Golden Bears 🐻 Baseball ⚾️ today !!!

It’s almost time ⏲️ to head to the ball field !!!!

In the 18 years that Skipper Lawrence Nesselrodt and I have been trying to move the needle on West Virginia Tech University Baseball, many a student athlete have worn our uniform.

With that said, few, if any, have worn it better than Mr Logan Stump. Everything about the young man, on and off the Diamond 💎 was what you would want to have representing your program !

Knowing that Logan will treat his new uniform in the same manner that he treated ours makes me believe that Raleigh County is a better place to live today !

Turning back the clock ⏰️ to just over 50 years ago, there was a 10 year old Navy Brat that was falling in love with the game of baseball ⚾️ but now found himself in rural South Georgia, far from his beloved Oakland Athletics.

Dad was stationed in Lemoore, California, when I was born back in 1963, so it was a natural thing to pull for the Oakland A’s and wow,  Was that a fun bunch of personalities. Even the owner, Charles Finley, was larger than life itself.

Joe Rudi, Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando, Gene Tennace, Bert ” Campy ” Campanaris were some of the stars in the field while Jim ” Catfish ” Hunter, Rollie Fingers, Vida Blue and others toed the rubber. Finley tried to get Vida to legally change his first name to True so he could call him True Blue.

South of Lemoore was an expansion team called the San Diego Padres.

San Diego is a beautiful place, and they were owned for a long time by the founder of McDonald’s, Ray Kroc. There was a man with a business plan !

The Padres were never going to replace the A’s as my childhood team, but they did have a tall, lanky left-hander that was fun to watch. Randy Jones was a character, and maybe part of that at first was his larger than life afro and how it grew out under his cap.

While I can not back it up as absolute, check out the three year stretch where Jones went from losing twenty games to winning 20+ in the following two seasons. Incredible turnaround, and if anyone else has ever done it, I would like to hear about it.

Jones was a rookie back in the early 70s, and he wasn’t the only one. Fresh from Marshall University, by way of a brief stint in the minors, was Joe Goddard. My favorite part of calling a Golden Bears 🐻 Baseball game is saying Assistant Coach, the legendary Joe Goddard.

Goddard and Jones were teammates in 1972 in the Texas League, playing for Alexandria. Goddard would get the call up later that season, and Jones would get the same in the spring of 1973.

Joe has stories about how Jones threw a ” heavy ball ” back then, and while the lefty found some success, he was hindered by the Padres’ struggles. Check out the year he had in 1978, with an ERA of 2.88, Jones finished up at 13 – 14 on the season.

This past winter, Jones received his final call-up as he passed away in November. The tribute that the team held 40 years past his playing days showed that I wasn’t the only one who found Jones as lovable.

Meanwhile, Joe Goddard and I are hopeful of being around for a while yet. The added connection of the catcher who made it to the show and worked with one of my childhood heroes.

The things in the life of the Legendary Joe Goddard that pop 🎉 are much more than sharing a batters box 📦 with Hank Aaron or catching Randy Jones. The lifetime experience of teaching the game of baseball, still today as he is closer to 80 than 70, is the tip of the iceberg.

Rest in peace, Randy Jones, and thanks for the memories !

Marco and I were at Utah Tech University at the same time (two years ago), and now, most weekends, the young man from Ecuador 🇪🇨 heads out to the mound for the Golden Bears 🐻.

For seven innings yesterday afternoon, Marco limited everyone, not named Nate Montgomery to just two base hits. Montgomery collected three singles to account for 60% of the offense, but each time, WVU-T had the answer defensively !

Seven innings pitched, five hits allowed, four K’s, and just two walks. The Cougars plated 19 runs across 26 innings over the weekend series, but for a couple of hours on Saturday afternoon, Marco said, ” Not on my watch.”

Three relievers combined to close out the second consecutive victory with Cam Lynch earning the save for WVU-T.

Montgomery would have had a fourth hit credited to his name if not for a very fortunate bounce in the top of the eighth inning against Tate Martino. Clinging to a 3-1 lead at the time, Martino surrendered a lead off single to Nate Wolf, bringing Montgomery up as the tying run.

The line shot was headed to right field, but fortunately, it was on top of Wolf in a heartbeat. The ball clipped Wolf on the foot, ending the play and reducing the at-bat to a fielders choice. Lady Luck was smiling on the Golden Bears 🐻 at that moment.

WVU-T added a much needed insurance run in the bottom of the eighth when Nolan Copeland led off with a walk and came around to score on a double from Zach Hunt.

The top of the ninth proved to be interesting as six Cougars came to the plate, and the ball was never put into play once. Three walks and three strikeouts with Lynch closing it out by getting a pitch past Montgomery with the tying runs on base.

In order to compete in the River States Conference, you need to have an Ace who deals with the best of them. On Saturday, we had one in Marco Viteri Moran, a young man from Ecuador by way of St. George, Utah.

WVU-T plated two runs in the bottom of the first inning when Gabe Templeton reached on a hit by pitch, and Jacob Tompkins followed with a single. Reece Patterson reached on a fielders choice, scoring Templeton and later scored on an infield single by JJ Polvinale.

The third run scored in the fifth when red-hot Cody Cooper led off with his second hit of the game, and Joshua Tibbits drove him in with a pinch hit single.

When the dust settled later in the day, the Golden Bear nine had taken two of three from a talented Cougars squad. For the second time this season, we welcomed an RSC foe to Linda K Epling Stadium and prevailed !

Friday and Saturday, April 24 & and 25, we will welcome Midway to Beckley for the season ending weekend series that will include Senior Day ceremonies. One more opportunity for the folks in Beckley to take in some free baseball ⚾️ in a beautiful stadium 🏟 and root, root, root for the home team !

West Virginia Tech 12, IU -Kokomo 11 (10)

West Virginia Tech 4. IU – Kokomo 1

IU – Kokomo 7, West Virginia Tech 2

Cooper went 6 of 12 for the weekend with 4 RBI

From start to finish on a doubleheader Saturday , we spend 8 to 9 hours together, and the quality of the day is directly tied to the quality of people you have, helping you produce a show.

Today, we have struck Gold as all four of the Golden Bears 🐻 involved are walking the fine line of being totally focused yet sneak in some side stories when time allows.

Liam Craven plays on the WVU-T Basketball team, and today, he is responsible for the schools live feed of the games. Craven is from Canada 🇨🇦, sharp as can be, and handles the technology of our team. His favorite basketball player is Kevin Durant of the Houston Rockets 🚀. Sports management as his major !

The next member of the team is freshman, Mason Divers. Divers is a red shirt this year as he recovers from an injury, and the recent graduate 🎓 of Charlottesville High School 🏫 has an understanding of the game beyond his years. The left-handed pitcher is learning the ins and outs of what it takes to have it appear that we are a well-oiled machine.

This afternoon, Divers is responsible for the announcing of the Golden Bears and just broke out the ” Another Golden Bear has found his way to Home Plate ” as we push our lead out to 3-1 here in the bottom of the fifth.

Michael Thor is the key 🔑 ingredient to the amount of polish we have on any given day. For folks back home in Carroll County, Thor is a younger version of Kevin Burress at Cavalier Park. The equipment is more sophisticated, but the level of commitment is spot on ! The sophomore from Nitro is also awaiting his time on the field, and when he’s not anchoring our team, he’s busy working on his degree in mechanical engineering.

Thor handles every aspect of our sound, which at this level is a substantial amount. We are now at the top of the 7th inning, so he is prepping our Harry Carry tribute that we do during the 7th inning stretch.

The fourth member of our team is Garrett Miller, and he has the job that nobody wants. Miller has to keep up with every pitch and the pitch clock ⏰️.

The scoreboard out in left center shows the number of items that Miller has to keep straight.

It’s now 2 pm, and game one of two is moving along at a pleasant pace ! We all made a guess at what time game 2 will end at the guesses range from 5:48 to 6:47 and the effort started at 10:00.

First Pitch 57° temperature 🌡/ time 12:00 on the nose 👃.

From here, I will give each of these impressive young men to add their own thoughts about themselves, things that would make their parents proud.

Mason – I was introduced to WVU Tech through Tommy Weaver (Tech baseball alum). When I found out I was going to have sit out my freshmen season I was bummed. But then that first time in the press box at Marshall University working the pitch clock, that was when I first got to meet Jerry. He stepped out of the room, and that’s when I filled in to announce a batter. From there, my teammates have loved the familiar voice coming across the speakers. I want to thank both my Dad who used to help in the press box in Little League for his great voice that I get to inherit. And I would like to thank my mom for her support of me and giving me the kindness I get to share with everyone I get to announce. Lastly, I want to thank Jerry Carter for how much help he has been to giving me the opportunity and knowledge to learn how much goes into announcing a ball game!

Game 1 goes to our Golden Bears 🐻, 4-1 and the best part was it only took 2:40 !!!

Thor – I first saw WVU Tech as a good opportunity to stay close to home and get an engineering degree. After talking with Coach Ness about potentially playing baseball here, it seemed like a no-brainer. I had the goal of playing baseball in college, and my parents were entirely supportive of it. When thinking about all I’ve learned and the people I’ve met, I can safely say I have enjoyed my time these last 2 years. I am truly thankful for all the people who have ever helped me and will help me in the future. I wouldn’t be here without my parents, friends, and family.

5:31 – end of Game #2…Cougars 7, Golden Bears 🐻 but we win the series, 2-1 !!!