Phillies sign backup catcher Brian Schneider

With all the talk of needing a third baseman and some bullpen help, the Phillies also needed a backup catcher this offseason to help out Carlos Ruiz. Well, that item can be checked off the list as the Phillies have added catcher Brian Schneider. According to the Allentown Morning Call, the Phillies have signed the 10 year MLB vet to a 2 year contract.

Schneider, who has spend his entire career in the NL East with the Expos/Nationals and Mets, is known as a solid defensive catcher. He spent the last two years with the Mets and was injured for most of last year and hit only .218. Schneider is a local guy, having graduated from Northhampton, and his family is filled with Phillies fans, so he will fit right in. More than that, he's a left handed hitter who will be able to spell Ruiz with a competent bat and above average defense.

This is just the kind of solid but not spectacular move the Phillies needed to make. Schneider was a starting catcher for most of his career so he should slide nicely into a backup role on the Phillies.

Eagles extend Brent Celek through 2016

First it was Winston Justice getting his contract extended through 2013, now it's Brent Celek's turn for an extension. Celek, who has rapidly improved into the most reliable receiver in the Eagles passing game, has agreed to a 6 year contract extension with the Eagles that will keep him with the Birds through 2016.

Celek has made great strides in his 3 years in the league, jumping from 16 catches in 2007 to 27 in 2008 to already 54 catches this season. Despite his case of the dropsies when he was dealing with an injured thumb last week against the Redskins, Celek has proven that he can be trusted to make the tough catches.

This contract extension is just yet another example of the Eagles being smart with their money. They consistently identify the young players they want to keep around and lock them up for long extensions at a cheap rate before they can cash in as free agents. It's a smart business plan but it can lead to some complaining from the player once they play to their potential and they aren't getting paid like the top players at their position.

Chris Coste is now dead to us

Scratch Chris Coste off your list of favorite former Phillies, he has gone to the dark side. Coste, who spent 3 plus years with the Phillies before being waived and playing for the Astros last season, has signed with the New York Mets.

There is no guarantee that Coste will actually play any games with the Mets, however, as he was only given a spot on the 40 man roster and not given a guarantee that he would be on the 25 man roster. There is also no word as to whether the Mets expect Coste to play catcher or first base.

It's hard to say if Coste signing with the Mets is an indication of how desperate Coste is to play or how bad the Mets are going to be next season. Losing Coste to the dark side hurts because he is such a good guy, I guess we will always have 2008.

Eagles survive, sneak past Redskins

(AP Photo/Michael Perez)

Another week, another comeback for Donovan McNabb and the Eagles. After what seemed like years between comeback wins for the Eagles, the Birds pulled out their second in a row in the fourth quarter as they edged the Redskins, 27-24.

As always, the Eagles kept this one interesting from the start. Andy Reid, probably thinking he was pretty clever, had the Birds try an onside kick on the opening kickoff, a move that basically gave the Redskins a free 7 points after it failed. From that point forward, it was obvious the Eagles were going to be stuck in a dogfight (poor choice of words?) with the Skins.

The Eagles quickly fought back in the game with an offensive attack that was, for once, a solid mixture of run and pass. The Birds, taking advantage of a Redskins defense playing without Albert Haynesworth, ran the ball effectively all game, something we haven't seen much of this year. Both LeSean McCoy (4.5 yards per carry) and Leonard Weaver (7.3 yards per carry) gashed the Skins for big runs, proving that the Eagles don't need Brian Westbrook to have a productive ground game.

With an offense that was actually balanced for once, Donovan McNabb, with the exception of the third quarter, was effective through the air, finishing with 260 yards. He spread the ball around to six different receivers and overcame three drops by the usually reliable Brent Celek to keep the Eagles in the game. Most importantly, when it came down to crunchtime, with the Eagles trailing by 8 points in the 4th quarter, McNabb had the offense moving at will, picking up huge chunks of yards through the air to Jason Avant and Jeremy Maclin.

Defensively, the Eagles were once again not at their best on third downs as the Skins converted 8 of 17 in the game. There is something about this Birds defense that they can't make stops unless the game is on the line. That will likely come back to haunt them at some point this season.

On the injury front, DeSean Jackson left the game in the second half and the early word is that he had a concussion. We all know too well about the lingering effects that concussions can have, we will have to wait and see if Action Jackson will be out for the next game.

So, once again, it wasn't pretty but the Eagles won an important game. A loss to the Redskins would have pushed the Eagles back towards the pack of NFC Wild Card contenders; a win keeps them a game ahead of the Giants and only a game behind the Cowboys. With games looming against the Giants and Cowboys in the coming weeks, the NFC playoff picture is still pretty murky but the Eagles find themselves right in the middle of everything.

Nice win, Birds, but let's try winning a game by a touchdown or two next time. You are going to give everyone in Philadelphia a heart attack at this rate.

Eagles/Redskins Inactives: Redskins missing stars

The Eagles and Redskins have announced their inactive players for today's NFC East matchup:

Eagles: OL Stacy Andrews, WR Kevin Curtis, RB P.J. Hill, LB Akeem Jordan, QB Kevin Kolb, OL Mike McGlynn, CB Geoffrey Pope, RB Brian Westbrook

Redskins: QB Richard Bartel, TE Chris Cooley, OL Paul Fanaika, CB Deangelo Hall, DT Albert Haynesworth, LB Robert Henson, RB Clinton Portis, DE Renaldo Wynn

The Eagles inactives aren't surprising as Westbrook, Curtis and Jordan are still dealing with injuries. There was some worry about Asante Samuel not being able to play but clearly his neck injury isn't going to keep him off the field.

For the Redskins, their inactive list is a basically a list of all of their best players. Their big man in the middle, Albert Haynesworth, will be out which should allow the Eagles to actually run the ball at will. With both Portis out and Betts on IR, Rock Cartwright is the starting running back. Other notable stars out for the Skins are Cooley and Hall, both former Pro Bowlers.

There are no excuses for the Eagles today. The Redskins are missing most of their key players so the Birds should be able to roll right over them. Of course, we know how the Eagles like to make things interesting! GO BIRDS!

Sixers considering Iverson? No thanks

When I heard that Allen Iverson was retiring from the NBA, part of me was sad because I always though AI would return to Philly to close out his career. It would have been nice to see him in a Sixer uniform one last time just for the rush of memories and the sense of nostalgia. Well, now that word has come out that the Sixers are considering bringing Iverson back, you would think I would be happy about it, right? Wrong. The Sixers should want no part of bringing Iverson back to Philadelphia.

The Sixers are a 5-11 team right now and have lost 5 games in a row. Simply put, they are a bad basketball team. What would be the point of bringing Allen Iverson in? An aging AI wouldn't thrust the Sixers into one of the better teams in the East so it has nothing to do with being a contender and everything to do with money. As the Sixers sag in the standings, attendance will continue to plummet as the team fades out of the collective consciousness of the city. Bringing in AI would make the Sixers relevant again and would bring the money in as everyone would want to see him play one last time.

So, from a financial aspect, bringing AI back makes a lot of sense. From a basketball aspect, however, everything is wrong about this move. If you have a team that isn't going to contend for a title, what should you be doing with that team? Developing it for the future. How do you develop a team for the future? Play the guys that will be there in the future, or at least play the guys so you can see what kind of future they are going to have. Signing Allen Iverson would take 30 minutes away from guys that are trying to learn the game and giving it to someone who is going to shoot 20 times a game. As we all have heard, Iverson needs to start in the NBA or he won't play, so you really want to take a raw rookie like Jrue Holiday and slice his minutes in half? And what happens when Lou Williams returns in a few months and Holiday finds himself glued to the bench? Who are you developing then?

The other part of this move that doesn't make any sense is the Sixers would end up winning a few more games and earning themselves a worse draft pick. Now, I'm not one who believes in tanking in the NBA to get a better pick, but if the Sixers are a bad team they deserve to have a high draft pick. Signing Iverson will hinder the Sixers chances of drafting a true difference maker in the 2010 draft.

There is really no point in the Sixers signing Allen Iverson. Sure, it will be fun for a few games and the Sixers will make some cash but in the long run it is will do more harm than it will help. While I hope that Iverson's career isn't over, I hope the Sixers are smart enough to stay away. AI deserves to have one last shot at winning a title, anyway, and that's not something he's going to be able to do in Philly.