From The Desk Of Derek L. Jones

The days of Sil Campusano, Desi Relaford, and Abraham Nunez were in the archives. It was time to celebrate and appreciate a golden age of Phillies baseball and a new group of stars.

No one on the Phillies embodied Philadelphia and the team’s rise to greatness during that era quite like Chase Utley. 

Utley is arguably the most popular player in team history and one of the most popular athletes in Philadelphia sports history.

That’s why his departure to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday feels different than that of Jimmy Rollins and Cole Hamels - two other mainstays during the Phillies’ tremendous run from 2007 to 2011.

One could make the argument that other players in franchise history were more talented or better than Utley, but few players had the magnetic pull that the UCLA Bruin did.

Upon watching him in his prime, it was easy to see why fans were in love with how he played the game. Utley’s hustle, baseball IQ, spirit, and talent symbolized Philly far more than his native Pasadena, California.

During the Phils’ heyday, I often referred to Utley and first baseman Ryan Howard as “The Glimmer Twins” - the nickname also given to the dynamic duo of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones.

When the team rolled to consecutive World Series appearances, a title in ‘08, and three straight appearances in the National League Championship Series, it seemed that without both playing well in unison that series victories appeared to be a risky proposition.

After devouring hours and hours of Phillies games, it’s evident who played which role. Utley starred as Mick Jagger and Howard played the role of Richards.

While Jagger mesmerized crowds with his talents and charisma as a performer, Utley shined in a more muted and different fashion...by example. Yet, much like Jagger, Utley captivated audiences when he was at his peak.

Throughout Philadelphia sports history, players struggled to fit in despite their immense talents due to a failure to connect with the fans (see McNabb, Donovan).

Utley had no such problem. Whether it was in the quick and sudden way he would jog around the bases after hitting a homer to his ability to turn water into wine while playing second base, Philly fans were hooked from Day 1.

From the time he blasted a grand slam as his first hit in the majors against the Colorado Rockies to his final moments in a Phillies uniform, he has been the heartbeat of the franchise.

There will never be another quite like him.

Thanks for the memories Chase.

"Rowdy" Roddy Piper passed away at age 61 after suffering a heart attack.

The history of pro wrestling is unable to be told without mentioning Piper. The legendary figure earned his greatest acclaim during the 80s as a part of the World Wrestling Federation's rise in the public's consciousness.

Starting his wrestling career at age 15, Piper wrestled throughout North America before becoming a mainstay in the National Wrestling Alliance in the late 70s.

While in the NWA, Piper enjoyed success as a part of major feuds against "Nature Boy" Ric Flair and Greg Valentine over the United States title.

The latter feud led to Piper's role in wrestling's first supercard - Starrcade '83 - and a memorable dog-collar match that the Rowdy One would win.

Perhaps seeing his gift of gab being a potential box office draw, young promoter Vincent K. McMahon of the World Wrestling Federation scooped up Piper from the NWA in late '83 and the rest as they say is history.

His ties to the WWE's pop culture explosion in the 80s were just as important as Hulk Hogan's contributions. As a heel (bad guy), Piper was a major part of the Rock N' Wrestling Connection angle featuring music star Cyndi Lauper and Captain Lou Albano.

Piper's feud with Lauper setup a seminal moment in wrestling - the main event of WrestleMania I. The showdown on March 31, 1985 in Madison Square Garden featured Piper teaming with Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff to face WWE champion Hulk Hogan and pop culture megastar Mr. T.

Soon after joining the WWE in late '83, the Scot's caustic and bombastic nature led to him hosting one of wrestling's most infamous and landmark interview segments - Piper's Pit.

From Hogan to Andre the Giant to Randy Savage, anybody who was anybody in the WWE appeared on the program.

One of the famous Piper Pit segments involved Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka. During Snuka's 1984 appearance, Piper smashed Snuka in the head with a coconut. The segment was uncomfortable, crazy, and memorable...kind of like Piper.

Instead of a crazy workrate and dynamic moveset, Piper's moneymaker was his mouth. During his apex in the mid-80s, no one in wrestling could incite a crowd quite like Hot Rod.

His verbal skills made him one of wrestling's most iconic stars of the 1980s and even led to a starring role in the cult film classic "They Live" in 1987.

"I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick ass...and I'm all out of bubble gum." said Nada, Piper's character in the film.

Over the span of three decades, Piper kicked plenty of ass in the professional wrestling world.

Longtime friend Ric Flair succinctly addressed Piper's passing in a statement:

“We’ve shared the ring, traveled the world, maintained a friendship throughout the ups and downs of the wrestling world, and battled to see who was the better heel. It’s almost impossible to express my grief. My condolences to his children and to his wife Kitty. I’ll miss you Roddy. The world will never be as Rowdy without you.”

Amen.

His credits extended beyond the gridiron including stints with baseball, basketball, golf, soccer, and marathons (!). Literally, Van Miller was a man of all seasons.

On a sidenote, I first started watching the NFL in 1989. At that time, the 49ers ruled the NFL but a new power was rising in western New York. The Bills lost in the AFC title in '88 and fell to the Browns during the '89 playoffs. The latter performance saw the early forerunner of Buffalo's vaunted no-huddle attack that would devastate defenses during the early 90s.

As Buffalo achieved more success, fans around the NFL became more familiar with the exploits of future Hall of Famers Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Bruce Smith, Andre Reed, and James Lofton.

Yet, fans also were introduced to Miller, the man behind of the mic during Buffalo's famous run during the early 90s. Thanks to Buffalo's on-the-field exploits, Miller's famous calls in important regular season and postseason games came to life on a national stage through ESPN's weekly show NFL PrimeTime or NFL Films' productions.

Miller was never better behind the mic than during Buffalo's dramatic 41-38 come-from-behind overtime win over the Houston Oilers during the 1992 postseason.

Bills quarterback Frank Reich helped Buffalo erase a 35-3 second half and connected with Reed on the go-ahead score. Miller's radio call was simply perfect:

"BACK TO THROW, HE LOOKS, HE THROWS...TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!! ANDRE REED FOR THE TOUCHDOWN!!! THE BILLS HAVE SCORED!!! IT IS BEDLAM...IT IS PANDEMONIUM...IT IS FANDEMONIUM...IT IS FANTASTIC."

Often times, local radio announcers for NFL teams do not get proper recognition unless their team becomes good and/or relevant simply because other audiences don't have a chance to hear their work.

Luckily, the football world was blessed to know Van Miller.

Approachable, affable, and well-informed.

He was always a gentlemen and one of the most genuine people I’d ever met.

As people get older and life plays out, the weekly hangouts become monthly, bi-monthly, and then yearly. Seeing friends becomes much more of a challenge at certain points in life. Yet, when everyone gets together, it’s like you just saw each other a week ago.

Last month, I received an e-mail from a mutual friend about a barbecue that was taking place in mid-July.

Unfortunately, I had an out of town trip previously planned and didn’t make it out to the barbecue.

That was it.

Just by happenstance and random scheduling, I missed out and I never got a chance to talk to or see him again.

That sucks.

Therefore, my final memory of him before his untimely passing was a photo I saw of him on Facebook last Saturday as he made his way to the same barbecue that I was going to attend. 

In a way, it is a bit of snapshot of where we are as a nation in 2015.

Social media gives us a crutch and replaces actually texting, calling, or seeing someone in person. It goes beyond Facebook and Twitter though.

It has become too easy to drift into our own little worlds and in turn, not put emphasis on person-to-person relationships. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a study in late 2014 that revealed people spend nearly three hours a day on smartphones and tablets.