A typically “crafty” outing in spring training Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs by Colorado Rockies pitcher Brian Lawrence raised his stock as the Demon great mounts a comeback from season-ending and career-threatening shoulder surgery in 2006.
The headline in the Denver Post: “Productive pitchers include Lawrence.” On www.mlb.com: “Lawrence makes statement.”
Post writer Patrick Saunders said the 1998 Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year “… made a bold statement … is emerging as a viable candidate for the rotation, sooner than later.”
Lawrence, whose No. 29 jersey was retired by NSU before the 2005 season, was hurt on the opening day of spring training a year ago when he had signed with the Washington Nationals. He had surgery and worked all year to recover. Understandably, the Nationals released him in the offseason, and after considering offers from the Pirates, Padres, and Mariners, Brian chose to join the Rockies. He likes pitching in Coors Field and thought the club was a good fit for him.
Wrote Thomas Harding of MLB.com: “After being hidden in bullpen sessions and on the minor league field for 10 days … Lawrence stepped into the competition for the Rockies starting rotation Tuesday.”
In five innings, he allowed two earned runs on seven hits, throwing four scoreless innings after giving up a leadoff homer to Alfonso Soriano (ironically, his teammate in Washington a year ago, when Soriano went deep 46 times) in the first frame. Following the first, Lawrence didn’t allow a runner to reach second. He was the winning pitcher in the 4-2 outcome in the Cactus League contest in Tuscon, Ariz.
“Everything’s together and it’s working the way it should be, and I can tell that in the command,” Lawrence said. “My first couple of outings, I was all over the place. Now the command is there with every pitch.”
Saunders described Brian as “beaming,” understandably so.
Rockies manager Clint Hurdle was pleased with what Lawrence showed.
“He’s crafty, the kind of guy that you go back to the dugout thinking, ‘Man, I can get him,’ but you don’t get him. There are days you might get him, but he makes you swing the bat and challenges your discipline.”
Hurdle said the Rockies might not have the same starting-five rotation on the mound at midseason as they could when the season starts next week, obviously referring to the desire to bring Lawrence along gradually. Byung-Hyun Kim and Josh Fogg have been mentioned for potential trades, especially if the Rockies decide Lawrence could be ready sooner than later.
From Tuesday’s outing, that might just be the case. No question Brian’s prospects soared with his smooth showing against the Cubbies.
Doug Ireland, SID
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
From La. to L.A.
Greg Ashlock always could handle it.
Whether as a point guard for the high-octane Dan Bell-coached Demon basketball team in 1989-90, or as a student who graduated as valedictorian with a perfect 4.0 grade point average in business, Ashlock had a smile and a plan.
He had grit. How else to describe somebody who sent letters asking for an opportunity, any kind of internship or job, to every pro sports franchise – NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL?
Greg got the standard polite rejections. He got a few telephone interviews. And he got a half-hearted reply from the Los Angeles Dodgers that helped change his life.
The Dodgers wrote telling him they only had a seasonal position in their marketing department available and he couldn’t afford to live in Los Angeles for the pittance it paid. He took it, drove with everything he owned to L.A., and found a loft in a Catholic church where he could stay for free if he kept up the lawn and gardens.
Long story made short, hard work once again paid off. He was hired full time by the Dodgers, he went to graduate school at USC, and now he’s emerged as one of the city’s major media players.
Last November, Ashlock topped the list of “Best Managers in Radio for Major Markets” for 2006 as compiled by “Radio Ink,” which bills itself as “Radio’s Premier Management and Marketing Magazine.”
He is in charge of Clear Channel Radio in Los Angeles. Among the personalities on the stations he oversees – Ryan Seacrest, host of a little TV show you might watch: American Idol.
Look for a profile of Greg in this summer’s Alumni Columns magazine.
Doug Ireland, SID
Whether as a point guard for the high-octane Dan Bell-coached Demon basketball team in 1989-90, or as a student who graduated as valedictorian with a perfect 4.0 grade point average in business, Ashlock had a smile and a plan.
He had grit. How else to describe somebody who sent letters asking for an opportunity, any kind of internship or job, to every pro sports franchise – NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL?
Greg got the standard polite rejections. He got a few telephone interviews. And he got a half-hearted reply from the Los Angeles Dodgers that helped change his life.
The Dodgers wrote telling him they only had a seasonal position in their marketing department available and he couldn’t afford to live in Los Angeles for the pittance it paid. He took it, drove with everything he owned to L.A., and found a loft in a Catholic church where he could stay for free if he kept up the lawn and gardens.
Long story made short, hard work once again paid off. He was hired full time by the Dodgers, he went to graduate school at USC, and now he’s emerged as one of the city’s major media players.
Last November, Ashlock topped the list of “Best Managers in Radio for Major Markets” for 2006 as compiled by “Radio Ink,” which bills itself as “Radio’s Premier Management and Marketing Magazine.”
He is in charge of Clear Channel Radio in Los Angeles. Among the personalities on the stations he oversees – Ryan Seacrest, host of a little TV show you might watch: American Idol.
Look for a profile of Greg in this summer’s Alumni Columns magazine.
Doug Ireland, SID
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Sulphur school got its kicks with 2006 Demons NCAA win
Former Demon football kicker Clint Sanford has a place in the record books. Sanford scored 160 career points from 1999-2001, ninth in school history – and in 2000 he set a single-season record with 14 field goals, a mark that stood until Robert Weeks’ onslaught last year.
Nowadays he’s getting his kicks teaching in his hometown and enjoying the accomplishments of the current-day Demons and Lady Demons.
Sanford is an elementary school teacher in Sulphur. He is a daily visitor to nsudemons.com, keeping track of all NSU sports news, and last March 17, his daily routine came to a halt as the Demon basketball team’s NCAA Tournament first-round game against Iowa turned into a thriller down the stretch.
After reading the “Where were you when The Shot went through?” Demon Dust column posted Friday, Clint e-mailed the following story and was kind enough to share it here:
“I remember exactly where I was. I had told the principal the day before that he better not schedule any observations in my class on that day because the TV would be on and my class would be watching the Demons. He is a Cowboy fan but he understood.
“I was teaching my 5th graders a math lesson and watching the game. When it got down to the last 4 or 5 minutes I stopped teaching and made my students watch the game instead. When that shot went in, my class and I went nuts. The other teachers down the hall came running to see what was going on. We were going crazy.
“Just as the class was calming down I heard someone shouting ‘Mr. Sanford, they won, they won!’ down the hall. I look out my door to see my principal running down the hall towards me. He had been in his office watching the game himself.
“A Cowboy convert? A new Demon fan! Probably not, but for those brief couple of minutes I believe we had a lot of Demon fans. It is something I will never forget.”
Ditto, Clint. Nor will we forget your 37-yard field goal with four seconds left on Oct. 21, 2000, that capped an incredible comeback and gave Northwestern a 37-34 homecoming win over McNeese. I’ll bet your principal remembers that one, too!
Doug Ireland, SID
Nowadays he’s getting his kicks teaching in his hometown and enjoying the accomplishments of the current-day Demons and Lady Demons.
Sanford is an elementary school teacher in Sulphur. He is a daily visitor to nsudemons.com, keeping track of all NSU sports news, and last March 17, his daily routine came to a halt as the Demon basketball team’s NCAA Tournament first-round game against Iowa turned into a thriller down the stretch.
After reading the “Where were you when The Shot went through?” Demon Dust column posted Friday, Clint e-mailed the following story and was kind enough to share it here:
“I remember exactly where I was. I had told the principal the day before that he better not schedule any observations in my class on that day because the TV would be on and my class would be watching the Demons. He is a Cowboy fan but he understood.
“I was teaching my 5th graders a math lesson and watching the game. When it got down to the last 4 or 5 minutes I stopped teaching and made my students watch the game instead. When that shot went in, my class and I went nuts. The other teachers down the hall came running to see what was going on. We were going crazy.
“Just as the class was calming down I heard someone shouting ‘Mr. Sanford, they won, they won!’ down the hall. I look out my door to see my principal running down the hall towards me. He had been in his office watching the game himself.
“A Cowboy convert? A new Demon fan! Probably not, but for those brief couple of minutes I believe we had a lot of Demon fans. It is something I will never forget.”
Ditto, Clint. Nor will we forget your 37-yard field goal with four seconds left on Oct. 21, 2000, that capped an incredible comeback and gave Northwestern a 37-34 homecoming win over McNeese. I’ll bet your principal remembers that one, too!
Doug Ireland, SID
Monday, March 19, 2007
A little gift for you
On St. Patrick’s Day 2007, I got asked more about the NSU Demons’ basketball win over Iowa a year earlier in the NCAA Tournament than I was asked if I am Irish or why I wasn’t wearing green.
It was great; my family originated in County Cork, and while on the field for the spring football scrimmage and attending the softball doubleheader against green-clad Southeastern, I didn’t think green was a good wardrobe choice! After dark, when attending the wedding anniversary party for former Demon cheerleader Tony Hernandez and his wife Rhonda, I did don the appropriate tone.
Now, a little St. Patrick’s Day gift for you, courtesy of Demon play by play voice Patrick Netherton and Baldridge-Dumas Communications. Patrick makes the call on the Demons’ game-winning play at the end of the 64-63 win over Iowa. I’m the guy hollering “yes” a few times and mentioning the glass slipper girl.
For the record, I brought her up for the first time at the 8-minute timeout when the Demons were down by 17. I knew what they could do – I’d seen it before, just not on such a big stage.
Enjoy the .mp3 file of the greatest moment in NSU sports history. If you have trouble downloading it, e-mail me ( ireland@nsula.edu) and I’ll send it to you directly.
Click here to listen
Doug Ireland, SID
It was great; my family originated in County Cork, and while on the field for the spring football scrimmage and attending the softball doubleheader against green-clad Southeastern, I didn’t think green was a good wardrobe choice! After dark, when attending the wedding anniversary party for former Demon cheerleader Tony Hernandez and his wife Rhonda, I did don the appropriate tone.
Now, a little St. Patrick’s Day gift for you, courtesy of Demon play by play voice Patrick Netherton and Baldridge-Dumas Communications. Patrick makes the call on the Demons’ game-winning play at the end of the 64-63 win over Iowa. I’m the guy hollering “yes” a few times and mentioning the glass slipper girl.
For the record, I brought her up for the first time at the 8-minute timeout when the Demons were down by 17. I knew what they could do – I’d seen it before, just not on such a big stage.
Enjoy the .mp3 file of the greatest moment in NSU sports history. If you have trouble downloading it, e-mail me ( ireland@nsula.edu) and I’ll send it to you directly.
Click here to listen
Doug Ireland, SID
Slugger surrounded by pitchers for his biggest at-bat
When former two-time All-SLC outfielder Brad Hanson was heading for his biggest lifetime at-bat two weeks ago, he surrounded himself with pitchers.
A collection of ex-Demon players from John Cohen’s last NSU baseball team (2001) and Mitch Gaspard’s first Demon club (2002) gathered in Houston for Hanson’s wedding.
Still in the record books in several offensive categories, Hanson got his best RBI when he was married to Gianne Thomas.
Former Demon pitchers Jason Slanina and O.J. King were groomsmen and former pitchers Carl Makowsky and Zack Sanches were also in attendance. All five were members of two straight SLC championship teams, in Cohen's last year and
Gaspard's first).
The smallest of the group, Sanches, was the last Demon pitcher to defeat LSU. Makowsky is married to former Lady Demon volleyball standout Chelsea Smith.
This news is courtesy of David Stamey, who was the unofficial uncle/dad/barbeque chief for those Demons and many more. Few have done so much for NSU baseball through the years when perhaps by coincidence, but probably not, the Demons emerged as a nationally-competitive program.
All the baseball grads (and former coaches, too) who adore Stamey would enjoy knowing the great news about his oldest son, Brent, a musical prodigy. The 21-year-old Baylor student just won the prestigious Augustana Arts/Reuter National Undergraduate Organ Competition held over the weekend in Denver.
As Stamey reported in an e-mail to friends: “Reuter, for those of you that have similar knowledge of organs as myself, is a big manufacturer of pipe organs. They fly in the four semifinalists, put them up for four days, they practiced Friday, competed Saturday and the winner gets to play a concerto today with the local chamber orchestra. Brent said Thursday that they took them to John Elway's restaurant -- now there is a name you finally recognize!
“As I tend to do, I've made this story longer than it had to be, Brent won first place. He plays the concerto today (Sunday), and very big to him, wins $5,000.”
So much for the illusion of amateurism in big time collegiate music circles, huh?
Adds the proud Dad: “The winner of this event in the past has always been from a top music school, Juliard, Eastman, Indiana, Yale, etc. so to say Brent was excited is understating it.”
Younger son Bryan is majoring in nursing at NSU, and as a freshman is keeping active in sports by helping out the St. Mary’s baseball team. Former All-SLC outfielder Jeramie Hale is the Tigers' head coach. David remains one of the most avid Demon baseball followers, often updating his buddy the SID on scores for road games on “live stats” or webcasts.
Doug Ireland, SID
A collection of ex-Demon players from John Cohen’s last NSU baseball team (2001) and Mitch Gaspard’s first Demon club (2002) gathered in Houston for Hanson’s wedding.
Still in the record books in several offensive categories, Hanson got his best RBI when he was married to Gianne Thomas.
Former Demon pitchers Jason Slanina and O.J. King were groomsmen and former pitchers Carl Makowsky and Zack Sanches were also in attendance. All five were members of two straight SLC championship teams, in Cohen's last year and
Gaspard's first).
The smallest of the group, Sanches, was the last Demon pitcher to defeat LSU. Makowsky is married to former Lady Demon volleyball standout Chelsea Smith.
This news is courtesy of David Stamey, who was the unofficial uncle/dad/barbeque chief for those Demons and many more. Few have done so much for NSU baseball through the years when perhaps by coincidence, but probably not, the Demons emerged as a nationally-competitive program.
All the baseball grads (and former coaches, too) who adore Stamey would enjoy knowing the great news about his oldest son, Brent, a musical prodigy. The 21-year-old Baylor student just won the prestigious Augustana Arts/Reuter National Undergraduate Organ Competition held over the weekend in Denver.
As Stamey reported in an e-mail to friends: “Reuter, for those of you that have similar knowledge of organs as myself, is a big manufacturer of pipe organs. They fly in the four semifinalists, put them up for four days, they practiced Friday, competed Saturday and the winner gets to play a concerto today with the local chamber orchestra. Brent said Thursday that they took them to John Elway's restaurant -- now there is a name you finally recognize!
“As I tend to do, I've made this story longer than it had to be, Brent won first place. He plays the concerto today (Sunday), and very big to him, wins $5,000.”
So much for the illusion of amateurism in big time collegiate music circles, huh?
Adds the proud Dad: “The winner of this event in the past has always been from a top music school, Juliard, Eastman, Indiana, Yale, etc. so to say Brent was excited is understating it.”
Younger son Bryan is majoring in nursing at NSU, and as a freshman is keeping active in sports by helping out the St. Mary’s baseball team. Former All-SLC outfielder Jeramie Hale is the Tigers' head coach. David remains one of the most avid Demon baseball followers, often updating his buddy the SID on scores for road games on “live stats” or webcasts.
Doug Ireland, SID
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