The Sixers beating of the New York Knicks yesterday afternoon ended just in time for us to flip over to PHL 17 to catch some Phillies spring training action from down in Clearwater. And there was a bit more action than usual in spring ball.
In one of the more action-packed plays you'll see in the Grapefruit League, Laynce Nix found himself rumbling home as Tigers catcher Bryan Holaday blocked the plate on a throw from the outfield. Nix didn't really have any option other than to barrel through with a thud. Holaday never caught the ball and Nix scored in the game that would end in a tie (Sup, Donovan?).
These dudes even take meaningless spring games rather seriously. US Presswire photographer Kim Klement caught some nice shots of the bang-bang play.
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Advantage: Nix.
Not only is Laynce running over catchers, he's also getting to know Phillies' Skipper Charlie Manuel rather well. Even making former Nationals teammate Jayson Werth jealous.
From Todd Zolecki's piece on Nix:
"We had a real nice dinner," Nix said. "Charlie told me about what it's
like here, and I told him about myself and the path of my career. It was
just a really fun time. We laughed about a lot of different things.
He's a great guy. I see why guys want to play and win for him. I was
really happy I got to have dinner with him."
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In fact, Nix afterward told Werth he had the opportunity to have dinner with Manuel.
"He was outraged," Nix joked. "Like, 'What? I never got to do that.' But
I think he's happy knowing what I'm going to experience here. I'm just
making sure I'm ready for everything. What's good for the Phillies is
I've had experience doing a little bit of everything. I've played every
day. I can platoon. I've been a bench player."
I want to get a filet mignon at the Watercolour Steakhouse & Grille
at the Clearwater Beach Marriott with Charlie Manuel and Laynce Nix.
Something tells me Nix is going to be one of the latest fan favorites in Philly this summer down at the ballpark.
March 11, 2012; Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia
Phillies left fielder Laynce Nix (19) runs into Detroit Tigers catcher
Bryan Holaday (76) as he is safe at home at Bright House Networks Field.
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE