This past Saturday, Cole Hamels, purportedly about to be traded this week, pitched a no-hitter for the Phillies against the Cubs.  The final out was quite eventful:

The first players to greet Hamels were Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz. Ironically, all three have been rumored to be on the trading block.  This was the 13^th no-hitter in Phillies history.  It was the third no-hitter in baseball this year.  It was the first by the Phillies since Hamels, Jake Diekman, Jonathan Papelbon, and Ken Giles combined for one last year against Atlanta.  Watching this one brought back memories of the night I watched one LIVE.

On September 28, 2012, I was in Pittsburgh to broadcast the Lafayette-Robert Morris football game.  Since it was the night before the game we decided to leave our hotel in Moon Township and travel in to Pittsburgh for dinner.  As we approached the city, we saw the lights on at PNC Park.  The Pirates were playing the Cincinnati Reds.  We decided to forgo dinner at a restaurant and head over to the ballpark.

As the five of us were nearing the stadium, a ticket hawker approached us and offered us five “terrific” tickets for $50.  We were a bit apprehensive, but since the investment was minimal, we took our chances.

Upon entering the ballpark, we discovered it was Fan Appreciation Night and we were all handed a Pirate T-shirt.  The $10 ticket fee was looking better.  It really improved when our seats were located about 15 rows off of third base.  We settled in for some ballpark food and a night of baseball.

It was the bottom of the second inning.  The Reds had scored in the top of the first and had three hits already.  Homer Bailey was pitching for the Reds.  He easily retired the Pirates in order for the second time.  The Pittsburgh leadoff batter in the third reached first on an error by Scott Rolen.  Bailey retired the next three batters.  He followed that by facing the minimum nine batters in innings four, five and six.  Bailey had retired 12 straight and, through six innings, the Bucs had zero runs and zero hits with the only runner getting on via an error.

Bailey issued a walk in the seventh (erased trying to steal).  He got the other two batters.  Now, the entire crowd was beginning to stir.  Homer Bailey was six outs away from a no-hitter.  Even the Pittsburgh fans were beginning to cheer his effort.  The eighth was uneventful – three up, three down.  It was still 1-0 heading into the ninth.

The Reds went down in order.  Now it was Homer Bailey’s turn.  There was tension and anticipation with every pitch.  The atmosphere was electric.  The first Pirate batter struck out; the second flied out.  Only Alex Presley was left.  He popped out to second.  Homer Bailey’s first career no-hitter was complete.  The crowd went wild and everyone knew they had experienced some baseball history.

There were twelve no-hitters that year.  Homer Bailey’s was the last.  Since there were three hits and one run scored before we arrived at the Park, for $10, we saw only four hits (all singles) and no runs scored.  But the night (as MasterCard promotes in their commercials) – PRICELESS!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME NO-HIT MUSINGS) 

1. The next no-hitter after Homer Bailey’s in 2012 was by none other than Homer Bailey in 2013 against the San Francisco Giants.
2. On June 8, 2012, the Seattle Mariners beat the Dodgers 1-0 and used six pitchers to accomplish the feat.
3. Cincinnati’s John Vandermeer threw consecutive no-hitters four days apart back in 1938 beating Boston and Brooklyn.
4. There have been 22 perfect games (27 batters retired in a row) in Major League history. The last one was in 2012 by Felix Hernandez of Seattle.
5. Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians threw the only opening day no-hitter on April 16, 1940 against the White Sox and won 1-0.

Sure, anyone can do predictions at the beginning of the year.

Making bold predictions is a natural column/blog post/show host monologue for media members to produce at the end of December and the beginning of January.  Coming on the heels of all the “year-in-review” stuff, it makes a natural segue to predicting things for the upcoming year.  (BTW, a neat trick among radio hosts is to make several earth-shattering predictions at this time, then bring them up if they come true.  If they don’t, how many people have remembered what you falsely predicted months before??)

But it takes a true prognosticator —or at least a very good imposter—to re-examine those predictions made in January, and then, in the interest of full disclosure, follow up on how those predictions are fairing.

So before we make predictions for the rest of the year (which will come in next week’s blog entry), here is a listing of predictions/observations I made this past winter on “SportsTalk,” and the truthful, and sometimes painful, realities of each one.

• PREDICTION:  The Phillies will be bad.

OUTCOME:  While I could certainly brag that I got this one correct—especially after the Phillies had a six game winning streak and people started arguing with me that they had a shot to make the playoffs—I must admit that I didn’t think that they would be THIS horrific.  We’re talking “Sam Hinkie Year-One Tanking” bad here.  True, by being historically dreadful, they’ve allowed themselves a very realistic opportunity to snarl the number-one pick in next year’s draft.  But a top MLB draft pick isn’t always a guarantee as in the NFL or NBA, and there are a lot of empty seats that need to be filled at Citizen Bank Park for the team to be this horrendous.  Whether bandwagon-jumping is appropriate or not, fans will return when this team eventually gets good again.  In the meantime, however, the organization is taking some well-placed slings-and-arrows by media pundits from around the country for its putrid play, and racking up more losses at a pace faster than any other squad in the franchise’s history.  Even with this mirage of an 8-1 record since this All-Star break, I didn’t think the team would lose as many games as they will eventually accumulate—assuming, of course, that the team unloads its top players this week as they appear they’d like to do.

• PREDICTION:  The Redskins will have a successful NFL Draft under new GM Scot McCloughan.

OUTCOME:  I would again say I was correct, but I’m not sure I was completely convinced that it was as highly successful a draft as I thought it would be.  Brandon Scherff is a good choice for a team that needed a major boost on the offensive line and I really liked Preston Smith to improve the defense.  However, I wasn’t overly enthralled with any of the other picks.  One can argue that the top picks are the ones that count the most, but I could argue that the first couple rounds are also the easiest (along with the most risky) to successfully select.  From the experts I talked with who covered the Redskins’ mini-camp sessions this summer, the team will definitely be improved this fall.  However, I didn’t see them make that “diamond-in-the-rough” addition that I thought the ‘Skins might be able to pick up…not yet, anyway.

• PREDICTION: The Flyers will bounce back.

OUTCOME:  While I would love to lay down a verbal bait-and-switch here and say that by “bouncing back,” I meant that GM Ron Hextall would pull off a flurry of post-season moves, clearing cap space and acquiring young talent.  However, since I have hooked my fingers to a truthometer here on my keyboard, I must admit that I was referring to the team playing better in the second half of the ’14-’15 campaign.  While it ultimately proved better for the team to not make the playoffs and get a better slot in the NHL draft with a lower, out-of-the-playoffs finish, I still have to withstand a blow for this incorrect prediction and admit that the team did not rebound enough to qualify for the post-season, as I had suggested in late December.

Be sure to check back next week here at the “SportsTalk Shop” for part two of our “predictions” series, as I’ll address some scholastic prognosis, as well as a “Stone Cold Lock” I’ll present for the sports fans in the Washington DC area.

It’s always a little unusual that the hottest time of the year usually coincides with a sport most closely associated with the winter sports season.  However, July is a time when there’s a number of basketball tournaments played in both the Washington, DC and Pennsylvania areas.

I had the chance this weekend to check out one of them—the “A-town Throw Down”—and see some of the action, as well as uncover some developing storylines worth watching as we head closer to the scholastic regular season.

OBSERVATION #1: I would NOT categorize Nazareth’s championship as a “major upset.”
This was quite the topic of conversation on Sunday as the Blue Eagles dispatched the defending Eastern Pennsylvania Conference & District XI champs—and the favorites to win this tournament—before going on to defeating Central Catholic in the final.  Anyone who watched Nazareth during the final weeks of last winter’s season—and I had the chance to see them four times—could tell you that this team was maturing…and building confidence…as a unit.  Yes, a look at the box scores of their last two meetings with the Trojans indicates Parkland blow-outs.  However, Nazareth had to overcome a couple key injuries, had athletes playing varsity for the first time ever, and had to play guys out of position…and still put together a very impressive run to first qualify, then to advance deep, in the District XI playoffs.

Furthermore, Nazareth had won three of its five games in the previous week’s tournament, and the underclassmen (Johan Dotson, Kevin Wagner) look much more comfortable playing against the other top teams in the area over this past weekend.  Both Dotson and Wagner exhibited great skill during the regular season and seemed like they would emerge as standout players in the area…and that time came on Sunday with impressive showings in both their semifinal and final contests.  Parkland will still clearly be the team to beat this winter, but the Eagles will not be sneaking up on any teams next season.

It was a good tournament for all the Allentown teams.  Central Catholic also had an impressive showing in advancing to the tourney’s last contest (a fact that also should not be a surprise—if you read my blog on the Vikings last month, that is).  The Vikings are mixing some returning players with new talent.  Dieruff had a nice showing and recorded an impressive win over Reading.  Although Allen didn’t make the final two games, they did feature a number of returning players and had some impressive moments this past weekend and look to be among the top EPC teams again in the coming months.

OBSERVATION #2:  Bethlehem Catholic will be better this season.
I doubt teams will be able to beat up on the Golden Hawks again this season.  While they didn’t make it to the semifinals, I was impressed by the confidence—offensively—I saw among the Becahi players.  They were matched up against some strong competition this weekend, and constantly attacked the basket and acted aggressively in both passing and taking shot attempts.  I think they still have to work on their defense and develop a little more consistency overall, but after a very disappointing season, I think the future is very bright for the Hawks as they embark on a new era under new Head Coach Ray Barbosa.

OBSERVATION #3:  The Return of the “Big Bangers”
There is no way to unequivocally say that what one sees over the summer will translate into the winter, indoor season.  However, for a couple days, I was impressed by several big men who seem to play “Old School” and demand the basketball—then knew what to do with it when they got it.  The game has evolved so that guards and small forwards are usually the go-to players, but a few centers really seemed to battle and work hard in the paint this past weekend.

One of the players who fit this bill was Whitehall’s Logan McKinley. 

Against Del Val Charter and Hempfield, McKinley was constantly contested, hooked and bumped around by his opposing big men, but held his own and gave a shove-or-two in return.  Just as impressively he showed excellent footwork and good fundamentals in providing solid offense for his Zephyrs.  In fact, even when he was on this bench, it was Eric Johnson coming in and exhibiting some nice inside moves.  Whitehall graduated nearly its entire team from last year, but if they can get quality minutes from their big men to go along with rising sophomore Mikey Esquilian, the Zephs could be right back in the district playoff hunt again this winter.

OBSERVATION #4:  Defense is still important.
While stressing defense is always a key to winning teams, the defensive efforts sometimes wane during the summer leagues—especially on a weekend as hot as it was this year.  However, I have to give a shout-out to Liberty’s Amir Griffin.

The Hurricanes were in a tied ballgame with their tournament future up for grabs and found themselves on defense at the end of their game.  When the team came over to its huddle during the timeout, it was the players who wanted Amir to guard CB West’s top player with the game on the line.

There’s no question the Hurricanes have some big-time offensive weapons returning for the 2015-16 season and will once again be among the area’s elite teams, but it always good to recognize the top defensive players, as they don’t always seem to get the publicity that the top offensive players do.

Don’t forget, you can see more great summertime basketball.  Coming up next week will be the 26^th Annual Catasauqua Tournament of Champions to be held at the Catty Playground once again this season.  RCN-TV will once again broadcast the title game on Thursday, July 30^th.

“Courage” is defined as “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.”  This past Wednesday night the ESPYs aired on ABC and the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage was presented for the 23^rd time.  Previous winners have, for the most part, come from the world of sports like Jim Valvano, Muhammad Ali, announcer Robin Roberts, etc.  There have been other winners, such as Nelson Mandela, who are not sports-related figures.  The winner, according to the award, should always “transcend sports”.

The honor is named for Arthur Ashe because he was a great tennis player (winning three Grand Slam events, including being the first African-American to win at Wimbledon) as well as the first black player selected to the Davis Cup team.  Arthur Ashe contracted HIV from a blood transfusion during his heart bypass surgery and spent the rest of his life educating others about the illness and fighting to defeat AIDS. He died from AIDS-related pneumonia in 1993.  Truly, his was a life that symbolized “courage”.

This year’s winner was Caitlyn Jenner, who you know, unless you have absolutely NO access to anything considered current events and, therefore, probably cannot access this blog anyway, transitioned from being a man to a woman.  Bruce Jenner was a world-class Olympic athlete and, as Caitlyn Jenner, has become the spokesperson for those who feel they are trapped in their bodies.  It certainly took courage for Jenner to not only accept herself for who she is, but also to get “out front” with that decision.  Hopefully, Jenner’s greater acceptance by the general public will help those who are currently battling with gender identification.   I just have a little trouble with the millions of dollars she will make because of it.  She purportedly will receive $5 million for her reality series, “I Am Cait”. She also continues the tradition of the Kardashians’ exploitation of their lifestyle for the mighty dollar.

My vote, if I had one, would have gone to Lauren Hill.  She played basketball at Mount St. Joseph University in Ohio.  Lauren suffered from terminal brain cancer and died April 10, 2015.  She did not choose to make her battle public, but it became news when the NCAA allowed Mount St. Joseph to move up the starting date of their season by two weeks so Hill would get a chance to play prior to her death.  The away game was moved to a home game so she would not have to travel and then moved to a 10,000-seat arena to accommodate the crowd.  She played in four games, made five layups, and served as an assistant coach.  She also helped to raise over $1.5 million for pediatric cancer research.

The only limelight she sought was to help others and that light now shines on the “Layup 4 Lauren” foundation.  She did posthumously receive the “Best Moment” award on the ESPYs Wednesday night.  Her parents accepted for her.  When her parents were asked if she would have thought she should have won the Ashe Award, they responded that that thought would have never entered her mind so she would not have commented at all.

Simply put, Lauren Hill should have won the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage on Wednesday night.  She and Arthur had much in common.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. Golf’s majors are beginning to look like the “Survivor” reality show. After the desert-like conditions of Chambers Bay in Washington State for the US Open, the golfers this past weekend have been battered by the hurricane-like conditions at the British Open.  Charles Darwin and his “survival of the fittest” mentality would have made him a perfect analyst for ESPN.
2. It’s tough on the bicycling front these days, too. Tour de France leader Chris Froome complained that this past Saturday a spectator threw a cup of urine at him and shouted “doper”.  It should be noted that Froome has never failed a drug test.
3. The “deflategate” ball that was caught by LeGarrette Blount for a touchdown in the AFC Championship was sold at auction for $43,740. Does every rule infraction have to be eventually rewarded?
4. Local product and Nazareth High school graduate Sage Karam finished third this past Saturday at the Iowa Corn 300 Indy Car series. He did anger sixth-place finisher Ed Carpenter, however, who said Karam has no respect for the other drivers and “has no clue”.  Karam responded he is “going for the win”.  The former Nazareth wrestler always went for the win.
5. Who is Sarah Thomas? She will be the NFL’s first and only female official this season.  Fans may want to tone down the bad-call expletives.

We all knew the Phillies were going to be “bad” this year.  Every baseball analyst at the beginning of the season predicted that the Phillies would be the worst team in baseball.  It appears, now that we are at the All-Star break, that “worst” may not be a strong enough word.

“Worst” is the superlative for “bad” – you remember how your English teacher talked about degrees of “not good” especially when it came to your English.  In this case, the superlatives for “bad” are “worse” and “worst”, not “badder” or “ baddest”.  I suggest that for the 2015 Philadelphia Phillies, we need to consult a thesaurus to find the appropriate adjective to describe them.  None of the above seem strong enough.

The 1997 Phillies lost 61 games by the mid-season break.  At the All-Star break, this year’s Phillies are 29-62.  Let’s put THAT into perspective.  It is the worst All-Star record for ANY Phillies team in history.    And that is saying something.  Since 1900, of the 20 worst season records in baseball history, the Philadelphia Phillies (6) and the Philadelphia Athletics (3) own nine of them – that’s right – almost half.  By the end of this season, I will probably be able to eliminate the word “almost” from the previous sentence.

The 2015 Phillies have 29 wins, nine fewer than the second worst (I need to find another word) team in baseball right now – the Milwaukee Brewers.  The Brewers are 18.5 games out of first place in the National League Central division, but they are trailing the very best team, the St. Louis Cardinals.  The Phillies are 21 games back!

The Phillies will lose 100+ games.  They have lost their manager (even he couldn’t stand watching this team and he was getting paid for it); Ruben Amaro, Jr. has been just awful as the general manager; and the press only talks about who will be gone on the team roster by July 31.

Their three most recognizable players, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Carlos Ruiz, are batting .226, .179, and .234 respectively.  Statistically, they are among the worst (getting the picture here?) at their position.  And the pitching has been so bad that in one game the bullpen took the phone off the hook!

The Philadelphia Phillies have been around for 133 seasons.  From 2010 through 2012, they ranked first in National League attendance each season, averaging 45,000 fans per game.  This season, they are averaging 24,400.  Everything, it seems, from talent to fan support, is diminishing at an alarming rate.

So how would you describe the 2015 edition of the Philadelphia Phillies – abhorrent, atrocious, hellish, horrible, horrid, nauseating…?  Consult a thesaurus because both you and I know it is “worse” than “worst”!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. There was really good news out of State College this week that freshman Saquan Barkley of Whitehall has impressed the Penn State staff with his athletic ability and his community involvement in the Lift for Life charity. One player was quoted as saying he is a “freak athlete” and that’s a good thing.
2. Good for Lancaster, Pa.! The town more widely known around here for their horse and buggy Amish citizenry put on a great U. S. Women’s Open golf tournament this past weekend.  134,016 fans attended the four-day event and that set a new Open record for attendance.
3. Jordan Spieth won the John Deere Classic, his fourth golf tournament victory of the year on Sunday. He became the first to win four in a year before the British Open since Tiger Woods in 2000.  His golf earnings this year are $8,709,836.  He is 21 years old!
4. Tiger Woods, according to Golf Digest, had a net worth at the end of 2014 of $1.37 billion which includes golf, endorsements, corporate outings, etc.
5. It appears the EPC basketball boys’ and girls’ favorites will be attending school at Parkland. The Stellar tournament is always a good indicator of winter success and the Parkland girls won the championship and the Parkland boys lost in the finals to Archbishop Carroll.  The Parkland football team is heavily favored to win the EPC football championship in the fall.

One of my most treasured benefits of my job is the opportunity to meet and interact with so many outstanding personalities on the East Coast.  There are many sports legends who reside in, or from time-to-time pass through, the RCN-TV coverage areas.  I could probably fill several blog entries just sharing the names and stories of the nationally-known athletes, coaches and broadcasters whom I have had the incredibly good fortune of sharing a few minutes (or sometimes longer) with, and hearing about so many wonderful experiences.

One of those truly special people I have had a chance to meet was former Olympic track-and-field star, Joetta Clark Diggs.  Here is just a sample of her athletic accomplishments:

• 4-TIME OLYMPIAN: 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000
• SELECTED AS USA TEAM CAPTAIN (2000)
• RANKED IN TOP 10 IN THE WORLD FROM 1991-2000 (Until Retirement)
• SELECTED TO “WHO’S WHO” OF AMERICAN WOMEN — 2000
• INDUCTED INTO THE US TRACK & FIELD HALL OF FAME
• INDUCTED INTO THE NJ HALL OF FAME
• INDUCTED INTO THE UNIV. OF TENNESSEE HALL OF FAME
• INDUCTED INTO PENN RELAYS HALL OF FAME

Actually, her title is not just a “former Olympian”, a title which, for many of us, would be a wonderfully special title to own.  Joetta is an accomplished motivation speaker, author, coach, social affairs advocate and spokesperson.  She is an incredibly engaging personality who has done remarkable work both in and out of the sports world.  Clark-Diggs was also inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame (not just the “Sports” Hall of Fame) for all of her efforts.

She is one of the true diamonds in the RCN viewing area, not just for her past work, but I found out that she is continuing to do work with young people in the Eastern Pennsylvania regions.  She continues to talk about her life lessons with middle and high school athletes, in addition to being one of the top track-and-field minds you will ever find.  In fact, she is running a new camp and will be giving us more details on this and other exciting new projects she is working on when she stops by our “SportsTalk” set for this Thursday’s show (live, 7-8pm).  Joetta also has some great insights on current regional and national sports issues that she will be sharing with us on the program’s “roundtable” segment.

“SportsTalk” co-host Joe Craig and I had the honor of interviewing Joetta previously, to learn about her tremendous career, her experiences participating in four Olympic games, her family’s support, and their accomplishments and relationship with each other.  She also shared her unique experience of having her father portrayed in a major motion picture (her dad is Joe Louis Clark, who was portrayed by Morgan Freeman in the 1989 film “Lean On Me.”)  Here is a sample of that interview.

Which other sports personalities who live and work in the RCN viewing area deserve extra attention for their efforts and accomplishments?  Is there a former or current athlete you’d like us to invite on our “SportsTalk” show?  Send us an email at RCNSportsTalk@rcn.com with your suggestions and keep tuning in as we talk with more great sports personalities each Thursday on RCN-TV and catch our recent shows on our podcast and through RCN On-Demand.

First of all, I hope everyone had a wonderful Independence Day weekend.  I’m not sure if it was just that this year’s “Fourth” fell on a Saturday, but it seemed like I encountered more energy, patriotism and general feelings of goodwill throughout my travels…and I hope the same was true for you!

Now, the post-July 4^th season kicks in…which is usually an interesting time, pro sports-wise, in our DC/Philadelphia coverage area.  There was the trade…or, more appropriately, the ‘diamond-mine heist,’ that 76ers GM Sam Hinkie pulled off.  In case you were on vacation, Philadelphia secured a promising shooting guard, two solid role-playing forwards, an additional first-round selection and a unique, but brilliant, draft-swap option from the Kings.  They gave up two lower-level 2015 draft picks who probably would not have even been on the team’s Opening Day roster.  The Wizards made a great pick-up themselves in adding sharpshooter Gary Neal with various rumors swirling about Paul Pierce, Kevin Seraphin and others.  The Flyers were not outdone as they made some tremendous moves clearing cap space while adding young talent, which has revitalized their fan base after a disappointing season.

And that’s just the pro sports in the RCN region that WON’T be playing this month!

The Major League Baseball season of course is in full swing with the non-waiver trade deadline looming, and within a few weeks, the pads will be colliding across the country as all NFL training camps will be open.  We had the good fortune of speaking with sports writer extraordinaire, Associated Press’ Rob Maaddi, to get his insights on the latest developments with the Phillies, the Nationals’ hunt for a championship, and his thoughts on the storylines to watch for the Eagles, Redskins and the teams in the NFC East.  Here’s a portion of our interview (the entire show is available to watch on RCN On-Demand).

The Phillies were also active in the international market.  Philadelphia already selected highly-prized power hitter Jhailyn Ortiz, along with catcher Rafael Marchan, pitcher Manuel Silva and middle-infield prospect Keudi Bocio.  They also shipped two lower-level minor leagues and their number-nine international slots to the Diamondbacks to acquire the number-one international position, which allows the team to spend a greater allotment of money on signing free agents without being subject to drafting penalties.  Expect more Phillies moves over the next couple of weeks.

Whether your team has a mountain of expectations (Nationals, Eagles), or they’re building for the future (Redskins, Phillies), the next several weeks will be interesting for local sports fans and something to monitor in-between enjoying your summer activities!

As I write this, Serena and Venus Williams are next scheduled to play one another in the fourth round at Wimbledon.  It will be the twenty-sixth time that the two sisters have met with Serena leading 14-11.  Venus is 34 and Serena is 33 years old.  It must be especially difficult for Serena to play against her older sister these days knowing that physically, Venus’ career is winding down with fewer Grand Slam title opportunities.

I racked my brain to think of other sibling rivalries or, to be honest, I just Googled “sibling rivalries in professional sports”.  There were some on the list that stretched the concept of “rivalry” because they did not really compete against one another. In the interest of competition, I have chosen the sibling winners, if there is one:

Ozzie and Jose Canseco (baseball) – Ozzie only played 24 games in the major leagues. Jose used steroids and squealed on his fellow players.  But Ozzie was so bad, Jose still wins.

Jason and Jeremy Giambi (baseball) – Jeremy’s career was one of obscurity and Jason’s was tainted by steroids.  No winner here, but Jose Canseco wins the steroid battle over Jason Giambi.

Tiki and Ronde Barber (NFL) – Tiki has records and Ronde has a Super Bowl win and records.  Ronde wins in a squeaker.

Rob and Rex Ryan (NFL) – I don’t like either one.  I refuse to call a winner here.

Leon and Michael Spinks (boxing) – They never fought each other; Michael lost only one fight, but Leon beat Muhammad Ali!  I call this one a draw and demand a rematch.

Eli and Peyton Manning (NFL) – Both have a Super Bowl win.  They seem to really like each other and root for one another all the time.  No real rivalry so no winner!

Lest you think I do not have the credentials to judge here, I will tell you that sibling rivalry was rampant in my house. I grew up with an older brother (six years older) and two younger sisters (one year younger and six years younger).  I don’t think my older brother cared for me that much.  He used to throw darts at my leg and was the happiest when he drew blood.  We settled disputes by putting on boxing gloves and fighting and do I have to remind you that he was six years older (how’s that for parenting?).  I never won.

Since I was always losing to my older brother, I, obviously by default, tormented my sisters.  I used to do whatever I could to upset the oldest one – you know, fake bugs in her hair, or squealing on her so she would be grounded (she spent more time confined to our yard than most of our trees).  I finally stopped when she hit me in the head with a roller skate.

My brother and I told my youngest sister she was adopted and promoted that lie for about seven years.  I’m sure we ruined her self-esteem for years to come.

You see, sibling rivalries are not supposed to be fun; they are not supposed to include wishing your brother or sister well; they are supposed to be highly competitive in all aspects of life.

UNTIL you grow up!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. In case you missed it, you can sleep better now knowing that P. Diddy ( aka “Puffy”, “Diddy”, “Sean Combs”) had his felony charges dropped this past week after his altercation with his son’s strength coach at UCLA. His son was chastised for missing a workout to attend the NBA All-Star game.  “Puff” was just being today’s parent.
2. ESPN says Pete Rose bet on Cincinnati Reds games as a player, not just as a manager. This information was allegedly found in a notebook that has been sealed for the past 26 years.  This may also seal Rose’s fate and keep him out of the Hall of Fame.
3. Sports Illustrated has chosen its Top 50 Fittest athletes in the world – 5. Dez Bryant; 4. Floyd Mayweather; 3. Usain Bolt; 2. Cristiano Ronaldo; 1. LeBron James.

If you want to see all fifty, go to: http://www.si.com/edge/photos/2014/08/05/sports-illustrated-fittest-50-athletes-sports/50

4. The Atlantic League, minor league baseball, adopted some rule changes this past week to speed up the game – Pitchers must deliver a pitch within 12 seconds with no one on base and batters must keep one foot in batter’s box; 2. Defensive teams get three 45-second timeouts per nine innings; 3. Relief pitchers get six warm-up pitches and must complete them in one minute; 4. Intentional walks require no pitches be thrown; 5. The rulebook strike zone will be enforced.  It’s already working – now, on to the Major Leagues!
5. I attended George Pektor’s basketball camp this week to talk to the players right before their lunch break. George is the 16-year-old I wrote about a few weeks ago who put together a camp for inner city kids who could not afford to attend on their own.  I was supposed to give an inspirational talk.  The tables were reversed; George, the coaches, and the kids inspired me!  Congratulations to all.

As a high school English teacher for almost thirty years, I used to get frustrated by the misconception about young people.  Based on newspaper reports and TV news, the only stories readers and viewers often saw about the young were reports of teenagers getting into trouble.  As a teacher, I saw so many really terrific young students, who far outnumbered the troubled ones, that I thought it unfair when people spoke of the “youth of today”.

This week offered up two very good examples of what I am talking about.  On Thursday night, the 45^th annual McDonald’s All-Star Football Classic was held.  This event is held every year to raise money for the many McDonald charities including the Ronald McDonald houses that offer a residence for the families of their hospitalized children.  The game has been responsible for raising close to a million dollars.

This year, 90 senior football players, cheerleaders, and their volunteer coaches suffered through two weeks of practice in extremely hot, humid, and wet weather in order to prepare for the game.  Their only “compensation” was a plaque signifying their participation and the RCN banquet on the eve of the game to thank them.

Their assignment is three-fold – have fun, play competitively, and fill the stands.  They met all their goals.

On Thursday afternoon, I was introduced to George Pektor.  He had just finished his sophomore year at Blair Academy.  George, also, attended Moravian Academy prior to this past year.  George Pektor is a special person.

He understands that he is a person of “privilege”.  He attends elite schools and has had many opportunities not afforded to many and, most importantly and most impressively, he knows it.  He, also, loves the game of basketball.  That love has taken him to a number of expensive AAU and travel basketball programs.  And, despite his young age, he came to realize that there are potentially many good inner city athletes who have not been offered the opportunities he has had.  He felt a duty to do something about that.

During the next two weeks, at the Jewish Community Center in Allentown, the very first GO PRO SKILLS CAMP will take place.  120 boys, ages 13-17, who would not be able to afford or participate in such a program, will learn basketball skills.  In addition, the program will offer both motivational and inspirational messages from both pro athletes and renowned coaches.  Athletic development, as well as personal development, for these young people, were George’s primary goals for the program.

This camp, like all the ones George attended, is expensive.  There were transportation costs, equipment costs, and unforeseen meal costs (the Jewish Community Center required more expensive kosher lunches be served).  Suffice it to say, George needed sponsors.  No problem.  He found seventeen of them!

The years in teaching and in athletics have taught me there are plenty of really good young people out there.

I met 91 of them this week alone!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS) 

1. The US Open was professional golf at its most dramatic. The course was controversial, prime time TV, the play exhausting to watch at times, the finish spectacular.  ABC coined the phrase – “The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat”.  For this tournament it was the opposite – “The agony of defeat (Dustin Johnson’s missed putts) and the thrill of victory (Jordan Spieth wins it in the clubhouse).
2. I suppose that the ending of the US Open should have been bizarre considering that the golf course looked nothing like a golf course, but more like 30,000 people landed on Mars to watch greens become “browns”, water become “sand traps” (the color was the same), and golfers become lightheaded (Jason Day’ vertigo). Add the new and unfamiliar voices of FOX Sports, the inability, at times, for the cameras to follow the ball, and the overuse of the shot “tracker” and the entire event was most bizarre, indeed.
3. Dustin Johnson’s awful three-putt finish at the US Open did not come close to his final 11-over round in 2011 which included a triple-bogey and double-bogey on consecutive holes.
4. No one was more frustrated with Chambers Bay than Bill Horschel. Watch:

5. The “deflategate” suspension appeal by Tom Brady is this week. Roger Goodell will hear the case.

Guest blogger, Cathy Neelon, is filling in while Chris takes some time off.  Cathy is a member of the RCN-TV staff and an avid fan of horse racing.  Chris will return with a new blog June 29.
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Saturday, June 6, 2015…

There I was, hunched over in my seat at Coca-Cola Park, in the midst of a crowd of waving, hollering IronPigs fans. With eyes closed and fingers jamming my earbuds as far into my ears as they could go without coming out the other side, I desperately tried to shut out all the noise and distraction so I could hear the faint sound of the radio broadcast of this year’s Belmont Stakes.

The closer to post time it got, the more hunched over I got, the more I ignored or waved off any attempts to engage me in conversation, and the more I wondered why oh why I had come to the game in the first place when my attention was clearly not on what was happening on the field right in front of me.

During the race itself, I was still as stone, listening to the call, gripping my smartphone, almost breathless, not daring to believe what I was hearing as the horses made their way down the backstretch, then rounded the far turn into home. During the run down the homestretch, I quickly wondered – after all the years of disappointments and near-misses, when would American Pharoah lose this one? Which horse would be the one to thwart yet another promising attempt at the title? Would I ever see another Triple Crown champion in my lifetime?

And then I had my answer.

The first words to go through my mind?

Holy…

I was stunned. He’d done it. I was shocked. American Pharoah was the Triple Crown champion. I almost couldn’t believe it. After so many fabulously hyped and talented horses had tried and failed, this colt had found success.

And somewhere in the background, I think there was a baseball game going on…

As most of my RCN Studio colleagues could tell you, I have long been a rabid fan of the Triple Crown races. Chris Michael himself could probably attest to the number of times that I’ve bugged him to include a horse racing topic in the ‘Roundtable’ section of “RCN Sports Talk” or piped in with a suggestion for an equine ‘Shoutout’ when Derby time came around each year. What many of my colleagues might not realize is exactly how long I’ve been a fan. And what I did not fully appreciate until this past Triple Crown season is just how much my experience of those three races has changed over the years.

My first Derby-Preakness-Belmont viewing came in 1977, the year of the sensational Seattle Slew. Cable TV was around, but not nearly as ubiquitous as it is today. We certainly didn’t have it yet at my house, so, like most of America, I watched the three races live on broadcast network TV. Like cable, consumer-grade VCRs were around but the market was still in a relative infancy, so chances were if you missed a race live, you were out of luck and had to wait to read about it in the newspaper the next day.

No doubt as a result of those early viewing limitations, the Triple Crown races became my first true “appointment TV”. For years afterward, on those three Saturday afternoons each year, you would not have been able to budge me from my lonely spot in front of the TV until the very end of each broadcast. Even now, my first inclination is to plant myself firmly in front of my TV at home and tune out as much of the rest of the world as possible. Don’t try to call me, don’t ask me to go out, don’t knock on the door – I won’t answer. It’s race time and I don’t want to miss a second of it.

However, times change. Technologies change. Personal circumstances change. I grew up, graduated from college and went to work for a TV production studio where occasionally I have to – gasp! – work on one or more of those sacred Saturday afternoons in May and June.

Usually the culprit has been our Grandview Speedway coverage. My fellow crew members on those productions have seen me go through contortions to get my live Derby-Preakness-or-Belmont fix.

A couple of times, I’ve poked my head through one of the side windows at the Grandview concession stand if they’ve had the race running on the TV in the kitchen; one of those times, I had to resort to listening to it on my old Sony Walkman (remember those?) while watching it because the volume on Grandview’s set was either turned off or busted. Most other times, when the kitchen TV was turned off, I listened to the races on the radio, either with the aforementioned Walkman or, more recently, with an app on my smartphone – pacing up and down behind the stands trying to find the quietest spot possible. At least two of those Saturdays ended in rainouts in Bechtelsville, and I either managed to catch the races on the set back at the studio office or had to settle for listening on the car radio on the drive back.

Despite all of those contortions and non-traditional viewing methods, all of those years had one thing in common. I managed to watch at least one of the three races per my original “appointment TV” mandate – live, alone, and in front of a traditional TV set.

And that held true for a long time. Until this year.

This year’s Kentucky Derby saw me at home, but with a dead TV set. I hadn’t yet signed up for MyRCN, so I couldn’t watch the Derby live online – and I was forced to listen to it through a radio app on my laptop computer. Hours later, I was able to watch a clip of NBC’s race coverage that had been posted on YouTube.

This year’s Preakness Stakes saw me at Grandview, pacing up and down by the production truck, earbuds in place as I listened to my smartphone app and relayed the dreadful Baltimore weather conditions and gratifying race results to my fellow crew members. Grandview ended up raining out that day and as soon as I got home, I popped onto YouTube to check the clips.

This year’s Belmost Stakes, as I mentioned back at the beginning of this post, saw me at Coca-Cola Park at an IronPigs game. In addition to listening live on my smartphone app, I was able to watch a delayed replay of the majority of the race on the park’s huge videoboard when the guys in the booth showed it between half-innings. Later on, there was the obligatory YouTube clip check at home and the reading of just about every online newspaper article on the race that I could find.

When I’d first realized the date on the game ticket, I had seriously considered staying home and giving my ticket away. It struck me that if American Pharoah won the Belmont, as he seemed likely to do, I would have experienced this Triple Crown in a completely different way than the last one 37 years ago.

1978 – I watched Affirmed take the Crown – on old-school live broadcast TV right down the line.
2015 – I “watched” American Pharoah take the Crown – via an weird amalgam of Internet, WiFi, radio, cable TV, websites, apps, mobile phone, videoboard and laptop computer.

Oh, what a strange new world…

One that I doubt my eleven-year-old self could ever have imagined.