This Week In Philly Sports: Embiid Back, Phils Back, Flyers Fall

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Major League Baseball's opening day was Thursday, with the Phillies kicking off their 2021 season against the Atlanta Braves. The Sixers are getting Joel "Troell" Embiid back in the colors, and the NBA should be scared. The Flyers could be pulling an elaborate practical joke, as they have interspersed very tough play with a string of losses that look like football or baseball scores.

Hector Neris rides horse, named Phillies closer

Ahead of Opening Day on Thursday afternoon, Phillies manager Joe Girardi chose Hector Neris from his stable of relievers to be the team's official closer.

Even though the Phillies bullpen struggled in 2020, Neris bucked up in several key moments last year and this spring. The franchise cleaned out the stalls of last year's bullpen and this year's opening day roster features an entirely new cast, with Neris one of the few returnees.

At some point, he rode a horse. He did so with a grace that could not have hurt his chances in this spring's closer derby.

While it's not known exactly how much importance Girardi places on horsemanship in his relievers, it is known that Neris' ride ended better than other NL East equine experiments.

The return of Embiid

The Sixers, who already own one of the best records in the NBA, are getting the MVP frontrunner back in the fold this weekend.

Superstar Joel Embiid is slated to return to the team Saturday. While the team has largely fared well without him, they did drop two in a row this week to strong Western Conference teams.

In all seriousness, the Sixers find themselves locked in what looks to be a very exciting three-team battle for supremacy in the Eastern Conference. They sit in second place, trailing the Brooklyn Nets by half a game and leading the Milwaukee Bucks by 2.5 games. Fourth place is a distant 8 games back.

With both Ben Simmons and Embiid in the fold, the Beasts of the East will be at full strength heading into this stretch run. Early reports indicate that the rest of the NBA has not yet forfeited the remainder of the year, though such concessions are likely on the horizon.

Flyers losing by baseball, football scores

After an electric finish to the 2020 season that established them as Stanley Cup contenders, the Flyers have had a bit of a rough period.

They played to a series of tough fought losses in early March, but then they lost to the New York Rangers by three field goals, 9-0, on March 17.

They've since dropped two games 6-1, and another 8-3.

Even Gritty seems more focused on baseball.

Still, all is not lost. Despite this string of fantastic losses in March, the Flyers remain just 10 points out of second place and a playoff spot, with time left in the season to turn things around.

This Week in Philly Sports is a weekly dispatch covering the wildest, the weirdest, and the greatest sports city in America. Have something you'd like to see here? Email justin.heinze@patch.com.