Johnny Hockey takes his game to ... Columbus? | Sports Daily Newsletter
The Flyers could not make a move for Gaudreau.
Well, Johnny didn’t come home again.
Johnny Gaudreau, the 28-year-old South Jersey native who reportedly wanted to play for the Flyers, signed elsewhere instead. How did the Flyers miss out on a talented player, yet again?
Perhaps the approach from the front office has simply lacked focus. There hasn’t been a clear plan, a commitment to a total rebuild, or the willingness to spend big to win right now. The Flyers have waffled and wandered, even as the team’s record has gone south, along with their once-strong identity of a team that would fight until the final minute.
What happened to the organization whose team ethos gave rise to a mascot named Gritty? Where do the Flyers turn to now? Olivia Reiner takes stock of the team’s options.
Andrea Canales, Inquirer Sports Staff, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.
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Reliever José Alvarado was struggling with a 7.62 ERA when the Phillies sent him down to Lehigh Valley in May. While Alvarado was there, he began hourlong sessions with Juan Rodríguez, a mental skills coach out of Venezuela. With a new outlook, the left-hander has turned things around. He had whittled his ERA to 4.68 entering Wednesday’s game in Toronto.
“I think this could be the key that has been giving me success so far,” says Alvarado, who has allowed only two earned runs since his return in June.
The Toronto Blue Jays fired manager Charlie Montoyo on Wednesday, the third in-season firing of 2022 thus far. “I hate to see people get fired, I really do,” said Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson. “... Any time somebody gets fired, it’s tough to see.”
The Phillies’ lack of depth was on display Wednesday night, when the Blue Jays went off for six runs over 4⅔ innings on ace Zack Wheeler. The loss extended the Phillies’ skid to four games, the longest under interim manager Thomson.
Next: After a day off, the Phillies open a three-game series against the Marlins in Miami on Friday at 6:40 p.m. (NBCSP).
The day began with Flyers fans dreaming of Johnny Gaudreau in orange and black, but that dream died Wednesday, as the Salem County native called an audible and signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
While the Flyers made no major splashes, they did make two depth adds, bringing back steady defenseman Justin Braun on a team-friendly one-year deal and adding a new tough guy in Nic Deslauriers.
Next: Braun and Deslauriers will be introduced to the media on Thursday afternoon.
It may not seem like going from Miami to Philadelphia is a glamorous move, but for Julián Carranza, who languished at Inter Miami, arriving at the Union was a second chance at success in Major League Soccer. He’s done well with it and manager Jim Curtin has decided to make sure the loan becomes permanent.
Since he’s no longer on loan, Carranza played against his former team on Wednesday night.
Worth a look
Banned in Britain? As the British Open gets underway, the Royal & Ancient’s CEO raises the possibility that LIV Golf players could be shut out of the event in the future. Marcus Hayes reacts.
Pitching prospect: Former Central Bucks East right-hander Aidan Weaver has signed with Duke, but he could hear his name called in the Major League Baseball draft.
We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Giana Han, Olivia Reiner, Gustav Elvin, Alex Coffey, Jonathan Tannenwald, Marcus Hayes, and Marc Narducci.