Tribe fan as a member of the El Paisano staff circa 1987…Note the hair on the side was cropped by the editor…I had a much more distinct Oscar Gamble look in those days.
By Joe Torosian
“Well I never felt more like crying all night
Cause everything’s wrong and nothing ain’t right…”—Marty Robbins
Kick it!
Right off the Top: There’re all kinds of ugly…Mark Keppel’s Almont League record in football the last 17 seasons…Case Keenum’s reads before throwing the ball…MVS staffers in their underwear…but Jacksonville’s Thursday Night Football unis are a special kind of hideous.
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One More Reminder: Mid Valley Sports is still here…you know because you are reading this column…The Mid Valley News, however, has transitioned to Valhalla…
Still, it is a bummer to leave behind super hard-copy fans like El Monte public address announcer John Kovac…If you were having a bad day or didn’t feel like being on the sidelines, just hearing Kovac’s voice could get the blood stirring again…
But the good news is…Mid Valley Sports will still be at the games…So all is good.
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Just curious, are the Los Angeles Dodgers prepared to give Yoenis Cespedes something more than the 2-years/$50-million he’d be opting out on with the New York Mets?
Cespedes is awesome and ESPN is saying he will opt-out, but he had trouble getting the deal he wanted last year and this year he appeared in only 132 games and was limited in several others…
While I’ve returned to baseball and have my opinions about stuff on the field, I freely admit I’m still playing catch up in regards to many of the financial decisions/motivations of certain franchises.
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Joe T.’s High School football novel is available through Amazon.com
“A literary snapshot of what goes on over the course of a high school football season…an awesome read and a story that truly will transcend time.”—Jim Singiser, AD/HC Arroyo Knights Football
“Thrill, dread, anxiety, love, agony, success, and failure; basically all the emotions you feel as a football player/coach as you do in life, all wrapped up in a single book.”—Marc Paramo, HC Rosemead Panthers Football
“I read the book and really enjoyed it a great deal. I would think coaches and parents could Learn a lot.”—John “Coach” Kentera, former sports talk host at Mighty 690 & Mighty 1090
On this night ten years ago: Arroyo found itself down 20-13 at halftime, and 23-13 at the end of the third quarter before scoring a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to come back and defeat Rosemead, 27-23. Quarterback Brian Partida threw three touchdown passes, two to Marcos Sanchez and one to tight end Mike Sotello…The Panthers were led by Andrew Walker’s two touchdown tosses…Paul Wilson’s 85 rushing yards and a touchdown, and sophomore kicker Bobby Maldonado’s 46-yard field goal.
South Hills was 3-5 when it went to West Covina to face the 4-3 Bulldogs…The WC was favored but the Huskies’ Nick Lamaison completed nine of ten passes, two for touchdowns, and 141 yards to lead Steve Bogan’s team to a 23-3 upset. Sophomore Evan Heard rushed for 102 yards to key the ground game.
WestCo turned the ball over four times.
Finally, in a classic at North Field in the Home of the Camellias, Temple City beat La Canada, 31-28. The Rams led 14-0 at halftime, 17-14 at the end of three, and both teams scored twice in the fourth quarter.
The Spartans’ Lavelle Peterson carried the ball 32 times for 202 yards and three touchdowns. The Rams countered with Dwight Broadnax rushing for 215 yards on 42 carries and three touchdowns. TC linebacker Joe Reasoner was in on 15 tackles and a sack. LC’s Brian Schmidt had 15 tackles.
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APU Update: Former Cougar standout and 2014 D-2 Player of The Year, Terrell Watson was released from the Cleveland Browns practice squad yesterday.
In other news…former APU free safety (and probably the most underrated player in the program over the last five years—291 tackles, 13 interceptions, 7-forced fumbles) Tyler Thornton is currently playing for the Edmonton Eskimos in the CFL.
Thornton has six tackles in eight games this season.
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Cowboys & Indians: On Tuesday I shared the last time the Cleveland Indians won the World Series was in 1948…The year the Chino Cowboys won their first CIF title in football…
But did you know the Indians last World Series appearance before this week was in 1997…the year the Cowboys won their last CIF title, 19-7 over J.W. North at Citrus College…Jim Monger was Chino’s head coach.
How’s that for research.
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Last Add MLB Finances: I’m always curious about the Dodgers because they have so much money they often pay players to go elsewhere…The Angels I have figured out…They spend their money on terrible players and trade their talented ones…
I mean, Vernon Wells!
The Halos are also fiercely loyal to the guy who managed them to the World Series…in 2002.
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Last Add 1997 CIF Finals: Paraclete, under Steve Hagerty, won the D-11 title…and the Division 6 title was a battle between Hacienda Heights/Wilson and Bell Gardens…The Wildcats won 34-21…Think about these programs in regards to 2016 and the world has certainly changed.
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Midbits (same as ‘Tidbits’)
Midbits: Stupidest quote/phrase I saw this week came from Chico State athletic department: “Gender has no limits!”
Midbits: I’d like to remind everyone that my prediction of the Cleveland Indians winning the World Series four games to two was made before Kyle Schwarber made his way back to the Chicago Cubs lineup…
I’m nervous…and my hope is they’ll start him in left field when they get back to Wrigley Field.
Midbits: My advice to the Tennessee Titans is to keep pounding the ball with Derrick Henry…Demarco Murray is so 2014… Murray, old and busted…Henry, new hotness…
Midbits: I shouldn’t talk trash about Vernon Wells, my fantasy baseball team got a great four weeks out of him in the summer of 2013.
Midbits: I saw the commercial during Thursday Night Football and saw the Sports Illustrated cover all those years ago…so my question is; when was LeBron James ever not supposed to there?
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MLB GAMES JOE T. HAS WATCHED THIS SEASON (Minimum 5-innings)
New York Mets: 123
Los Angeles Dodgers: 30
San Francisco Giants: 20
Chicago Cubs-16
Cleveland Indians-12
Toronto Blue Jays-8
The Dude abides…
648
Psalm 141
Contact Joe at joe@midvalleysports.com
Author of “Tangent Dreams: A High School Football Novel” available through amazon.com …and “The Dead Bug Tales” available this fall.
Follow Joe on Twitter @joet13b
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