Remembering A True Yankeee Great

Retired great #20 Jorge Posada picture belongs to http://thexlog.com

Retired Yankees catcher Jorge Posada was at many times shaky behind the plate, but for anyone who watched his career I'm sure they would tell you how much we miss his bat in the lineup.

This was a guy where I bashed him to people pretty much his entire career, for some reason I just never gave the guy a break.

I hated the way he caught so much that I did nothing but bad mouth the guy, not like it matters to him but I miss the guy in Yankee pinstripes.

During Jorge's retirement press conference I couldn't help but feeling terrible, the way he is with his family and the media he is a man of class.

I got mad because I always saw him as a selfish player, but watching him during the last 3 years of his career made me realize what a team guy he is deep down.

I'm sure it really hurt his pride to have to accept being taken out of the depth chart as a catcher, anyone who has played the game knows that is a feeling that is almost as bad as losing.

Jorge lifetime didn't have the greatest postseason numbers, but throughout his last 3 seasons I will say he definitely stepped it up under the lights of October.

I wish the Yankees would bring him back in some way right now, so many games I watch and say to myself we could really use the pop in his bat right now.

I get it that he wasn't the catcher anymore I honestly think it was a great decision to make him the DH, what I don't understand is why the Yankees didn't really offer him anything after he hit .429 against the Detroit Tigers in the 2011 ALDS.

If you wonder why he had no runs batted in, well there is a perfect explanation for that nobody else was really getting on base.

At the end of an excellent career he is the man tied with Yogi Berra for the Yankees franchise record for most home runs in a season by a catcher with 30.

For a catcher he has had some of the best offensive numbers with a career average of .273 with 275 home runs and 1065 runs batted in.

Nobody realizes how hard it is to hit as an everyday catcher at any level, imagine how hard it is to do in the major leagues?

Yankee fans will forever remember the great #20 Jorge Posada, I wish him nothing but the best along with his family they have more class than you could ever ask for.

Thank you Jorge for your dedication to New York and everything you do outside of the game as well, he will always be a role model for every kid growing up.

This blog was for you Chuck when it comes to the game of Hockey your my hero, and I wish I could be half the player you are.

Don't Stop Believing In Alex Rodriguez

Arod 15h inning walkoff homer 2009 vs Boston picture belongs to dailynews.com

Alex Rodriguez no matter what happens from this point on will still go down as one of the best all around players in Baseball history.

I will admit it disappoints me about what he has done overall in the playoffs, but if you look back 2009 was just a historic season, he did the impossible many times.

In a lot of ways I think 2009 was the best season of his career, you look at the fact he had to return from major hip surgery which has ended player's careers in the past.

I remember he missed the first 28 games, he came back on the first pitch he saw belted a 3 run home run in Baltimore, from that time on until the end of the year he was the most clutch hitter in the game.

As great as he was in 2007 he didn't do it when the playoffs came, as you saw I think he was 4 for 14 better than previous postseasons before that, but what he did in 2009 tied the record with 18 for the most runs batted in during a single postseason.

I think a lot of the problem with Alex over the last couple of seasons has been his inability to catch up to quicker pitching, his bat speed has been dragging for way too long.

People try to doubt his power I saw him hit a bomb off Justin Verlander not too long ago, the power is still there, people don't realize as a player gets older its about bat speed.

There is a reason he is hitting so many choppers toward third, he use to get away with it because he could always beat out the throw, but now you look at Alex his lost a step on the bases so he has to change his game in some ways.

I don't know how a hitting coach can watch him and Mark Teixeira take those long slow swings for as long as they have, and not make the proper adjustments.

When your constantly getting beat on that pitch up and in then you have to go back to the drawing boards, you have to figure out a way to keep producing on the reg.

People always say hey its up to Alex to work on things himself, well what are the Yankees paying guys like Kevin Long for?

Its time someone on that coaching staff mans up gets in Alex Rodriguez's face and tells him straight up either make the adjustments or Eric Chavez plays third base.

I'm waiting for Joe Girardi to actually play the role of manager, and light a fire under the guy, Alex is the type of player that needs to be brought back to step 1 sometimes to get him back in reality.

Alex hits a home run and all of a sudden you can still it on his face he thinks he is the best, you have to tell him flat out its time to start producing again.

People are giving up way too fast on a player who was the youngest to ever hit 600 home runs, I think there is still a lot of Baseball left in his tank. 

When it comes to his defense declining that you can't really put all the blame on him for because it looks to be age thats slowing him down at the hot corner.

If you look to Alex's left captain Derek Jeter has been playing a brutal defensive short as of late which again is the result of what happens with age.

When it comes to the bat I can see the power is not only still there, there is a large part of me that believes he still may be one of the strongest in the game next to Robinson Cano.

Not a knock on Alex but I do believe the time to make him the official DH is right around the corner, I watched him lately and just doesn't look like he is moving too well at third base.

To many who wouldn't like that idea, you have to keep in mind this is a player getting closer to 40 you have to find ways to keep him healthy.

When your paying a player as much as you pay Alex, you have to make it a priority to keep him hitting and keep him happy.

Many fans willing to give up on Alex Rodriguez not me, I know deep down he will get it going again then you will have all of these fans coming out of nowhere to praise him.

Even if were looking at the last few seasons of his career he will end up with over 3,000 hits, right now Alex is currently at 2,846 hits which would tell you that he will probably reach the 3,000 mark next year during the 2013 season.

You all want to count out a future hall of famer go ahead because when he gets it going again I'll be the one right there to say I told you so.

Cano Swings His Way Back To Being The Top Guy

Robinson Cano greeted by Captain Derek Jeter along with rest of the time this picture belongs to http://www.newsday.com

Robinson Cano is probably the most talented player in all of Baseball, he is so good that he is in a league of his own right now.

I don't think a lot of people realize the amount of success he has had in such a short time. Although I expect to see more out of him in the postseason, he remains the Yankees best player on the team for at least 2 to 3 seasons now.

We have been watching this slugger basically bash the ball year after year, he already has 1,351 hits in only 1,127 games played.

If you look at reasons why the Yankees have moved their way into being the best team in Baseball it has a lot to do with the way Robinson Cano has been carrying the team.

In his last 10 games Robbie has 14 hits in 36 at bats for a .389 average, lets also not forget the burst of power he has shown with 7 home runs and 11 runs batted in.

At the end of the night R. Cano is putting together what seems to be a great year now, he is hitting .308 with 18 home runs and 41 runs batted in.

This team really needed one of their big players to step up and Cano has finally given them what they needed for so long.

Watching Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira gets really annoying sometimes when they take those same long swings against pitchers throwing smoke.

Listen I get it guys like Arod and Tex got away with that for so long because they were that good, but time catches up with you as does talent in the league.

Right now Robinson Cano is so far ahead of those two guys it is not even close, I mean if Cano is batting 4th teams will actually pitch around him in the 1st inning.

I think the reason I get so frustrated with R. Cano at times is because I know the guy is the best player in the league, I know that when it comes to all aspects of the game on talent alone nobody touches the guy so I like a lot of people expect a lot out of him.

The way Robinson Cano is playing right now I seriously wouldn't be shocked if he ended with 40 to 45 home runs, he seems to be hitting everything out of the ballpark right now.

I think today was the first time I ever heard Michael Kay and Paul Oneil just silenced by how talented a player was when Cano went the other way to hit the big 2 run home run to left field.

What made it so impressive was it almost looked like he barely swung, the guy is so talented sometimes he just makes it all look too easy. The homer he hit today was pure strength, I honestly didn't realize Cano had that much power.

The ones he pulls is just poetry in motion, its so fun to watch that nice smooth swing bashing the ball to an upper deck in right.

Putting his amazing bat to the side were also talking about by far the best infielder in the game today. There is nobody that I've ever seen who can make it look as effortless as he does.

Not only does he have the best hands, but he has an incredibly strong arm, those two impressive tools has made him turn double plays with just about anyone.

I can't believe how quick the guy gets rid of the ball, everything he does he does far better than anyone else he is definitely going to be a star for many years to come.

Lets see where his career goes from here because as of now I think your looking at the best player in Baseball.

When You Talk About Acting You Talk About Denzel

 Ever since I was born there really has never been a movie with Denzel Washington that I didn't like, at least from from I've seen.

It seems like no matter how much his roles differ from one another, he still finds a way to jump at you through the movie screen, and deliver.

Even know I like each and everyone of his movies I will write about the three movies that stood out the most to me.

Denzel Washington as Malcolm X picture belongs to http://www.thefancarpet.com/

 Malcolm X was probably the # 1 movie ever made by Denzel Washington.

The movie was released in 1992 and was a documentary on the life of Malcolm X.

This is a film  that always grabbed me from the first scene, I mean this is a subject I actually learned a lot about in African American History.

When you see the amount of struggles Malcolm X had to endure in his life it will make your head spin.

Here was a guy who basically had to deal with nothing but racism throughout his whole life, the sad thing is when you saw the days where he had to take it.

His father was brutally murdered by the KKK in what was obviously a hate crime, nobody ever did anything about it. He was a little kid who had to just take it, and move on with his life.

Now he was alone with his mother and all of his other siblings, all of a sudden CPS took them from his mother. His mother basically lost it and was in and out of seeking mental help.

He had to try to get by in group homes, never being allowed to be with the woman who was raising him.

Malcolm X ended up dropping out of 8th grade because he was told his skin color would be the reason he could never be a lawyer like he wanted. To me what they did to Malcolm as a child is a form of child abuse.

The movie does show how his teacher told him no {n word} can ever be a lawyer or anything like that, he told Malcolm blacks are handy with things maybe he could be a carpenter or something around those lines.

He would take into the life of crime for many years until he was sentenced to 8 to 10 years in prison for stealing and carrying firearms.

Malcolm would find the nation behind the walls of prison, he began learning the teachings of the Nation Of Islam.

He at the time felt like he was recused by the Elijah Muhammad the leader of the Nation Of Islam, little did he know what kind of a shady life the Elijah Muhammad lived.

Even though I was not around during the times of Malcolm X I can see the movie definitely gave me a feel of what the man was all about.

As the movie went on you got the hint that Malcolm X was one of the smartest people around, he believed in what he studied so much that he became one of the best speakers in world history.

You could see that he became so powerful that even the Nation was looking to tone him down, many times you can see the jealousy all over them.

Everyone blacks and whites were afraid of this man having too much control, no matter what anyone said or did he always had a crowd.

Later on the corruption would wreck havoc on his life, he was sent death threats and all.

Malcolm X would be murdered by his own people who seemed to be working with the Nation Of Islam, what the movie really did well after that was they showed how hurt everyone around him was.

They showed how much his death impacted a lot of people in a bad way, the ones who followed him they understood what he was trying to do.

Malcolm X was not a racist man, he was steered the wrong way from people his whole life, but toward the end you can see when he was his own man he was all about peace.

He didn't deserve to have his life taken especially for being one of the few people ever in this world to stand up for what they believe in.

This movie made me realize what a special person Malcolm X was, and what a good family man he was.

Just a classic film just an excellent job by Denzel portraying one of the greatest leaders ever.

Denzel Washington in Training Day picture belongs to hotflick.net

I can say that as unique as it was for Denzel to play such a cut throat character, but there was something about it where I would put this up there as one of his best performances.

During his star role in Training Day which took place in 2001, you could see that was a movie he really enjoyed doing.

You a lot of familiar faces in this movie, but in the end there is always one man that stands out and its always Denzel Washington.

Growing up I was obviously a lot younger when Training Day came out, so I really never got a chance to really watch it through until recent years.

This movie had a lot of comedy in it as well, I think one of the earlier scenes the one in the diner was probably the funniest scene I've scene from Denzel.

 What made this movie so good was as much as it wanted to portray Alonzo Harris {Denzel Washington} as the bad guy you couldn't help but feel bad for his character when he was shot to death in the end.

Even right before he dies he the end I felt like gave another classic scene when Detective Hoyt {Ethan Hawke} shoots him in the butt, it was hilarious.

Even when your trying to be serious you can't help but laughing, you should hate this character buts its impossible to.

The entire movie he keeps you on your toes wondering what he would do next.

You look at the scene where Detective Hoyt {Ethan Hawke} stops the young girl from being raped, and all of a sudden Denzel walks over, and just stands there watching Hoyt put in work.

Then after the two men are cuffed he comes over, and starts messing with them. If you watch that scene you will understand what I am talking about everyone hates rapists so it was funny to watch him humiliate them.

Another funny scene is when he tells a women who owns the house of a drug dealer that he has a search warrant to search the place.

He runs through the entire house eventually comes out saying he didn't find anything. So the woman asked for the warrant and he hands her a menu from a Chinese restaurant.

So you see the woman running out after discovering he robbed her money, she yells at the gangsters to kill Alonzo Harris {Denzel Washington}. Eventually he comes out spraying to send them into retreat.

The thing that got me about that scene was he always got himself into these crazy situations, you were starting to wonder what would happen next.

Anyway I think this was a role that he really pulled off well, he wasn't the hero or the good guy, but he played a corrupt cop as well as anyone.

Denzel Washington in American Gangster picture belongs to http://www.2guys1movie.com

American Gangster from 2007 was a movie that will go down as one of my favorite movies, funny who is the star in it?

You guessed it Denzel Washington..... This was another role where he plays a bad guy, he plays a heroin dealer, but still you cannot help yourself you have to hope good things happen for that character.

What makes the Frank Lucas {Denzel Washington} character so great is that he also does a lot of good deeds, he supports his family and friends.

You see in the movie he buys a huge mansion so he could move his entire family in, you also see along the way his character never gets a big head.

He always passed down respect to his mentor that started him out as his driver, when it was time to take the reign he did so, and did it as well as he could.

He always tried to keep a low profile as much as possible, eventually the people around him would begin creating too much noise.

In the movie one of Frank Lucas {Denzil Washington} brothers was trying to wear flashy clothes, and show off his money that is the scene where Frank Lucas gives the best line. "The loudest one in the room is the weakest one in the room".

Frank Lucas should have taken his own advice toward the end when he showed up to the Muhammad Ali fight wearing a flashy coat.

He would later be the victim of his own weakness which is putting too many family members around him, he loved them so much that he let it blind him from his ultimate goal.

The thing that really makes you respect this character is when he is arrested he didn't rat out anyone outside of the law, he came down on all the cops who robbed money from him over the years.

Justice was prevailed because he actually helped the government recover millions of dollars, and also helped put a lot of bad people to trial.

Some may call him a rat, I say your a rat when you rat on someone close to you, when your in a situation where your going down you might as well give up the ones responsible for whats happening.

If everyone backed away from Frank Lucas he would have kept collecting his money, it was the cops who began putting the squeeze on him.

All in all I just wanted to point out my 3 favorite Denzel Washington movies so I could explain what I mean when I say this is the best actor of my time.

I wanted to point out they are 3 completely different characters but he played each one to perfection.

What more can you ask for in an actor? Is there a role he can't do? We will see more from him in the future as he is currently working on new films.

Can't wait to see what the future holds for one of the most talented actors to ever make their way across a movie screen.

Dana White Bring Mayhem Back To The UFC

One of Jason "Mayhem" Miller's grand entrances this picture belongs to http://www.domgear.com

Recently after a 2nd consecutive poor performance in the UFC for Jason "Mayhem" Miller, UFC president Dana White has said many times he would not bring him back because of his antics.

Listen for those who don't get Jason Miller let me tell you the guy seems to always bring a crowd wherever he shows up, for a sport that hasn't had a lot of these kind of personalities you have to keep him around.

Look do I think Mayhem fought terribly his last two fights hell yeah I do, I know he is much better than what he as shown in recent time.

People also seem to forget when Dana had pinned Jason against Michael Bisping after a long layoff from the octagon, to put him against the fighter who has been said to be one of the major contenders for the Middleweight title was a lot to put on one guy.

Mayhem completely controlled the 1st round of that fight using his wrestling to ground Bisping, I really think he was on his way to make Bisping suffer his first submission loss, but the truth is he just was gassed out after the 1st round.

From the 2nd round on Michael Bisping just took him apart, as you saw Jason was so exhausted he really didn't have anything on his punches.

You have to admire the amount of punishment Mayhem Miller took, he never gave up, he took every punch Bisping had to throw until the referee stepped in.

Even know it was a lopsided fight I remember saying to myself wow I have more respect for Jason Miller now than ever, I've never seen a guy take that kind of punishment and keep waving on his opponent for more.

Now with the C.B Dollaway fight, look there was no excuse for why Jason couldn't defeat that guy.  Their skills are not even close, I really do think it was a combination of things for Mayhem.

I mean every time you are asked to fight in the UFC you have to hear if you don't win this is it, I mean to put that kind of pressure on anyone is a lot.

Imagine having the mindset that no matter what unless you get the victory your done, it really says to me Dana has it in for the guy,

Jason Miller is not the first UFC fighter to have two bad fights in a row, it seriously happens to pretty much every MMA fighter.

Look if Jason meant it that hes done with fighting, then the UFC should show respect for some that a lot of MMA fans respect, and give him a job doing commentary.

All I know is in some way you have to bring back Jason "Mayhem" Miller, if you decide not to bring this guy back then your missing out on something that could bring the UFC a lot more money, and attention.

If this so happens as to be the very end of Jason "Mayhem" Miller in MMA forever, then as as a huge fan I would like to say the guy is a legend 23-9 with 1 draw is a good record when you consider the amount of tough fights he had.

In 2006, he actually had a heavyweight fight in which he won with a 1st round submission win over Stefan Gamlin.

It would be real easy for people to kick someone while there down, but I know that somewhere in something Jason will be back.

There is not enough you can say about the guy he really is one of the best in the sport, and always will be. The guy reminds me of Chael Sonnen I'm sorry but I will never get on someone for believing in themselves.

Corruption At Lakeland Coming To An End?

 Lakeland High School has been burdened by the verbal abuse and corruption that went on with coach Dennis Robinsons Baseball program. People ask for proof all you need to do is talk to the ones I know who have experienced hard times while attending Lakeland.
You want proof of the corruption look at the inflated stats he put out for both of his kids.

I watched the older son who played with my older brother the 98 team MVP, the oldest son would have games where he gave up 5 to 6 runs and somehow would end a season with a .77 ERA. I think he actually had two straight seasons where he ended with a .77 ERA, lets be honest whats the odds of that 2 straight seasons anyway? These numbers would end up getting Dennis Robinsons oldest son Dennis drafted into the MLB. Let me say though god reached down and gave him one of the best arms I've seen, you really didn't have to boost his stats he would have held his own.

A select group of players obviously said nice things about the program, players who were either taken care of or players who were so good it didn't matter where they went or who they played for. When my brother was a player there I remember the program books they handed out was like a shrine to the oldest son Dennis, it really was obvious what was going on. People turned a blind eye to all of this corruption and verbal abuse because they were looking to cut deals for their own kids.

Now take this for whatever you want because I don't have direct knowledge of some of these things, but there is a couple of stories I heard about others. I've heard there was a player who was asked to take his shirt off, then was told he was developed like a ten year old girl in front of everyone. One story I heard was that one of the players who was getting better treatment than most had a father who was a carpenter who put in Dennis Robinson's kitchen for free, another father was said to be his own personal janitor.

Now I'm going to give a few stories that I know are facts.... My brother the 1998 team CO MVP with Kevin Deflavis, had an average over .536 going into his last 2 games of his senior year. My brother was 3 for 6 in his last 2 games, but somehow he ended that season with a .481 average if that is possible. My brother went to the awards dinner and said nothing but good things about the Robinsons hoping they would take care of me when I went there. You can guess it I was never taken care of because I was not 6 foot 4 170 pounds nor was I one of their followers. I loved to play and I miss playing with all my friends from there.

My freshmen year I hit over .420 I don't think I made more than 3 or 4 errors all season at short.. I'm not trying to brag about being able to hit freshmen pitching as a freshmen I should have been able to do that, but I felt like I did well enough to stay above water. I showed up to every practice, every game, I worked as hard as I could when I went there.

To start the summer off Chris Lagoa and I actually had our freshmen coach Matt Novak hit us groundballs just to get some work in. The thing about Matt Novak was he was always available to help you if you needed him. I really believed in everything that guy said. To this day I try to teach a lot of what he taught me when I'm coaching kids. No matter what the age group is I always try to keep it in kids heads that they should always be looking to better themselves everyday.

So I'm working the 3R Baseball camp for Dennis Robinson that summer, I was told many times by coach Matt Novak that I would lose my spot at short. Its one thing to be beat out for a position its another thing to be told you lost your spot before the next season even started. Later I found out the kid that was supposed to replace me at short was the one who I heard had a father who put in coach Den's kitchen for free.

This kid was absolutely brutal in the infield so he didn't last long, It was obvious the kid did not belong in the infield he had tremendous speed which really helped him into becoming a solid outfielder. The one thing I can say for the kid was he had incredible power at the plate but if your making 4 to 5 errors a game in the infield then your a negative. for some reason I still was not given an opportunity to take back the position I never lost in the first place.

Another note heading into my 10th grade year Danny Robinson{Coach Den's youngest} Julian Lugo {Danny's best friend until he didn't need the Robinsons anymore}, and Adam Rosten were selected as 3 captains before the 1st day of tryouts. If they went by the previous season I out played all 3 players so it didn't make much sense to me.  So were going to the first day of tryouts those 3 are in practice uniforms which right off the bat shows you what kind of program we were playing for. I have nothing against any of those three players I actually like them a lot to be honest, I don't blame them for the way things were ran in that school.

As the season went on I was playing a really sharp second base and third base so Dennis Robinson's youngest son Danny told me in the locker room one day that I was going up to Varsity the week after. I agreed to play for a 18 and under summer team for Larry Sullivan who didn't want to take Danny {coach Den's youngest}. Coach Den made 2 Lakeland summer teams after that one was a 16 and under while the other was an 18 and under team.

Coach Den brought me into his office, I remember I kept thinking that this was the moment I was getting called up to Varsity. I was so excited, then my jaw just dropped after he told me I will play for the 16 and under team and that was that. I already knowing his son Danny would be on the 18 and under team said why would I do that? I explained that I would be playing against better competition that would help prepare me for the next level. Coach Den said if you play for him you will not play here. I remember holding my ground and telling him I refused to step down for the summer. We all have a right to play for whatever summer team we want it was another example of the man trying to control everything.

After that they decided to bring up a Freshmen to Varsity who had 1 hit in 11 games to play second base basically in response to what happened between me and Dennis Robinson. There was another shortstop brought up from the freshmen team to the JV team my 10th grade year, he was so terrible he was pulled in the middle of his first game. Coach Matt Novak looked at me and my teammate Chris Tripodi and said I had enough of the bull---- he sent me to short and Chris to second. After that game again I was back to playing third and second so we can put a kid on short who had to wind up to throw the ball to first. I guess at the time I didn't think about things the way I should have because all I cared about was winning.

All season coach Mike Robinson would be in my ear every time he saw me to tell me I had to get bigger. He was telling me I had to be big like my brother who hit home runs. I'm about 5 foot 7 to 5 foot 8 home runs was not a part of my game. So I said there is no way I can get that big by the end of the season, and he told me there is ways you can. He also pressured me that I had to play on the Lakeland 16 and under summer team over college competition which made no sense to me. A part of me really does believe that coach Mike wanted me to stick it to his brother and be the man, but I was not that type of player.

Later on we would make the JV tournament which we would end up winning, I had a big 2 run single that game so I felt like I was a big part of it. I remember leaving that stupid trophy on Dennis Robinsons desk with the feeling I would never go back. I said to myself if I don't move back to Cortlandt Manor or somewhere else then I will never get a break in this school.

I remember my 11th grade year being so miserable not knowing what my future would hold. I struggled and my parents bought property in Pennsylvania. We had decided I was going to transfer to Delaware Valley High School...I commuted all the way to their school for a week until I realized I was never going to be happy.

There was just a hole through me as a person, and I really lost my confidence. I remember there was a point where I was out of school for almost a month, I really was thinking about just dropping out. It was probably one of the darkest times in my life, I really felt like the only one out of my friends who was going to be without a High School diploma. My parents decided to try and send me to Putnam Valley High School.

The moment I stepped into Putnam Valley School District again I felt like I went back to step one and might as well just give up on Baseball. All of a sudden my first day Shawn Tarkington {Former AA Baseball player for the Minnesota Twins} stops me and asks me if I was trying out for the Baseball team. I said no just expecting things not to work out, and he said no your playing. So I remember showing up and everything just felt right, everyday I felt like a new person. Win or loss he just ran such a good program that it gave me hope again. I finally believed in myself again so my grades kicked up all of a sudden I was doing better all the way around.

Still dealing with the arm problems which started at Lakeland, the pain was getting worse and worse. I remember my senior year there were days I felt like my arm was going to fall off. Every time I throw a baseball or a softball to this day I have the sharpest pain running through my arm to the point where it almost buckles my knees. I remember once Shawn Tarkington realized my arm was getting bad he moved me to second base from shortstop because he told me the truth that I would make a better college second basemen than a shortstop.

Shawn was real with you because he has seen what it takes to make it to the biggest level. We won 1 game my senior year lost 20 most would say wow that must suck well it didn't truth be told it was the most fun I ever had playing. When my senior year was over I remember I felt kinda like I was cheated out of a few years because not only did I play through a torn ligament in my right elbow for four years, but I felt like Dennis Robinson really didn't do anything for me.

My friend Chris Lagoa, Chris is another guy who has told me he experiences problems with his arm to this day. Chris now works for law enforcement and has a beautiful family that he works very hard for. He.came to my house and was devastated because in so many words one of the Robinson coaches said on the microphone at the dinner that he was a disappointment.  I remember my friend just looked floored by the whole situation, and would later on throw a no hitter on my summer team before my surgery. Coach Dennis Robinsons son Danny was on the team so coach Den got a front row seat to have it shoved down his throat, it was a great day. Also to make a note about that summer team I find it funny that Dennis Robinsons youngest son Danny was yelling at him to leave because he didn't want him there.

Eric Golden never even got picked for any of the teams so out of all of my friends he probably got it the worst. I just wouldn't feel right telling my story if I didn't tell you his. There is no way Eric was not better than at least 4 to 5 players on some of those teams which included Danny Robinson {Coach Den's youngest}. Eric was good enough to play college Baseball so that must have meant something. Eric would have played in shorts and a t-shirt if he had to, all the kid wanted to do was be a part of the team.

John Ferrara was not only 100 times better than the catcher we used whos father was a lawyer, but John had his confidence completely ripped away from him. I can tell you I saw this kid show flashes of some serious talent, and coach Den never even discovered an ounce of it. He quit after our freshmen year thinking he would never get a fair shot, it is a shame when you look back because like I said he had serious talent. John ended up going to the army and is now married with a kid on the way. I have so much respect for this guy because what he does for our country says it all hes a true American.

Chris Tripodi had some of the best hands I've seen and he was another guy who never got his fair shake.Chris is also an excellent writer, he definitely is someone I liked playing on the same team with. The thing with Chris is you could argue all day with him but at the end of the night you knew where he stood. He was someone you knew you could trust, and I honestly feel like he loves winning as much as anyone I ever played with.

When I had Tommy John surgery during the summer of 2004 the year I graduated I had it in my head I was going to make it back. I was rehabbing my arm everything was really coming together then I shattered the middle bone in my right hand. I needed surgery for my hand which obviously ended rehabbing my arm which never healed right. The year after that I tried to play again found out I had mono and lyme at the same time. At this point I officially decided it was time to just quit, and move on. During the years of not playing has taught me that there are other things in life. I've learned all that stock people put into High School sports is ridiculous. We so many times get caught up in what we want that we don't realize its about the kids.

Back to Lakeland people want to say these coaches made men out of us, no we made men out of ourselves. Whatever we are or are on the way to become we did on our own. When I look back at a program of over 40 years one regional title and everyone talked about how much the Robinsons know about the game. I'm sorry but Lakeland has had some of the best talent in all of Westchester the reason they don't win it all is because the players are wore out by the time the sectionals start. You got a stack of players with arm trouble another stack who are just worn out mentally, none of this is to make you a man.

Baseball is a game and should be played like one. I think what gets me is that at the end of all those 5 hour practices you don't even get a fair program. You got coaches kids and their friends along with whoever has parents who want to play the game.

Maybe Lakeland had a good purpose before Dennis Robinson brought his kids into the program I don't know but I can definitely say from the moment I met that man I could see he was a corrupt phony. I remember my brother use to look up to him as a god even then I told him alone that Dennis Robinson seemed like one of the most arrogant people I ever met. If nobody speaks up then this whole situation will die and coach Dennis Robinson will come out of it smelling like roses. The Lakeland field will become Robinson field or worse of all Dennis Robinson field either way lets tell the truth about the man.

Parents kept their mouths shut during my years because I could see it they wanted the Robinsons to take care of their kids. Once these kids didn't get what they wanted that is when the parents would flip out which is probably whats going on right now . From what I heard its a situation right now where coach Dennis and Mike Robinson were asked to step down for parents maybe getting a lawsuit about their son having arm problems. Look I don't believe in that I don't need to get involved in that but I can definitely say people will use this as a way to promote the Robinson Baseball program even more.

What I want to come out of this is the truth these men have been in so many ways abusing kids on a daily basis for years while nobody said a word. If you were effected good or bad get it out there because people need to know all sides of every story. We already heard the words from the select group of Lakeland lackeys so lets hear it from the people who are not afraid to speak up and tell the truth. It doesn't matter if you were a big player there, a lackey, a bench player or even if you were cut speak up now for the future generations growing up.

Please don't let this kind of abuse happen to another kid ever again. You want a kid to be in better shape then you tell him to work out if he doesn't work hard you don't play him, you don't try to break the kid every second of every practice. Lets just look at the big picture were talking about kids 14 through 18 here, the idea is to make everyone better not just the ones you choose to take care of.

People will say I take it all too serious I don't know I just know when I look back I see a program that didn't create the good people are saying it did.I know some people will respect what I wrote some will get very angry, but I just thought someone should tell another side of the story about what went on there. Trust me nobody in the world wanted that to be a legit program more than I did. I know some will read this and say who cares your 26 years old now well I guess I never really got closure on what happened. I never really got to speak my mind so I hope people read this and realize I am talking about a program that failed more times than not. I am speaking up so we can coach children and make sure we teach them that when you play well you get rewarded its not about who you know.

Lakeland has had so many great players and they will continue to get them. I still remember the days of watching my brothers team when they played there. I remember watching players that had so much talent I felt amazed just to be around them. I can name great players but I'd be naming them all night. People give all the credit to coach Dennis for an Alex Martinez that kid was dominating before he even went there. Every where that kid went he was a monster who was so much better than everyone else that he was in his own league.

I want kids to be trained the right way and somewhere in the middle of everything, coach Dennis Robinson lost his way, and made it an uncomfortable place to be for so many. I'm not saying you shouldn't be hard on players, but you have to be realistic. Nobody I played with ever went on to be a New York Yankee obviously so I don't get where all of this attention gets placed on numbers we put up in High School. I don't understand why the man felt the need to inflate his sons stats because everyone who played with them knows they didn't put up the numbers that were written down.

One thing I should have mentioned before is as a person I really do think coach Mike is not a bad guy. Coach Mike Robinson was really good with the little kids in his summer camp, I do remember him doing crazy hat day every Friday. I don't want people hating coach Dennis or coach Mike as people I am talking about how they handled the Baseball program. I also remember Dennis {Coach Den's oldest son} hanging out with a lot of the kids there along with Miguel Iglesias. I honestly think if it were not for coach Den then coach Mike would be able to run a great program.

I like Dennis Robinson's sons as people I really do I think they took a lot of crap for being his kids which I never thought was right either. I think the thing that really triggered people about Danny was when he was brought up to Varsity in 10th grade that officially was a slap in the face to every other player on that JV team. There was not one guy that Danny was better than and I can get numerous people to say the same thing. Danny was so bad I remember he got hit in the butt with a line drive at first base because he had no idea how to hold a runner on. This kid would actually go for pickoff moves to first when there was only a runner on third, he did things that made you wonder if he even had a brain.

For the people who talk bad about Danny {youngest son} a lot of you do it because you don't have enough guts to point the finger at the real problem. The way parents from other teams would talk Danny down was disgusting, they actually held a grudge against a 14 year old kid at the time. The thing about Danny is I honestly think he would fight an entire team if he had to, no Baseball ability but I really do think he had a lot of fight in him. Maybe if trained the right way Danny might have been a solid player, over the years he did improve when he was moved to first base. The real problem is the way coach Dennis Robinson coached the team, and handled the program all around. In the end maybe all of these problems like I said before are a result of what happens when you let fathers coach their kids in High School sports.

I really do hope there is no lawsuit against the Robinsons if that is the case, I just wanted to point out the flaws in their program. I think its stupid for people to put the blame only on them for why their kids arm doesn't work if that is whats going on because it is also the parents job to get involved in what is going on with their kids physical health. A part of me blames them for teaching me that ridiculous throwing style in the infield, but you also have to remember nobody put a gun to my head. Take what I wrote as advice on how to handle coaching kids in the future, coming from someone who saw politics everyday just play the game straight up. Have fun but at the same time in High School Baseball you should also be coaching to win.

In no way shape or form am I trying to ruin a man's reputation, I just don't like how corrupt this area has become. I don't know coach Dennis out of Baseball so he may be a good guy that I don't know, but he ran a program that was based on lies and power trips. I don't know what his intentions were other than taking care of his own, I really didn't feel like he ever had my back one day. You should always feel like your coach is going to protect you and he never looked out for me or my brother. I can understand I didn't put up the numbers my brother did in High School but I was still a solid player who wanted to be there more than anything. I use to love putting that uniform on it made me feel special just to be a part of the program until I saw how its ran up close and personal. I think what it really comes down to is coaches in High School should never be allowed to run a team with their own kids on the roster.

If there is one thing I did admire about coach Mike and Dennis Robinson is that the school was always available for us to try and better ourselves as athletes. They did put in a lot of time that should be respected, and maybe I went a little too far in some ways. I've always been a passionate person who just speaks whatever is on my mind, and for anyone offended in this blog I do apologize. I want you all to see the truth to better the program but at the same time lets not condemn them as people. To all reading this I do want to say thank you to coaches Matt Novak, Joseph Knapp, Rob Cappelli, and most of all Shawn Tarkington. To coaches Dennis and Mike Robinson I don't hold anything against them anymore I wish them luck, and I hope they realize that they did screw over a lot of good players so it never happens again if and when they return to the hive.

Last I will close this out by saying I know I was a limited player I don't blame coach Dennis for what I did after High School any mistakes or anything good I did I did on my own. Coach Dennis may have helped curtain players for those guys I don't know you I'm sorry. I really hope people can read this with an open mind no matter what side there on and realize I am only trying to speak my mind for the future of the school. I have seen a lot of crazy stuff happen over the years, I've seen so many good people go down the drain. I really want people that read this to realize that we should all be on the same page here. Everyone should want to continue to make things be the best that they can be. Even if you disagree with what I am saying at least agree that it never hurts to keep an open mind.