Due to a combination of distraction and procrastination, it’s been a while since my last a post. I had high hopes of producing a lot of content over the holidays, but that didn’t pan out. Between my parents visiting and spending time with the kids, I had less time than anticipated. And when I did have time, I struggled to find the motivation to complete a post. I did start several, which will hopefully be completed in the coming weeks. One of the main distractions over the holidays was working on assembling a Christmas present with son; a 4000+ piece Citizens Bank Park model. The pieces were smaller than standard Legos, so it was a little tedious. But we had fun and it was good to spend some time together. 

While I try to finish up some more substantive pieces, here are a few random sports thoughts:

• Philadelphia Eagles. I was surprised to see the firing of Head Coach Doug Pederson. He led them to a Super Bowl victory a few years ago. Even with a couple mediocre seasons since, I thought he earned a chance to rebound from a bad season. But if the front office is still committed to Carson Wentz and rumors of a broken relationship are true, it makes sense to fire Pederson. The hiring of Nick Sirianni, who seems to be a good fit for Wentz, seems to confirm this. I’m curious to see how the situation plays out, especially considering how well Hurts played. Although you have to consider things could change when defenses have more time to prepare for him. In theory, I like the idea of using him situationally like they did earlier in the year. But this can be difficult to execute when the QB ego comes into play. Should be interesting.
• Super Bowl Sunday. Does anyone enjoy dragging themselves out of bed on Monday morning after the Super Bowl? Wouldn’t you rather see the game on Saturday? It seems like it would be much better for the fans and I don’t see a downside to moving the game up a day. There’s a week off after the Conference Championship games, so we’re talking about 13 instead of 14 days between games? There’s not much else to compete with – college football is over, the NBA and NHL are mid-season, college basketball is still a couple weeks away from conference tournaments, and Saturday isn’t known for good TV. If they’re worried about Saturday night social engagements, I think the concern is overblown. Most people would probably forgo the Saturday night out or work it into their Super Bowl viewing plans.
• NCAA Tournament. I’m glad they have a plan this year – all the games are in the Indianapolis area and some of the dates have shifted. I think it might lose something without the multiple locations, but it’s better than nothing. I’m hoping they will be smart if any postponements are necessary; they could let the rest of bracket progress and delay later rounds if necessary to let the affected teams catch up. Although I know better than to expect it, I hope to see more small conference teams get in. I don’t think the 6th place team in the ACC, SEC, or Big Ten deserves a shot at the title, but I do think a small conference champion who was upset in their conference tourney does. At least for me, seeing these teams play is more exciting.
• Baseball 2021. MLB is planning to start the season on time and allow a limited number of fans in the ballparks (USA Today). I’m hoping this will give me an opportunity to add some ballparks to the list (Ballparks Page). We have a tentative plan to take a road trip this summer; this could include stops at new-to-me ballparks in Cincinnati, Saint Louis, or Atlanta. We could also make return trips to Cleveland, Washington, or Baltimore. I’m also kicking around the idea of a weekend trip to the new Yankees stadium or even down to Miami. And of course I’ll try to see at least one game in Philadelphia.

Some of my pages are still being developed, but please take a look around while you’re here. If you haven’t read my previous posts, take a few minutes to catch up on the archives. Hopefully, I’ll pick up the pace over the next few months.