To: Bubba Watson and Jessica Korda:
Don’t “Shoot” or Fire the Messenger

What If?
Over the weekend, I was watching the US Women’s Open Championship primarily because of Inbee Park. She was seeking to win the first three major golf championships of the season, a feat that had only been achieved once in Women’s Golf history. Babe Zaharias did it in 1950. Park did, indeed, win the Open championship on Sunday and now has a chance to become the first woman to win four (and perhaps, five) majors in one year – the Grand Slam!

Okay, that’s why I started to watch the golf, but on Saturday, a strange event caused me to sit up and take notice – Jessica Korda fired her caddie after playing the ninth hole, halfway through the round! She ordered her boyfriend, who was in the gallery to carry her bag the rest of the way. I bring this up because you may have missed it. Had it been Tiger, Phil, or Rory who did this, it would have been front page news.

There has not been any reason given as to why Korda took this unusual action. Bubba Watson blamed his caddie two weeks ago for giving him the wrong yardage on the 16th hole and it probably cost him the Travelers Championship tournament. Ian Woosnan at the British Open years ago threw all of his clubs out of the bag when his caddie allowed too many clubs to be placed there. Neither, however, fired their caddie on the spot.

So I got to thinking about famous duos that may have been broken up on the spur of the moment because of a miscalculation:

Would Bonnie have fired Clyde if he forgot the bullets?

Would Penn fire Tellar if, all of a sudden, Tellar would not shut up?

What would happen to Hall if Oates thought Hall was “pitchy”?

Would Jill fire Jack because he “broke his crown”?

What would happen to Lewis if he caused Clark to get lost?

What if Tonto thought he was more important than the Lone Ranger (sounds like a good movie)?

What if the Beast got more press than Beauty?

So, you may ask, “What did I learn from Jessica Korda’s actions?” Just this – If I mess up and I have any kind of reason to blame my administrative assistant, Kristin, I will. I may even fire her, but first I have to make sure my wife knows Microsoft Word!

SportsTalk Shop: Blue Mountain League Thoughts

It’s always good to sit down and chat with the people of Blue Mountain League, as we had President Bob Varju, Secretary/Treasurer Tim Fisher and Orioles Player/Manager Dave Stoudt on our most recent “RCN SportsTalk” show. In addition to talking about the first half of the season, their charity All-Star event and previewing what looks to be a certain horse race for the top four playoff spots this summer, we had to spend some time talking about the man the league was dedicating this season to, the legendary Ron Punkin Miller, and how much he meant to the league and to this area:

www.youtube.com/embed/Ifp2jniZZzQ

The entire show is available on RCN’s Video-on-Demand for free for the next several weeks.

A few other items we discussed during the program and in-between segments during our commercial breaks (when Fisher wasn’t chopping me to bits:)

 • If you haven’t been following along, this is one of the most competitive BML seasons in recent memory; as recently as this past Tuesday, there were four teams tied for first, and two more teams no more than a game-and-a-half back.

• Although rain has been a major issue and most team are very backed-up with numerous games left to be played with less than a month left in their season, pitching on most nights as been very solid. We had a nice 2-1 pitchers’ duel last Tuesday on RCN’s “Game of the Week” and there have been a bunch of young pitchers stepping up and performing well.

• Speaking of youth, how about all the major contributions of the rookies and one- and two-year players this season! It used to be rare for more than one rookie on a team to earn even a regular starting role, but the talent of the league this year has really been on the rise with multiple rookies per team making significant contributions. This should make for some great careers to come for individuals and for the league.

• Northampton Giants’ first baseman Dave Gulick has been making bats, not just for the BML, but also for local teams, minor league teams, and even bats that were used in the World Baseball Classic. If you want a good deal, get in contact with him.

What are your memories of Punkin? What BML teams have impressed you so far this season, and which squads are most likely to make the playoffs? Post a comment or email them to RCNSportsTalk@rcn.com.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. The Phillies continue to be awful and the TV ratings and ballpark attendance are declining rapidly. Can they right the ship? Answer these questions:

Is it Charlie’s fault?
Is it Ruben’s fault?
Do you just blame the hitters and the pitchers?
Do you want to trade Ryan Howard, Cliff Lee?
Will Cole Hamels, your ace, LOSE 20 games?
OR, will they just get very healthy the second half of the season and turn this whole mess around?
Stay tuned!

2. My main blog this week was about not saying the right things. Read anything written about or quoted by Lehigh’s soon to be drafted by the NBA player, CJ McCollum, and you get a sense that here is a young man who has had the proper upbringing, has good values, a solid work ethic, and appreciates his talents. I hope he stays that way.

3. NFL training camps start in a month. Bad choices by the players during their down time will continue, however.

4. Every story I read about the Tampa Bay Rays coach and former Lafayette student, Joe Maddon, makes me wish he managed closer to home. Try to find a bad word written about him and/or his managing skills. He usually has inferior talent battling for a playoff spot, with great player support. And he gave us an interview the last time he was on the Lafayette campus. My kind of guy.

5. Football in June? The Lehigh Valley McDonald’s All-Star Football Classic was last Thursday. It was well-played and, more importantly, well-attended. The banquet for the players, cheerleaders, coaches, parents, and friends was held last Wednesday, sponsored and televised by RCN.

Serena Williams vs Maria Sharapova; Sergio Garcia vs Tiger Woods, etc
Great Matchups?
You would think that any time I offer up Serena Williams vs. Maria Sharapova or Tiger Woods vs. Sergio Garcia, I would be going to look at tennis or at golf. I would think the same thing. However, in the past few weeks, these rivals have taken plenty of shots but not on the court, nor on the course. Instead, the shots have been “backhanded” or “driven” AT each other.

This past week, right before the start of Wimbledon, Serena and Maria exchanged backhands. And, much like a high school dust-up, the animosity centers, not around tennis, but on their respective “boyfriends”. Serena, in Rolling Stone magazine, did everything but name Maria when she said her rival was not cool, was boring, and was dating Serena’s former boyfriend, whom she described as having a “black heart.” Maria countered by returning serve when she accused Serena of dating her coach, who is married and has children. Maria, also, implied Serena’s coach was headed for divorce. Deuce!!

Sergio Garcia had some nasty remarks to say about Tiger Woods during The Players Championship. Tiger was later found not to have been at fault, but did respond to Sergio with a few trite comments of his own. Sergio made the matter even worse with a perceived racist comment about serving Tiger “fried chicken” at the US Open. Tiger said the comment was “wrong, hurtful, and clearly inappropriate.” The scores by the two appeared to be par for Tiger; double bogey or worse by Sergio.

What were Serena and Sergio thinking? We all have to vent from time to time, but not to Rolling Stone, not during a press conference. How did they think these statements would be perceived? Did they not think they would be open to disparaging remarks directed right back at them? Did they really want to take on two people whom so many fans support? Did Sergio really believe his response would not be considered racist (after all, Fuzzy Zeller got into serious public relations problems of his own with an almost identical comment)? Sponsors want athletes to be, for the most part, squeaky clean – certainly not tinged by marital scandal or racist innuendo. Talk tennis, talk golf, talk weather – then just shut up!!

When you are in the public eye, what you say becomes public! Just ask Paula Deen.

The Day of Reckoning is Coming … Soon!

The time for evaluating the current Philadelphia Phillies ball club is nearly over. There are very few games left for any one player to try to disprove what he actually has shown in his ability through the first 74 games of the regular season. The now pseudo-trade deadline — and with so many teams still in the hunt for the extra wild card spot (can you believe the Padres are actually ahead of the Phils?) — is a month away, and some very long, hard decisions will have to be made regarding some of the longest tenured, and most beloved Phillies ball players of all-time.

Now, that doesn’t mean you can kiss Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins & Philly fan favorites good-bye over the next 30 days. However, decisions will have to be made to realistically pursue offers to trade these athletes that will go down as the greatest players in club history at their respective position. Names like Utley and Rollins will be given serious consideration someday for baseball’s most precious honor — the Hall of Fame. But that is — or at least — SHOULD BE IRRELEVENT NOW. This Phillies team is NOT going to win a World Series as is. They are not “a player or two” away, nor is one more player returning from the disabled list going to put this team over the top. They cannot wait any longer — they have to change the dynamics of these teams, and unfortunately, they are being buoyed by players that are practically UNTRADEABLE due to their weighty contracts.

Consider these facts about the Phightin’ Phils that are indisputable, and are contributing directly to the team’s current status (as of this writing) of four games under the 500-mark and an ebbing eight-game back of the division-leading Braves:

• The fact that Cole Hamels has accumulated 11 losses before the second day of summer is UNACCEPTABLE. The Phillies pour the majority of their “free agent monies” into Hamels’ pocketbook and pretty much denied the team from trying to add any type of significant offensive has — at least for this season — proven to be a major mistake. Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson and J. R. Richards in their prime would have difficulty pitching to a .500-record with this offense behind him, and the fact that King Cole has had lapses in concentration even when given a lead cannot be tolerated when so much was riding on this season (in particular, his pitching arm).

• The fact that Ryan Howard (while riding his current $125-million contract) is battling an injury does not excuse his poor approach in the batters’ box. If he cannot base his back foot and launch mammoth home runs to even the deepest ball parks, as he has done in the past, then he has to change his approach and find a way to drive in balls via other avenues (i.e., hitting the ball the other way, working the count late in games when the team is down by more than one with no one on base, et al). The fact that his batting average dropped 15-points when Dom Brown was moved behind him for “protection” while Brown went on one of the most torrid offensive tears this team has seen in decades is proof that Howard’s lack of ANY significant offensive production (he took TWO ‘golden sombreros’ over the last several weeks) does not have, or worse yet, no longer has, the ability to carry this team means this team has to make some major changes over the next month.

These are the team’s leaders. They have not been on the disabled list nor have any other acceptable excuses, and they have not lived up to the trust the Phillies’ front office put upon them — rightly or wrongly — this past winter. The players they have around them are simply not good enough to overcome these glaring shortcomings.

What other major problems are contributing to the Phillies dismal record through the first three months of the season, and what SHOULD the Phillies do before the “trading deadline?” Post a comment with your thoughts on this team’s future and what moves you think need to occur this summer.

1. The Chicago Blackhawks and the Boston Bruins of the NHL are playing legendary games in the Stanley Cup Finals. It’s hard to root against these two storied franchises if you are not from Boston or Chicago. The games are really enjoyable even without a vested interest in the winner.

2. The Merion Golf Club held the US Open this week. No one shot par golf. Only 16 players were in single digits over par. Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Sergio Garcia shot 13, 14, and 15 strokes over par! Did you enjoy watching the pros suffer like we do?

3. Speaking of the US Open, I’m sure by now you have seen Shawn Stefani’s hole-in-one at #17 on Sunday. It was the first hole-in-one ever at Merion during a US Open. It does not necessarily mean you hit a great shot (his was way left of the hole and took a fortuitous bounce and rolled in the cup). It doesn’t matter how – he still put a 1 on his scorecard.

4. The Phillies have just been awful of late. A coach told me this past weekend at the high school baseball championships that the game of baseball is very simple – “good pitching, good fielding, and timely hitting”. The Phillies had none of those three elements on their latest road trip.

5. Football in June? The Lehigh Valley All-Star Football Classic is Thursday. Watch it on RCNTV. The banquet for the players, cheerleaders, coaches, parents, and friends was held on Wednesday, sponsored and televised by RCN. Jim McCarroll, Chuck Daily, and Brett Godbout, M.D. were inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The Pennsylvania State Baseball Championships

Preparation
On Friday, June 14, the RCNTV team broadcast 4 games for the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN). There was plenty of work that occurred prior to the games themselves in order to be prepared to do the best job possible. The crew and office staff took care of all the logistics to get 15 people to the site, set up, fed, and housed. This is our 13th year of doing these games so the process was pretty much set.

For me, however, the process was greatly disrupted this year. The semifinals were to be played on Monday, which was the case for the past 12 years. This year, however, 15 of the 16 Monday games were postponed until Tuesday. One full day of preparation was eliminated. Everything was moved back a day. After Tuesday’s games were played and the championship finalists were known, a conference call was held on Wednesday morning informing all the teams of their responsibilities to the games and to me. I needed information and I needed it fast (coaches, rosters, starting lineups, statistics, human interest stories on the players and teams, historical records for the programs, coaches’ histories, etc.) The normal process allows two days – one day for gathering the information (Tuesday) and one day for organizing the information (Wednesday). There was only Wednesday this year. It all got finished with the last school to respond getting with what I needed by 3:30 on Wednesday afternoon. Additional information kept trickling in from the schools throughout the evening.

Driving to Work
The crew left for Penn State, the site of the championship games, at 9:00 and I left at 11:00. They needed to get to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park to lay all the wire, set up all the cameras, run the audio lines, and prepare the graphics for the next day. I needed to get to the hotel to sift through all the information I had gathered and prepare packets for each game for my fellow announcers. Their work is very physical, mine is mental. We all met in the hotel lobby, went to dinner and discussed the elements and concerns for the next day. Crew call was 7:00 AM; announcers’ call was 8:00 AM.

Championship Friday
Everyone was at the field by 8:30; 2 hours prior to Game One. The crew tested all the equipment; the announcers talked to the teams and their coaches. Everyone took their positions in the stadium and in the press box by 10:00 AM. “Let the games begin”. I have attached a highlight video summarizing the baseball highlights of the day. Tim Kafer put the piece together; and the musical background is from “The Greatest Game in the World” by Fran Kovalski.

http://youtu.be/BAE5xv4AsVE

There are 664 high school baseball teams in Pennsylvania; 39 District Champions; and just 4 State Champions. Congratulations to the winners!

As for our gang – We came on the air at 10:30 AM and said, “Good night, everybody” at 10:10 PM – 11 hours and 40 minutes later. In between, there were 4 games, 30 innings, with the final game of the day (naturally) going two extra innings to decide a champion. All of us believe we “hit a wall” sometime during Game Three, persevered, and got through it. It seems to happen every year. I had plenty of time to ponder the day with the 3 ½ hour ride home that followed and there are always the same two thoughts, “Job well done” and “I’m glad that’s over”.

The SportsTalk Shop: “A Game of Community Spirit”

One of the responsibilities in my role as an on-air presence in the media is that I am privileged to be asked to speak at banquets and in classrooms, to emcee programs and to be asked to participate in special events. One of my favorite activities I continue to be asked to participate in is the Sacred Heart Celebrity Basketball game, played each year at the famed Rockne Hall in Allentown.
 
It’s not the biggest event of the year, nor does it warrant a healthy admission fee. However, it is a very special occurrence that the students, faculty and staff of the Archdiocese look forward to every year. It is the climax of a special week of activities in the school district. The basketball game is the brainchild of Morning Call writer and Sacred Heart Middle School Principal Jim Krupka … truly one of the very special school leaders in the community. Jim not only works tirelessly with the students in his building, but you frequently see him out in the community at Central Catholic events. He’s always there to support his kids in their endeavors, whether it be football, basketball, a school play or just about any activity a Viking student is involved in.
 
After a busy week of many diverse activities, the “celebrity” game features a team of politicians, community leaders, past and/or present standout Central Catholic players and others (that’s me) who take on the Sacred Heart students, faculty and staff members on the other squad.

The statistics from the game are of no importance (I went 5-7 from the floor, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 TO and an embarrassingly badly missed wide-open layup). Truth be told, our objective each year is to have a lead late in the game to try to make us feel good about ourselves and our ..uh, ahem … athletic ability. We only “let” the other team win so that the kids also feel good about themselves (some years it’s MUCH easier to lose than others), which is a much more important goal.

The real gem of this activity is the bonding and school-spirit that is evident each year among the student body. In an age where you don’t go too many days without seeing a negative report on the news regarding schools and an adverse student-faculty relationship (there have been 3 ominous news events to this effect in the Lehigh Valley in just the last month), it is refreshing to see the bond the people at Sacred Heart have with each other. This event includes administration, teachers, students, parents, family and friends all coming together and cheering one another on. There’s no razzing, taunting, nor ever a negative comment said during this event. Each year I take a moment and absorb the good-feelings exchange exhibited by the teachers and students at this event. I’m truly impressed and admire the respect that these two groups show for each other at this time.

I remember one student vs. faculty game when I was in high school (before buses were invented, of course). There was shouting and heckling of the teachers and non-playing teachers were getting on students. The students who weren’t skipping school at that point could really care less what was happening on the court and were just thrilled to get out of their final classes for the week. It wasn’t necessarily a “bad” event, but it never really was a “fun”, school-spirited event. We certainly didn’t feel “unified” at this one-time game.

That’s not the case at this annual event. Several of the school leaders say a few words before the game, usually invoking a feeling of thankfulness of what we do have, and compassion for people who may not have the good fortune or the ability to participate in everyday duties we sometimes take for granted. With all the talk of anti-private schools in the community (see some of our other blog posts), this event helps the students rally around a feeling of pride for their school community. For this event, there are no thoughts of school politics, nor even a care about the final score.

A big thrill for me is to have played on the same court over the years with some of the all-time great Vikings and Vikettes basketball players — a few of them have gone on to be major starts on the collegiate level. This year I was honored to call Central Catholic current standout athletes Mike Kammerer and Jim Vaughn my teammates. It was interesting after having announced their games for RCN over the last several years and seeing them develop into wonderfully gifted adults. The players I face on the Sacred Heart team each spring include athletes that I’ll see a couple years from now playing for the varsity teams. Hopefully, they might even be writing their names in the Central Catholic history books! A recent player I played “against” in this game was current Viking star Jean-Lee Baez, who you could tell in 8th grade was going to be a great talent on the Lehigh Valley basketball scene.

Overall, it’s a fun day for everyone involved and I’m truly honored to have been able to play in most of the 18 games that have been held each spring. If only other school districts could come together and celebrate people’s unique talents, while at the same time bonding together for a common goal — even if it’s just to pummel a bunch of (mostly) out-of-shape and past their prime “celebrities” (that’s me again) in a game of hoops.

Valedictorian, Salutatorian, and MVP’s

Academics
This past week, I read that the Parkland School District decided to no longer award the distinction of class valedictorian or salutatorian. The rule was instituted in 2009 for the class of 2013. They are not the only local schools to do this. Moravian Academy and Emmaus High School also do not list the top two students. Instead, they would list all of the students who had achieved honors as a whole. This is easy to do, since the honorees are based on grade point averages, and perhaps, other criteria. It is not subjective. I am sure a computer just simply spits out the names. In other words, the schools (computers) choose their All-Stars, but not their MVP’s.

Athletics
This academic direction is an interesting path for those of us who are, often, a part of choosing athletic all-star teams and most valuable players. And our choices are much more difficult – we do not have grade point averages or computers to make the decisions for us. We have statistics, but we all know they can lie. I have usually been able to take a list of athletes and choose an all-star team from that list. Sure, if you need to select 10, the difference between #9, #10, and #11 (who would be left out) is not always extremely clear. Then, to select an MVP from the 10 may be even more difficult, more subjective, and simply unfair. A local paper is currently attempting to select an Athlete of the Year (one male and one female) and offered up their first two nominees this week – a football player and wrestler (male); a field hockey and softball player (female). The paper will offer 5 choices for each gender and voters will choose the winners. This would seem to diametrically oppose the academic philosophy of the schools mentioned above.

The Question
So the question I pose to you – who is right? Should we honor the absolute best in academics and in athletics or is it good enough for each school just to name their All-Stars and eliminate their MVP’s? Should we get away from Top Ten lists (unless you’re a David Letterman fan) and let high schools, colleges, and employers decide, based on their criteria, who they want?

Let me know your thoughts before the fall – I have an All-Star football ballot to fill out and the last line asks me to list my choice for an MVP!

This past Saturday night, second-base umpire Mike Estabrook called pinch runner Kyle Kendrick of the Phillies out at second base on a pick-off play in the ninth inning. Replay showed that the Milwaukee Brewer shortstop tagged Kendrick without the ball. No one saw the ball come free and roll into the bare hand of the shortstop. The Phils were down 4-3 at the time and the next Phillies batter doubled, but was left stranded. Right call = tie game; wrong call = lost game.

Baseball only uses replay for home run calls and, within the last two weeks, the umpires even got a home run call wrong. In the American league championship series last year, a Detroit player was called safe at second and TV replay showed the runner was out and the inning would have ended. Detroit scored two runs in the inning and won 3-0. There is a remedy to these bad calls. The NFL, NBA, NHL, major tennis tournaments, and some NCAA sports all use a form of instant replay. Why not baseball?

A subcommittee made up of Joe Torre, Tony LaRussa, and Atlanta Braves president John Schuerholtz will make recommendations for 2014. At first, consideration was to use replay only for a trap play and fair/foul. Now, all plays are being considered.

Baseball Instant Replay Concerns

1. Do you allow a challenge system by the managers, much like NFL football?
2. Do you use a replay official in the booth?
3. Do you use replay for all situations?
4. How much will replay disrupt the game?
5. Will it add even more time to a game which most people think takes too long now?

All these questions will be answered soon. Eliminate the arguments, take some of the pressure off the umpires, and get the call right. After all, isn’t that the most important element?

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. Speaking of baseball, as of May 15, there were 21 weather-related postponements, the same total as all of last year.
2. Did you know that no other state has hosted more USGA championships than Pennsylvania? The number is 80 entering 2013. Merion golf Club, the venue for the US Open in 2 weeks and Oakmont Country Club in Pittsburgh are the top two. They are the only two to host more USGA events than our own Saucon Valley Country Club which has hosted six. Saucon Valley will host their seventh in 2014 when 264 players converge at the club’s Old Course and the Weyhill course from September 5-11 for the Mid-Amateur Championship. 4,000 golfers attempt to qualify for this event. These are “true amateurs” who are over 25, with handicaps at 3.4 or less and have real jobs like the rest of us. The winner has an exemption for the Masters.
3. The NHL hockey playoffs are experiencing some good ratings for NBC and, particularly, for the NBC Sports Network. The May 29 Western Conference Semifinal Game 7 between the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings posted a 2.07 rating and averaged 3.354 million viewers, making it the highest-rated NHL game ever on NBC Sports Network, and the most-watched Semifinal game ever on cable.
4. Congratulations to Parkland, Tamaqua, Salisbury, and Tri-Valley for winning District XI baseball championships this past week. On to states for them and for us. We have the PIAA state championships LIVE on PCN, Friday, June 14, beginning at 10:30 AM.
5. I am hosting Sportstalk this Thursday (June 6) and the panel will be discussing the best 5 high school football players at various positions. Dick Tracy, Dennis Laub, Jack Logic and Joe Craig will offer their lists. I am putting my list together. There have been some great ones over the years Join us with your opinions. I am sure there will be many.