The Ramos roundup is a weekly Philadelphia Sports column highlighting all the pertinent news of the week featuring the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, Sixers, and Union.
Graham Returns, Fletcher Cox Retires; Plus, Rumors!
Yesterday, the Eagles announced that defensive end Brandon Graham will return to the team on a 1-year deal for his last season, according to the team. The news comes on the heels of Jason Kelce‘s retirement at the beginning of the week.
As a leader, Graham will be all the more irreplaceable this season as Fletcher Cox also announced his own retirement on Sunday. The times, are a-changing for the birds and it’ll be interesting to see who steps into the large leadership left behind by Kelce and Cox.
A couple players that it may not be? Hassan Reddick and Josh Sweat. We’ve discussed the Reddick rumors here already, but the Josh Sweat conversation is new. According to Tom Pelissero, the Eagles may be taking trade calls on the 26-year-old. We’ll have to wait and see where this goes…
Tortorella Ejected as Flyers Get Romped by Lightning 7-0
Right smack dab in the middle of a play-off race, the Flyers laid an egg in Tampa after playing a strong game against the Panthers on Thursday. The contest was a mess, but will probably best be remembered for Tortorella’s tirade. The Flyers bench boss was ejected midway through the first period due to poor officiating from Wes McCauley. Tortorella eventually did leave the bench as the Flyers decided to switch goalies, but had originally protested the calls.
I do wonder if Tortorella will be handed a fine by the league for the tongue-lashing to McCauley, even if it was justified.
*Update*
John Tortorella has been suspended for two games and assessed a $50,000 fine.
Union, Sounders Game Postponed Due to Rain
If you’ve kept up with our Union coverage this season, the Union had their MLS match with the Seattle Sounders on Saturday night postponed due to inclement weather. The two clubs tried to play, but the field was slick and filled with puddles. The ball was bogged down by the rain as well, making it difficult for the players to kick.
There has been no formal announcement on when this game will be played. In the meantime, the Union will fly out to Mexico to take on F.C. Pachuca on Tuesday in Champions League play.
Phillies Split Weekend Games with Jays, Pirates
Nick Castellanos and Edmundo Sosa each homered, while Weston Wilson and Rodolfo Castro each picked up two hits in the Phils 13-5 loss to Toronto on Saturday.
The Phillies would bounce back on Sunday, however. Eight different players picked up hits in the Phillies Sunday matinée win over the Pirates. The Fightins are 6-7 in Spring Training play this season.
Sixers Clip Knicks 79-73
The Sixers picked up a much needed win at Madison Square Garden Sunday night. Kelly Oubre Jr.’s 18 points led the way for the Sixers, as Philly was still down Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid. Buddy Hield (17-7-3) and Paul Reed (13-7-1) added some of the scoring depth.
