Justin-Siena hosts Girls in Sports Symposium

The community of Napa, CA, will host the first ever Girls in Sports

Symposium on Sunday, April 21 at Justin-Siena High School in the

Dan Clark Gym from 1-4 p.m. This event will showcase local

professional female athletes and personalities promoting the

importance of girls athletics. The event is free and open to girls in

grades 3-12, parents, coaches, and allies of female athletes, the

event will include keynote speakers and mission-specific breakout

sessions. As part of the Symposium, Napa businesses across

various industries, including health, wellness, and sports, will be

onsite promoting healthy lifestyles.

Historically, the term “play like a girl”' has held mostly negative

connotations including but not limited to clumsiness, weakness,

and lacking in athleticism or agility. Conventional wisdom suggested

girls would never play sports as well as boys, nor would they be

valuable investments. Today, however, there is an entire generation

of athletes who are flipping the script on what it means to play like a

girl, sending a clear message to anyone who questions their abilities

and capabilities.

Alise Willoughby is the keynote speaker. Willoughby is a BMX Elite

Women's National Team member, Rio 2016 Olympic Silver Medalist,

Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics, 2 Time BMX World Champion.

Check her out here:

https://youtu.be/TpVTtFoKmic?si=5bpSbG7JWz53x_eC.

Willoughby will open the event at 1 p.m. and everyone is invited to hear

her speak. There will also be 18 workshop presenters on hand who

have been impactful in female athletics both regionally and nationally. 

Register Here: https://forms.gle/7fwg6YRjRFDgD9vWA

Never mind Mount Rushmore, Scully was the entire Mountain

 

When the day involves losing part of your youth and beyond, you are

stopped in your tracks, especially when that portion of your life is a unique

breed of special. 

That day was August 2, 2022, when news broke that Hall of Fame

broadcaster Vin Scully died at age 94 at his home in Hidden Hills, which

is a section of Los Angeles. No cause of death was revealed. 

Scully was the longest-tenured broadcaster with one team in professional

sports history, having broadcast Los Angeles Dodger games for 67 years.

Scully was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. Other honors

included The Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Ford C. Frick Award

from the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and a star on the Hollywood

Walk of Fame. 

Scully also called NFL games and PGA Tour events along with 25 World

Series and 12 All-Star Games, all on network television. Though Scully

was commonly associated with baseball, he called the 1982 NFC

Championship Game with Hank Stram in which the San Francisco 49ers

defeated the Dallas Cowboys 28-27 highlighted by Joe Montana’s

touchdown pass to Dwight Clark in a game simply known as “The Catch.”

That game is known as one of the NFL’s most iconic moments. Scully

was also the lead broadcaster for national games on NBC from 1983-1989. 

Vin Scully and Tommy Lasorda, who passed away on January 7, 2021

were the faces of Dodger baseball. Like Scully, Lasorda had a lifetime

association with the Dodgers but in a multitude of roles such as manager,

player, scout, minor league coach, third base coach, vice president, and

special advisor. 

Among the places where the news hit hardest was Oracle Park in San

Francisco, where the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers

were playing. After the Dodgers defeated the Giants 9-5, a video tribute

of Scully was shown on the scoreboard. That venue was also the site of

Scully’s last game as a broadcaster. On that day, the Giants honored him

with a commemorative plaque. The day also featured fans with “Thank

You, Vin” signs along with Giants broadcasters paying tribute to Scully. 

Scully, who graduated from Fordham University in the Bronx, BY, became

the youngest person to broadcast a World Series at age 25 in 1953. Two

years later, Red Barber joined the New York Yankees after which time

Scully became the voice of the Dodgers. 

The rest, as is often said, is history. The irony was that he grew up a New

York Giants fan who discovered a love for baseball when seeing the

results of the second game of the 1936 World Series at a laundromat. 

Whether the names were Don Drysdale, Sandy Koufax, Maury Wills,

Steve Garvey, Orel Hershiser, Fernando Valenzuela, Mike Piazza, or

Clayton Kershaw, Scully, along with the aforementioned Lasorda, were

synonymous with the Dodgers like pepperoni on a pizza. 

Every broadcaster has their own style. Chicago Cubs broadcaster Harry

Caray was loud and bombastic. Scully was a storyteller that had no equal.

Listening to Scully calling a game was like listening to the Pope. Scully,

however, was not just a broadcaster who called balls, strikes, and home

runs. Scully would elicit anecdotes about players and coaches throughout

the broadcast. 

Scully was versatile in that he could paint a picture for both radio and TV

audiences. It was like describing the calm before the storm. The cadence

of Scully’s voice was synonymous with baseball. There was a melodic

tone and integrity in his voice. There is a common assumption that baseball

has waned in popularity among the younger generations but Scully’s

passion was unapologetically baseball. 

It is commonly stated that sports is a place for us to escape but one would

not know it in today’s society that is highlighted with co-hosts taking a louder

approach that involves contrarianism just for the sake of doing so. Though

Scully called games for people of many generations, his approach was a

reminder of when the world was a different place. Even if you never met

him before, it was like a mixture of listening to someone who was part

friend, father, and grandfather. 

Scully took a simple approach of “be good, be prepared and have fun.” On

NBC Sports, there was not a better baseball broadcasting tandem than

Scully and Joe Garagiola. Scully, however, often did Dodger play-by-play

broadcasts without a partner. Nonetheless, Scully hit it out of the park in

that format because of his penchant for history whether it was his

knowledge of stories on players or if he saw something at the moment

from a game that reminded him of something he saw in 1977. 

Scully’s legacy is even more amazing because of what he overcame in

his personal life. In 1972, his first wife, Joan Crawford, died of an

accidental medical overdose. She was 35 years old at the time. Scully’s

oldest son, Michael, died in a helicopter crash while working for ARCO

Transportation while inspecting for oil pipeline leaks in the aftermath of

the 1994 Northridge Earthquake. Scully in various interviews attributed

his devout Catholic faith and ability to line up in his personal batter’s

box of broadcasting to ease the pain of those losses. 

Listening to Scully on the air, one would have never known. The term

GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) has become fashionable and poetic.

Personally, I hate that term because it has become too trendy. 

As far as baseball broadcasters, Scully is not on Mount Rushmore. He

is the entire mountain. You could also tell me that he is the best

sportscaster regardless of sport – and I would not argue. 

Words from The G-Man

 

This is a personal message from St. Helena Star (St. Helena, CA) freelance writer

Garrett Whitt, who was injured in a hit-and-run accident in St. Helena on Tuesday

night when returning home from St. Helena High’s 2-1 win over the Clear Lake

(Lakeport) Cardinals in the CIF North Coast Section Div. V softball playoffs. Whitt,

who has had cerebral palsy since birth, gets around in a mobilized wheelchair.

Police and community members are searching for the motorist that struck Whitt

and drove away. Whitt, who is known as “wheels” and “The G-Man” sustained a

broken tibia and fibula in his right leg and bruising on the left side of his body. Whitt

is currently at Queen of the Valley Hospital in nearby Napa, CA, where he was

airlifted, and shared these thoughts via phone on Sunday morning: 

“This is not the dearly departed G.S. Whitt checking in with everyone saying, like

the old Mark Twain line, ‘News of my demise has been greatly exaggerated.’ I’m

still trying to find out if anyone has any idea of the license plate of the car that hit me

but we’ll get to that at some point. You can tell the softball girls, who reached the

finals (on Friday), I was coming back from the game when the aforementioned

event happened. After that, many of the details are foggy where people tell me I

was lucid. 

Darrell Quirici, Brandon Farrell, Mike Thompson and his wife (Janet) were there.

His wife is a registered nurse. 

****NOTE: Farrell is the St. Helena High athletic director and softball head coach.

Quirici is an assistant along with Kristin Ashley. Thompson is a U.S. Representative

for California’s 5th District and resides in St. Helena. 

The last thing I remembered was being airlifted to Queen of the Valley. I was in the

helicopter with a deputy sheriff. I asked him, ``Am I going to make it?” he said, ‘I

think so.’ That gave me some confidence. The rest of that, I remember some of it

because I was talking to the doctors as they evaluated me. They did x-rays and I

broke my right tibia and fibula. They’ve been repaired. I had surgery Wednesday

evening. The surgery went well, according to my sister. I’m on the mend but I’ll be

on the DL (Disabled List) for several weeks. You can tell the guys in St. Helena that

I’ll be out the rest of spring practice but hopefully by the time summer workouts

happen after graduation, I'll be able to come and see what’s happening. Thank you

to everybody that has reached out. There has been a gofundme page to help get a

new wheelchair, that goes to Ray Particelli and his family, specifically his cousin

Francesca, who is a nurse in Santa Rosa. She has come over a couple of times

and checked on me. We’re still looking for the vehicle that ran me down. In sports

terms, I tried to take the charge but it didn’t work. I firmly believe that things

happen for a reason. I tempted fate and won this time. There’s still more to be

done. I thank everyone for their help. I hope that when this is over that I can return

the favor in whatever form possible.”

Leonora Particelli, who is the sister of the aforementioned Ray Particelli, has

established a gofundme page to cover expenses for a new wheelchair and

subsequent home care:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/please-donate-to-help-garrett-whitt?qid=e06bd52e907262525aade4d2907294ba

New York Yankees Dream Team

Every sport evolves with each passing generation -- from the

size and athleticism of players to game strategy. 

Baseball’s evolution, however, is both historic and unique given

the pre-integration and dead ball eras. For the former, full

segregation took place from 1887-1947. Full integration, which

was a gradual process, came in 1959. The Deadball Era was a

period in the early 20th century when baseball was characterized

by low scoring and emphasis on pitching. 

There was the Steroid Era, which has no definite start time though

it is generally assumed that the era ran from the late 1980s until the

late 2000s. This era was defined by shattered home run records

leading to exorbitant salaries. 

The New York Yankees could fill the New York City phonebook with

their resume. The franchise has won 27 World Series titles, 40

American League pennants and have eight more postseason

appearances as a wild card team. To add further perspective on the

Yankees success, the St. Louis Cardinals have 11 World Series titles,

second in Major League Baseball history. The Yankees have had

enough star players to fill a galaxy. With the Yankees success, they

are polarizing to fan bases, you either strongly love them or hate

them with little in between. 

Today, I formed a Yankees Dream Team in a 26-man roster format.

For openers, to make this roster, four years as a Yankee are required.

No exceptions. With the free agency era, I’m not going to cheapen

this roster with 1-3 year rentals. 

I’m forming a 12 man pitching staff, five starters and seven relievers.

For the latter, I want at least one lefthander in the bullpen. For position

players, I am taking what I believe is the best of the best regardless

of era. For the bench players, it’s the best of the rest with versatility

being heavily considered. Merit achievements such as Hall of Fame,

All-Star appearances and Gold Gloves are considered but not

guaranteed. General impactfulness on the franchise is also considered.

Generational reminders

If you played on a playoff team, there is no guarantee of landing on this

roster. If you played during a bad season, that does not deter you from

being on this roster. Off-the-field baggage is not a deterrent to landing

on this team, nor is any Steroid Era affiliation. This is baseball, not the

Boys Scouts. We don’t do morality clauses. Also, this franchise is so

deep with greatness that some deserving players will not be selected. 

Starting pitchers

Red Ruffing, Mel Stottlemyre, Allie Reynolds, Whitey Ford, Andy Pettite

Ruffing won 231 games in a Yankees uniform on the way to a Hall of

Fame career. He was a six-time All-Star and helped the Yankees to six

World Series titles. He was the American League leader in strikeouts

in 1932 and wins in 1938. Stottlemeyer fired 40 career shutouts during

his 11-year career with the Yankees. He was also a five-time All-Star

and helped the Yankees to five World Series titles. Reynolds spent

eight seasons with the Yankees, six of which were All-Stars and he

helped them win five World Series titles. He was the two-time American

League strikeout leader and the American League ERA leader in 1952. 

No pitcher won a higher percentage of his decisions than Ford at 69%.

Ford also still holds the Major League record for 33 1/3 scoreless

innings in World Series competition. Ford was a 10-time All-Star and

helped the Yankees to six World Series titles. He was the Cy Young

Award winner and World Series MVP in 1961. He led the American

League in wins three times and the Major Leagues in ERA twice on

the way to a Hall of Fame career.  Pettite was defined by consistency

and reliability as he remains the Yankees franchise leader in strikeouts

and is tied with Ford with the number of starts at 438. Pettite was a

three-time All-Star and helped the Yankees win five World Series. 

Bullpen

Closer -- Mariano Rivera, Rich “Goose” Gossage, Sparky Lyle, Johnny

Murphy, Dave Righetti, Jeff Nelson, Aroldis Chapman

Rivera became the first unanimous Hall of Fame selection in Major

League history. He is the all-time leader in saves with 652. Rivera's cut

fastball translated into 13 All-Star appearances and helped the

Yankees to five World Series titles. He led the Major Leagues in saves

three times and was the World Series MVP in 1999. Gossage's

trademark fu manchu mustache made for an intimidating glare and so

too did his fastball. In six years as the franchise’s closer, Gossage

was a four-time All-Star with 150 saves and he helped the Yankees

to their 1978 World Series title. Lyle was one of the top relievers in the

1970s. In his seven years with the Yankees, he led the American

League in saves twice. Murphy possessed a tremendous curveball

and was a three-time All-Star with 104 career saves with the Yankees.

He also helped deliver seven World Series titles.

Righetti made a seamless transition from starter to reliever. He became

the first pitcher in Major League history to throw a no-hitter and lead

the league in saves, a feat that Dennis Eckersley and Derek Lowe

later accomplished. Righetti recorded 233 career saves with the

Yankees. He was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1981

and a two-time All-Star. Nelson was a dependable set up man to get

games to Rivera during the Yankees dynasty from 1996-2000, during

which time they won four World Series in five years. Nelson recorded

a 3.47 ERA with the Yankees. Chapman is currently in his sixth season

with the Yankees. Nicknamed the “Cuban Missile,” Chapman entered

the 2021 season with 111 career saves with the Yankees. 

Infield

Catcher -- Yogi Berra; First base -- Lou Gehrig; Second base -- Tony

Lazzeri; Third base -- Alex Rodriguez; Shortstop -- Derek Jeter

On the way to a Hall of Fame career, Berra became the Major League’s

all-time leader with 1,430 RBIs, most among catchers. Berra was an

18-time All-Star and three-time American League MVP. Berra has

been connected with 13 of the franchise's 27 World Series titles,

including as a player and as a coach. Gehrig established a Major

League record by playing 2,130 consecutive games, which was a

Major League record until Cal Ripken eclipsed that mark. Gehrig

drove in at least 100 runs in 13 consecutive seasons. His lifetime

batting average was .340 with 493 career home runs on the way to a

Hall of Fame career. Gehrig was a seven-time All-Star, six-time

American League RBI leader, three-time American League home run

leader, two-time American League MVP, American League batting

champion in Triple Crown winner in 1934. He also helped deliver six

World Series.

Lazzeri still holds the American League record for most RBIs in a

game with 11. On the way to a Hall of Fame career in which he was

inducted posthumously, Lazzeri was part of the famed “Murderers

Row” Yankees lineups. Lazzeri helped deliver five World Series titles

and was an All-Star in 1933. The cerebral Jeter finished one vote shy

of his 20-year career from being a unanimous Hall of Fame. He also

played in 158 postseason games, which nearly amounts to another

season. During his 20 seasons, Jeter was a 14-time All-Star, five-time

Silver Slugger Award, five-time Gold Glove Award, American League

Rookie of the Year in 1996, World Series MVP in 2000 and helped

deliver five World Series titles. Though people have their misgivings

about Rodriguez because of his association with RED use, his

resume is undeniable. He leads Yankee third baseman in runs scored,

hits, doubles, home runs and RBIs. Rodriguez helped the Yankees

deliver their most recent World Series title in 2009. He is the fourth

all-time leading home run hitter with 696.

Outfield

Leftfield -- Joe DiMaggio; Centerfield -- Mickey Mantle; Rightfield --

Babe Ruth

DiMaggio played mostly center field but having a starting outfield of

DiMaggio, Mantle and Ruth is a no-brainer. DiMaggio was a well-

rounded hitter and a tremendous defensive player. He still holds the

record for longest hitting streak at 56 games. Nicknamed “The

Yankee Clipper,” DiMaggio is a 13-time All-Star, nine-time World

Series champion, three-time American League MVP. He was also

the American League batting champion, home run leader and RBI

leader two times each on the way to a Hall of Fame career. The

switch-hitting Mantle is the only player in Major League history to hit

150 home runs from both sides of the plate. Mantle was a 15-time

All-Star and helped deliver seven World Series titles. He was a

four-time American League home run leader, RBI leader and

American League batting champion in 1956. That season, he was

also the Triple Crown winner. Mantle was a three-time American

League MVP on the way to a Hall of Fame career. Ruth is frequently

named in the same breath is Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan

when it comes to naming the best athletes of all time regardless of

sport. Ruth made a tremendous transition from pitcher to full-time

outfielder. Ruth held the major league home run record with 714 until

Hank Aaron and later Barry Bonds eclipse tomorrow.  Ruth helped

deliver seven World Series titles for the Yankees. He was a 12 time

homerun leader and six-time American League RBI leader. He was

also the American League batting champion in 1924 and American

League MVP in 1923. As a pitcher, he led the American League in

ERA in 1916.

Bench

Bill Dickey, Don Mattingly, Graig Nettles, Phil Rizzuto, Dave Winfield,

Bernie Williams

On the way to a Hall of Fame career, Dickey was an 11-time All-Star

and helped the Yankees to seven World Series titles. He compiled a

.313 career batting average with 1,209 RBIs. Mattingly, nicknamed

“Donnie Baseball,” remains a very beloved Yankee. His 684 RBIs

between 1984-1989 is the highest among Major Leaguers. Mattingly

was the nine-time Gold Glove Award winner, six-time All-Star, three-

time Silver Slugger Award winner, and American League MVP in

1985. Rizzuto took part in 1,217 career double plays, at the time of

his retirement that was second only to Luke Appling. Rizzuto was a

crucial part of a dynasty that won nine American League pennants

and seven World Series in his 13-year career. Rizzuto was a five-

time All-Star and American League MVP in 1950. Nettles still holds

the American League record for home runs by a third baseman with

319. Five of Nettles’ six career All-Star appearances came in a

Yankees uniform. He helped the franchise deliver back-to-back

World Series titles in 1977-1978. He was also a two-time Gold Glove

Award winner, American League home run leader in 1976 and ALCS

MVP in 1981. 

Williams was an integral part of the Yankees 1990s dynasty, during

which time they won four World Series in five years. Williams was a

five-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove Award winner. He was the

American League batting champion in 1998 and ALCS MVP in 1996.

Winfield played for a total of six Major League teams but his 10 years

with the Yankees were very defining. Winfield was an eight-time All-

Star in a Yankees uniform. In that span, he also won five Silver

Slugger Awards and five Gold Gloves. 

Manager

Casey Stengel

Stengel’s 54 year association with Major League Baseball ranged

from the Dead Ball era to Mickey Mantle's spectacular power display.

Stengel was a colorful personality with many quotable sayings

dubbed Stengelese. He specialized in the practice of platooning

players with a mix-and-match style that is common in today's game.

On the way to a Hall of Fame career, Stengel led the Yankees to

seven World Series titles, tied for the most by a Yankees manager.

Stengel also led the Yankees to 10 American League pennants in

his 12 seasons. Stengel led the Yankees to 1,149 victories. 

Team

1927

While a case can be made for a handful of other Yankee teams, this

one gets the nod because they are widely considered the best team

in Major League baseball history and in professional sports led by

the menacing line up known as “Murderer's Row.” The season was

highlighted by Ruth's single-season record of 60 home runs. Ruth

also batted .356 and drove in 164 runs. The Yankees won 110

games and finished 19 games ahead of the closest pursuers, the

Philadelphia Athletics. The Yankees then swept the Pittsburgh

Pirates in the World Series. In addition to Ruth being the Home Run

champion, Gehrig was the American League MVP. Earl Combs led

the American League in triples with 23 and Gehrig led the American

League with 175 RBIs.