TWO-TIME NBA MVP STEVE NASH AND SOCCER GREAT CLAUDIO REYNA HOST “SHOWDOWN IN CHINATOWN”

--The two return to headline a star-studded charity soccer game & after party--

June 17, 2009--New York, NY — Two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash and soccer great Claudio Reyna announced today that their Showdown in Chinatown is returning for a second year to New York City’s Lower East Side. The Showdown, a free 8-a-side soccer match between teams of NBA and professional soccer players, will kick-off at Sara D. Roosevelt Park at 6pm on June 24 to benefit the work of the Steve Nash Foundation (http://www.stevenash.org) and the Claudio Reyna Foundation (http://www.claudioreynafoundation.org).

“This event gets right at two of my passions — football (soccer) and helping improve conditions for kids,” said Nash. “The Showdown shows off what the world’s top athletes can do, what they’re willing to do to help, and I can’t wait to get on the field. We’ll be right in the middle of the Lower East Side, a phenomenal neighborhood in a beautiful city, just a couple of guys getting a match on.”

Players scheduled to appear include:
Basketball:
Steve Nash (Phoenix Suns) Tony Parker (San Antonio Spurs), Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks), Grant Hill (Phoenix Suns), Chris Bosh (Toronto Raptors), Raja Bell (Charlotte Bobcats)

Soccer:
Claudio Reyna (US/Former NY Red Bull), Thierry Henry (France/FC Barcelona), Javier Zanetti (Argentina/Inter Milan), Salomon Kalou (Ivory Coast/Chelsea), Ryan Babel (The Netherlands/Liverpool), Giovanni van Bronckhurst (The Netherlands/Feyenoord), Mathieu Flamini (France/AC Milan), Ivan Cordoba (Columbia/Inter Milan), Adrian Mutu (Romania/ACF Fiorentina)

"I’m very excited to be part of bringing soccer to New York City sports fans in a fun, friendly, and unique way. We hope that we can at least match the excitement that was created last year when we had players from the world of soccer and basketball come together to provide great entertainment,” said Reyna.

“It’s a tough time for non-profits across the country,” said Nash, “and we’re so grateful to our partners for supporting our efforts. They all love the game -- ICAP, Medco, Metro PCS, GREY GOOSE Vodka, vitaminwater and Calle.” The players will be wearing Calle Soccer uniforms, inspired by the street play that rises up in neighborhoods all over the world.

The Showdown comes to New York City thanks to the help of Nash’s latest soccer innovation, Football-For- Good.com (http://www.football-for-good.com).

Taking a cue from his love for soccer and also for helping children, Nash is forming Football for Good to create opportunities for elite-level development among children in war-affected regions of Africa. With academies and attending assistance to introduce players to the global stage, Football for Good will put profits back into capital projects in African communities that need them most. The first such project will be the Gulu Youth Centre for Sport, Culture and Reconciliation, driven by Nash’s Foundation and partner agencies, and funded by this new social business venture. A viral short, created by Nash’s film enterprise, Meathawk, leaked onto the internet last week. Starring international greats Alessandro Del Piero, Kaka, Joe Cole and Henry, the film is a comedic jab at Nash’s attempt to infiltrate the beautiful game. “The Player” is on-line at http://www.stevenash.org/showdown.

The Showdown in Chinatown will be followed by an After Party held at the Hudson Terrace at 9pm featuring GREY GOOSE Vodka. A limited number of tickets will be available for sale at http://www.stevenash.org on Friday, June 19. Ticket sales are eligible for a tax receipt from the Foundation.

For more information, please contact:
ILANA NUNN, BDA Sports Management, inunn@bdasports.com, 203-545-3855
KRISTINA ANDERSEN, BDA Sports Management, kandersen@bdasports.com, 916-221-0007

Read More

Jim Dusty Rhodes, 82, 1954 World Series MVP 1927-2009

When the current generation hears the name "Dusty" Rhodes they may think of wrestling, but baseball fans recall the colorful outfielder who was the hero of the 1954 World Series. James Lamar Rhodes, affectionately known in baseball circles as "Dusty", helped lead the Giants to the 1954 World Series crown with his dramatic pinch hit homerun to win Game 1 off of future Hall of Famer Bob Lemon at the Polo Grounds. Rhodes passed away Wednesday June 17, 2009 in Las Vegas after a long battle with diabetes and emphysema.

Rhodes accepted his role as one of the "scrubbini", platooning in the outfield and serving as a feared pinch-hitter for 7 seasons with the Giants. Rhodes was never known for his defensive play, as Leo Durocher stated in his autobiography "Nice Guys Finish Last," Rhodes was, "the worst fielder who ever played in a big league game who made training rules forgotten."

In a recent interview that I conducted with Rhodes, I had asked Rhodes about his Hall of Fame teammates, Willie Mays and Monte Irvin. He said he knew Mays was, "a Hall of Famer the first time I met him." He referred to Irvin as a "buddy," and "the greatest in my book!" Irvin, when interviewed by the New York Daily News regarding Rhodes' death, called Rhodes a "good friend," and "a brother to all black players." When Mays was interviewed for the same piece, he said Rhodes was, "a fabulous hitter and a great friend." The high praise Rhodes received from two of the best players in baseball's history displays that his reach extended far beyond his heroics in the 1954 World Series.

To read an in-depth interview with "Dusty" Rhodes, check out Bill Madden's article from the December 20th, 2008 edition of the New York Daily News.

Read More

June 27, 2009 All-American Girls Professional Baseball League To Be Honored in Horsham, PA

On Saturday, June 27, 2009, the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society will honor 8 living former players from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) at the Days Inn at 245 Easton Rd (Route 611) in Horsham, PA from 10am-1pm. Come and meet the women that inspired the movie "A League of Their Own" and hear their stories of playing baseball in the 1940's and 50's.

Attendees will include the following players:
Gert Alderfer
Gloria Cordes
Ruth Kramer
Mary Moore
Joanne McComb
Ruth Richard
Sarah Jane Sands
Norma Whitney

Special Show Autograph Price - $5 each

Mail Order Prices:
Your item $6 + Proper return postage

Our photo $10
Our FIRST LADIES BASEBALL $15
Our Special 34 inch ring BAT $ $25
Our items please add s&h $6.00

For more information on the appearance, please contact the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society or call 800-318-0483.

Read More

Are Citi Field and Yankee Stadium's Autograph Policies Attempts To Force The Fans Into The Expensive Seating?

Now that fans have had a few months to feel out the surroundings of both Citi Field and Yankee Stadium, reports are that both venues aren't friendly to the autograph seeker. Autographs and baseball games have gone hand in hand, as children and adults have attempted to get their scraps of paper, programs, baseballs and gum cards signed as mementos of a brief encounter with one of their heroes. These chance encounters are part of the attraction of attending a live game, and part of the culture surrounding the national pastime.
A recent New York Times article entitled "New Yankee Stadium is Tough for Autograph Hounds", details some of the difficulties surrounding the quest for signatures at the new Yankee Stadium. Some of the roadblocks encountered include: a parking lot for the players that is out of the reach and view of the fans, and no access to pregame batting practice near the $1,250 dugout level seats (this was the entire field level until last month when fans were allowed to view batting practice from the field level box seats in the outfield).

The situation at Citi Field isn't much better. According to the Mets website, "Fans on the field level are permitted to seek autographs along the Field Level railings where permitted during batting practice from 2½ hours before game time ... until approximately 1 hour before game time." These permitted areas are also farther down the outfield lines, and if you are lucky enough to be inside of those areas, you will have to deal with the extended press boxes and the handrails in between every 2-3 rows if you are trying to move laterally. There is also private seating behind home plate that is gated off. In regards to attempting to access the players entering and exiting the players parking lot at Citi Field, one fan said, "It is as if they were protecting government officials instead of baseball players. The parking lot security guards are quick to barricade the area once they spot fans attempting to get autographs, six hours before game time!"

With both teams facing large payrolls, is this a ploy by both New York MLB teams to force the fans to the expensive parts of the stadium, for the increased chance of getting an autograph? Is this even a valid strategy in the midst of one of the worst economic situations in United States history, with thousands of empty seats in both stadiums each night? Will fans that are shut out from the autograph experience outside of the ballpark go inside, or not show up at all? Will we see an increased presence of autograph seekers at the hotel because the players are inaccessible at the ballpark? I have heard that alot of players are telling fans that they will only sign at the ballpark and not the hotel. Is this another tactic that has been passed down by management to lure seekers to games which they cannot afford?

Is begs the question, "Who are the teams catering to?" The chosen few that can afford the luxury seating, or the blue-collar workers who fill the majority of the stadium? I hope that the front offices of both teams recognize the importance of this autograph connection at the ballpark, because it is a component of what makes the fans more than just casual followers.

Read More

Yankee Legends Honored At Newark Bears Game Sunday May 24th

Whitey Ford and Tony Ferrara

On Sunday May 24th, 2009, the Newark Bears welcomed three Yankee legends, World Series MVP's Bobby Richardson and Ralph Terry, as well as Hall of Famer Whitey Ford. In addition to throwing out the first pitch, Richardson and Terry signed autographs for the fans as part of the promotion.

The game pitted the Newark Bears against the York Revolution. The Bears lineup read like that of a Major League almuni team, with the likes of Armando Benitez, Carl Everett, Jay Gibbons, Keith Foulke, Aaron Fultz, Bobby Hill and Tike Redman all making appearances during the game. Both Everett and Castillo hit towering homeruns and the bullpen was led by Benitez and Foulke, with Benitez pitching a scoreless 8th and Foulke sealing the deal in the 9th for the 8-5 win. After the game, Benitez said, "I want to show the Major League teams that I am healthy to play and that I can help." He felt content about his role, alternating with Foulke between set-up man and closer. "The coaches have helped me out, and made me feel good about being here. We both know we can help the club, and at the same time we can show we can be useful on that level again."

The trio was in town along with David Mantle to honor Bears Bench Coach Tony Ferrara. The Bears hung a permanent flag in right field to honor Ferrara's countless years of service in professional baseball. Ferrara played in the 1950's as a farmhand in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, and was a long time batting practice pitcher and scout for the New York Yankees. During the on-field ceremony, Ferrara remarked that, "it is a proud moment in my life to be honored here." Ferrara is pictured on the left alongside Ford during the pre-game ceremonies.

Bobby Richardson, Ralph Terry and David Mantle

Alberto Castillo Connects For a Homerun

Carl Everett Takes One Deep

Read More

Whitey Ford, Bobby Richardson and Ralph Terry to Appear at Newark Bears and Eagles Stadium May 24, 2009

New York Yankee legend and Hall of Famer Whitey Ford will be joined by 1961 World Series Champion teammates Bobby Richardson and Ralph Terry at Newark Bears and Eagles Stadium on Sunday May 24, 2009 to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at 4:05pm. The Newark Bears will be playing the York Revolution of the Atlantic League. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit the Newark Bears Official Website.

Mickey Mantle, Bobby Richardson and Whitey Ford

Read More

Danny Ozark, 85, Phillies Manager, WWII vet and Dodgers farmhand

Death is never a timely thing, especially when there are questions that are left unanswered. I was left with many when the news broke of Danny Ozark's passing on May 7, 2009. A few months earlier, I had interviewed a spry Ozark on his cell phone for almost an hour about his baseball career and his attempts to ascend through the Brooklyn Dodgers organization in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Ozark, like many others of his era, was whisked away from professional baseball to serve in World War II, only to return to a crowded minor league system that was about to experience the effects of integration.

Danny Ozark / Topps

Ozark entered professional baseball in 1942, starting out as a second baseman for Brooklyn's Class D team in Olean. It was there where he was teammates with a future Brooklyn Dodger, Cal Abrams. Shortly thereafter, he was drafted into the Army.

"I was in the Army, and we landed in Europe on D-Day," Ozark said in 2008. "I received the Purple Heart in St. Laurent, France and got out in 1945. I spent three years in WWII, all of them in Europe. I never saw a baseball during WWII. I wasn't even sure I was going to go back [to baseball]."

Ozark described just what it was like to be there on D-Day.

"Well, it was I guess, the way alot of people ask me, and the best thing I probably said was, 'My underwear was very dirty and I didn't have a chance to change it for two weeks.' We were scared like everyone else, but we were young kids and alot of that stuff didn't bother us. Once you've seen death and people dying slowly, things like that stay in your memory. I can still visualize guys drowning after getting out of LCT's (landing craft tanks), because the water was deeper than they anticipated. Some of the guys that went down with the 60 lb. tanks drowned and we never saw them again." 

He was wounded in combat and later received a Purple Heart for his bravery.

"I received a Purple Heart for shrapnel wounds off of an artillery shell," he said. "The other battle we were in was the Battle of the Bulge. I spent time in Antwerp while the bulge was coming towards us because of the shipping they had in the docks where all of our equipment came in."

Returning from WWII in the winter gave Ozark very little time to prepare himself for spring training.

"When I got home in December 1945, my brother didn't go into the service and I played basketball with him until spring training," he said. "I got my legs in better shape than I had them before, but I never got to throw or anything like living in Buffalo [in the winter]."

Ozark, as well as many others returning from the war found themselves behind the curve entering Florida in February of 1946. They were also walking into history unfolding before their eyes.

"I didn't even pick up a baseball you know. Brooklyn sent me a contract to report to Spring Training in February. They brought us down to Sanford, Florida. That's where Jackie [Robinson] came in, right near Daytona Beach. It was the first time I got to meet him too. We were in spring training together in '46. Heck, the first week we started playing exhibition games. I got a sore arm like everyone else. We couldn't throw the ball, yet they kept pushing us. It took time to get our arms in shape, our bats to hit the ball, and for us catch the ball because we never played baseball [during the war]."

There was immediate competition from the players that lived on the West Coast and those that spent their military service playing baseball.

"Guys in the service, especially in the Navy, some of them played with teams in exhibition games where the war was going on, guys like [Bob] Feller, Virgil Trucks, etc. We had so many guys coming from California where they can play year round. They were so far ahead of us in spring training, fielding, hitting, throwing, as far as baseball was concerned. It took us a whole month to catch up, sometimes longer because so many players in the service came out and reported. Pitchers hurt their arms because they threw too soon. [Branch] Rickey wanted to see how hard you could throw. We didn't have the doctors like they have today where you could mend in a short time and bring it back like it used to be."

At one point during that 1946 spring training, there were over 600 players in camp. Ozark marveled at the talent that was there.

"There were so many guys that could have surely made it," he said. "It wasn't that there was a shortage of talented players, there was a shortage of roster spots for them in the majors."

The problem with having so many players in camp was due to the reserve clause; you weren't free to leave for another team that could use your services.

"We were in there like a bunch of slaves," he recalled. "That was for every major league team. We had farm system, and you couldn't leave them unless they released or traded you. [Brooklyn] wouldn't listen to you. They said, 'Hang on and you'll get your opportunity'."

For Ozark, that opportunity never came. After returning from WWII, the Dodgers converted him from a second baseman to a first baseman. Not only was he behind Robinson at first base [in 1947], when Robinson moved over to second base, he was stuck behind another Dodger mainstay, Gil Hodges. He looked back at what was a hopeless situation.

"Every year, I was stuck behind Gil Hodges. Where could I go?"

He felt like he had at least one supporter in the long time Dodgers executive Fresco Thompson.

"Fresco Thompson did the most for me," he said. "He helped me along quite a bit. He gave me a rule book. He said, 'You read this thing, and as your career goes on this thing will come in as handy as you can imagine.' He admired my family. He liked me and kept visiting me wherever I managed. I felt like I was going to get a shot to going up there [to Brooklyn]."

He did the best he could playing out the string in the Dodgers farm system, experiencing a few brushes when he thought he was going to get called up.

"The closest I thought I was going to get was in 1953. I always played against the big club in exhibitions, but they never took me though if they had an A or B game. Brooklyn needed a third baseman at that time, as they had [Don] Hoak and [Don] Zimmer [in Montreal]. I think finally they picked up Billy Cox and he was struggling too that year. I was hitting really well and Fresco came to the ballpark to watch me. I asked Tommy Holmes, 'Why did you put me at third base? I had no time there.' He said, 'Just to give you a change, we had Clint Weaver at first base, he was left-handed'. I wondered after all of these years if Fresco Thompson was looking at me to play third base." 

A few years later, Ozark thought that opportunity was once again knocking on his door.

"In '55, the same thing happened," he said. "I was sure I was going to go in '55. Hodges was having a tough year and they needed a third baseman and a first baseman. Thompson came again [to see me], but Frank Kellert took my place in '55. I'm almost 100% sure that is what happened."

Ozark batted over .300 in both AA and AAA. He was also among the league leaders in home runs every season. At times he felt like he was getting used to shore up the farm teams of the Dodgers instead of getting a shot at the big league club.

"You take the Kansas City team of the Yankees," he said. "[Lew] Burdette was there. I used to wear those guys out. They had [Moose] Skowron and [Bob] Cerv on their way up. These guys looked at me like, 'What is this guy doing down here?' You could have said, 'I guess I'll never make it,' but I never gave up. I just played to win."

He seemingly played for every farm club in the Dodgers organization, moving around so much that he almost hung it up in 1950.

"They sent me from AAA to Class B [Newport News] and then I went to Elmira [Class A]. It seemed like every time they sent me somewhere, it was a losing proposition. They sent me there to build up the team. We won the pennant in Neport News, I was the most valuable and popular player. In Elmira in 1950, I went back to St Paul, made two-to-three trips out of St. Paul [to Ft. Worth]. We really liked it there [St. Paul]. Our first child was born there in 1949. In 1950, they sent me to Elmira. That was when I was close to saying goodbye. They called me back to St. Paul though, and I kept going."

As we returned to discuss Jackie Robinson and the topic of baseball's integration, Ozark brought up two pioneers in their own rights, Hall of Famer Willard Brown and Clinton "Butch" McCord. Both were alumni of the Negro Leagues, and Brown holds the distinction of being the first African-American to hit a homerun in the American League. While Brown sputtered in his short trial with the St. Louis Browns in 1947, Ozark saw flashes of greatness from the 40 year-old player in the Texas League that Puerto Ricans labeled "Ese Hombre".

"I was in a home run contest with Willard Brown," Ozark recalled. "They gave us 10 swings, he beat me 9-8. He was kind of a hot dog. He could run, but never energized himself. He had a good arm and good power."

He explained how McCord's inspired play in heavily segregated Macon, Georgia mesmerized the fans.

"I had Butch McCord in Macon," he said. "He was a super guy. A good contact hitter, he didn't strike out much. He hit over .300. He became the most popular player on the team and the MVP. He was pretty close to 30 years old when I had him, and wasn't the one the organization was watching to replace Hodges at first base."

Towards the end of our discussion Ozark reflected on his coaching and managerial days in baseball.

"I retired in 1984 from managing after getting 20 years in the pension for being a major league coach and manager. I still worked for the Giants as a scout, reporting to Tom Haller who was the GM at the time. I worked for the Dodgers all my life until '72. I went back with them from '80-'82, coaching in the World Series versus the Yankees which we won in 1981. I was in three World Series with them. As I look back, five of us from the 1955 Fort Worth team, Sparky [Anderson], Dick Williams, Norm Sherry, Maury Wills, and myself all went into managing. Talk about a lineup!"

Ozark, as many others from his generation shook his head about how modern pitchers rarely throw a complete game.

"Alot of guys that are pitchers now can't finish games because the pitching coaches are counting clickers all games. The only person that knows when it is time to come out is the man upstairs. How can you apply the same rule [100 pitches] to each pitcher? We have two different bodies, you live differently, you have different eating habits, take different vitamins, etc. How can you tell whose arm can last longer?"

He cited changes in the height of the pitching mound, as well as increases in strength training as reasons for pitchers being injured more frequently.
 

"Today, guys like Clemens lift 300 lbs. In my day, you couldn't lift a feather. You had to have loose limbs. They can throw harder, yet they are tearing muscles more, due to the extra strength training. The big factor in pitching came when they changed the dimensions of the mound, when they flattened it out. They're using more of their arm instead of their legs and back, going downhill. Who would have thought that someone like Spahn would pitch the way he did for that many years? Now these relievers can't go more than one inning and get hurt. The mound has an effect and the baseball itself. They'll never raise the mound again because people want to see action."

Living in Vero Beach in 2008 gave him the opportunity to visit Dodgertown for the last time before the Dodgers moved to Arizona. The thought of the Dodgers moving signaled an end of an era to Ozark.

"It was sad to see the Dodgers leave Dodgertown, as I spent alot of time there with the organization," he said. "I went to Dodgertown the last year to watch a few games, and to visit Joe Torre, Tommy Lasorda, and Larry Bowa."

Ozark spent over 40 years in baseball as a player, coach, manager and scout. A baseball lifer and World War II veteran, he was a true hero and gentleman in every sense of the word. Some reporters had commented that Ozark was "too nice," when he managed the Phillies in the 1970s, but after speaking with him I couldn't imagine Ozark any other way. We could have kept on going that afternoon, but I felt that I had already occupied enough of his time. Upon ending the interview, Ozark left me with these final words.

"Anytime you need me, you give me a buzz,"  he said.

I wrote him three days before his death to see how he was doing. I can only wonder if he received my letter before he passed.

Rest in peace Danny Ozark. The man upstairs might need some good counsel on when that pitcher needs to come out.

Gold Card Auctions baseball cards

2018 Bowman Draft Baseball

Read More