Red goes green, Hawaiian style

I mentioned Sunday that in honor of Shane Victorino hula T-shirt day, the Phillies superimposed flowery Hawaiian shirts on all the players' scoreboard photos.

We intended to post Shane's scoreboard shot (pictured on the left) until Christine realized it looked awfully familiar.

A check of the SoxandPhils archives confirmed her suspicion: The Phillies used the same Shane Victorino-in-a-Hawaiian-shirt picture from last year.

I think the Phillies are taking their whole recycling thing (red goes green) a little too far.

Christine takes pride that her team seems to be at the forefront of environmental issues, but can somebody explain to me what energy or resource has been saved by reusing the same Shane Victorino photo (pictured on the right)?

Looking back at last year's post, I noticed that the Phanatic recycled his Hawaiian costume as well. Doesn't he know it's tacky to wear the same dress twice in similar situations?

Speaking of Shane: A colleague who watched Sunday's game on TV told me Victorino's 1st inning stolen base was negated because the umpire interfered with the catcher's throw.

Hairy Harry: I forgot to mention on Sunday that the Ask-A-Phillies question was about pets. Raul Ibanez has a bunch: cats, dogs, guinea pigs and, best of all, a tarantula named Harry. I bet HK is pleased.

Pitching news: The Red Sox may or may not be intruding in the Phillies trade talks for Roy Halladay. I'm not endorsing a trade, but if it occurs, I just hope it works out better than the Daisuke Matsuzaka experiment. Dice-K has blamed the Red Sox for his arm troubles, which has angered the organization.

Today's games: The Phillies and the Red Sox won last night. The Phillies have another late game in Arizona. The Red Sox, after retiring Jim Rice's No. 14, lead the A's 6-3 in the 7th.

A new cheesy pregame

****Cycle correction****

In case you haven't figured it out from my cryptic but not-too-subtle hints, Christine and I celebrated our anniversary this week with a little getaway to the Azalea Inn, a bed and breakfast in Savannah, Ga.

We should be home any minute, if we haven't arrived already. Hopefully we have, because it was a grueling 13-hour slog on the way down. (But we left before dawn last week and were fueled by five hours of sleep. We are more rested for today's return trip.)

On the way down, we would just hit scan on the car radio until we found a suitable station. On one, we heard a guy who sounded like Pierre Robert. Because of that we stopped and hoped it wasn't another one of the many country or religious stations that come in around the South.

It wasn't. It was Braves pregame. And, as much as it pains me to admit it, the guy who did the pregame interview with Bobby Cox is just as bad as Chris Wheeler. (But I still hate Chris Wheeler.)

In this guy's first question, he asked Bobby about the day before - when the Braves won a blowout after retiring Greg Maddux's number - managing to get in there how it was the perfect day for the team, the fans and the announcers.

Yeah, way to be hard-hitting there. He made Wheels sound like Howard Cosell.

Speaking of announcers' favorite days, Christine was upset when she saw we missed Jimmy Rollins' cycle on Sunday. I wasn't. I bet Wheels - whose life goal is to see a "natural cycle" - will still be blathering on about it when we tune in for tomorrow's game.

J-Roll didn't hit a natural cycle. For those who don't know, it's a term we've only heard used by Wheels to describe a cycle in which all the hits go in progression (single, double, triple and home run, in that order).

Red Sox updates: They're going to retire No. 14 for Hall of Famer Big Jim Ed Rice, and Julio Lugo was shipped to the Cardinals for Chris Duncan.

Red Sox LFers dominate Hall of Fame vote

Congrats to Big Jim Ed Rice, who will join Rickey Henderson in Cooperstown this summer.

It was a long wait for Rice, all 15 years of eligibility, but it creates a nice pairing for the Hall of Fame class of 2009.

Put aside their similarities - both were dominant stars of the 1980s and patrolled left field at Fenway Park - Rice and Henderson also provide a nice contrast.

{Yes, in case you forgot - like Greg briefly did - Henderson was in Boston for the glorious 2002 season. And no, off the top of his head, Greg doesn't remember anything else that happened that season. Like how I also forgot that Henderson was a member of those awful 1993 Blue Jays.}

Henderson was the ultimate leadoff hitter who combined power with dominating speed and on-base skills; Rice was the big (for the time) slugger who excelled in powerful offense.

I just hope Rickey can keep up with Big Jim on the podium this summer. Rice seems to be outgoing, colorful and self-promoting while Rickey can be a little quiet. Nah, Rickey being Rickey would never let that happen.

My favorite story of the day comes not from Henderson, but from Rice. Apparently, the big guy loves his soaps. I would have loved it if he didn't take the call until his stories ended.

I'm sorry I don't have anything personal to add. I started rooting for the Red Sox in 1986 - Rice's last good year, so most of my memories, unfortunately, are of a washed-up slugger. I was living in Yankee territory when Rickey played in New York. To me, he was a symbol of the overhyped big-name Yankees who never won, but I also disliked him purely because he was so damned good.

[Photo credit: Boston Herald]

Nick Cafardo audtions for SoxandPhils

Given the awful economic state of newspapering, it seems the Globe's Nick Cafardo is sending out subtle hints that he'd like to join the SoxandPhils team. A couple of lines from today's Baseball Notes column prove my point:

Apropos of nothing: 1. If Mike Lowell had signed with the Phillies last winter, he'd have back-to-back championships; 2. Nomar Garciaparra would be a nice fit for the Phillies.

...

The action on Lowe will likely accelerate this weekend among three NL East teams - Atlanta, New York, and Philadelphia. The Braves, who met with Lowe last week, need to nail this one down. They acquired Javier Vazquez from the White Sox earlier this winter, but they have lost John Smoltz and have yet to make an offer to the rehabbing Tom Glavine. They would salvage their offseason by signing Lowe, who among the baseball people we spoke to was considered the second-best free agent pitcher out there (after CC Sabathia). One rub is that Lowe wants to go somewhere where he can get to a World Series. Are the Braves that team? Are the Mets? We know the Phillies are.

No need to be bashful, Mr. Cafardo - you'd be welcome to join. We don't pay well, but we offer telecommuting, flexible hours and a friendly staff.

Oh, and since he took a jab at the Mets, Christine and I (while taking breaks from watching the Carolina Panthers fall apart last night) caught the end of the 2006 NLCS on MLB Network, which was the beginning of the "choke artist" label for the New York Mets. Christine could watch Carlos Beltran freeze on strike three with the potential winning run on base a million times.

Back to current reality: Cafardo, Bob Ryan and Jim Salisbury all talk about the two Red Sox left fielders on deck for the Hall of Fame. I think (probably like I did last year) that Jim Rice gets in this year. I haven't seen a writer's ballot that hasn't included him, and he was darn close last year.

No one, however, doubts that at least one Red Sox (Rickey Henderson) will get in. If you've clicked on the link to Cafardo's column at the top of this post, you would have an enjoyable recap on Rickey's year in the Fens. I love Henderson stories and can't wait for all of them to come out over the next few months.

Football: Again, I keep forgetting about football - although today's Eagles-Giants is a must-see. Yesterday, I would have picked the Panthers and the Titans. Today, I'll go with the Giants and Steelers. I'm 2-4 so far in the playoffs.

'Tis the season (again)

For those who need a little holiday cheer tonight, the official Phillies DVD on the 2008 season is coming out soon.

Paul Byrd and Jason Varitek were offered jobs for next season (if they accept arbitration); we're still waiting for word on Pat Burrell and Jaimie Moyer.

And will this be the year Jim Rice no longer gets coal in his Hall of Fame stocking? The ballot is out, and SoxandPhils newcomers include Rickey Henderson, Mo Vaughn, David Cone, Ron Gant and Dan Plesac.

Curt's not fat, and other "bad body" pitchers

Jim Rice has a new blog, thanks to a tire shop. He's tackling the tough issues and unafraid to say something controversial, such as explaining why Curt Schilling is not fat:

Last year people said Curt Schilling was fat. I thought Schilling was in fantastic shape. If you see him in the locker room, he’s not fat, he just has a bad body.

Josh Beckett, whose body hasn't been that great this spring, pitched well today in a minor league start:

Beckett threw 47 pitches, 33 for strikes, in four innings of work. He allowed one hit, a single by Rene Tosoni to lead off the fourth inning, and struck out five.

Hopefully, he'll start in Toronto.

The Phillies, meanwhile, may be scraping the bottom of the barrel to fill out their staff. Never mind the 11th or 12th man, the hefty Brett Myers says the Phillies have the best rotation in the league:

"That's what I think," he said. "Of course, that's my opinion, and nobody's going to care about my opinion."

Hall of Fame II

So thinking back to Tuesday's sham of a vote. OK, not as bad as not inducting Buck O'Neill before he died, but it would have been nice to induct Jim Rice and Goose Gossage at the same time. Nice symmetry -- two feared stars of the '70s and '80s who were key parts of the rivalry, especially in 1978.

I like when there's a connection among inductees. Nolan, Yount and Brett in '99. Ripken and Gwynn last year. And Reggie Jackson by himself in '93.

Hopefully, next year we'll see two Red Sox OFers at the podium: Rice and Rickey Henderson.

Other SoxPhils slated to appear on the ballot in coming years (and there's some real immortals here):

2009: Steve Avery, John Burkett, David Cone, Ron Gant, Dan Plesac, Mo Vaughn, Mike Williams.

Mo's been gone that long already? Plesac too? And, Avery, what can I say?

2010: Andy Ashby, Ellis Burks, Mike Jackson, Todd Zeile

Immortals. Real immortals. No disrespect to Burks.

2011: Hideo Nomo, John Olerud, Benito Santiago, Ugueth Urbina

Nomo's comeback might push this class back. And, wouldn't it be great to induct a guy doing time in Venezuela?

2012: Bill Mueller, Tim Worrell

Will there be an '04 bump giving him a few votes?

In other sports: Another big playoff weekend. I went 3-1 last week, and probably will do the same. Go with the Packers over the Seahawks; Patriots to tie the whiny '72 Dolphins; Colts to close the RCA dome with a win; and Cowboys over the Giants. Yes, I know, weak that like most I'm taking all favorites. I think there may be an upset, but when my gut tells me the best chance for an underdog is the Giants, it's time to play it safe.

Hall of Fame

Work's been brutal -- will have to post quickly today...

Just bummed that Big Jim Ed missed the cut.

And who the hell voted for druggies Knoblauch and Justice?

Other former SoxPhils also didn't make the cut, but no tears shed for them... Hawk, Lee Arthur, Dale Murphy, Shooter, and the poster boy for steroids who wasn't named in the report, Brady Anderson.