Be like Mike

All seems to be quiet in SoxandPhils world. Both teams are off tonight. The main competition of note: The Rays are beating the Yankees 6-0 in the 6th. The Mets are off.

Rather than go on and on about the Phils and their losing ways, I'm taking the easy way out and posting another entry by Greg about the Phillies yearbook. I'm sure there will be plenty to talk about tomorrow night. We're all counting on you, young Brett.

Unless they wanted to see Michael Jordan in his Birmingham Barons days, only eight of 32 Phillies listed a baseball player as their favorite athlete. Only two of them picked a Phillie, but I'm pretty sure Ryan Madson was partly joking when he picked Chase Utley. I have no doubt that Jamie Moyer was sincere with Steve Carlton.

Topping the list was Tiger Woods with seven votes, Michael Jordan with five and a half, LeBron James and Nolan Ryan with two each, and Kobe Bryant with one and a half. The half votes came from J.C. Romero, who picked both his favorite active and retired players.

Other baseball players: Barry Bonds (from former teammate Pedro Feliz), Hank Aaron (Tom Gordon), Ken Griffey Jr. (Kyle Kendrick) and Ozzie Smith (Eric Bruntlett).

Quarterbacks: Brett Favre (Brett Myers) and John Elway (Brad Lidge).

Basketball: Charles Barkley (J.D. Durbin) and Shaquille O'Neal (Fabio Castro).

Not quite mainstream athletes: Clay Condrey went with fishermen Bill Dance and Roland Martin; Chris Coste went with ultimate fighter George St. Pierre; and the Phanatic went for the cheap pop with Rocky. "He WAS real, wasn't he?" asked the green furball.

Pat Burrell, evidently bummed he couldn't list himself, didn't have an answer.