March 31/April 1, 2006
April Broadcasting Schedule: CSU Bakersfield Softball
*Tuesday April 7, Utah Tech at CSUB, DOUBLEHEADER; 11 a.m.; 1:30 p.m., ESPN +
*Friday April 17, Fullerton State at CSUB, 2:30 p.m., ESPN + (moved to Sunday, April 19th!)
*Saturday April 18, Fullerton State, DOUBLEHEADER; Noon, 2:30 p.m., ESPN +
*Saturday April 25, UC Riverside, DOUBLEHEADER, Noon, 2:30 ESPN +
*Sunday, April 26, UC Riverside, 11 a.m., ESPN +
Tip of the Cap(s) To:
*Bakersfield Jockey Club (BJC Facebook Link); this group honors student-athletes in the Bakersfield area. A wonderful organization. I attended their Breakfast Awards Ceremony on March 24 and came away refreshingly impressed. CSU Bakersfield Baseball Coach Jordan Banfield was the Guest Presenter. Roadrunner slugger Evan Cloyd was an award recipient.
*CSU Bakersfield Administration for hiring Todd Lee as their Head Men's Basketball Coach. The addition of Coach Lee a slam dunk! Coach Lee comes from USC, however he was also an assistant for the 'Runners back in the late 1990s (1994-1997). I worked at a basketball camp under T-Lee back in the day, and suffice to say I am a fan. Coach Lee served as an assistant under legendary Bakersfield Coach Pat Douglass.
*Dan Martin Stadium Baseball Stadium on the campus of Fresno Pacific University is an absolute gem! The Sunbirds included plenty of shade...which makes for a fantastic baseball experience. I was there to watch the Hawaii-Hilo Vulcans and family friend Dom Agrella (the right-handed masher from Sacramento/Elk Grove currently owns a stellar .442 on base percentage).
*Fresno Grizzlies Media. The Grizzlies Media Day (3/31) provided local media with the opportunity to meet and interview team members. I was able to speak with manager Cesar Galvez, and a sample of their star-filled infield: Wilder Dalis, Ethan Holiday, Roldy Brito, Tanner Thach and Ethan Holiday. The latter is our Prospects1500 #1 ranked Colorado Rockies Prospect; Brito #9, Dolis #25, and as a sophomore, Thach belted 27 home runs for the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Brito in particular flashed an entertaining personality. Coach Galvez and his young Dudes were all a joy to speak with. The 1st-round selection Holliday appears pleasant, poised, and possesses a mighty frame. This talented core opens the season on Friday 4/3, when they travel to Visalia (Diamondbacks) to take on the Rawhide in a 3-game series...by the way if you are a baseball fan, and have not attended Valley Strong Ballpark in Visalia, just do it--you can thank me later! Thank you to the Grizzlies--in particular Tim Slack and Jack Van Valkenburg...while mingling, I struck up a conversation with Fox 26 Sports Director Ralph Wood...I was simply captivated by Ralph as he graciously shared some of his broadcasting ventures (which included tales of Tark, Billy Tubbs and Tulsa!)...and I was wholeheartedly digging it! I look forward to our next chat Ralph!
(Left to Right: Thatch, Dolis, Brito and the Skipper Galvez)
*Let me close the shout-outs with debut news...after attending the Grizzlies event, I then proceeded over the Fresno State to enjoy the Bulldogs hosting Cal Poly SLO (The Mustangs prevailed 10-4, Cal Poly improved to 17-10 overall)...making his first career start for the Bulldogs was Eric Rico-Eric's grandfather was a dear friend of my dad...and what a treat it was to watch Eric firing away! Eric's older brother Joey is a two-way player for Westmont (Santa Barbara)...both prepped at Redwood in Visalia. A big thank you to their mom Rhonda for keeping me in the loop. I look forward to watching Joey in the near future...Westmont is currently 2nd in the PacWest, while Fresno Pacific holds the 3rd spot.
3 Dot-Style Around The Horn:
On Monday, the Roadrunners Baseball team earned a wild 17-14 win in Las Vegas or UNLV...Bako has been victorious in 5 of their 7 games, and currently is tied for 6th in the Big West...the top 6 teams qualify for the conference tournament...on the softball side, Bakersfield currently sits in 7th with a 4-8 conference mark--perhaps I can serve as a good luck charm on the broadcasts/livesteams as I will see the group frequently down the stretch in April...and also coming down the pike in April--the NFL Draft...MendozaMania is building...and the draft is always a kick to follow...while conversing with Jeremy Mahy (@JMayFam31) during our taping of a podcast for @Prospects1500, it donned on me, Las Vegas might be collecting an eclectic group of sports figures: Fernando Mendoza, Max Crosby, Nick Kurtz, Leo DeVries, and the youthful looking Jacob Wilson...Vegas might resemble Oakland of the 1970's...Kurtz is off to a bit of a slow start-similar to last year-which makes me wonder if that is simply his way (Eric Chavez comes to mind as an Athletic who consistently struggled to hit early in the year)...speaking of hitting, Shea Langeliers banged out his 5th HR in 5 games-the Bashing Backstop!...Milwaukee and Miami are off to 5-1 starts, and Anaheim has even had a pitching sighting, thus, perhaps, anything can happen...replay has sure brought a cup of spice to MLB programming!...nothing however matches the UConn Men's improbable come-from-behind conquest over Duke on Sunday 73-72 (3/29)...as I always like to say, one of the hardest things in sports is to a close out a mighty competitor...credit to UConn for the grit, and Braylon Mullins for making the steal, and then dropping the long-distance Duke Dagger. The Thrill of Victory...
Happy Easter!
Remember to say hello when you see me on the courts, at the yard, or at a theater/restaurant near you!
Thanks for perusing-ideally, my ramblings made you smile!
!
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