garciaparra played one game at second base in 1996 and has played 88 games at third base in his career. That lone game at second base in 1996 is the only game he has played at second base in his career.

Ryan Howard, the 2006 NL MVP, has won another award. This time the award is for being the National League’s top player and it is in honor of Josh Gibson.

He led the Phillies with 48 homeruns and 148 RBIs en route to the team’s first World Series title since 1980 and the franchise’s second overall.

Howard is one of only three players in league history to win the ROY one year and the MVP the following year. He became the second player to do so when he won the ROY in 2005 and the MVP in 2006.

Cal Ripken Jr. was the first to do so and Dustin Pedroia became the third player when he won the ROY in 2007 and the MVP in 2008.

The Josh Gibson Award, along with other awards, is given in honor of the great African American players of the game and are awarded during the Legacy Awards.