(#139) I found my name in the book Moneyball in Chapter 10, Anatomy of an Undervalued Pitcher, featuring the great Chad Bradford. I never knew it was in there. "He went over and talked to the coach at Hinds Community College, a few miles down the road. The 'coach there' (that's me!) said he thought … Continue reading Well, Almost!
Author: Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach (Rick Clarke)
My name is Rick Clarke. I'm an old, retired baseball coach with a lot of stories to tell.
This will be a fun blog. A little bit of this...a little bit of that. Great Mississippi baseball stories, especially about the players and teams at Magnolia Academy and Hinds Community (& Junior) College. And some funny stuff and lots of savvy observations.
Commendation (1979)
(#138) WHEREAS, RICHARD A. CLARKE was employed as the Coach of the Magnolia Academy Baseball Team in 1977; and WHEREAS, the baseball team was in a fledgling state; and WHEREAS, RICHARD A. CLARKE, through his dedication to a standard of excellence and ability, instilled in the baseball players the skills of playing baseball and good … Continue reading Commendation (1979)
Resolution (1989)
(#137) WHEREAS, the Hinds Community College Baseball Team won the South Division and the Mississippi State Championship; WHEREAS, this team went on to win the Region XXIII National Junior College Athletic Championship and became the first Mississippi team to win the Eastern District Championship; WHEREAS, said team was the first Mississippi team to participate in … Continue reading Resolution (1989)
Ohtani’s Awesome Week
(#136) (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) The Angel's Shohei Ohtani went 3-4 with 2 home runs and a career high 8 RBIs on Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals and then pitched a 2 hitter over eight innings with 13 strikeouts, and retired 23 out of the last 24 … Continue reading Ohtani’s Awesome Week
The 21st Century 2-Strike Adjustment
(#135) Offensively speaking, there is no such thing as a 3-run strikeout or a 2-out RBI strikeout or a game winning walk-off strikeout. Good things happen when the ball gets put in play. You can do this! 1% Listings with NuWay VIP - rickclarke.com
Who Invented T-Ball? Why?
(#134) The name for t-ball has been officially changed to "Unorganized Chaos." Who did it and why? Should criminal and civil child abuse charges be filed? Perhaps a class action lawsuit. 🙂 One theory claims that in Starkville Mississippi, two Rotarians, Dr. Clyde Muse and W.W. Littlejohn, added the game of t‒ball to the summer … Continue reading Who Invented T-Ball? Why?
The CWS… I Mean the MCWS.
(#133) Would love to see Ole Miss win tonight so Delucia could go in Game 1 of the championship series. A good start by by Gaddis, perhaps 5+, could help make this a bullpen game for Ole Miss with some rested, unhittable and hot relief pitchers to finish it out. Plus A&M pushes Oklahoma to … Continue reading The CWS… I Mean the MCWS.
Congrats to Hinds Baseball
(#132) Josh against ECCC, 2010 State Championship game Congratulations to the Hinds Community College baseball team for a great 2022 season. On Wednesday, May 18th, the Eagles fell short in a heroic 21 inning effort with the first game that started at noon and the last game which ended at 12:30 am. The Eagles eliminated … Continue reading Congrats to Hinds Baseball
Savvy Baseball Observations, Volume 14
(#131) Six team tournaments are tough unless you win every game. It even takes four wins if you go undefeated. And then there are variations of the bracket such as if 5 teams are remaining after game x, or 4 teams remaining after game x, etc. The participant teams have to run on all cylinders, … Continue reading Savvy Baseball Observations, Volume 14
Savvy Baseball Observations, Volume 13
1989 Eastern District Tournament Champions. The first Mississippi JUCO to do it. Headed to Grand Junction, Colorado and the JUCO World Series. (#130) I'm hanging out in the lobby of the Doubletree in Hattiesburg, living the life, reminiscing about post-season JUCO baseball. Game time for the second round game is 3:30. We're off to a … Continue reading Savvy Baseball Observations, Volume 13
Rick Clarke's Diary of a Mad Baseball Coach 