THIS ONE IS FOR MACK

MACK:  JUST CHECK OUT THE STANDINGS IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE.  YOUR BALTIMORE ORIOLES ARE 1 GAME OUT OF FIRST.  HOPE THEY WIN THE PENNANT.  IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE 1983.  I KNOW THE PHILLIES ARE OUT OF IT BUT THAT WASHINGTON TEAM IS YOUNG AND I WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOMEONE ELSE IN THE WORLD SERIES.  TIRED OF THE YANKEES, BRAVES, ANGELS, RANGERS, CARDINALS AND SO FORTH.

IF I OFFENDED ANY FANS TOUGH, YOU HAVE YOURS AND I HAVE MINE.  GO EAGLES ON SUNDAY.  TO MY PRINCETON TIGER FANS AT PRINCETON UNIVERSITY IN NEW JERSEY, HAVE A GREAT SEASON.  I'LL NEVER FORGET MY DAD TAKING ME TO SEE THOSE GAMES AT THE OLD PALMER STADIUM WHEN HE WORKED FOR THE UNIVERSITY.  I STILL CAN SEE COSMO IACAVAZZI DIVING OVER FOR A TOUCHDOWN OR CHARLIE GOGOLAK KICKING THOSE FIELD GOALS.

THAT IS JOEY Z'S SPORTS REPORT FOR THE DAY.

PLAY BALL

HELLO BASEBALL FANS:

Joey Z reporting that Spring Training games officially start tomorrow in the Sunshine State. We have 3 Major League teams who have their stadiums and play Spring Training games in Central Florida.

THE ATLANTA BRAVES PLAY AT CHAMPIONS STADIUM LOCATED ON DISNEY PROPERTY AT ESPN SPORTS COMPLEX OFF OF I-4.

THE DETROIT TIGERS PLAY AT JOKER MERCHANT STADIUM LOCATED IN LAKELAND, FL, OFF OF I-4 HEADING TOWARDS TAMPA.

THE HOUSTON ASTROS PLAY AT OSCEOLA COUNTY STADIUM LOCATDED IN KISSIMMEE, FL OFF OF US 192.

All the stadiums are neat to see and feature a great view of all the action. I’ve been to both the Braves and Astros ballparks. So if you are planning a spring trip to Central Florida check out the teams schedules and ticket prices.

AS HARRY DOYLE WOULD SAY, " HERE'S THE FIRST PITCH, JUST A LITTLE OUTSIDE."

WIN ONE FOR JOEY Z

ALL I CAN SAY FOR TONIGHT IS


GO PHILLIES !!!!!!!

TO MY TEAM

GO PHILLIES TODAY

GOOOOOOO PRINCETON

GO TIGERS:

Making another quick stop. I forgot my Princeton Tigers are playing against Harvard tomorrow night for the Ivy League basketball title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Princeton has always been my favorite college basketball team along with their football team. My dad worked for the university and took me to see many a football game there on Saturdays at old Palmer Stadium. My son Joe and I use to go see the basketball games at Jadwin Gym when we lived up north. Those are memories I will always have with me.

SO TO MY TIGERS GOOD LUCK, VICTORY AND FOR YOU ALL A LITTLE “TIGER RAG.”

BASEBALL TONIGHT ON PBS

Hello Speakies:

Just wanted to remind those baseball fans who read my blog that "The Tenth Inning" a two-part documentary film by Ken Burns premieres on PBS September 28 & 29 at 8 p.m. ET. Hey Fans that's tonight. Ken Burns has made some great documentary films which included When It Was A Game and The Civil War. So if you are a fan of baseball I think the series will be a good one.

BYE BYE BIRDIES

Good Morning Speakies:

Another Happy Monday is upon us; try to make the best of it my guys and dolls. Hope everyone had a nice Easter holiday. My son and my soon to be daughter-in-law came over for dinner. Roe made a great chicken parm and linguine side dish and she did not forget the Polish in me by having my kielbasa and horseradish also. My son did a little mechanic work on my car never forgetting his education from Ford Motor Company. We played a little Monopoly card game and of course the ladies were the victors once again.

Today we celebrate the following holidays:

National Deep Dish Pizza Day – See I can never get away from pizza. I’ve had deep dish but still prefer my Jersey crispy crust tomato pie or Sicilian.

White House Easter Egg Roll – A standard tradition in Washington, DC, roll those eggs kiddies.

Speaking of Washington, I read my Eagles traded Donovan McNabb to the Skins, it’s a mixed emotion for many Eagle fans, he brought Philly into contention many seasons but could never win the big one. I wish him luck in DC and I hope it does not come back to bite the Eagles in their butts. Only time will tell. I wanted to play a farewell song for Donovan so I checked my music list and found one pretty close. It’s Bye Bye Birdie from the movie of the same title. Enjoy and have a great day Speakies.

OBSERVANCES AND BASEBALL

Good Morning Guys and Dolls:

Well it’s Thursday in the USA and Friday somewhere in the Pacific but to all welcome. We have a few observances to raise our glasses to today.

24-Hour Global Marathon For, By and About Women in Engineering and Technology – The dolls are getting their due this week.

Dream 2010 Day – That’s everyday for me.

Johnny Appleseed Day – Apples for everybody, nice juicy apples red, yellow, green who cares.

World Kidney Day – Bless all those that shared theirs with the ones who needed a kidney to survive.

We lost another young actor yesterday Corey Haim. The only movie I saw him in was “The Lost Boys”, a really enjoyable film with a good cast. Rest in Peace.

Spring Training is in full bloom here in Florida. Locally we have the Braves, Tigers and Astros. Kansas City had their spring training camp at Boardwalk and Baseball years ago however due to decline in attendance they closed in the 1990’s. I remember seeing games at the cost of around $10 a ticket, now only to pay anywhere from $29 to $60 per ticket. I remember when my sons were small; the Astros had a minor league team here. The highest price ticket was $6.00 and they had a club for the kids called “The Knot Hole Club.” As I remember it cost them a $1 per ticket, they received a membership card and a raffle coupon for a drawing held after the 7th inning. The kids received old bats and baseballs. A fun evening and not expensive as to break your budget.

On a local radio station this morning I heard a gentleman call in expressing his desire to have a professional baseball team here in Orlando. His idea was to level the Citrus Bowl and Tinker Field and build one beautiful stadium. Great idea buddy, but all the politicians here wanted a high speed rail line and guess what Orlando got a train to nowhere. Maybe in ten years express your desire again. Have a great day Speakies.

PRO SPORTS NEW SCHEDULES BY JOEYZ

Good Afternoon Speakies:

I’m a sports lover, not as much as I use to be when I lived in New Jersey. There I was a fanatic Eagle and Phillies fan ever since my boyhood days. I saw the Phillies play in Connie Mack Stadium and Veterans Stadium. Saw those Eagles in person in the lean seasons, screaming my lungs out on every play. Now I can say I have calmed down, not watching that many games but I still hold those 2 teams dear to my heart and only hope championships for them when possible.

After seeing the notice on Saturday that the Phillies game was postponed because of snow, I say we need a change in scheduling pro sports. Here is my plan:

Baseball – Baseball players are referred to as “The Boys of Summer”, so let’s set up their schedule. Spring Training is held in Florida and Arizona, warm states, keep training as it is, beginning in February and ending March 30th. Start regular season April 1 and end season August 31. Playoffs and World Series to be held in September got a whole month for that. If a team like Colorado or some Chicago team is in playoffs, one does not have to worry about playing in the snow or cold. After all baseball is a summer game.

Football – No changes, 16 game schedule, playoffs in December with Super Bowl in January. Fine, no beefs with me.

Basketball and Ice Hockey – Now here are my 2 biggest complaints, too long of a season. Basketball pre-season starts in October and the playoffs go to June. Preseason should start in October; regular season begins in November and ends in February. Playoffs begin in March and end no later than the first week in April. Same for Ice Hockey no reason the long seasons.

This balances pro sports for the entire year, and not hearing gee whiz they are still playing basketball in June. Opinions are welcomed by all Speakies.

MONDAY SPORTS TALK WITH JOEYZ

Good Monday Morning Speakies:

Hope you all had a great weekend. The weather down here in Florida was a hot 93 degrees and we are breaking records every day. I will be back later to propose my professional sports schedule. I’m happy my Phillies won last night, I turned the game on around 10:30 p.m. and saw all the happy fans in Denver bundled up like they were attending a January football game. The Phils were losing at that point and I had to turn the channel. Much to my surprise, when I got to work and checked Yahoo Sports, I saw they won. The Eagles also gave a little payback to those Tampa Bay Bucs yesterday. Like I said I will be back later to give you my official professional sports schedule as it should be, the JoeyZ’s way, let's see if you agree.