Philly Plain Dealer

In 2025 Philadelphia felt the highest of highs by kicking off the year with a black and green parade down Broad St. Sure, we’ve been knocked off our pedestal a little bit since then, but no other major city had a Super Bowl championship parade earlier this year. 

Now, it’s time to come back to reality and look back on how we got here and what we can look forward to when we ring in the new year. Maybe I don’t want to come back to reality though. 

It was an exhilarating start to 2025 with the Rams-Eagles playoff game ending with a clutch sack by Jalen Carter on Matthew Stanford to seal the victory and the one heart attack game fans experienced during the team’s dominant postseason run towards their Super Bowl LIX victory. What an amazing and stress free time that was to kick off 2025. 

All good things must come to an end as the 76ers had to shut down Embiid in March. Hey, at least in January, the team gave us good news by not building their new stadium in Center City and destroying Chinatown. 

Shutting down Embiid signified the end of “The Process” era to many and gave the team the number 3 overall pick in the NBA draft in June. The team went on to draft guard VJ Edgecomb out of Baylor University. 

We also got some other good basketball news in June, a WNBA team announcement! Philadelphia will be the home of the league’s 18th team. Tip-off, however, won’t be until 2030. So there will be some until we’re rewarded with a talented group of players and one of the worst medical staffs the league has ever seen. If you’re looking for some quality Women’s Hoops, the Villanova Wildcats won the Women’s Big 5 Classic solidifying themselves as the best women’s hoops team in town! Plus Unrivaled is coming to Philadelphia in early 2026. 

The Phillies returned this year playing at a high level. Kyle Schwarber had career highs in home runs, RBI’s and WAR, along with playing all 162 games. Earned himself a 5 year deal with $150 million. Along with that, he also earned a special place in my heart and all of the fans, how could he ever leave this city. 

It’s not all good for the Phillies though. Zack Wheeler was having a Cy Young worthy season alongside our other state representative Paul Skenes. Unfortunately, Wheeler was placed on the injured list with a right upper extremity blood clot in the middle of August. 

The Phillies made it to the playoffs but lost to the eventual and not-so-surprising World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers, in the divisional round 3 – 1. 

We don’t need to remember how they lost, that’s alright, but it shouldn’t all be on Orion Kerkering. A series of bad hitting and poor management lead up to the error, Kerkerking just became the scapegoat because his mistake was embarrassing and ended the series. 

The Phillies clubhouse problems became public with the trading of relief pitcher Matt Strahm and rumors that he clashed with management. 

The Flyers also went through major changes in 2025. Listen, I’m not a hockey watcher, but I know who John Tortorella is from growing up in New York. The Flyers, similar to the Sixers have struggled with their rebuild recently. They’ve missed the playoffs five seasons in a row now. I hope to not end up in another city with John Tortorella.

As we draw towards the end of 2025, the Eagles have had their ups and downs this season, mostly frustration with the offense and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo. Though there was something about Sunday’s game in Buffalo and watching their in-season Hard Knocks segments. This still feels like a championship ready team along with a wide open NFC with no clear front-runner. 

The Phillies still have Nick Castellanos and Alec Bohm on the roster, who were guys that were potential trade candidates. Turns out it’s not easy to move a third baseman who doesn’t hit for power and isn’t the best at their position in the field. It’s also not easy to move an aging veteran, who can be charming in the clubhouse, but his performance on the field leaves much to be desired. 

Not looking forward to raw milk and blood transfusion Bryce Harper coming back, I’m feeling a bit weary of what his 2026 will look like, and Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski might be right, Harper’s best years could be behind him now. 

Tyrese Maxey got fans excited and believing he was going to be the new James Harden and will this Sixers squad to victory every night, but he’s since cooled down. The team is still sitting at two games above .500 and Paul George has actually looked pretty good this year. Embiid gave the city a scare but he’s still the great scorer he’s always been. It’s just a matter of everyone being healthy and on the court together. I still love you Jared McCain, your time will come. 

Here’s to my 2025 sports MVP – I couldn’t give it to just one person – it’s the entire Philadelphia Eagles defense and Vic Fangio. A group of guys who have brought joy to the city and made victories happen even when the offense struggles to get it going. But with all the turn over from 24′ to 25′ – ol’ reliable Vic Fangio has held the city down.

LVP – I’m sorry Nick Castellanos. Being a bad position player in the field while also struggling at the plate and being owed $20 million on his final season isn’t ideal. Not being able to find a trade partner while even telling teams you’re willing to eat most of the cost is even worse. The honeymoon has unfortunately ended with him and it’s time to move on. 

A dream for 2026, the Eagles are repeat Super Bowl champions, this time winning in San Francisco’s stadium and we can all once again ignore the issues the Flyers, 76ers and Phillies present us with throughout the year.