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.
Alec Bohm to Participate in Home Run Derby; Plus Seven All-Stars!
In somewhat surprising news, Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm announced that he will participate in the Home Run Derby prior to the All-Star game. Bohm has just 11 dingers on the season and hit a career-high 20 last season. Nonetheless, Bohm will try to hit as many as possible in the event, alongside Gunnar Henderson with more names to be announced.
The MLB All-Star game will be on July 17th at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
Additionally, the Phillies won’t be sending Alec alone to the All-Star festivities. The Fightins will be sending a franchise-record 7 players to this year’s midsummer classic. Bohm will be joined by teammates Bryce Harper, Jeff Hoffman, Matt Strahm, Ranger Suárez, Trea Turner and Zack Wheeler.
A true testament to the talent the club possesses and the fantastic season the Phillies have turned in to date.
Sixers Add Caleb Martin
Sixers GM Daryl Morey continues to have an active season for Philly, as he most recently inked swing-man Caleb Martin to a four-year contract. Martin, 28, reportedly turned down a more lucrative offer from the Miami Heat. Perhaps, the belief that the Sixers will be contenders this season helped sway Martin. Joining the recently signed Paul George, Martin should be an upgrade over the departed Tobias Harris.
Martin can line up at the power or small forward spots for Philly and improve the Sixers shooting from the arc. He also can be a dogged defender, something the Philly faithful should relish from a player in his role.
Luchanko Shines at Flyers Development Camp
The Flyers hosted their annual developmental camp this week with many of their prospects on display. The camp concluded with a scrimmage among the prospects on Saturday evening. 2024 first round pick Jett Luchanko participated and was able to showcase some of the raw skills the Flyers front office likes about it him.
In other club news, Philly re-signed defensemen Egor Zamula to a 2 year, $1.7M cap hit deal. Zamula, 24, scored five goals and complied 16 assists this season.
Union and Red Bulls Draw 0-0; River End Makes Statement
18-year-old keeper Andrew Rick posted his first career clean sheet in a 0-0 draw on Saturday. The match was not the most eventful, but the Sons of Ben protest in the river end sure was. Many fans of the Key Stone Ultras group (a fan group separate from the SOBs) had signage removed by the club’s security prior to the match, while Sell The Team” chants from a group of Philadelphia Union fans rang out on the Apple TV broadcast just as the Sons Of Ben’s 5 minutes of silence protest was taking place.
Now, it appears that Owners of the Philadelphia Union will have a meeting with Sons of Ben Leadership. Fan frustration has boiled over with the Union ownership throughout this season. The boys in blue are now winless in nine games (0-5-4) and just 1-9-6 since April.
Something’s got to give here.
