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I'll be on vacation from June 15 to July 19 but my blog won't be taking any time off.
I have posted six stories/editorials/features in the last six days, enough to test your memory, challenge your moral code and stir your competitive juices.
I look forward upon my return to view your responses.
- If you could advise the NCAA on how best to re-tool the recruiting process, what would you do?
- Who are your choices as the best five high school basketball players in Illinois that you have seen since 1990?
- What is your best memory of high school baseball in the Chicago area, the best player you ever saw?
- The passing of Phillips football and track coach Carl Bonner rekindles memories of a time when the coaching profession was filled with giants, men who devoted 30 or more years of their lives to mentoring teenagers. How and why has the profession changed?
- Jack Bastable was a three-sport star before the era of specialization, the pure definition of athleticism. Could another Jack Bastable emerge today?
Cell Phone Alerts
Where ya going, Taylor? I'm leaving July 5 for a golf trip to North Dakota. Yeah, I know, but I like to be a little different.
THE REASON THERE AREN'T MORE MEN LIKE CARL BONNER, IS BECAUSE CARL BONNER ATTENDED FISK UNIVERSITY, AND HE KNEW WHAT HE WANTED TO DO AFTER HE GRADUATED FROM COLLEGE, HE WANTED TO RETURN TO HIS ALMA MATER- PHILLIPS HIGH SCHOOL AND BE A ROLE-MODEL, HE WANTED TO EDUCATE AND COACH!
NOW A DAYS YOU HAVE INDIVIDUALS FALLING BACK INTO EDUCATION AS A CAREER, THEY DIDN'T GO TO COLLEGE TO DO IT IN THE FIRST PLACE, THEY FELL BACK INTO IT, BECAUSE SOME THINK, SHORT HOURS, NO WORK IN THE SUMMER, UNLESS I WANT TO, I'LL COACH IF I WANT TO, SOME HAVE OPTIONS, CARL BONNER MADE HIS MARK, BECAUSE HE CAME FROM A FAMILY THAT WAS COMMITTED TO RETURNING TO THE COMMUNITY AND HELPING OTHERS!
HIS BROTHER WILLIAM BONNER, SR. - WILBERFORCE UNIVERSITY,
HIS BROTHER'S MOOSE AND BOBBY BONNER- XAVIER UNIVERSITY
THREE GREAT INSTITUTIONS THAT TOUCHED THE LIVES OF FOUR
BROTHERS THAT INSTILLED IN THEM, TO RETURN HOME AND MAKE A MARK IN EDUCATION AND COACHING, THE BONNER BROTHERS, FOUR
GREAT MEN WHO WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN, AND NEVER DUPLICATED EVER AGAIN!
THANK GOD FOR FISK UNIVERSITY, WILBERFORCE UNIVERSITY,
AND XAVIER UNIVERSITY!
MOST OF ALL THANK YOU GOD FOR ALLOWING THESE FOUR MEN TO TOUCH MY LIFE!
The Five best Basketball players in Illinois since 1990 is, Kevin Garnett, Ronnie Fields, Quentin Richardson, Jon Schyer, Derrick Rose. However I have witness incrediable performances by players such as Eddy Curry, Corey Maggette, Melvin Ely, Frank Williams, and Imari Sawyer. There have been to many Illinois players that have had good High School careers. Will Bynum and Sean Dockery playoff battle was the best game I ever seen in my life. Will had 38 and Sean had 52 in a double overtime game. Where will those two stand in Illinois history. Illinois produces talent. What about DMiles Toine Walker, Shaun Livingston, Sergio and Marcus Griffin. I could go on and on.
It Was rumor that Andre Henley of De La Salle is Transfering to Morgan Park High School.
Taylor,
I was most fortunate to have grown up watching and playing baseball in the Arlington Heights area. Starting in 1959 I watched a 12 year old lefty named Paul Splitorff (future Major League star) pitch for his little league team in the town championships. Four years later in 1963 I saw an oversized kid named Greg Luzinski pitch for his Prospect Heights team in the Illinois Little League title game. Two years later in 1965 I followed Splitorff and a young Mark Newman carry an Arlington Heights Legion team all the way to the National Championships. In 1967 I played alongside Dave Kingman, Tom Lundsted, Jack Bastable, Mark Newman, Tom Epperly and Bob Stevens on a very special Arlington American Legion team. In 1977 I watched Mike Marshall become the hottest high school player in the nation. In the mid 1980s I got a peek at future Major Leaguer Dan Wilson then playing catcher for a power house Barrington team that won a State championship.
Best high school players I ever saw:
1. Mike Marshall - pitcher / 1st baseman Buffalo Grove HS 1978.
Scouts attended every game in both his junior and senior years. At 6'5" he was an intimidating pitcher with a 90 mph fastball. At the plate he was the hardest out in the Chicago area hitting .460 his senior year. He tore up the Minor Leagues and was voted 1981 "Minor League Player of the Year" while hitting .373 with 34 homers and 137 RBI. Mike played 11 years in the majors mostly with the Dodgers earning two World Series rings.
2. Dan Wilson - catcher/pitcher Barrington HS 1986
Wilson did it all. Outstanding contact hitter, outstanding power hitter, outstanding arm, outstanding feel for the game. Was perhaps the finest defensive catcher to come out of the Chicago area in the last 50 years. Led Barrington HS to a state title in 1986 and in 1981 played for Barrington in the Little League World Series. Played for U of Minnesota. Was a 1st round draft choice in 1990 and had a 13 year career in the Major Leagues.
3. Greg Luzinski - infielder Notre Dame HS 1968.
Greg could flat out hit! Perhaps the best power hitting HS player ever produced in the Chicago area. His senior season he stood 6'2" and weighed 235 lbs. Scouts would pack the stands to watch Greg pound 475 foot line dives into the school parking lot. Exceptional bat speed for a guy so large. He blasted his way through the Minors. Had a 14 year career in the Major Leagues hitting over 300 HR. In 1975 he was National League MVP runner up.
4. Tom Lundsted - catcher Prospect HS 1967.
Exceptional hitter with major league defensive skills. A 6'5" two time All State Basketball Player Tom was a born leader with plenty of charisma. Blessed with quick hands and a big arm. No one at that HS level could steal a base on him. A first round draft choice Tom played in the Majors with the Cubs in 1977.
5. Mark Newman - pitcher/third baseman Wheeling HS 1966.
Mark was the smartest of the smartest. He was an exceptional infielder and a very tough out at the plate. Mark's most unique talents however were found in his abilities to break down a game. He could help any teammate become a better hitter or help any pitcher get out of an inning. He earned a scholarship to then powerhouse SIU. After college he paid his dues learning to manage at the American Legion level. Catching a break he landed the head coaching job at Old Dominion University in 1981. He built up a program that had teams nationally ranked in the top 25 for 5 straight years. During those years he had 29 of his players sign pro contracts.
Today Mark is the Senior Executive Vice President of Operations for the New York Yankees. He is largely credited by baseball insiders as the architect that built the powerhouse Yankee teams that won 3 World Series in the 1990s.
6. Dave Kingman - pitcher/outfielder Prospect HS 1967.
No Chicago HS player ever had more Major League potential than Dave. As a senior he stood 6'7". On the mound he was blessed with having a 95 mph fastball and had a Major League curve ball by the time he finished HS. At the plate he was equally as dangerous. Before every game in batting practice Kingman would belt 500 foot bombs pitch after pitch. He went on to be an All-American at USC where he led them to a NCAA championship. He was the number one selection in the 1970 draft. After he finished at USC, a baseball reporter from Sports Illustrated wrote that Kingman reminded him of Stan Musial. Always a moody player with issues even in HS he never fully developed his rare skills. Had a 16 year career in the Majors hitting over 440 homers with 3 All-Star selections.
7. Jack Bastable - Catcher Wheeling HS 1969
As an HS player Jack performed as well as any of the above. A .450 hitter his senior year on a 16-1 team. Not quite as polished a catcher as Lundsted or Wilson in HS he later developed into a front line talent. He had speed and quickness that none of the above players could match. Jack could stretch a single into a double and a double into a triple. He later stared at the U of Missouri both behind the plate as well as at 3rd base. Bastable reached the Triple A level playing 6 seasons in the Minors mostly with the Phillies.
8. Tom Epperly - SS St Viators HS 1967
Almost a mirror image of Bastable in size, skill sets and temperament. Tom too was blessed with rare leadership skills. Starting at shortstop while only a sophmore he led Viators to the 1965 State championship game. He then earned a baseball scholarship to U of Minnesota where he and teammate Dave Winfield became Major League prospects. As an outfielder Tom had a great first step that allowed him to cover a lot of ground. He played all the way to the Triple A level. Epperly played 6 seasons in the Minors all with the Twins. Tommy recently passed away on July 12 of this year.
9. Paul Splittorff - pitcher/outfielder Arlington HS 1964
I first saw Paul pitch as a Little Leaguer in 1959. A player that improved enough every year to become a Major Leaguer 11 years later. Seldom the big star on any of the teams he played for including HS. He slowly developed great control on the mound by keeping batters off balance with quality secondary pitches.
Paul played 15 seasons in the Major Leagues all with the Royals. He remains the Royals winningest pitcher with 166 wins. For the last 20 plus years he has been providing color on Royals TV.