Suns need to do it now before the sunset comes...

It is nice to see the Phoenix Suns are following up its impressive regular-season-ending surge with a chance tonight to beat the Portland Trail Blazers and advance to the next round of the NBA playoffs.

If they win Game 6 at the Rose Garden in Portland this evening, Phoenix will likely tangle with the San Antonio Spurs in the second round of the NBA playoffs. The Spurs should take care of business on their home court tonight and finally send the Dallas Mavericks packing. I, for one, hope the Suns get the job done and then we'll see what happens with the Spurs. But whatever happens, the Suns are not getting any younger. Don't look now, but the sun is quickly setting on the old team from Phoenix.

As Elvis would say, "It's Now or Never."

For this current team, that is. I'm sure there will be a complete overall in the near future and the Suns will then focus on younger talent and will find their way back to the promised land -- the NBA playoffs, in say 2012. But for now, come on Steve Nash and Company, let's get it done!

Suns Update: Suns get it done! They knock off the Portland Trail Blazers, 99-90, to advance to the second round against the San Antonio Spurs, winners tonight over the Dallas Mavericks. The stage is set. Let's see if Phoenix can get by the Spurs. The Spurs have had the Suns' number in series past, but maybe this is the year that Phoenix can rise above it.

Go Suns!

You never know who you'll run into at the gym...

I went for an early-morning workout at the gym the other day. There was this guy, a lot younger than me (that's no big surprise), jogging on the treadmill next to me.

I, of course, was doing my customary 3 1/2 mph walk, while looking up every now and then, to check out the ESPN channel on the TV screen above me. I took a few deep breaths and exchanged a few pleasantries with the man. During our "baseball" conversation, I recalled him saying, "I played a little in the major leagues."

That's about all he said about it, although he did say his older brother played in the majors as well. Of course, I did ask his name and I left the workout room and headed home. A few days later, I checked him out on the Internet. I had trouble with the spelling at first (it's an age thing), but I finally got it right. It was P-a-c-i-o-r-e-k, first name Jim.

To my surprise, my temporary treadmill buddy, played for the Milwaukee Brewers and followed that up with a short, but very productive, career in Japan. What was really interested for me is the fact I saw his older brother, Tom, play at Hi Corbett Field close to forty years ago. Yes, his brother, Tom Paciorek, played 18 years in the majors. Jim also has an older brother, John, who has the distinction of playing one game in the major leagues and that was with the Houston Colts, back in 1963. Not only did he play, but he came up five times, walked twice and went 3 for 3 in the game. And that was it. John Paciorek ended up with a back injury and never played in the majors again. He batted 1.000 at the "big show". A nice claim to fame.

As for my treadmill buddy, Jim. He was drafted in 1981, in the 14th round, by the Cleveland Indians, but did not sign with the Indians. He was chosen in the 8th round by the Milwaukee Brewers the following year, and signed with the Brewers in 1982. He spent most of his career in the minor leagues, but played 48 major league games in 1987. He signed with the Yokohama Taiyo Whales in 1988. He ranked second in the league with a .332 average. Jim played baseball in Japan until 1993.

As I recall, I did tell Jim Paciorek that I've been playing with the Tucson Old Timers (TOTS) baseball team since 2008. I couldn't tell if he was impressed that I still played baseball at the age of 64, or that I had just completed one hour on the treadmill and had survived the grueling workout.

Coaching Middle School Part III

My middle school softball girls found their hitting touch in their fourth game of the season as they scattered 19 hits around our home ball park and notched an 18-3 win, yesterday afternoon. If they keep that up for the next five games...well you can pencil us in for the playoffs in May. After taking in on the chin last week against the defending league champions, the girls put on their hitting shoes yesterday to pick up their second win of the season. I know one thing, it is sure fun to watch the girls scurry around the bases.

I'm still loving it as we head into the final two weeks of the regular season. I'll keep you posted.

Middle School Coaching Update: My girls win again...this time 17-5. We're at 4-2 with three regular-season games left -- all road trips. I'll keep ya posted. Still, so much fun!

Here comes the Sun.....s; there goes the Sun.....s

Okay, the Phoenix Suns started the season strong.

In fact, I wrote early on that the Suns, if I remember correctly (and I do), had a shot at breaking a club record for wins for a start to a season.

When I wrote the short article on my blog, the Suns were heading for New York to play the lowly Nicks. Well they lost that game, and didn't really get back on the winning trail until after the all star break.

Then, I made sure I didn't write about them for a while, the main reason being that I just didn't want to jinx them anymore than I already had. After all, it was my fault they lost to the Nicks and then went south for a while. Then what do they do? They finish with the best record in the NBA, after the all star break, that is (something like 23-6, mind you).

So, I say to myself, don't get back on the bandwagon, instead write about the Diamondbacks (on second thought, leave them alone for a while). So, I quietly go about my business, hoping the Suns take care of business at home in the opening round of the playoffs. Bad strategy!

Well, I guess I should stop thinking. So, let's go Suns. Win the next one, get back on track, and take care of the Portland Trail Blazers!

Daly Watch...

Big John Daly made the cut at the Verizon Heritage this week in Hilton Head. As of Saturday morning, just moments ago, he headed for the third hole even par after 38 holes, seven strokes back of the leader Jim Furyk.

Chances are we'll get a glimpse of those colorful pants of his at 10 a.m. on the Golf Channel and maybe again at noon on Channel 13. I hope he gets in the hunt this afternoon. If he does, Daly just may come out with his brand of 3D TV glasses.

Daly Update: Furyk wins in playoff. Big John falters, finishes 78th, wins a few bucks.

Could D'backs win a 3rd consecutive series?

Bookemdano's Diamondback Report: Could it happen? Could the Arizona Diamondbacks open the season by winning all three of its 3-game series.

 hey certainly have a good shot at it as Dan Haren (1-1) takes the mound tonight at Dodger Stadium. After last night's 11-inning win over the Dodgers, the Diamondbacks will attempt to take the rubber game of the series tonight in front of a hostile L.A. crowd. A win would give Arizona a 6-3 record and would allow them to keep pace with the front-running San Francisco Giants (7-2). And how about Chris Young, can he keep it going all year. He's batting a cool .344. Just think what a boost that would be for the Diamondbacks if he can continue to produce. A B+ start for the D'backs!

Diamondback Update: Arizona falters. Lose late to Dodgers. As of Saturday, April 17, back to a familiar won-and-loss record of 5-5.

Coaching Middle School Part II...

As a new girls softball coach in a well-established middle school league on the far east side of Tucson, I've got a lot to learn.

First, there are the have and the have-nots. My school is new and it'll take a few years to rise to the top, so to speak. A couple of teams have it all and you might as well pencil them in for the playoffs in May, a one-day tournament consisting of the top four teams in the 10-team league.

The coaches on the "have it all" teams will tell you up front if you are interested (and I am) that this is the way it is gonna be, so you might as well live with it for a few years. What is so interesting, is that my girls (at least nine of the 13 anyway) are aware of it and take a loss in stride.

As for me, I hate to be on the bad end of a score, but I'm working on it. That is one thing I've learned from my girls already.We are 1-1 on the season...and that's a plus. But we hit the road this week and take on the defending league champions. Supposedly, they have a pitcher that throws harder than Nolan Ryan! The school has a website with 91 pictures on it and a Facebook page to match. The pictures depict how they demolished their first three opponents by the mercy-run rule...and shows in each photo just how much fun they were having in the process.

As for me, I can't believe how I've grown to love the "team" in just a few short weeks. Give us a flame-thrower and we can compete right now and I fully expect to be one of the four teams in the playoffs in just our first year. If for some reason we don't reach the playoffs, then we'll be back next year even stronger and we'll get it done in 2011. I'll keep you, my readers, posted on our wins and losses in the next few weeks, giving you the "ups and downs" as we head for our number one goal, which is to make the playoffs. Stay tuned.

Middle School Softball Update: A victory of sorts! We suprise the defending league champions, jump out to a 2-0 lead, tied at 4-4 through the middle innings, before losing in six innings and in two hard-fought hours, 9-4. We're now on the map, so to speak, and the rest of the league knows it. The first runs scored off of the defending champions since April of 2009.

Got to love it!

Lucky 13 for Diamondbacks in the 4th!

Bookemdano's Diamondback Report: Wow! A franchise record in the fourth inning for the Diamondbacks as they score 13 runs and roll to a 15-6 victory over the Pirates today at Chase Field.

The previous Diamondbacks' record for one inning was eight runs. The win gives Arizona its second consecutive series win and moves them to 4-2 on the season. If the Giants lose to the Braves later today, the Diamondbacks would head into tomorrow tied for first place in the wild, wild National League West. Homers by Kelly Johnson, Chris Young and Edwin Jackson in the wild fourth inning. Jackson the pitcher no less, not the other Jackson. Amazing! And now it is on to L.A. and San Diego.

Good luck D'backs.

Diamondback Update: Giants squeezed out another win, 6-3, over the Braves yesterday to remain one game ahead of the D'backs.

Baseball...a dangerous game at any level

My 17-year-old grandson, Daniel Price, loves baseball. But yesterday afternoon in the small, rural town of Parachute, Colorado, his playing days came to a halt.

In the first game of a high school doubleheader against a team from Roaring Fork, Colorado, Daniel was hit just below the helmet by a pitch. The pitch, estimated at 75 to 80 miles per hour, sailed inside on Daniel, a right-handed hitter.

Daniel's Grand Valley High School team, lost the doubleheader, but my grandson may have lost a lot more. The neurologist in nearby Grand Junction, Colorado, said today, just hours before his release from the hospital, that Daniel should seriously consider putting baseball on the back burner for a while, or maybe, for good.

"I was guessing curve ball and I thought I had picked up the seams on the ball, but the ball came inside and I just couldn't get out of the way," Daniel said, from his hospital bed this morning.

My grandson has already had a couple of concussions in his 17 years on this earth, so I'm sure the Doc took that into consideration before offering Daniel advice on whether to continue to play the "game" of baseball. My grandson was in good spirits when he left the hospital today and even said, "Grandpa, I think I'll be the team manager for a while."

There's no question in my mind...he'll be good at that, too.

Diamondbacks a win away from capturing their second three-game series

Bookemdano's Diamondback Report: A victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates today would give Arizona a 4-1 early-season record and if Dan Haren can get the job done on the mound today the Diamondbacks would post back-to-back 3-game series wins -- an accomplishment that didn't happen very often last season.

Haren (1-0) opened the season with a win over the San Diego Padres and the Diamondbacks went on to capture their season-opening series, 2-1. Arizona picked up its third win of the 2010 season last night at the expense of the Pirates and the offensive punch came from center fielder Chris Young, the fella who had a miserable 2009 season at the plate. Last night, Young had three hits, including a grand slam to up his batting average to a cool .400. Young now has two homers on the season.

That's a good sign for the Diamondbacks' organization which was about ready to pull the plug on Young last summer and find a place for him in the dugout.

 Oh what a difference a year can make.

TOTS hold annual luncheon at Randolph GC; Tom Waddell guest speaker

The Tucson Old Timers Baseball Club, the world's oldest baseball team, held its annual luncheon yesterday afternoon (April 8) in the Copper Room at the Randolph Golf Course. Former Cleveland Indians pitcher Tom Waddell was the guest speaker and he admitted he wasn't sure what to say in front of a bunch of old timers, ranging in age from 60 to 90, whom still play baseball for the love of the game.

"I spend most of my day working with and instructing kids on how to play the game," said Waddell, who owns The Yard, an indoor instructional facility on Tucson's east side. Waddell, who pitched for the Cleveland Indians in 1984, 1985 and 1987, figured giving advice to the members of the TOTS baseball club on how to play the game just didn't seem to be the right approach to take for this particular speaking engagement.

Instead, Waddell related some of the many "inside the locker room stories" which he witnessed during his days as a hurler for the Indians. At the top of the list, was his teammate Bert Blyleven, who had a habit of pulling off his share of "boys will be boys" antics, on and off the field of play. Waddell recalls Blyleven took the well-known "hot foot" prank to a new level. "Lighting up a teammate's laces was one thing, but Burt would pour rubbing alcohol over the entire shoe and then light it up," recalls Waddell.

He had plenty of other stories to tell, but he figured, as he glanced around the Copper Room at the many ladies in attendance, it just wasn't the right road to go down.

As for Waddell's pro career, he went 15-11 as a relief pitcher with the "Tribe". Tom finished his stint in the majors with 118 strike outs and a 4.30 ERA. He also recorded 15 saves.

As for the TOTS, they enjoyed having Waddell as their guest speaker and they also enjoyed rehashing some old stories of their own. Of course, some of their stories go way, way back! For instance, 73-year-old Bob Katz (top photo), a member of the TOTS since 2004, recalls his teenage days in Philadelphia, Pa.

"I grew up in Philly and my mother would give me 60 cents and I'd hop on the trolley and head for a Phillies game," Katz said, as he sipped on a glass of tea at his table during the luncheon. "It cost a quarter for the trolley and another 35 cents to get into the game."

My goodness, have times changed. You can barely buy a stamp these days for what Bob's mother dished out to him in the summer of 1950. Bob certainly got his monies worth sixty years ago. He walked through the turnstiles at Shribe Park, found his seat, and watched baseball greats like Richie Ashburn, Robin Roberts, Dick Sisler and "Schoolboy" Rowe play the game of baseball.

Tom Waddell has his fond memories of the "game" tucked away in the corner of his mind. As for the members of the TOTS, they too, have their own memories to rekindle. It just takes them a little longer to remember.

You can call him Mr. Johnson...

Bookemdano's Diamondbacks Report: You can call him Mr. Johnson.

The Diamondbacks' newly-acquired second baseman Kelly Johnson hit two homeruns yesterday as Arizona defeated San Diego, 5-3, and won its season-opening series.

The Diamondbacks will take a 2-1 record into a matchup Friday at Chase Field with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates (2-0) will go for a sweep of their series with the L.A. Dodgers today in Pittsburgh. Johnson collected three RBI yesterday, while teammates Chris Young and Justin Upton hit solo shots.

Ian Kennedy hurled five innings and struck out eight batters, but left the game after throwing 94 pitches. Boyer got the win in relief and Qualls recorded his first save.

Not a bad series' opener for the D'backs.

The little engine that could...

I have a little friend that I've known for six years. His name is Trevor Crain.

He reminds me of a train in a children's book I read more than 60 years ago called The Little Engine That Could.

Trevor was born 12 years ago, a preemie, weighing in at one pound and fourteen ounces. Last week, the young mighty mite raced in a 5K-run in the community of Vail, Arizona. Trevor, who has grown into a powerful human engine in his 4-foot, 6-inch frame, crossed the finish line in a shade over 22 minutes, beating out most of the adults in the race as he finished eighth overall.

Trevor will be a force to be reckoned with on his middle school team for the next three years. In his first school meet of the season, Trevor, a sixth grader, finished his mile run in 5.59. If he keeps that up, chances are he will be running the mile in under five minutes by the time he reaches high school.

 've already got a nickname for him: The Crain Train.

Gene Hackman where are you?

Gene Hackman wasn't on the bench in this one.

Instead, 33-year-old Brad Stevens was at the helm. Stevens and his Butler Bulldogs almost accomplished the unthinkable, but fell 61-59 to the mighty Duke Blue Devils at the NCAA national championship game in Indianapolis tonight.

No Hoosiers ending, but close.

The tiny school from Indianapolis had the home court advantage at the Hinkle Field House, but the shots just didn't fall in for the Bulldogs in the second half -- including the half court shot at the buzzer by Gordon Hayward. Hayward's shot banged off the backboard and off the rim, ending Butler's chance for the crown.

In 1954, Bobby Plump's shot went in at the buzzer as the small school from Milan, Indiana, won the high school state championship game. Plump and his high school teammates were the inspiration behind the hit sports flick, Hoosiers (released in 1986), which starred Hackman as the legendary coach Norman Dale. Plump now owns a restaurant in Indianapolis called Plump's Last Shot.

Plump was among the 70,000 that witnessed the NCAA title game tonight. The conclusion of tonight's title game was almost as dramatic as Milan's victory 56 years ago.

I've seen Hoosiers at least 100 times. If you want to know the truth, I'd watch it another 100 times, before I'd watch Duke win another title. I'm an Arizona fan, not a Duke fan. I must admit that tonight's title game was outstanding...one for the ages.

It was March Madness at its best.

Bookemdano's Diamondback Report...

When the clock strikes 2:10 this afternoon the Arizona Diamondbacks will embark on its 2010 season.

Dan Haren will take the mound today at Chase Field and will face the San Diego Padres. Behind him will be some new faces. Adam LaRoche will be at first base and Kelly Johnson at second, two veterans acquired over the winter by the Diamondbacks. It'll be good to see Diamondbacks' returnees Stephen Drew and Mark Reynolds back at shortstop and third base, respectively, and it will be nice to see the return of veteran Conor Jackson to his familiar spot in left field. Chris Young gets another shot in center field and Justin Upton, who had a great spring training, will return in right. Miguel Montero will get the start over Chris Snyder behind the plate.

There are the starters, so let's get it on.

We have 162 games ahead of us. The only downer at this point: no Mr. Webb. Anxious to see how newly-acquired pitchers Ian Kennedy and Edwin Jackson handle their duties in the rotation. It'll be a real plus if both hurlers gets off to a good start.

Let's play ball!

Diamondbacks Update: Good start! Diamondbacks win 6-3. Dan Haren hurls seven solid innings and Stephen Drew bangs one off the center field fence for an inside-the-park homerun. Mark Reynolds adds a round-tripper. Diamondbacks host the Padres again tomorrow.

A sports writer in the making...

I went to a family cookout over the Easter weekend. It was a busy affair, as usual, with the adults catching up on the latest family news and the children running in and out of the house, enjoying themselves.

I took a moment away from the roar of the crowd, so to speak, and sat down at the dinner table and proceeded to read an article that my daughter-in-law had handed me. I had known about the article for weeks, but this was the first time I'd been able to hold it in my hand. My grandson, Jadon, who is in fourth grade, had received an "A", with an "S" attached to it (I might add)for a story he had written.

Jadon and his classmates were given a writing assignment in which they were required to compose a story that had a beginning, a middle and a conclusion. The children were required to gather their thoughts, come up with a draft of their story line, and then mold it all together into a final dramatic piece. Of course my grandson loves baseball and it was no surprise that he selected a theme on how he handled the pressure when he took the ball from his coach, headed for the mound and pitched in his first Little League game.

Surprisingly, he had his story down pat, compete with the how, the when, the where, and even why he did it. At one point in his story, he said his teammates were counting on him and that the game was riding on his shoulder. It was not only a cute story, but a good story filled with exactly what the teacher had requested: a story with a beginning, a middle and an ending.

Jadon's masterpiece reminded me of years long gone, back to a time when I sat in front of a computer and banged out a sports story that would eventually find its way to the next edition of my newspaper. I never got tired of seeing my work in print. Could it be? Do we have another sport writer in the family? Jadon just may find his way into a journalism career. That would be okay with me.

One thing is for sure, Jadon has everything ahead of him. He has his beginning, he's heading for the middle, and I can't wait til the dramatic conclusion.

Enough said, from a proud grandpa.

Former Wildcats blistering the nets in NBA...

Nine former University of Arizona basketball players scored points in the NBA last night. Jason Terry led the way as he netted 29 points as the Dallas Mavericks edged Memphis in overtime, 106-102.

If you total up all the scoring by the ex-Wildcats you'll come up with 121 points. Not bad for a day's work in the NBA. Richard Jefferson of the Spurs scored 19, Andre Iguodala poured in 14 for the 76ers, Will Bynum scored 13 for the Pistons, and Channing Frye (Suns) pumped in 12 points, as did Houston's Chase Budinger, who scored his dozen against San Antonio. Mike Bibby netted 12 points for the Atlanta Hawks, Jerryd Bayless scored six points for the Portland Trail Blazers, and Jordan Hill, Budinger's teammate at Houston, knocked down four points in his 19 minutes of work against the Spurs.

Great job by the former Wildcat greats. And that was without the Lakers' Luke Walton and the Wizards' Gilbert Arenas. Walton is out with an injury, and Arenas is still in the doghouse, serving his suspension from the NBA.

Put those 11 players together and you'd have a pretty good and very competitive NBA team.