A True Baseball Unsung Hero

Saturday (Nov. 2) was a bittersweet day for me.  As I sat down to watch the "Rolling Rally" to honor the tremendous job that the Boston Red Sox had done this season to win the World Series, my spirits were dampened. I received a call from one of my best friends and he told me that the man we had worked with to help run the East Side Babe Ruth had passed away on Friday night.  Richard Zellmer was a man synonymous with youth baseball in this city that nobody knew, and he was ok with that.

I first came across Rich when I was eight years old playing in the Jack Barry Little League and he was a coach of an opposing league.  As I continued to grow up and play baseball Rich was always there coaching a team, with his wife Judy in tow.  They were always in it for the kids.  When his children stopped playing, he didn't stop coaching.  When I became a coach in 1991, there was Rich in the opposing dugout.  We had many battles on the field, but always had each other's respect.

When I became an umpire in 1997 I worked many Babe Ruth level games and Rich and I crossed paths again, and as always his wife Judy was there to support him.  The following year Rich took over the reigns as President of the East Side Babe Ruth league, a title he held until this past Friday.  We always said he would die doing work for the East Side Babe Ruth League.  I never imagined it would happen.

I was honored when Rich asked me to be one of his league administrators some years back.  That was when Rich was no longer a mentor but became a friend.  We had many conversations over the past twenty plus years, some joking, some serious and some heated, but we always had each other’s respect.

Being the President of the East Side Babe Ruth League, or any youth league for that matter, is a very thankless job.  That didn't matter to Rich, he wasn't in it for the accolades.  As Rich's health deteriorated over the years he became less visible at the field and some parents didn't know who he was.  He was the man that made that league go, he was the man behind the curtain, the one nobody paid attention to.

Each year the league faced it's own viability, dealing with some players whose parents could not afford to pay the registration fee.  That didn't matter to Rich, that child was going to play and the league was going to run.  He made it work every year no matter what.  He always dealt with the Parks Department and other City administrators to make things work for the league.  He wanted to create as many opportunities for kids to play baseball, no matter what obstacles it created for him.  Throughout all of these efforts was his wife Judy.  She supported her husband in every sense of the word.

As I moved up through the baseball umpire ranks, got married and started a family, my presence at the baseball field has waned.  I am still part of the league but in a planning way.  However, my friendship with Rich and Judy and their three sons Richard, Steven and Kevin has grown stronger.  We have become more of a family rather league colleagues.

I will miss Rich and everything we have done together.  I truly hope the former players, parents, and coaches appreciate what the man had done for baseball on the East Side of Worcester.  I know I will.

 God Bless you Rich.  May you rest in peace.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

It's Just a Game

During my younger years (20's and 30's) I attended many sporting events.  I have been to over fifty sporting venues in four countries and the one thing that all of those experiences have in common is, it was just a game, nothing more.  So, last week when I saw the video of a New York Jets Fan punch a New Patriots fan, who happened to be a women, in the face, I was beside myself.

Sport fanaticism has existed since the time of Roman gladiators, to 1912, when Red Sox fans were ready to trash newly built Fenway Park because owner John I. Taylor suggested to manager Jack Stahl that he throw a World Series game so he could get more gate money during the series, which the Red Sox ultimately won. To a near riot in city streets when teams win a championship.

We love our teams, no doubt.  But at what point does the love of our team take us away from reality?  In all those trips to stadiums not once was I disrespectful to the people around me and never did I engage in a physical confrontation with rooters from the other team.  Because in the whole grand scheme of things, it just was not that important to me.  I don't need to defend multi-billion dollar organizations in a physical manner and I should not expect the same from fans of another team.

Several weeks ago I read that a twenty four year old Dodger fan, who had just left AT&T Stadium to see the Dodgers play their rival San Francisco Giants with his dad, was stabbed to death for being a Dodger fan. That is just perplexing to me.  The worst part of all is that this is not the first time that this has happened and it surely will not be the last.

• 2003, a Giants fan was shot and killed outside Dodger Stadium
• 2004, a skirmish between players at the end of a Pacer-Pistons led to a brawl between players and fans
• 2005 a Red Sox fan took a swing at Yankee outfielder Gary Sheffield while he was making a play during the game
• 2011 a Giants fan was nearly beaten to death in the Dodgers Stadium parking lot, IN FRONT OF HIS SON
• In 2011 several arrests and injuries were reported at San Francisco 49ers vs. Oakland Raider PRESEASON game 

These are just to name a few.  Let's not forget the city of Vancouver nearly going up in flames after the Canucks lost game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals against the Boston Bruins.  I won't even get into the soccer hooliganism, that's just not fair.

I love the local sports team and I root for them, that's it.  I have never had a problem with sitting next to a fan from another team at a sporting event and having a healthy debate about who has a better team and who will win the game.  It was also not uncommon for me to shake the hand of the person when leaving and thanking him for a great conversation.  I never threatened them and they never threatened me.  I hate to break this to all of Red Sox Nation, the Yankees don't "suck". 

It's just a game folks, nothing more.  We have been lucky as fans to see a large success in this area.  When the Red Sox won the World Series, The Patriots the Super Bowl, The Bruins the Stanley Cup or the Celtics the NBA Finals, think about what you personally gained from it, other than a few weeks of joy.

As you head out for a Patriots game, or go see the Red Sox in the World Series, or happen to catch the new season of the Bruins or Celtics, I have one bit of advice for you. Act like you've been there before.  Go Sox!

3D

If you don't take it from, ask my wife.

Getting What We Voted For

I owe Senator Elizabeth Warren an apology.  When she was elected and had her god awful first press conference I thought her tenure as Massachusetts Junior Senator (at the time) was going to be a disaster.  She couldn't even get through a basic congratulatory press conference without looking over to Governor Deval Patrick for cues.  To be honest it wasn’t shocking to me, but it was what the people wanted and I had to accept that.  Since then, I really haven't heard much from Sen. Warren, other than her call for a $22 minimum wage, but that isn't a bad thing.  She was supportive after the Marathon Bombings and she has been voting mostly along party lines.  Not what I really want in my senator but it is what it is.

Now that she is (gulp) the senior Senator I must say that although her votes may or may not be her true voice, she is at least voting, unlike our newly elected junior Senator.  I hate to say it people but this guy is going to be a disaster.  In his first real vote on Capitol Hill, in a committee nonetheless, Senator Ed Markey, a member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, voted "present" on giving President Barack Obama limited authority to attack Syria with our military.

First off, the fact any elected official is allowed to vote "present" on anything is insulting to every voter’s intelligence.  It tells me one of a few things.  One, you were there and not paying attention. Two, you are waiting for someone else to tell you how to vote, and three that you have no clue and are truly in way over your head.

I am not going to speculate on what his reasons were but wouldn't a vote of this magnitude bring forward the thirty eight years of experience he touted in the special election?  Shouldn't he have taken charge and proved the leadership that he ran on as well?  This is what happens when a politician is conflicted with his personal views and towing the party line.  I wasn't looking for a "Yay" vote or a "Nay" vote; I was just looking for "A" vote.  Even extreme liberal U.S. Congressman Jim McGovern, who normally votes among party lines, is reportedly asking President Obama to not use military action in Syria.  That's because he is anti-war, that's what the people of his district have elected to do, vote, not just show up.  A trained monkey can do that.

So, Senator Warren I publicly apologize to you.  Your tenure as a Massachusetts Senator won't be the worst disaster, as I had thought.  It appears you are the only senatorial vote/voice the Commonwealth has.  Senator Markey is doing what the citizens of Massachusetts elected him to do, he's just showing up.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife