Friday, August 15, 2014

Baseball Gods Smile on KSU... again

Hi again everybody!

There is no question the Kent State baseball program has been blessed over the last several years. From championship celebrations to high draft selections, from team grade point average records to a dramatic run to college baseball's promised land, the Golden Flashes program has seen its cup runneth over time and time again.

Wednesday night in Cleveland, it happened again.

KSU product Andrew Chafin throws a pitch in his MLB debut Wednesday night at Jacobs Field in Cleveland, OH

Andrew Chafin, who in 2009 set a new single-season earned run average record with a microscopic 1.23 as KSU's closer, was drafted in the first round by Arizona following an incredible performance in the 2011 NCAA Regionals in Texas. He outdueled a previously undefeated Taylor Jungmann in front of 7,000 Longhorn fans in what could arguably be viewed as Kent State's arrival on the national college baseball stage.

I have been working on a book project detailing Kent State baseball's dramatic month-long magic carpet ride in 2012 and wrote this excerpt a year or so ago. It seems fitting to share a preview here.

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You see, at Kent State, everything is earned. Student-athletes aren’t afforded the types of frills and benefits – all perfectly legal – their counterparts in the Southeastern Conference, Big XII Conference or elsewhere are. This is a tough Northeast Ohio college town. A mill town, a town with rich history in the Underground Railroad and one in constant battle with Mother Nature.

The best athletes in the nation do not come to Portage County – unless they do so as members of a visiting team. The fastest sprinters from Florida, toughest linebackers from California and big-armed pitchers from Texas aren’t coming to Kent State. The Golden Flashes do not have a national recruiting base – they must try and contend with players in their own backyard or just across the street.

For northern so-called “mid-majors” like Kent State, good fortune must also play into the equation.

Much as it had on this steamy 100-degree night in the Southwest. Facing a Longhorn team with All-American talent on every corner of the roster, KSU sent six-foot, two-inch left-hander Andrew Chafin to the same pitcher’s mound once occupied by Roger Clemens, Greg Swindell and Huston Street.

Chafin – whose only scholarship offers came from Kent, Toledo and Cincinnati – dominated the star-studded Longhorns lineup and silenced the 6,268 in attendance at Disch-Falk Field. He watched in glee as catcher David Lyon smoked a grand slam into the right field bullpen off the heretofore-invincible Taylor Jungmann as part of a six-run sixth which gave the underdog Flashes a 7-2 lead.

The southpaw Chafin – whose hometown of Wakeman, Ohio boasts all of one stoplight – tired in the heat and pressure and gave way to the bullpen in the ninth inning. UT eventually closed the gap to 7-5 and had runners on the corners with two outs when KSU called upon an All-American of its own to collect the elusive 27th out. And even though many of the fans had long departed, they collectively groaned as Kyle McMillen induced Shepherd to shoot the pop-up straight up into the humid Austin night.

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After soaring through the minor league ranks, Chafin rose to AAA Reno and was recently summoned to the big league club after a series of injuries decimated the Diamondbacks' roster. His call-up coincided with a brief two-game interleague series with the Indians this past week at 2401 Ontario Street in Cleveland, Ohio.

I've been fortunate to know the Chafin family since Andrew arrived as a hyper nine-year old in the Bellevue Little League many years ago. His father Darryl helped coach the team he was on and the two instantly became favorites of mine. At the time I was earning money in the summer serving as an umpire.
Darryl Chafin watches his son warm up

I was overjoyed when then-head coach Scott Stricklin re-introduced me to the Chafin family in 2008 on a recruiting trip, and even more thrilled when he signed the dotted line to become a Golden Flash. And as he worked his way through a brilliant KSU career, I became even more proud when he made North Texas stand still that night with a breathtaking performance.

But nothing compared to Wednesday night.

Those of us who follow the game know of the "Baseball Gods." And boy have they been wearing blue and gold lately. When the Arizona-Cleveland series started Tuesday night, torrential rains forced the game into a four-hour delay. Word trickled down that when the game resumed, Chafin would be on the mound for the D-backs in the fourth inning.

But it never resumed.

And MLB approved a traditional doubleheader the following day. This was key as it didn't allow either team to expand their roster to bring up additional pitching. Originally the Arizona folks announced Chafin would start game one of the DH but I got word that he would instead start the nightcap. And so it was off to the corner of Carnegie and Ontario to see a former Golden Flash start a Major League Baseball game.
Chafin loosens up in right field

It was great to see Andrew's dad before the game and we watched his son warm up in right field under the towering scoreboard which bore his surname as that night's starting pitcher. And in front of dozens of family members and friends, the southpaw did not disappoint, tossing five shutout innings and recording his first major league strikeout.

It was a great night for a great family. Not just the Chafin family but the Kent State baseball family as well. Players from all eras chimed in with their support from afar and it was truly a blessing to share in one young man's success.

I just wonder if Wakeman turned off its stoplight in his honor.

TL

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Summer Update

Hi again everybody!

I hope this Linder's Look finds everyone in the throes of a great summer. Here at KSU, football training camp just began this week and the countdown is on toward that August 30 opening night battle with Ohio! I'll have more on that a little later.

As the "Voice of the Golden Flashes," I am pretty much booked from Labour Day through Memorial Day. (Sometimes beyond, see KSU Baseball 2012!) So it's important for me to be able to take some time during the summer months to catch up with family and friends I missed during that time span. Part of the tradeoff of this great job is working weekends and holidays and sometimes missing out on some pretty special occasions like weddings and birthday celebrations.

Each year since 2008 the Linder family makes the trek to Las Vegas for one week. It's a great family vacation destination because there are just as many things to do on your own as their are as a group. This year we went to a very special room at the top of one of the southernmost hotels called the Foundation Room at Mandalay Bay. It offers unrivaled vantage points of the most famous stretch of road in the world. Films such as Oceans 11 have been shot there and the view is breathtaking. Just don't look down!


The world-famous Siegfried and Roy Show was the most visited show in Las Vegas from 1990-2003 and featured the German duo's iconic white tigers. While I was never personally able to see the show, the effect the show had on the entertainment industry is still being felt. And who knew they were such big KSU fans! Check out that sylish hat Montecore is sporting!

Not far from Vegas is the Mohave Desert and a plot of land known as "Death Valley." This is a stretch of geography you drive through on your way to Los Angeles and back. Located in LA - among other things - is Six Flags Magic Mountain, which bills itself as the "Thrill Ride Capital of the World." Having grown up in Sandusky, Ohio, the home of Cedar Point, those are fighting words! Even so, I like making the four-hour trip on I-15 every once in a while to check out what CP's biggest rival has to offer.

One thing it has to offer - albeit for not much longer - is Colossus, a twin wooden roller coaster which has appeared in many film and television shows. You may best remember it from the 1983 movie "Vacation" where a disgruntled Clark Griswold forces a security guard played by John Candy into the ride with a BB gun. To commemorate the closing of the ride this fall, the park brought the legendary "family truckster" out of retirement and it's on display near the ride's que! KSU women's basketball assistant coach Geoff Lanier and myself have been known to communicate in National Lampoon's "Vacation" movie dialogue so I know he appreciates this gesture!

It has certainly been a great summer of vacation memories. But the one thing Ive noticed is how much money one can spend on vacation! For example, tickets to a decent Las Vegas show were $110 a person! And a day at Magic Mountain can wreak havoc on the pocketbook when you add up tickets, parking and food!

Which is why I'm so proud that we offer our football season tickets at such a bargain price. Get this folks, for six exciting NCAA DI football games featuring the Golden Flashes and members of one of the most entertaining and rising conferences in college football, you only have to pay $96. Say WHAT? Yes, just $96! And we are gonna throw in a parking pass as well, another $30 value! And that price is for chairback seats, you can sit elsewhere for as low as $60! And we'll still toss in a parking pass!

Now, if you have somehow missed Ametek's unbelievable fireworks display on opening night the last two years, don't let it happen again! They are again planning a huge pyrotechnic display choreographed to music after the Flashes beat the Ohio Bobcats on Saturday, August 30. And you can even come down on the field to watch!

Get to the ticket office ASAP and treat you and your family to one last summer treat - tickets to KSU football! Our office is open Monday-Friday from 8:30a to 4:30p. Or give Eric a call at 330.672.2244.

Until next time!

TL