Entry #21 - 3/10/04

It was nice to get back in the "Win Column" today as we defeated Radford 5 - 2. On Tuesday Mother Nature struck again as our game versus Tennessee Tech was canceled due to rain. So, naturally I was excited to get back on the field and see how we would respond after last weekend.

We sent freshman David Yates to the mound and in his first collegiate start he didn't disappoint. D.Y. responded going 5 innings and allowing just one run. I really like the way David competes when he is on the mound. He expects to get every hitter out. I don't think he can throw a ball straight, and when he is down in the zone he is tough to beat. Offensively we struggled at the plate all day long, but we were good when we needed to be and our bullpen did a great job of coming in and preserving our lead.

Matt Traylor got us on the board early with a double to right field. He then scored on a clutch two-out single by Blake Church. I had a talk with "Churchie" after we got back from Florida about being hungry for RBI's and he has been on fire ever since. He is a big part of our success thus far in the season. In the third, Traylor walked and moved to third on Shane Byrne's 7th double of the year. Matt then scored on a RBI groundout by Andy Howdeshell. "Howdie" is really close to getting on track and when he does watch out! I've seen him start to make some great adjustments and have some really good at bats as of late. I guess my expectations aren't high for him as he is only hitting .333, with 14 RBI’s and 9 stolen bases in 17 games.

In the seventh we scored another run on Steven Calicutt's first homer of the year. A blast into the wind in left center field. Somehow I've got to find a way to get "Cutt" some more at-bats, but it is difficult as his pitching obligations are so important to our success. He is such a good athlete that he can go two weeks without hitting and still I can insert him into the lineup and he can get the job done.

We added two more in the eighth as Tim Turner tripled down the left field line. It sure is fun to watch Tim run. Our rule for our base runners is that when they round second base if the ball is in front of them, it is their decision if they think they can make it to third. But with no outs they better not get thrown out at third. I didn't think Tim had a chance to make it, but he put it into another gear that most humans don't have and made it easy. Speed never seems to go into a slump. Tim then scored on a sac fly by Traylor. Shane Byrne then walked and immediately stole second. He came around to score on Howdeshell's single to right. Caleb Moore came on to close it out retiring three in a row and win number nine was in the books. Trevor Smith, Michael Bauer and Caleb Glafenhein were all sharp as they all threw one inning of relief.

Now we are off to Statesboro, Georgia to play Georgia Southern. We will leave Thursday afternoon after classes because it is such a long drive. This is going to be a difficult series to win as they are extremely talented and have a great baseball tradition. It is tough to win any series on the road, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. It will be a great test for our ball club.

I've been meaning to write about this for sometime, but when we played at the University of Georgia earlier in the year something really cool and special happened for my father. My father played professional baseball for the St. Louis Browns in the early fifties. He was in and out of the big leagues for a couple of years and obviously he has some great memories and stories. Some of my favorites are when he spent the summer rooming with Satchel Paige and barnstorming with an all-star team up and down the east coast. To this day whenever my friends and old teammates are around him, he still entertains them with some wonderful stories. Anyway, it is amazing how small the world can be but especially the "baseball world". It just so happens that Shane Byrne's (our right fielder) grandfather is Tommy Byrne. Now Tommy Byrne was simply one of the greatest Yankee's of all time and pitched in numerous World Series and enjoyed a big league career of about 15 years. In his day he was simply one of the best.

So one night as I was talking to my father on the phone I asked him if he had ever heard of Tommy Byrne. My Dad all of a sudden came to life and said, "Of course. Why do you ask?" I explained to him that he was the grandfather of one of my players. My father couldn't believe it. It just so happens that when my Dad was first signed by Bill Veeck of the Browns, Tommy Byrne, who is about ten years older than my father, was pitching at the time with the Browns. Mr. Veeck had brought my dad to St. Louis for his signing and invited him to watch that day's game in the owner's box. So before the game my Dad is getting the tour of the park and the clubhouse. It a couple of hours before the game so there is not that many people around and there happens to be only one player in the clubhouse. Who was that player? You guessed it, Tommy Byrne. My Dad explained how of course he was very humbled, in awe and white-eyed being in a major league clubhouse for the first time. But he went on to explain how Mr. Byrne went out of his way to make him comfortable. My Dad said they spoke for maybe five minutes and had a conversation he will never forget. My Dad then proceeded to the owner's box to watch Tommy Byrne defeat the Boston Red Sox on that day.

So about a month ago in Athens, Georgia my father and Tommy Byrne were reunited. I had met Mr. Byrne a couple of days earlier in Tampa and after speaking with him I knew this was going to be pretty neat. They both come from an era where men are just not produced like that anymore. A swagger, toughness, selflessness, competitiveness, a play in pain, die for your country, do what ever it takes to win mentality that most modern athletes just don't have. My mother said that when they saw each other in the parking lot for the first time they instantly recognized each other and embraced. They spent the whole game together talking baseball and about the old days. Later that evening I stopped by my parent's hotel room to spend some time with them. The glow on my father's face was unbelievable. He said that names, games and memories which he had not remembered, or spoken about in over fifty years were all of a sudden brought back to life. How cool is that?

For most of us it takes us well into adulthood to realize how special our parents are. How my mother and father raised my three siblings and I is amazing. Especially with Dad traveling and being on the road for business much of the time, I don't know how my mother did it. We were a tough bunch to corral.

Earlier this evening I spoke with my parents on the phone while my boys were getting their bath. Talking about the recent games I mentioned to my Dad where we were giving up too many hits when our pitchers had a 0-and-2 count on the batter. My Dad said, "Just do what we used to do back in my day when you had them 0-and-2." I said, "What is that?" He replied, "Just put one in their ear or knock them on their ass, that way they definitely won't get a hit." I chuckled and thought they just don't make'm like that anymore. Later as I was tucking my boys into bed, Tilo said, "Dad, Nanny and Poppy sure are cool." Son they sure are. Until Next Time...

Coach Skole