Roy Halladay Finds Time to Save Boy from Anaconda During MLB Offseason

The Philadelphia Phillies may want a word with their star pitcher Roy Halladay, who is apparently off saving lives in the Amazon. 

The 700 Level reports Halladay was in Brazil for a fishing trip when he went all Superman and saved a little boy from a dangerous anaconda. 

Now for the reality portion of this tall tale. Doc Halladay was allegedly on a fishing trip with buddies and the group towed home a boy in need. 

The local boy had been bitten by an anaconda but was able to fight of the extremely dangerous snake. The report comes from a blog entry written by fishing legend Skeet Reese. His photo can be seen below.

Halladay just finished off another fine year. I mean, it’s not saving lives, but a 2.35 ERA and 19 wins is pretty substantial pitching. Now we have to bring the fairy tale of Halladay with a machete in his teeth playing Indiana Jones to an end.  

Reese goes on to describe what is neither gruesome nor scary. It may be that Reese is such a bad ass that seeing a boy fending off an anaconda is no big deal. Trust me, if we ever needed to describe such an event, it would be littered with four-letter words. 

“We had plenty of wildlife encounters though. Along with the fishing, we decided to go hunting one night…Me and Doc Halladay even came across a local, sitting bare naked on a tree by the river. What we were able to figure out is that he was fishing in the river for tropical fish to sell for aquariums when he got attacked by an anaconda.

The snake apparently bit him on the ass but he was able to free himself before the snake wrapped him up. Instead the snake wrapped around his motor on the back of his little 14 foot dugout canoe and tore it off the back of his boat. Doc and I helped him gather his gear and flip the boat back over and then towed him home. You could definitely see the bite mark on his ass, but he was able to fight it off; amazing.”

So the story that began with a boy fighting off a killer beast has now grown into Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay tearing off his clothes and showing his superhero costume. 

I have no doubt that Halladay and his buddies played a crucial part in all this, but let’s get an award for this local that just thwarted death. I get squeamish when there is a spider on my wall. 

I am sure the Phillies front office considers this story a real hoot. All they need is for one of their best players to get eaten by a large animal. I think they are getting an email to send to Halladay that reads, “Stay away from Anacondas.” 

That will probably include watching the movie Anaconda. Which is just good life advice, actually. 

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5 Crucial Moves the Philadelphia Phillies Must Make to Stay Atop the NL

Over the last five years, it’s been business as usual for the Philadelphia Phillies. Five straight NL East titles, a World Series Win in 2008 and a bevy of high profile acquisitions have labeled this team a serious threat every October.

On paper, the Phillies are a well-rounded team with dominant pitching and veteran sluggers. But erratic offensive production has been the Achilles heel for a team trying to make it back to the Fall Classic since its magnificent run in 2008. Last season’s heartbreaking loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Divisional Playoffs exposed some major flaws with the Phillies that need to be addressed this offseason.

Here’s a look at five imperative moves—within the current team and by acquisition—the Phillies must make to be a legitimate contender in the 2012 season.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 25 Best Soundbites in Phillies History

“Different people, different backgrounds, different ideals… We walk in different doors at the beginning of the day and we walk out of different doors at the end of the day, but when it is time to go out on to the field, we all go through the same door.” — Scott Rolen

In a very brief sense, that’s what the sport of baseball is all about. For most of the season, each team is composed of a roster of 25 men plus a number of coaches and other experts coming from all kinds of different walks of life, and at the end of the day, they have to work together in unison if they want to win. Great teams know how to put their differences aside and just win ball games.

Obviously, you don’t get any of that inspirational jargon, like the quote above from former Philadelphia Phillies‘ third baseman Scott Rolen without a few interesting characters on each club. For as many players who would love nothing more than to stay as far away from a camera as possible, there are those who just can’t resist jumping in front of one and grabbing a microphone, and that is where most of the great soundbites come from.

The Phillies have had their share of players who can produce a great quote come through their organization over their history, and if a reporter needed that perfect quote to complement his story, here are 25 of the best soundbites he could go to.

 

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Philadelphia Phillies 2012: 11 Ways to Regain Their Mental Edge over Opponents

Only a few years ago when the Phillies were fresh off of a World Series Championship, the team possessed one of the more important but sometimes overlooked factors of greatness: intimidation. Loaded with offensive stars who were more than prone to hit the long ball, the Phillies had the ability to go up to the plate already with an edge because of their skill at knowing how to get under the opponent’s skin. Beginning with Jimmy Rollins and his bold 2007 post season declaration, the Phillies combined talent with mastery of the mental game and rode that to a World Series Championship.

As of 2012, the World Series winning season will already be four years in the past and since that time the Phillies have slowly lost the mental edge they possessed. Teams aren’t as intimidated by the Phillies anymore because they have discovered and highlighted their weaknesses. By being successful, the Phillies went from the mostly unnoticed prey to the now chased and hunted predator, with teams constantly game planning to exploit baseball’s former best team.

Although by many it is believed that the pieces are there for the Phillies to repeat, the mental edge they had in 2008 is gone. As the NL East continues to get stronger, regaining this mental edge will be key to the Phillies once again winning the World Series.

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20 Reasons the Phillies-Mets Rivalry Is Still Alive and Well

Not all that long ago, match-ups between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets were games that topped season-ticket plans and made for must-watch television, but as time has worn on, some would argue that this long standing rivalry has lost some of its luster.

Time to wake up and smell the coffee, folks. This rivalry isn’t dead. It’s alive and better than ever.

We may not have seen many benches-clearing brawls in recent seasons, but that doesn’t mean that these two teams have decided to bury the hatchet. Looking forward to 2012, both teams are wielding their respective hatchets and are ready to use them. The Mets will hack at the legs of the Phillies, trying to climb back towards the top, and the Phillies will make sure they’re doing what it takes to stay there.

To say that this rivalry doesn’t exist any longer is a short-sighted statement. The real question is a bit more philosophical. What makes the first place Phillies and last place Mets such bitter foes? Where does the anger and competitive edge come from? For what reason, other than the uniforms they wear, do these players legitimately dislike one another?

The answers may be less obvious than you think.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Why Roy Oswalt Was an Abject Failure in Philly

It seems the Roy Oswalt experiment is over in Philadelphia. The pitcher was not offered arbitration by the Phillies, which means he is now a free agent.

Phillies general manager, Ruben Amaro Jr., traded for Oswalt at the trade deadline during the 2010 season. At this point the Phillies rotation was lead by the two Roys: Halladay and Oswalt.

Unfortunately, what Phillies fans hoped would be a positive addition to their ballclub ended up being a failure. Over his one-and-a-half seasons with the Phillies, Oswalt’s numbers declined greatly, and his health became a major issue.

Here are the top five reasons why Roy Oswalt was a failure for the Philadelphia Phillies.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 10 Things They Still Need to Do Before Spring Training

The Phillies appear set to go for the 2012 season after another aggressive offseason. This winter, we’ve already seen an upgrade in the closer position and bench, as well as retaining the team leader in Jimmy Rollins.

With most of their pieces in place, they appear poised for another championship run.

They aren’t quite done, though, as there still are a few things they need to do before heading from their homes around the world to Spring Training in Clearwater, Fla.

Some of these would not only help 2012, but they could help the team prepare for future seasons beyond this upcoming one.

It’s all part of keeping that championship contention window open for as long as they can.

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15 Most Clutch Players of the NL East

When building a ball club, a front office looks to get a little of everything—from a top pitcher, to a strong bullpen, to good defense and of course some power in the middle of the order. All of those things are important, but in order to be able to win big games it is important to have players capable of coming through in the clutch.

This article takes a look at the 15 most clutch players in the National League East, a division that has become increasingly more competitive after teams like Miami and Washington added some talented players this winter.

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25 Hotshot Philadelphia Phillies to Watch in 2012

Looking ahead to the 2012 season for the Philadelphia Phillies, there are a lot of things that we already know. Looking around the diamond, we know who most of the everyday players are. The same thing can be said about the starting rotation and the bullpen. We know who will fill most of those roles.

Beneath the surface, there are things that we do not know. We all know that Ryan Howard has the potential to hit 40 home runs a season, but can we say that about anyone else? We all know that Shane Victorino runs like a greyhound, but who else can steal bases? Fresh off of a new deal, we know that Jimmy Rollins can play defense, but are there a couple of Gold Glove-caliber defenders waiting in the wings?

One of the greatest aspects of the game of baseball is that no matter how advanced the statistics become, or how much instant replay is introduced to the game or how each organization’s front office grows, baseball will always offer its fair share of surprises, and none of us will have seen them coming.

The Phillies may have a couple of those surprises in their organization. Sure, the roster plays host to a number of established veterans who’ve produced similar numbers over the course of their careers, but it also hosts a number of players with big question marks hanging over their heads.

Is that prospect ready to take the next step? Can this guy become an everyday player? Will that guy make an impact on the MLB? Can this veteran stay healthy? Can that veteran produce?

For the sake of this slideshow, we’ll call those guys “hotshot” players. This means that no matter the level of talent they poses, they have something to prove in 2012, and whether or not they can prove themselves can have a tremendous impact on the Phillies at some level.

Is the future in the hands of these 25 hotshot players?

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Predicting the No. of Games Started for Every Phillies Position Player

The Philadelphia Phillies are still in the process of filling out their roster after the acquisitions of Jonathan Papelbon, Laynce Nix, Ty Wigginton and Jim Thome. The thought of Ruben Amaro as GM of this ball club makes many wonder if there is more exciting news on the horizon.

Can the “Riverboat Gambler” find another diamond piece to add to the puzzle? We have a pretty good idea of who will be in the Philadelphia Phillies lineup in 2012, as it looks pretty similar to the team that couldn’t score a run in the NLDS against Chris Carpenter.

Ryan Howard and Placido Polanco are coming off serious surgeries and you can bet that both players will miss some time recuperating.

Here is a prediction of the number of games started by each Phillies’ position player.

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