School's Out Creates Slow Week

The Rocky Mount Gryphon baseball team swings back into action Friday Night with a conference game at Southwest Edgecombe at 7.00pm.

The Gryphons are off to a 9-1 start and are 2-0 in conference play. So they are off for a week and then play three games in two days. They play a doubleheader at 1.00pm Saturday against Riverside High School.

If there was ever a chance to fall off the mountain this is the weekend. SWE is playing much better than any other conference year for them since they have been in the NEW-6. 4-A Riverside is a real good ball club.

Pitching has carried this team so far. A week off most of the time hurts pitching more than hitting. If our pitching staff is not as sharp as they have been all season I could see them losing a couple this weekend.

If they were to win all three this weekend maybe this team has a chance to be special.

I have found out recently of coach Gary Smith at Nash Central has Cancer. Gary like so many coaches is always a big help to me when ever I'm doing a ball game at Central. We will keep Gary and his family in our players during his fight.

I know this is old news but it is the first time I've spoken of it. Ritchie Pridgen at Fike High has retired as football coach. He retired in December but he was hoping to come back after six months and double dip. A complication has developed and Ritchie will not come back in July. Too bad for Fike.

Too bad for all of us

You know the State of North Carolina has a shortage of teachers. Once you get thirty years in with the state and most of the time for teachers that puts them at 52 to 55 years old. That's too young for the pasture.

The state in these economics stressed times needs to improve the retirement system to where by staying longer than 30 years improves their retirement, As it is now you gain nothing by staying longer the first time through.

Could the Stanley cup return to Raleigh in 2009? If the last six weeks is any indication the Hurricanes right now are the best team in hockey. They have won nine games in a row including a 9-0 whitewash of the New York Islanders last night. The only problem about being the best team now is, when the playoffs start next week the season will not be over to June.

If he were alive today Jim"Catfish" Hunter would have been 63 years old today. Not only did I have his baseball cards growing up but why do I remember that date?

Back in 1962 and 1963 when I was the bat boy for the Ahoskie American Legion team in which Jimmy played for, I remember going to the first game of the season which I think was in Benson and coach Al Vaughn was checking birth certificates to make sure there was no slip ups.

I was riding the hump in the front seat calling off the players name and birth date and he was checking his roster.

Isn't it funny some of the most insignificant things that you remember all your life.