Bill Mattis
AllStarInc

Maybe it’s just me.

I’m the same guy that gets terribly annoyed at the improper written usage of the words “their”, “there”, and “they’re”. 

I need you all to do me a BIG favor? 

Whenever you are in the company of somebody who refers to the Phillies ace pitcher as “Roy Holliday”, can you please quickly correct them? 

Then immediately ask them to repeat it back to you 6 times….”Roy HALLADAY”.

Does this bother YOU at all?  Ok, so maybe I’m a maniac.

It bothers me so much when I hear it, I act like I have no idea who they’re talking about and make a big deal over the mistaken pronunciation.

“Who?  A Phillies pitcher named Holiday?  Hmmm…never heard of him?   You mean Hamels?…Blanton?  OHHHH, you mean Roy HALLADAY, not HOLIDAY!”

C’mon people.  It’s not that hard. 

After all, we’re not talking about the Yankees’ Mark Teixeira here.  I can almost understand when people incorrectly pronounce his name as Tex-eee-air-uh. 

I said…”almost”.

I can see some of you thinking to yourself, “You mean that’s not how you pronounce that?”  I’ll let you guys figure that one out on your own.

I must admit, Philly sports fans do have a legitimate excuse or two.  After all, the Sixers have a point guard whose name actually provokes “double jeopardy” to hometown sports fans. 

His last name actually is “Holiday” (spelled with one “L”).  To make matters even more difficult, his first name is “Jrue”, and not “Drew”.

Of course, the Sixers don’t make the highlights at 11 or the front page of the sports section unless they get a high draft pick or make a trade, so who would even know?  Right?

For more defense of the Philly faithful, a year or two ago it had been rumored that our beloved Phillies might be interested in acquiring an outfielder named Matt Holliday who now plays for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Add to all of this the fact that we live in a “text message world” that shrinks and contracts every word into a phonetic syllable or slang word.  You can see how this contributes to the problem too.

But here is my greatest fear by far.  I lay awake at night hoping the day never comes.  I’m scared…so scared.

Let’s flash forward two years when the Sixers have just won the NBA Championship. ( I know, I know…it’s a stretch…but work with me here…)

What if the Phillies decide to honor the league champs by having them come to Citizen’s Bank Park to be honored at the July 4^th game against the visiting Cardinals.

You really could experience a fateful day where you’d have Holiday, Halladay, and Holliday on a holiday!   

Can you imagine the chaos that day? 

Ok…. maybe it’s just me.