Keeping it Kelce | Sports Daily Newsletter

Over the years, we’ve gotten glimpses behind the proverbial Fat Batman mask of the real Jason Kelce. The former Eagles center is unabashedly himself — that’s part of his charm.

And if he brings that authenticity to the analyst’s chair post-retirement, watch out. Like he was at snapping footballs, he’ll be the best in the biz, and it won’t take long. We’ve all seen how great he is on New Heights. Imagine something like that — intelligence and expertise blended with humor — before (or maybe someday during) Monday Night Football.

Marcus Hayes has been covering the NFL for decades. He knows talent when he sees it — and Kelce is it.

— Maria McIlwain, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

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The Eagles opened up their organized team activity session to the media on Wednesday, and we saw first-rounder Quinyon Mitchell look comfortable on the field. Mitchell’s performance has caught the attention of veteran cornerback Darius Slay.

Second-year players also are looking to take a step forward. After struggling toward the end of the season, Jalen Carter looks to be in better shape as he and the Eagles begin life without the recently retired Fletcher Cox. Tyler Steen seemingly is in line to win the starting right guard job, and he wants to earn it.

On April 23, Phillies manager Rob Thomson penciled Alec Bohm into the cleanup spot. He’s done that for nearly every game since.

And Bohm has delivered. So what makes him such a solid option for that spot in the lineup? For one, he makes more contact than the likes of J.T. Realmuto and Nick Castellanos, especially with runners on base. Through Tuesday, he has slashed .402/.461/.678 with men on and .412/.476/.706 with runners in scoring position. No wonder Bohm entered Wednesday on pace for 145 RBIs.

Realmuto, Bohm, and Bryce Harper continued to deliver at the plate in the Phillies’ 11-4 win over the Rangers. Their 36-14 record is the best 50 game start in franchise history.

Ever wondered why the seats at Citizens Bank Park are blue? We have the answer.

Next: The Phillies close out their series against the reigning World Series champs with a matinee (1:05 p.m., NBC 10). The Rangers’ Andrew Heaney (0-5, 4.43 ERA) will face Zack Wheeler (5-3, 2.52).

The 76ers’ season has been over for more two weeks, after the New York Knicks eliminated them in the first round. The NBA postseason has continued on without them and the conference finals are underway. Can the Sixers find lessons to apply next season? The Inquirer’s Gina Mizell takes a look at five potential takeaways for the Sixers.

There’s a Philly-themed restaurant in Turkey with cheesesteaks — and Furkan Korkmaz’s jersey on the wall.

Could Inside the NBA, which features former Sixer Charles Barkley, be on the way out?

It certainly was an interesting season for Bobby Brink.

He made the opening-night roster and played in 38 of the Flyers’ first 47 games, notching 18 points in the process. But he ended up in coach John Tortorella’s doghouse and ultimately was loaned to Lehigh Valley. He’ll be a restricted free agent July 1, so will he be back? General manager Danny Brière thinks so.

“We’ve been really, really impressed with his attitude, coming here, trying to help this team win,” Brière said. We’re very happy with the way Bobby approached the season and how he competed this year.”

We asked you: What’s your prediction for the Phillies’ record this season and why? Among your responses:

I predict the Phillies will be 102-60 and win the division by 3 games over the Braves. And I am a Mets fan. — Warren V.

I think 100+ wins is definitely doable with the way they are playing. I feel the way I did during the run to the 2008 World Series. It is magical to watch them. — Kathy T.

Things will heat up for the Phillies soon as they get into June, July, and August. Lots of games against the Braves, Dodgers, Guardians, Twins, Yankees, and Astros so the competition will be much stronger than so far this season. And they have that tiring trip to London and back. The Phils have strong pitching and that is their greatest strength and it should carry them through to the playoffs and beyond. It would be super to have at least this one year where we host the Braves to start the playoff run instead of going there. One thing i think needs to be improved is not having Rojas and Pache both starting against left handed pitching. Pache is hitting .194, and Rojas .226 with a combined 2 home runs. Even against lefties Marsh is superior to both. And when we start playing the big guys Nick who is hitting .202 will need to step it up as he did last year. — Everett S.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Marcus Hayes, EJ Smith, Olivia Reiner, Jeff Neiburg, Jeff McLane, Scott Lauber, Michelle Myers, Gina Mizell, Gabriela Carroll, Rob Tornoe, Jackie Spiegel, Mia Messina, Aaron Carter, and Lochlahn March.

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