Don't go anywhere

I'm still here. I realize I haven't written in a while here (followers of this spot will know that's not a shock) And while I do tend to go a while between posts I haven't abandoned the space. KFNS Radio in St. Louis has set up a spot for me there to blog on SIUE Cougar basketball, so that's where some blog time has been spent. We're getting closer and closer to Grizzlies baseball and I'll be back to provide play-by-play for the Grizz this summer, and I'll be adding more updates here as well. Thanks for sticking with me. If you'd like to view the blog at KFNS it can be found here!

Sad News

I am saddened today to learn that former Negro League star "Prince" Joe Henry has passed away at the age of 78. I had the pleasure of meeting and visiting extensively with Joe during our 2007 season. I valued our interview. What a guy and what stories he had! Here's a link to my earlier blog post.

I don't know if the links will all work from the original piece, but the audio link there to our site will get you to the Grizzlies site and you can hear some of the interview I did.

My thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones today. He will be missed by me and the Gateway Grizzlies.

Grizzlies hitting academy

UPDATE 12/19: The website is now live and Phil tells us that things are on track to "open the doors!" Here's the site: Grizzlies Baseball Academy

WOW! That's all I can say. Grizzlies manager Phil Warren and hitting coach Darin Kinsolving are getting ready to unveil the new Grizzlies hitting academy at GCS Ballpark, the Grizzlies home.

I had a chance to tryout the new Pro Batter, which is the centerpiece to the academy and again I say WOW!

Quickly, the pro batter is a computerized hitting tool that allows hitters to see a varitey of pitches. And unlike a traditional pitching machine the pitch is generated from behind a screen that shows an image of an actual pitcher. You feel as if you are facing live pitching. You can adjust the type of pitch, the speed of the pitch and the location. And it is specific to each hitter even taking in to account the height of the hitter, and whether or not the hitter is right or left handed to properly adjust the strikezone.

I started off with a 70 mph fastball, which was not too tough. From there I progressed to a slurve, which buckled my knees. The curve was challenging and the slider I could hit. Finally I faced five fastballs at 100 mph! I am happy to say I was able to get a bat on two pitches at 100 mph. Keep in mind these were right down the middle, and I watched the first two go by without even attempting to swing the stick!

It is an impressive piece of equipment, to say the least, and, I am certain, a valuable learning tool! With the expertise of Warren, Kinsolving and the other instructors it is safe to say the Grizzlies have knocked it out of the park with this one!

There are two other "cages" in the facility-one for hitting live pitching/soft toss and the other that features a pair of indoor pitching mounds for pitching instruction.

They'll likely be open by this time next week and I know a website will be coming online soon, but for now if you want more information or want to reserve a time slot call 618-781-8170.

New Gig

As most of the folks who read this probably already know, I have started a new job. On Monday I began as the Assistant to the Athletic Director at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

It's really a long title for broadcaster! I will be the voice of men's basketball, primarily. We will also broadcast as many women's games as we can-which won't always feature me as the voice. We will also broadcast other sports as we can.

I will also assist in other areas for Athletics, especially in promoting the school and teams as the Cougars make the switch from Division II to Division I.

It's an exciting time to be a Cougar, and I am proud to be one.

Read the full release here!

Enough of the "upstart Rays."

Can we all please stop referring to the Tampa Bay Rays as the "upstart Rays"?

I think they have probably heard enough of that themselves. Although more likely they don't care.

I understand at the beginning of the post-season referring to them this way, but not anymore. Not after they dispatched the White Sox with relative ease, and have won three straight from the BoSox, not to mention scoring 31 runs in those last three games. The argument is probably that there are more people watching now, not die-hard baseball fans, blah blah blah. Fine. No more. People that are watching the series get it.

The Rays are now on the brink of becoming the American League Champions by eliminating the Defending World Champion Boston Red Sox. Even if they somehow collapse and lose the final three games of the ALCS it is my belief they have gotten past the "upsart" thing. The Indians aren't "upstart" are they? They lost the final three games of the ALCS last year to the Sox. The Yankees coughed up a 3-0 ALCS lead in 2004 to Boston. Point is it can happen to an established team just as easy as a team making their first post-season appearance. Anyway I don't see it happening anyway.

Enough.

Happy Birthday

It’s almost the end of the day as this goes up on the net, but it’s important that it goes up today. Today my dad would have been 58. He never made it to his 57. He passed the day before, one year ago yesterday.

It was my dad who made me a baseball fan, and obviously, a Cardinals fan. Because he was and my grandpa (still is). I went to a lot of games with my dad. More than I can remember. Obviously the time was special. It was our time. Just me and him. My parents were divorced at an early age and I didn’t live with dad. But on those baseball nights we got to be together. Even then I knew I knew it was special. I just didn’t know it would be over so soon.

I did live with my dad for a little over a year. After I graduated college and before I got married, I lived with him and my grandpa. I’m so thankful we had that time. All three of us. I was busy and in and out, but it was the most time I probably spent with either of them. Now I wish it had been more.

Sometimes I think it isn’t fair that I only got 29 years with him. Then I remember that my three sisters got less. My youngest sister didn’t get 18 years with him.

It’s mostly unfair for my youngest daughter and my niece and any other siblings or cousins to come. They’ll never know “PawPaw Lam.” My oldest daughter remembers, but only a little. He was good at being a grandpa and I think we all would have loved to see him get to do a little more of it.

Dad was the strongest man I ever knew. He was in a major car accident at the age of 16 which cost him both of his legs. He started his own company making artificial limbs and changed countless lives over 20-plus years in the business. The accident should have killed him-ultimately it did. He contracted Hepatitis C during one of the many blood transfusions that followed his accident. That was in 1966. It stayed dormant for 35 years. He received a liver transplant in 2004 and was strong for a couple of years. The Hepatitis came back and stronger.

For my 29 years he was the greatest man I knew. He remains so. He wasn’t perfect. No one is. But he did a lot of good for a lot of people. Nobody treated people like my dad.

Although not professionally, I’d like to think I followed in his footsteps. In the way he treated people and in the example he set as a person, and my father.

I need to thank my cousin Lisa for encouraging me to write something here. Lisa was also my dad's god daughter.

We love you and miss you every day! Happy Birthday dad!

So Long for just a while. . .

Just a quick wrap on the season that was. Losing in the playoffs hurts. Really it does. When you finish the season in the regular season it doesn't feel the same way. Not that it isn't somewhat sad when any season ends, but if the club doesn't make the playoffs then the end is clear-you expect it, plan for it even. When it is the playoffs there is always hope that there is one more game, or one more series. Then there just isn't.

All that being said the final week of the regular season this year was some of the most thrilling baseball I have been a part of-mainly because of the circumstances. All year long it seemed as if the team was snake-bitten. Things would start to look up, only to have something else go wrong. So then to get a week or so away from the end of the regular season, trailing the wild card by two games and needing to reel off a good string of consecutive victories just to get a chance to go on it all seemed unlikely. Things would have to go the Grizzlies way and they'd need some breaks and it all happened. Guys stepped up and they played loose and had fun and made that run. I really had fun calling that run.

I'm not going to try to look back and analyze what went wrong, or what could have gone better. Like I said it was a thrilling run and fun to be a part of. Phil Warren and Darin Kinsolving and Randy Martz should be commended for the job they did.

There's a ton of young guys on this team and that means, at least, good competition next Spring. You know Phil and staff will be well prepared come May for another season in the sun!

Bye to Chillicothe. . .
I guess most FL fans know that Chillicothe will be leaving the league next year, which is one of a few league changes. As you probably know Chillicothe has long been one of my favorite places to go during our season. I will miss it greatly and wish everyone involved nothing but good things!

Listen up. . .
I've posted a few of the more notable highlights from this past season on the Grizzlies website. Click on the "team" tab on the left of the website. One of the choices is audio archive. A couple of Mike Breyman's highlights are up there as well as the end of the no-hitter against Kalamazoo.

Batter up. . .
Maybe you've heard. Maybe you've noticed construction near the Kid's Zone here at the ballpark, but Grizzlies manager Phil Warren and hitting coach Darin Kinsolving are getting set to open a hitting academy. The building won't be anything fancy, but the training and equipment certainly will. The Grizzlies hitting academy will open later this fall with instruction for players of all ages.

Keeping reading here this off-season. I'll try and keep everyone updated on all things Grizzlies and any news with me too!