08/29/2008 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly acquired veteran outfielder Matt Stairs from the Toronto Blue Jays for a minor league player to be named later.
The Philadelphia Daily News confirmed the deal with Stairs' agent, Bob Garber, Friday.
"Matt is definitely on the Phillies," Garber told the newspaper in a text message.
Stairs was designated for assignment by the Jays following Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
The 40-year-old Stairs, who inked a two-year contract extension worth $3.25 million last November, batted .250 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 105 games this season for Toronto.
In parts of 16 big league seasons, the left-handed hitter has a career .266 batting average with 252 homers and 859 RBI.
<< College Football - The Long Wait Is Over
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After months of fine-tuned preparation,
all the studying and hard work will finally be put to the test as the 2008
college football season is upon us. If you have read my conference previews
these past coup
<< Three minor league pitchers suspended
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of New York Yankees minor league
pitchers and a Chicago Cubs minor league hurler were each suspended 50 games
Friday for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation
of the
<< Inter hoping for another "Special" season
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There were many big transfers in Serie A over
the summer, but Inter Milan's appointment of former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho
was just as big a story as any of them.
The "Special One" joined the defending th
<< Davydenko eases into third round at the Open
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gritty Russian star Nikolay
Davydenko was a third-round winner Friday at the 2008 U.S. Open.
The fifth-seeded Davydenko dropped Argentine Agustin Calleri 6-4, 6-4, 7-6
(7-2) on Day 5 at the USTA Bi
Chelsea expects Drogba back by mid-September >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea revealed Friday it expects striker
Didier Drogba to be back in action immediately after the upcoming international
break the first weekend of September.
The Ivory Coast international has not made
Field of 14 set for Pennsylvania Derby >>
Bensalem, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Monday's 29th running of the $1 million
Pennsylvania Derby has attracted a full field of 14 three-year-olds. The
premier event on Philadelphia Park's schedule will be contested over 1 1/8
miles.
Eagles cut RB Moats >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Running back Ryan Moats was one of eight
players released by the Philadelphia Eagles Friday.
A third-round pick out of Louisiana Tech in 2005, Moats enjoyed his greatest
success as a rookie when he ti
Indians activate C Martinez from DL >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians activated catcher
Victor Martinez from the 15-day disabled list on Friday.
Martinez had been on the DL since June 12 after undergoing surgery on his
right elbow. He hit .278
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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