Here, Thoughts! Come here!

Random thoughts while waiting for the dog to complete a business transaction...

-Albert Pujols is on the disabled list for "an extended period of time".  The biggest draw on an underperforming team getting hurt is never good news.  For Mike Scioscia, it could be the worst news.  If the team plays better without him, the manager looks good.  If they tank completely, the manager is gone.  The Angels have the same record as the Chicago Cubs, which is not a good sign.  Maalox stock up two more points on the news.

-The story from Colonial Hills Baptist Church in Indianapolis is as bad as could be imagined.  A few blocks from home, on the spiritual peak that comes from a church camp, and it all goes horribly wrong. The youth pastor and his eight month pregnant wife perish, serious injuries, and a church community could be shattered.  To hear the mayor of Indianapolis talk about how much faith was being shown in the building is more than reassuring.  It is a reminder that God can take what is meant for evil and make it something exceptionally good.

-Surge softball played a tournament this weekend with strong teams and got routed on the scoreboard.  The spirit isn't broken.  Our young ladies played with resilience, bouncing back over and over.  We even had a lead in our bracket game, however briefly.  It is not where you start, it's where you finish.  The teaching assignment will continue while we build the skills to be competitive.  I guarantee this: The survivors will be strong.

-Congratulations to Hunter Mahan.  He has a new daughter, Zoe, and earned respect for getting it right.  Carrying a one shot lead into the third round of the RBC Canadian Open, Hunter withdrew when his wife went into labor.  Payne Stewart would be proud.

-Ryan Newman, local to us in South Bend, fulfilled a life long dream by winning the Brickyard 400.  Every Indiana kid who loves racing, myself included, dreams of winning at Indy.  Doesn't matter if it was a stock car, and that he is out of a ride at the end of the season.  Any time you see someone earn what they worked years to get, it is reassuring.  I remember seeing Ryan and his family pushing their hauler down the road late on a Sunday night, apparently out of fuel.  They looked like they were having the time of their lives.  Even disasters look good when you have a dream.

So...am I off base?

Whoa!

How much is too much?  When do you pull the reins?

I've coached players so far ahead the rest of the team, these become the questions.  I had two basketball players who were fifth graders among first graders.  It was like coaching George Mikan in the land of the Undersized.  My sincere prayer was not to screw them up.

Got to see one of them this past winter.  He still remembered me, and was grateful for helping him think big.  He's not going to be Mr. Basketball, but he could have a great college career, if he wants it.   Praying for you, Madison Yoder!

Madison put the team first and got the ball in everyones hands, even if it was a sure turnover.  He would cover that turnover with great defense.  It made me proud to coach a great kid as well as a great player.   He could strap the team to his back and carry them when it was needed.  I've heard his current coach wants him to do that more often.  Can't get him to do it because Madison plays a team game.

I had Antwaan Allen who was not quite the team player.  I got complaints about his defensive aggressiveness.  He was so far ahead of the curve, it was hard to take the ball out of his hands.  It was entertaining to watch, at a level where even espresso can't keep insomniacs awake.  Antwaan had all the Sportscenter moves and some passing skills.  It was fun to see what he'd do next.

The difference is that I had to pull the reins on Antwaan.  His play and antics would hurt the team.  When some kids don't handle the ball at all, I had to take it away from him.  He needed to learn to play without the ball anyway.

Got a player that I will have to rein in.  She is a wonderful player and way ahead of her teammates.  But she's hurting the team by being too aggressive.  Unnecessary throws lead to problems.  Softball games go to the team with the least mistakes.  Anytime the ball leaves your hand, anything can happen.

I'm not worried about how she'll react.  I'm blessed to coach a great kid.

So...am I off base?

NEXT!

Once, I heard a comedian talk abut next as the most exciting place.  Anticipation was worth even letting people pass you in line just to remain next.  Thursday morning is a morning of next anticipation.  We are anticipating Friday, which leads to Saturday and Sunday.

I have mixed emotions about that thought.  I like excitement and anticipating the next move: that's part of why I still coach.  But, if you're always anticipating the next moment, when do you actually live?

I have actually been trying to get out of the dugout in the past year so I could actually live.  I want to enjoy my kids playing baseball and softball while they're still playing.  Instead, I am still anticipating what's coming next and trying to put kids in the best place to succeed.  To stay involved, I would love to administrate and run a program, give the kids a place to succeed and learn.  I have had the plans in place, I haven't throw the doors open and done it.

The time is coming.

My hope is to be administrating a travel softball program to build up the varsity program at the school we attend.  The students will be made aware this fall, the execution coming this spring.  It will be a lot of work, but to be on site at games and not worry about line-up, defensive rotations and which players won't get dirty.  Enjoying my kids playing ball because a player's career is short enough.

I still love to coach, and the kids give a reward they know nothing about.  I am excited to have a positive influence, and to teach, something I trained for in college.  Timing and circumstances are not always overcome with the right attitude.  You seldom have the right attitude to make a lifetime decision right after losing a parent.  Another story for another time.

Hopefully, that is NEXT.

So...am I off base?

Rambling on a Monday Morning

History and other things...

-Phil Mickelson made history.  Yesterday's finish to The Open Championship will be remembered as one of the great finishes in golf history.  The only way it could have been better would be to win by one stroke.  One of golf all time greats is playing the best golf of his career in his early forties.

-Watching the Cubs and the White Sox flounder their way through the season, it is the slow decline of both franchises that make me wonder...what are baseball owners thinking?  Chicago has one of the most loyal fan bases the world will ever see.  They are tough people to win, but they are loyal.  The Cubs have an old style ballpark and were perennial contenders as recently as 2007.  The trend to overpay average and below average players have doomed their recent chances. The White Sox had a World Championship, but that has been almost a decade ago.  The young "stars" have not produced.  Both teams need to rebuild a farm system, and that's going to take a while.

-Spent my weekend watching the process of building a travel team.  Our young ladies played hard and are learning the process.  I'm pretty sure we'll win something worthwhile before either Chicago baseball team.  And the team has only been practicing since early June.

-Missed my 30th High School Reunion this past weekend to coach.  While I'm sure it means a lot to some people, teaching young people the ways of the world through the game of softball means more.  I'm not going to celebrate the past, it's gone.  Pretty sure I wasn't missed anyway.

-Paul Azinger became a grandfather this week.  According to his Twitter feed, he is embracing the opportunity.  His great friend and all star father Payne Stewart would be proud.

So...am I off base?

Tournament Time!

Heather plays her first travel tournament today.  It will be a new experience for her.  She has never played more than one game in a day.  She has never seen this intensity level.  She has never...wanted to.

Heather plays to be around a team.  She plays to make new friends.  She plays to have something to do.

It's not her do all, be all, end all.  She plays like it.

As a coach, I am torn.  She has athletic ability: good hand/eye coordination, excellent small area footwork, but cross country runner speed.  She doesn't have the heart to go all out.  I can teach some skills.  I cannot teach heart.

As her parent, I love to watch her compete, and, as she is her father's daughter, she loves to compete.  She gets the hair up on her back when someone rubs her the wrong way.  She likes to beat the best.  She is a good teammate and friend.  She has her father's personality, heaven help her.

How will she develop from this?  I don't know.  She got more competitive last year during Cross Country season, learning how to finish strong and kick past opponents in the last couple hundred yards.  Maybe the lesson took hold and we'll see it today.

Maybe this is the day that breaks her feeling for softball.  Maybe this is the day that makes it, too.

As much as I like to compete, I am more interested in this game. After all, it is where life is won.

So...am I off base?

Confident or Good?

Do you have confidence because you are good, or are you good because you have confidence?

This chicken or egg scenario has plagued coaches since Troy decided it had to top Sparta.  It goes back to the days of Paul the Apostle, writing about running to win the prize. It goes back to Thag outrunning Grog for the morsel of food to keep him alive.  It is the essence of recruiting at the college level (and others): Are they really that good, or do they just think they are that good?

It takes both ways.  Players that are that good have the confidence from performing well, and the better do it consistently.  The best raise others in their level of confidence while maintaining their own.  The legends can do it for an entire team.

As a coach, I am always looking for effort.  Even if you're not really that good, great effort can give you the confidence to get to the next level.  I'm ashamed to say I've only had two or three players this year who actually dove for a ball.  I have one right now who will communicate and try to raise everyone around her.  She is a great player who has sold out to play the game.  I hope it is infectious.

As coaches and parents, we can't want it for our kids. We hope to enable them to unlock their potential.  Coaches are expected to unlock their potential, parents must unlock their potential.  I hope I am succeeding on both accounts.  I pray you are, too.

So...am I off base?

Open Championship, 2013

I am still a golfer at heart. The hundreds of hours that I practiced to build a game worthy of high levels of competition taught lessons still at work every day.  The places traveled, the people met, the opportunity to test self against some of the best; the experience was worthy.

Annually, this week is special on the golf calendar.  The Open Championship, determining "The Champion Golfer of the Year", has it's run at The Honourable Company of Ediburgh Golfers.  You know, Muirfield.

One change I've noticed over the past few years is how British greenskeeping methods have come to match American methods.  Greenskeeping methods were a lot like my attitude toward my lawn: If God wants it watered, He'll do it.  The fairways and greens are becoming more green every year.  The fescue rough has become shorter and looks less like places and undersized caddy could be lost.

One thing that will never change is classic golf course architecture.  Bunkers that seem to be nowhere in play catch someone off guard.  Slopes requiring pitons to scale.  Rodean par three holes requiring play away from the hole.  Once the ball is on the ground, it is not safe: it can still roll to peril.  Seems like golf as it was originally played by the shepherds who used the pole marking the hole as a place to keep their lunch.

The early returns from Murifield say the golf course is firm and fast.  Knowing where to hit the ball will be paramount.  When the winds strafes the links land, knowing WHEN to hit may be just as important.  Putting the ball in the hole is the bottom line.

Phil Mickelson may be due.  He comes in from winning the Scottish Open.  He spent the week in contention at both majors earlier in the season.  In his early forties, maturity is on his side.  Muirfield  honors that trait.  Jack Nicklaus won his first Open Championship here, a very mature twenty-six year-old.

I would like to see some real Open weather.  High winds and rain would make an interesting tournament.  As long as they don't Americanize their tournament operations.

So...am I off base?

A Little Softball, A Lot of Class

I was back in the coaches box last night.  It's a comfortable place.  It's also a place that confirmed some of my faith in people.

My daughter, Heather, is taking a foray into travel softball.  The St. Joseph County Surge is a brand new program, and the girls have never played travel ball.  They are still getting to know each other, communication is still an issue.  These girls have potential, but they are a long way from being a great ball club.

The Indiana Thunder are a strong, established travel softball program.  They have the luxury of accepting the best players, the players that fill their needs to make a great ball club.  They play with a confidence and abandon we can only hope to achieve.

Last night, the two teams met on the field.  It went as would be expected: Thunder winning easily.  In four innings of play, the Surge recorded seven of a possible twelve outs, but three of them were in one inning.  We did bunt a ball into fair territory, and scored a run, thanks to a hit batter with the bases loaded.

The Thunder may have looked down their noses, but sure didn't show it.  I heard nothing but positive from their dugout.  Post game line-up was smiles all around.  Both teams lined up together to take a picture commemorating the first game in Surge history, Thunder on one side, Surge on the other.

Then my faith was restored.  Thunder players started mixing with Surge players.  Heather ended up next to a pair of twins who go to the same church we attend.  Coaches mixed in the back row.  The picture is the cover picture of the Surge Facebook page.

A lot of things could have been said or done and weren't.  We were respectful both ways.  Considering some of the things I have seen (see my previous post about Best/Worst moments), my faith is restored.  Hope the next game is the same way.

General Thoughts

General thoughts while waiting for the next Cub World Series Championship...

-I have never lived with a dog.  A week ago, we adopted a pug from the St. Joseph County Humane Society.  She has the marks of being a people dog, but doesn't seem to like other dogs.  Check me if I'm wrong, but aren't those the marks of a hermit?  On the other side, she is always excited to see me. Guess it's a trade-off.

-Cubs swept the season series with the White Sox.  Chicago baseball may be something kin to Bubonic Plague.  If you catch the fever, you will die.

-Saw the original episode of Duck Dynasty tonight.  I enjoy the show, I am not obsessed.  The world's largest duck call is interesting, but it is a different lifestyle.  I am acquainted with a lot of people like the Robertsons, without the money.  They are a blast, and usually have a high street IQ.  They get things done.  Great to see wholesome values in a TV show people actually watch, too!

-Just saw a commercial for the movie R.I.P.D.  Kind of sounds like Ghostbusters without the laughs.

-Why does a dog next to your lap feel as good as a cat in your lap?

-Our new travel softball team takes the field tomorrow night.  Hats off to Kristi Curtis for having the faith to get started and follow through.  I am looking forward to seeing how we perform.  I guess I'm still a coach at heart.

So...am I off base?

Another Day in Paradise

Spent a good weekend after working the holiday.  Saturday was an annual family reunion, Sunday was a busy day around home.  It has become the traits of our life: consistent and busy.  Throw in a new dog and we have life as normal.

We wouldn't have it any other way.

Saturday was a large gathering of family.  A quick note: any gathering of my family is going to be large.  I am the youngest of ten siblings.  Since my parents have been gone for twenty years, it is actually quite remarkable that we still gather.  Most families go their separate ways after the parents pass.  We still are in contact and actually seem to like each other.  The grandkids and their second cousins usually play together very well.  We will gather on Christmas Eve and have a partial gathering in September, spending time on a golf course or shopping.  It is hard to do both at the same time.

Sunday was church day, a consistent trait in our family.  Mash in a softball practice and a trip to take my daughter to a sleepover, and it was a full day.

And we have added Rosie, a two year-old pug, to our home.  She seems to be a pretty good dog.  She was a stray who hadn't been in a home for a month.  She is housebroken and seems to really like the kids.

It just doesn't stop.  I am a Little League tournament director for All-Stars on Monday and Wednesday, softball game Thursday, and my weekend to work is coming up.  At least I will get Friday afternoon off.

Four years from now, Robby will be in the summer between his senior year of high school and freshman year of college.  Heather will be entering her junior year of high school.  It seems we were just bringing them home from the hospital, moving into the home we live in, and hearing the basic words of toddlerhood.  It has gone quickly.

We have to enjoy it now.  I gave up the only job I ever loved, in the golf business to be part of this.  Hopefully, they remember dad being involved and loving them.  Only because I do.

So...am I off base?

The Red Is For The Blood...

"The Red is for the blood.  The blue is for the bruise. The white is in the eyes that fought for me and you." -The Goads, "Veterans of the USA"

Our country declared it's independence from tyranny and oppression 236 years ago today.  The drive that made pilgrims hop on ships and come to this continent was brought to fulfillment that day.  The desire to worship in the way they chose made them risk their lives.  They risked everything.

Our nation was born of war, for the ideal that we could live in freedom.  The Apostle Paul defined freedom as "slavery to righteousness."  It took men laying down their lives to break that hold.  Each one had dreams and goals, parents that loved them, and a belief that the best comes from choosing to do the right thing, even at the cost of their lives.

We have people that still do that today.  They are our military.  They have represented our country with honor, strength, and dignity.  They have gone to foreign fields to secure our freedom.  They have protected us at home in times of disaster.  They dared to dream their own dreams, knowing their lives could be demanded that very day.

Their families serve and suffer with them. Wives choose to do this for the men they love.  The children learn those values and have the responsibility to carry them.  They didn't ask for the job, it comes with the territory. In general, they do it well.

I am proud to support our military.  I hear the words of the Star Spangled Banner and understand what they mean.  

Francis Scott Key had a bad day of negotiating with the British at Fort McHenry.  The last words he heard from his opposition were, "If the flag is gone from Fort McHenry in the morning, you will cease to have a country."  During the all out assault, each attack was repelled, the flag shored up.  The men and boys who went to shore up the flag were gave their lives. 

And our flag was still there.

So...am I off base?

Surging Ahead

When God closes one door, another opens.

Heather finished her Little League season under a cloud of cancellations and the door closed for All-Stars.  We've had a great season there and have made some new friends to go with some long standing friends.  Her first trophy came out of that experience and she enjoyed it.

The ending left her hungry.  The last four games cancelled by weather, circumstances and another league's choices. She just wasn't ready to quit.  The game was done with her.

The St. Joseph County Surge have opened a new door.

I made contact with the organization last week.  We were at practice last night.  She is more than capable, this fact was already known.  Would she fit in?

The answer is yes.  She liked being on a field, playing ball.  She liked making plays and taking some cuts.  Most of all, she liked the other girls.  Heather has always had an easy time making friends.  She felt like part of the group right away, and that is what sold her.

Can I watch this team from the stands?  No.  Looks like I'm going to help coach.  Having spent last night on the field with them, it's going to be a teaching assignment.  I like to teach, and I think this group will learn.  It will be fun.

Extra dose of patience required.  Check.  Teaching glasses on.  Check.  Learning a whole new group of names.  We'll get there.

So...am I off base?