One of the great benefits of sports is that, for a few hours, one gets away from the trials and tribulations of everyday life and watches cars go around an oval, a pass being thrown, a homerun being hit and, … well, you get the picture.

And one of the focal points of everyday living certainly has become politics.  There has not been anything more polarizing in our society since this last election.  Everyone not only has an opinion, they have very strong opinions and they do not particularly want to hear yours!

So it is probably best if the sports worlds and the political worlds are kept separate.  It certainly didn’t help Chris Christie’s popularity in New Jersey when he attended the Dallas Cowboys game against Detroit as the guest of the Cowboys’ owner.  Seems Christie does not root for the Jets, the Giants, or the Eagles – the three closest NFL teams to New Jersey – he roots for the Cowboys.  He would have been better off politically if he had just stayed home.

The sports and politics worlds collided again this past weekend.  The LPGA held the U. S. Women’s Open at Trump National in Bedminster, NJ.  This did not sit well with a large number of protesters, both at the course and around the country, who felt the women should not be playing at a course owned by the President whom they feel has sexually harassed women.  To make matters a bit worse (if that’s at all possible), there was video of Trump driving across a Trump National green a few weeks ago.  Driving across a green – this violates all rules of golf etiquette (unless you own the course, I guess).

And the players got caught in the middle.  This is the most important championship in women’s golf.  It has the largest purse and is the most prestigious.  To ask them to skip the tournament in protest against the host seems unfair.  During the week, the players went out of their way to stay out of the controversy because they are well aware that any answer would be seen as the wrong answer by so many.

So they played.  And the President showed up.  To the President’s credit, he did not get too involved other than watching from his temporary bungalow.

There were some peaceful political demonstrations, but the tournament took center stage and it was a great one.  An amateur almost won and the three-day leader couldn’t hang on until the end.

Politics and sports came together, but much like oil and water, they did not mix and that’s the way it should be.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. At the MLB All-Star break, two rookies are making the most impressive news.  In the National League, the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger has 22 home runs in 52 games and hit 10 homers in 10 games, a record.  On Sunday, he hit for the cycle.  In the American League, the Yankees’ Aaron Judge has set the Yankees record for home runs by a rookie (30) and leads the majors in six categories.  And, he was the first rookie to win the Home Run Derby.
2. Speaking of the MLB, the games so far this year are taking longer than ever – three hours and nine minutes.  This is five minutes longer than last year.  ESPN’s 18-inning game lasted six hours and five minutes.  Rule changes to speed up the game are on the horizon.
3. What has happened to the Cubs?  As I write this, they lag five-plus games behind the Brewers.  They are in the bottom third in the league in runs scored and hitting.  Their pitching is giving up almost five runs per game.  Joe Maddon will need some second-half magic.
4. Jeongeun Lee played in the US Women’s Open but was listed on the board as Lee Je6.  On the Korean LPGA tour, she is the sixth player with the exact same name.  There was another Jeongeun Lee in the Open and she was, as you might expect, Lee Je5.
5. We finish up our Blue Mountain League game of the week next Tuesday, July 25.  It has been a great year in the BML with very competitive teams and games.  The playoffs should be terrific.  If you’re a baseball fan, get out to a game or a series.  Thanks to the League officers and the managers for all their help.

In case you missed it, Saturday was the first day of NBA free agency and some rather large contracts were signed. The big names caused a big stir. Stephen Curry signed for $201 million (5 years); Blake Griffin for $175 million (5 years); and the 76ers got JJ Redick for a mere one-year $23 million contract. Curry’s deal was the biggest in NBA history and, it seemed to me, that it had to be one of the biggest of all time.

I knew there were bigger contracts over longer periods of time, but how did this one stack up on a per-year basis? I investigated. According to Wikipedia, only boxer Floyd Mayweather made more in a year than Curry – $72 million-plus in 2015. Kobe Bryant in his last year made $20 million. Five players in the NBA currently make more per year than Bryant ever did.

Is it justified? It would certainly be hard to argue the value of Curry or Griffin to their respective teams. Some things would seem to be obvious – they put people in the arenas; they therefore add to the concession dollars; they play up to their potential; and, most importantly, the owners think they are worth it. To me, that’s enough said. Unless the owners are willing to greatly reduce the price of a ticket (which they are not), I have no problem with the players getting a large piece of the pie that would otherwise go to the owners.

By the way, of the top 25 sports contracts on the Wikipedia list, 22 were signed by baseball players. Curry, Griffin, and Mayweather were the only ones to crack the list.

Where are the NFL players? This is interesting because when you look at their per-game paychecks from last year, they do just fine (not that anyone thought they were hurting financially). Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts made $1.4 million per game; Jay Cutler $1.1 million; Colin Kaepernick, Matt Ryan, and Aaron Rodgers made $1.3 million. Super Bowl quarterback Tom Brady is not in the top 125 considering overall contracts.

So what do we take away from this? These are very talented people who are, obviously, highly valued financially in our society, rightfully or wrongfully. They are making more money for an event or a season than almost every American household will make in a lifetime. When it comes to the concerns of most Americans – putting food on the table, clothing the children, the economy, worrying about Obamacare vs Trumpcare, or Medicaid and Medicare, most cannot relate to their income.

However, we also create their value by buying the expensive tickets, the over-priced beer and food, and their jerseys. When we say they are not worth getting paid what they make and then buy tickets to their games, we deflate our own argument.

Bottom line – in our society, we are all worth what someone is willing to pay us!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)
 

1. Speaking of NFL contracts, Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr will make $25 million this season, but that’s not the point here. In 2019, the Raiders will move from California to Nevada. California has the highest income tax in the nation and Nevada has no state income tax. Carr will save $8.7 million in taxes!
2. Yankees’ rookie Aaron Judge has put up home run, RBI, and batting average numbers to warrant being named both the Rookie of the Year and the MVP. Fred Lynn and Ichiro Suzuki are the only players to win both awards in the same year. By the way, Fernando Valenzuela is the only player to win the Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young Award in the same year.
3. If you follow the PGA, you know that Phil Mickelson and caddy “Bones” MacKay split after 25 years together. Mickelson’s brother, Pete, will take on the caddy role. So what does MacKay do? He signed a multi-year contract with NBC/Golf Channel to be an on-course announcer. His insights should be somewhat different from all the former players who have become announcers.
4. It’s not just our President who gets in trouble with his “tweets”. Rory McIlroy had problems this past week himself. Fellow golfer Steve Elkington suggested that McIlroy, with “100mill in the bank”, was so rich he is “bored” with golf and that is why McIlroy missed the US Open cut. McIlroy tweeted it was more like “200mill, not bad for a ‘bored’ 28-year-old.” He regrets that tweet and has turned his Twitter account over to his wife. Is there a lesson here for our President?
5. Our “first-time ever” broadcast of the Men’s Senior Baseball League continues to get postponed due to weather. We will get it done at some point. But the Blue Mountain League Game of the Week continues on Tuesday, July 18, when the Orioles visit the Limeport Bulls. Watch at 9:30pm.

Continuing our update on local summer time hoops in the Eastern Pennsylvania region, here are some interview clips and pictures (below) featuring various teams and tournaments in the RCN-TV viewing area.

Coming up on the July 6^th edition of “SportsTalk” we’ll have local basketball coaches and instructors in studio to talk about the top summer basketball action so far and preview the second half of the summer Hoops season.

We’ll also be joined by ESPN Radio’s Devon Givens to recap the NBA Draft and to give his thoughts on how the DeMatha HS and Washington product, Markelle Fultz, will fit in with his new 76ers team.

Also, check back to the “SportsTalk Shop” again soon and we’ll have additional updates and more interviews and video highlights of the summer league basketball action involving teams in the RCN-TV viewing area.

With area schools now out of session, high school summer league basketball action has been picking up speed this past week.

The “SportsTalk​” cameras were out and about covering several different local tournaments in the RCN viewing area the last few days and caught up with a number of coaches and players to get their thoughts on summertime basketball thus far.

(For more of these interviews, plus additional video highlights of summertime basketball action, check out last week’s “RCN Sports Talk presented by the Morning Call” program available through RCN On Demand as well as this Thursday’s show.)

A few notes/observations on the summer basketball action…

*The Central Catholic girls basketball team looks to return to form this year. After a rare under-500 regular season last winter, the Vikettes have added both height and depth to a young but talented team. With an extra year of experience under their belts, Central’s players looked extremely confident (and efficient) in running Coach Kopp’s motion offense to near perfection in the Holy Family Tournament last week—claiming the #1 ranking heading into the final day of action with their scrappy style of play.

*Northampton, Nazareth and Easton are three of a number of girls teams that lost significant players to graduation, but each has lots of talent coming up through its system. The K-Kids probably have the biggest gap to fill, replacing Aja Blount (who averaged over 20 points and almost 20 rebounds per game).

Easton has shown a strong back court presence, led by Jah’nel Oliver, who had 13 points in the Holy Family Championship game, and boasts several outstanding forwards as well, including Hanna Doell—who is back after missing last season with an injury.

Nazareth also some big shoes to fill and is still looking to establish its back court combination (and have a TON of unselfish ball distributors), but the Blue Eagles have lots of depth at every position (and even more height coming in) and no doubt will be among the top teams in the 6A classification once again this year.

*Before I saw the Patriots last weekend, several parents (from opposing schools, no less) advised me to keep an eye on both Whitehall and Freedom girls teams—programs that were not considered about the elite teams last winter. Both squads have a number of young players coming up, and one player from a rival school that I talked with said she’s not looking forward to facing either of those teams again during the regular season.

We’ll have more interviews, video highlights and packages, both on this Thursday’s “SportsTalk” program (7pm, LIVE) and here in the next installment of the “SportsTalk Shop.”

Also, don’t forget to stop by Buffalo Wild Wings (Grape St., Whitehall, PA) this this Thursday night for this week’s show as we broadcast LIVE on location. Check out the “SportsTalk Gets Wild” page here on the RCN-TV website for more details on this show and for ways to help out a local organization!

Sunday is, at least for me, a day of watching sports. I try not to interfere with family time, but I must admit, between the NFL, college basketball, and golf, there is often a magnetic pull towards the remote control anytime I am in the family room.

This past Sunday was no exception. The Travelers’ Championship was on CBS and Jordan Spieth was in the lead.  I enjoy rooting for Jordan, I had played the golf course, and Travelers is my insurance company, so I just had to tune in.  On a day when Spieth could not make a putt, he dramatically wins the tournament in a playoff by holing a sand shot from 60 feet away.  Another $1.2 million in his 24-year-old bank account.

I figured my sports’ viewing for the day was over. Then on comes 60 Minutes, a show my wife and I watch every week.  They did a very, very interesting piece on Artificial Intelligence.  The final story was on a Japanese baseball player named Shohei Ohtani who plays for the Nippon Ham Fighters.

Ohtani is a 6’4, 215 pound, 22 year-old right-handed pitcher who has thrown the ball an amazing 102.5 miles per hour. To steal some facts from the show, he has a higher strikeout rate than Clayton Kershaw, has thrown the fastest pitch in league history, strikes out 11+ batters per game, and last year had an ERA of 1.86.  And, oh, by the way, that’s just on Sundays.

During the week, except for the two-day rest he gets before he pitches again, Ohtani is the designated hitter. That’s right – when he doesn’t pitch and hit, he just hits.  “Just” is a misplaced adjective here.  Last year, he had 22 home runs, hitting the long ball 6% of the time he came the plate.  That’s a better percentage than Bryce Harper and Mike Trout of Major League baseball.

And it looks like this is his final year of Japanese baseball. He is, most likely, headed here.  BUT, he will only play for a team that allows him to hit when he pitches and hit when he doesn’t.  The last player to do that and do it well was Babe Ruth!

He currently makes @ $2 million, lives in a team dorm, does not drink, and has no car. He would have garnered close to $20+ million had he signed an MLB contract last year, but the new bargaining agreement limits international players from earning over $10 million and they must play at least six years with the team that signs them.

Ohtani doesn’t care. He says he has enough money.  And he is anxious to bat against Kershaw and pitch to Harper.

The first piece on 60 Minutes was about robots doing amazing things that humans cannot do.  The Ohtani story seemed to be just a continuation, but this was an amazing thing that a human can do.  Much like Babe Ruth did.

Check out the segment:
http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/japans-babe-ruth-2/

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. ESPN is polling fans to choose the top quarterbacks on a given team. For instance, the Packers’ top three would have to be Bart Starr, Brett Favre, and Aaron Rodgers. How would you rank them.  Ironically, ESPN has listed 19 teams and the Eagles are not one of them. Are they telling us something or did they just not get to the Birds yet?
2. Speaking of “telling us something”, on the ESPN “This Week in Sports” search under MLB, there are 166 stories listed. The Phillies are the focus on one! That story is about their Saturday win (I guess the rare win warranted the story) over the Diamondbacks. Pathetic.
3. It was announced this week that the Saucon Valley Country Club will host its eighth USGA championship in 2022 when the Senior Open comes to the Lehigh Valley. That is the year when Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Steve Stricker, and many other famous names will be eligible to play. RCN has always been proud of their telecommunication assistance during the past tournaments. It should create a great deal of national excitement for our area.
4. The Cedar Beach Basketball Showcase in Allentown is, often, an indicator of which local teams will be the best in the upcoming high school season. The early favorites are familiar – Emmaus, Allen, Central Catholic, and Bangor (of the Colonial League) all look solid again. Sleepers could be Nazareth, Northampton, Liberty, and Dieruff (yes, Dieruff). That’s plenty of teams creating plenty of competition. It looks like another good year.
5. No Blue Mountain League Game of the Week this coming Tuesday night (it’s July 4). However, on Friday, July 7, you can watch the Senior Baseball League on RCN at 9:30 PM. It’s their first television game in history and features the Gabelsville Owls vs the Palmisano Rangers.

We’re taking a holiday break next week, so there will be no blog. Wishing you a happy and safe Independence Day!

One of the guests on our last “SportsTalk” program was MLBPipeline.com Senior Writer Jim Callis, who does an amazing job analyzing both high school and college baseball athletes all over the country.  Each year Jim and his colleagues preview hundreds of prospects—many stories accompanied by video highlights of the player—from all corners of the country—and beyond.

Previewing the MLB Draft is incredibly more complex than the NFL and NBA Drafts, with practically every potential football and basketball draftee having all their games now broadcast on television or internet outlets.  We’re fortunate to have someone like Jim on our program, with the depth of knowledge about potential baseball prospects for the professional baseball franchises in the RCN-TV viewing area and beyond.  Be sure to check out the entire interview on RCN On-Demand or on our weekly podcast for insights on all the top-tier prospects.

In the same way, on this Thursday’s show we’ll have Eric Longenhagen from “FanGraphs” to recap this year’s MLB Draft, with insights on the selections made by the Phillies, Nationals, Mets, Yankees and other teams in the RCN viewing area.   We’ll also have a discussion on the use of analytics in baseball—something that “FanGraphs” has excelled in providing to baseball players, coaches, front office personnel and fans alike.
*****
After a spring that saw some wild weather issues (the same season that included a record low and a record high temperature within two weeks), we will officially enter the summer season and, with it, conclude our spring sports coverage in the RCN-TV viewing area.

Additionally, there were equally wild games that we covered—both with our full-productions and on our weekly features on the “SportsTalk” programs.   Our spring sports broadcast coverage included the District XI 6A baseball championship game, the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference baseball semifinals and final, the McDonald’s Football All-Star contest and Grandview Speedway auto racing.

Here are highlights of our spring sports productions:

Don’t forget, there are still a few weeks left to check out all of these productions in their  entirety for free by utilizing RCN’s On-Demand services!
*****
This week, I’m looking forward to my first look at Blue Mountain League Baseball game with the Orioles taking on the Royals.  The “BML Game of the Week” will be on RCN-TV every Tuesday evening at 9:30 featuring the top teams squaring off against each other in some of the best local amateur baseball action in the Lehigh Valley.

Finally, special thanks to NFL Network Football Analyst and Former Pro NFL Player Brian Baldinger for inviting me to a special event in Philadelphia this past week featuring area sportscasters, media members and special community leaders.  It was an honor to speak with and be included on a list of incredible broadcasters in the Delaware Valley.  Brian and fellow “Footballstories” Co-Creator Al Thompson do amazing work supporting the community—in addition to running a first-rate magazine, radio program and internet services—and I enjoyed my time with them and some truly great names in Philadelphia broadcasting.

Now, bring on the summer season…!

For most fathers, Father’s Day is a special weekend.  My family celebrated on Saturday and it was a wonderful day.  The celebration continued into Sunday like it does every year for me because that is when the US Open Golf Championship is decided.

Much of the time when I play these days, it is in a charity tournament. Ninety-percent of the time the format of the tournament is a “scramble”.  This means after everyone hits, your group takes the best shot and everyone plays from there.  That process continues until the ball is in the hole.  Because we are always playing the best shot, it is not unusual, unlike when one plays their own ball, to get pars and birdies.  This allows one’s team to get scores much like the pros.

So Sunday, I am camped in my recliner watching the golf and being amazed by the shots of eventual winner Brooks Koepka.  He is making birdie after birdie on the back nine and he even threw in an eagle.  My wife, supposedly reading the Sunday paper and playing games on her phone, seemed to become very interested in the leader.  “He certainly goes to the gym”, she offered up and I now realize she is suddenly interested in golf.  This is as rare as a snowstorm in July.

Then she opines, “Why do they call the scores pars, birdies, or eagles?”  No one ever asked me that before.  I know what they are; I do not know their origin.  So I decided to find out.  I’m not sure she really wanted to know, but now I did.

It turns out a man named Hugh Rotherham in 1890 standardized the number of shots a golfer should take at each hole.  This score eventually became a “bogey” named after the Bogey man, a goblin or devil.

Par was derived from the American stock exchange term which is a stock’s normal figure.  Par was actually used before bogey, but Americans did not like the British system and began referring to one over par as a bogey.

“Birdie” was an American slang term meaning excellent.  It originated at the Atlantic City Country Club in 1903 and meant one under par.  A stone on the course signifies the origin (I’ve played there and have seen the rock below):

“Eagle” just became an extension of the bird theme and came about shortly after “birdie” came into vogue.   It meant two under par.  The extremely rare three under par was named after a very rare bird – an “albatross”.

So now I know the origin of the terms and I will tell my wife to read this blog.  I just have a feeling that if the blog does not include a picture of Brooks Koepka, she might not be all that interested.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. I’ve had it with the pace of Major League baseball. Pitchers take too much time; batters step out of the box too often; managers make too many trips to the mound and there are too many pitching changes.  Throw in a 17-inning game from time to time and baseball becomes excruciatingly slow.  I hope the rules “they are a-changin’”.

2. It looks like the “76ers” are going to get a first-round draft pick. It appears that Washington point guard Markelle Fultz will be the selection.  A great point guard could actually make them competitive.  Dare a Philadelphia fan get one’s hopes up?

3. Ever since her UConn days, I always loved watching Diana Taurasi play basketball. Her talent and enthusiasm were what made her stand out.  She just seemed to love the game.  This past Sunday she became the all-time leading scorer in WNBA history.  After Sunday’s game, she had scored 7,504 points.  Amazing!

4. Watching golf on FOX is still not the same as the Golf Channel, NBC, or CBS. Joe Buck had an awkward moment when Brooks Koepka kissed a girl after he won the US Open and Buck incorrectly identified her as Koepka’s former girlfriend.  The young lady was his new girlfriend.  It was later corrected.

P.S.  FOX is much better than they were the first two years.  However, there is still room for growth.

5. Watch the Blue Mountain League Game of the Week every Tuesday night at 9:30 PM.  On Friday, June 23, you can watch the Senior Baseball League on RCN at 9:30 PM.  That game will be from Sam Balliet Stadium.  It’s always nice to go back there.

There has been lots of debate (partially because of the lack of any other positive sports news) in the Delaware Valley over the last few weeks about the 76ers’ upcoming NBA draft selections.  There have also been varying opinions and radical mock-draft shifts—some of which have no possible way of coming true.

In order to help cut through the misinformation and get Sixers’ fans ready for the June 22^nd draft, here are a few “clear-cut” things to know in helping you figure out what Philadelphia will do.

1) Remember Your Needs 

• a point guard (or point-forward) who can run the offense
• a guard who can DEFEND the opposition’s point guard
• a wing player who can shoot from the outside & stretch opposing team’s defense
• a lock-down defensive player

After years of selecting the best available player in the draft, the time has clearly come when the Sixers must focus in on filling their biggest needs and not necessarily adding the most talented player available when making your pick(s).  You are probably looking at adding at least three players who can fill these needs, which is very important when looking at what the team must do over the next few weeks (and not just in the draft).

2) Careful Evaluation of Your Options
The conventional wisdom is that the Celtics select Markelle Fultz with the first pick and Lonzo Ball (and his controversial father) would head to the Lakers with the second pick.  That leaves four most probable players for the 76ers to decide on.

Here’s a scaled-down scouting report from CBS on the first three players most likely to be available:

• Jayson Tatum – can play right away .. quality jump shooter potential .. a multi-positional defender
• Josh Jackson – great defender .. physically ready to contribute … needs a consistent jumper in order to become a tremendous player
• De’Aaron Fox – great speed … true PG .. a jump shot away from being frightening

Notice a pattern?  All three of these options are missing one of the biggest needs the Sixers have right now.

Of these three, Fox probably has the most upside and can be the biggest impact.  However, 76ers President of basketball operations and General Manager Bryan Colangelo made the rounds on many radio talk shows and podcasts clearly stating that he believes Ben Simmons is unquestionably going to be the point guard—on offense—for his team for the foreseeable future.  Unless he’s purely posturing (and he likely could be), selecting Fox would create a log-jam, pitting two of the team’s biggest names at the same position on the floor.  However, if you’re willing to NOT have your offense run through Simmons, Fox would add speed and a very strong point guard defender to your team.

Tatum and Jackson are similar players with minor differences and each could enhance your wing players—although not guaranteeing that you’d fill the much-needed role of an outside shooter, which brings us to option number four—Malik Monk.

Monk may be the best pure shooter of anyone in the draft and he would fill one of your biggest needs for a long time.  However, Monk doesn’t give you much size, he’s not a great defender and may only be a one-dimensional offensive weapon if he can’t find a way to score off his own dribble.  Selecting him with the 3^rd pick in the draft would be a reach in a year in which the 76ers MUST take an impact player.

3) The Trade/Free Agent Factor

The 76ers have tried many times to add an established veteran, either through free agency or via trade over the last couple seasons, which virtually no success in adding an established presence.   Between not wanting to play in Philadelphia to outrageous financial demands to not finding a good dealing partner, Colangelo and Company have not been able to obtain a standout star to help fill in some of the gaps.  If they could add one or two pieces to solve SOME of the above needs, then that would make your first round selection much easier to figure out.

There are a few names out there who I think would vastly improve the team:

• The Clippers’ JJ Riddick ($ 6.9-million AAV) is an unrestricted free agent, a great character guy, a great long-range shooter –not a star–but someone who wouldn’t be overly expensive to add. Would he want to come to a team that’s still a few years away from contending is the issue.

• Denver’s Danilo Gallinari has great size (6’10), is a great-shooter and would be a great “stretch-four” (allowing Dario Saric to be a potent weapon off the bench) and would give you an established veteran presence, but his AAV last year was over $ 15-million and will command even more combined with a long-term deal that might prevent you from adding any other pieces.

• Otto Porter is the youngest of the three names listed here and is an unselfish player who would fit in brilliantly with Simmons, Embiid and whichever star the Sixers would draft. His AAV was under $ 5-million but is a restricted free agent, and my contacts down in the Washington area all would be shocked if the Wizards don’t make a big push to resign him—meaning the Sixers would have to drastically overpay to add him.

The 76ers also could trade away their draft pick, to either move down and get a player like Monk, or package that to trade for another established player—if their front office is willing to go that route.

Only the Sixers front office knows to what lengths they’ll go to add a free agent or two, and what other teams would require in order to obtain that much-needed veteran.  If you could unlock that mystery, you would know exactly what Philadelphia is looking to for this year’s NBA Draft.

For more on the 76ers, the DMV’s Markelle Fultz and other NBA issues, check out the latest “SportsTalk” podcast featuring CBS Sports Radio Talk Show Host/Reporter Jon Johnson at rcn.com/atvn/sports-talk

No matter how you look at it, it has been a good year for District XI.  Chairman Bob Hartman and his committee have managed 24 sports for 54 schools, but they have done that in the past.  This year, however, they managed many of those sports by adding two more classifications to the mix.  Where the maximum number of classifications before this year was four, they were forced to manage six this season.  That is a 33% gain in games and champions in those sports that were affected.  There were more playoffs, meaning more schools and more champions.

Last year at this time, when it seemed like it would be a nightmare for everyone to adjust, the District XI planned for the contingencies well in advance.  Therefore, for the most part (despite weather being a troubling factor), all was accomplished rather seamlessly.  One can argue the merits of adding more classes, but it would be hard to argue that District XI was not up to the challenge.

Another major accomplishment of the committee was the use of the PPL Center for the AAAAAA boys’ basketball semifinals.  With 7000+ fans in the stands, four outstanding teams, and some of the greatest Lehigh Valley high school players to play in the same place on the same night, it may very well have been the single most legendary night of District XI basketball.  Again, praise goes to Bob Hartman and his staff.

Instead of resting on their laurels after what had to be a trying year logistically, this past week it was unveiled that a District XI Hall of Fame will be organized “as a means of recognizing, preserving, and promoting the heritage of interscholastic sports in District XI”.  Those eligible for admittance will consist of athletes, contest officials, coaches, and contributors.

If you have been around District XI athletics for as long as, or even longer, than I have, you can imagine the monumental task of paring down the list of entrants to a manageable number each year.  The McDonald’s Lehigh Valley Hall of Fame has nearly 100 members and the VIA Lehigh Valley Basketball Hall of Fame is nearing the 200-member total.  That is just in two sports – basketball and football!  Now, consider the outstanding high school athletes who have passed through the Lehigh Valley in the past 30+ years in 21 other sports.  To use a pet phrase of mine – “Oh my!!!”

And, to their credit, this is not something that District XI needed to do.  They have placed this challenge upon themselves and, for that, they are to be commended.  And, if history is any proof of their ability to meet the challenge, it will get accomplished.

So when accolades are being tossed around at the end of this school term, all lists should include the work and accomplishments of District XI.  It bears repeating – District XI has had a very good year.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. “Familiarity breeds contempt” goes the adage. It is no more evident than in the NHL and NBA finals.  As any fan can see, play the same people day in and day out and things get particularly nasty and “chippy”.  Each additional match or game becomes that much more emotional.
2. I’m sure at the time the New England Patriots were not very pleased to be trailing the Atlanta Falcons 28-3 in the third quarter of the most recent Super Bowl. But because of that deficit their Super Bowl championship rings contain 283 diamonds, the biggest Super Bowl ring ever made.  This almost makes a team want to fall behind!
3. How much would you pay for a new pair of sneakers? Up to $150?  More?  This past Sunday morning, the sneakers Michael Jordan wore in the 1984 gold-medal win over Spain sold for $190,373!  Another pair of Jordan sneakers had previously sold for $104,765.

4. As I write this, Liberty and Whitehall are still alive in the PIAA state baseball playoffs. Each needs to win this Monday to get to the title game at Penn State which will be played on Thursday and Friday.  Go Canes!  Go Zephs!
5. This week on RCN-TV, we will start our Blue Mountain League baseball coverage. The Game of the Week will be on Tuesday nights at 9:30.  This week’s game features the two-time defending champion Limeport Bulls taking on the Hellertown Royals.  The McDonald’s All-Star Football Classic will be on Thursday, June 15, at 10:00.

This past week “SportsTalk” got to chat with some of the up-and-coming stars in both the Philadelphia Eagles and Phillies organizations.

First, the Eagles and a preliminary look at some of our interviews:

You can see more interviews on the next live edition of “RCN SportsTalk presented by The Morning Call.”

The thing that was so impressive to me about the Eagles rookies we spoke with was their focus.  We interviewed them on a day in which nearly all the Philadelphia fans’ focus was on the issue of Fletcher Cox attending “voluntary” practices—which he did on this day (there was a incredible crowd of reporters/videographers around Cox in the locker room after practice).

The players we spoke with were very determined to acclimate themselves with the speed of the NFL game and learn from the veterans about all the nuances that come with playing on the pro level.  There were no big egos…only a quiet passion to try to improve their game and their skill-set and a desire to contribute in any way they can.

Derek Barnett, Rasul Douglas, Mack Hollins and Donnel Pumphrey all will have opportunities to contribute for the Birds this season…and all seem like they have the mental drive to be standout players for the Eagles for the foreseeable future.
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Fans of the Phillies are a little less optimistic right now based on the team’s win/loss record. However, there are still lots of reasons for hope down on their farm—especially within its current core of young outfield prospects.

(More Phillies prospects interviews available through RCN On-Demand and here on the RCN-TV website).

All three Triple-A starting outfielders—Dylan Cozens, Nick Williams and Roman Quinn—have some outstanding talent.  Cozens has bashed tremendously long home runs over the last few weeks (and was last week’s International League Player of the Week) but still strikes out quite a bit.

Williams, who had issues last season with intensity and not running hard on the bases, now hustles every time I see him.  He’s still not taking many pitches and hasn’t been as hot as some of this teammates, but he is also primarily hitting sixth in Lehigh Valley’s lineup and has not had the benefit of any consistent hitter behind him.

Quinn is such an exciting player and I think might be the first of the three outfield prospects to get a call up to the Big Leagues.  His issue in the past was staying injury-free—something he has been able to do so far in 2017.  But I don’t believe he’s been able to drive the ball with authority on a consistent basis and that might hurt him in the Majors.   Still, he’s been working on bunting and finding ways to get on base—something that would be most welcome with a Phillies lineup that has struggled overall this year.

I don’t think either the Eagles or the Phillies will be bringing home a championship banner in the next year or two.  But with exciting young players in both franchises a year or two away from potentially blossoming into superstars, it is worth fans pushing their patience level a little further in the realistic/slightly optimistic chance that much better days are almost within sight.