After an absence of three years, Hal McCoy rejoins the Press Pros coverage of the 95th boys state baseball tournament this week in Akron. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Some might say we take this (the state baseball tourney) more serious than others, but why not…when you have a member of Cooperstown eager to apply hall of fame similes and metaphors to high school baseball?
From day one…we’ve always taken pride in the uniqueness of our Press Pros roster of writers.
Proudly supporting area sports on Press Pros Magazine.
From day one? Yep, from day one, because on day one the first to come on board was one of the iconic media names in the history of Cincinnati Reds baseball, Hal McCoy.
Hal, who said, “Let’s do it” over a pizza and two pitchers of Yuengling (he didn’t specify right-handed or left-handed) back in June of 2010.
And from that point it got even better. Former Bengals beat writer Chick Ludwig contributed for those first two years. Another Reds beat writer, Greg Hoard, joined us late in 2013. Outdoor columnist Jim Morris wrote hunting and fishing for the first eight years, followed by another hall of famer, Tom Cappell. Greg Billing, and in 2000, former Troy Daily News, Miami Daily News, Cleveland Plain Dealer, and ESPN radio host, Bruce Hooley joined the staff to write Ohio State basketball and wrestling while long-time Dispatch writer Mark Znidar wrote Buckeye football. A year later, the dean of central Ohio prep writers, Steve Blackledge joined up to write about the unique culture of high school sports in and around the state capital.
But the guy who continues to attract the most questions as to how much, how long, and what will he do next is the venerable one, Hal McCoy, who at 82 years young hasn’t lost a step (even with a broken hip two years ago), and his unique brand of prose about baseball is just as relevant to high schoolers as it was to Rose, Bench, and Morgan.
Hal interviews a Chaminade-Julienne player at the 2019 tournament. The Eagles return to Akron this weekend to face Chagrin Falls-Kenston in the Division II semi-finals.
“I knew this was my calling when I left Kent State’s journalism school,” says Hal, who still lives on a quiet street in Englewood with wife Nadine. “Even my high school typing teacher encouraged me to write sports. So when I had to choose a career path in journalism, I naturally had an instinct to write about baseball. I’ve done it for fifty years and I’d still go to the ballpark three hours before the game if I were doing it today just so I could observe, talk about baseball, and pick up a few nuggets along the way.”
Of course, it’s not all about baseball with Hal, because since 2013 he’s written University of Dayton football and basketball for Press Pros, and his basketball columns generate hefty readership…again, for the way he does it.
How big a deal is Hal returning to this week’s tournament? Well, for those who are in the habit of reading his classic content in the Dayton Daily News for 47 years, his return is a big, big deal. Prior to breaking a hip, he had written the tournament from Columbus and Akron for several years, to the delight of those accustomed to reading such lines as, “he could throw a baseball through a car wash and never get it wet,” as he once said about Reds pitcher, Don Gullett.
Or…“getting a fastball by him is like getting sunrise past a rooster,” a line long attributed to former Braves slugger, and home run king, Hank Aaron.
Phoenix Bats proudly supports amateur baseball coverage on Press Pros Magazine.com.
And, it’s a big deal for another reason. There won’t be that much written about the baseball state tournament, due to 1) priority, and 2) cost. Major Ohio newspapers do not see the return from baseball, or demand in readership, like there is for football and basketball. So it won’t get written about like football or basketball, either – buried on page six.
And many games will not make early deadlines for print, and will only be available online, where guess what? You can’t read about it unless you subscribe, a by-product of social media that’s driving readership towards other, more convenient sources of the same information.
A colleague in Huntington describes it this way. “Paywalls are just another reason to not read the newspaper, because you can get the same content free on Twitter. And you don’t have to remember the password!”
Well, there is no ‘paywall’ on Press Pros, a fact that veterans like McCoy believe readers find convenient, and appealing. Because, the average price to subscribe online to a major newspaper in Ohio is between $12 and $15 a month, once you get past the bait and switch.
So there may not be that much written to begin with, and only a small percentage of readers will have access to it online..if they even know it’s there. Which is one more threat to the future of community, amateur baseball as we’ve known it in the past, and its relevance and popularity in the future. An alarming number of boys growing up aren’t playing baseball anymore because, 1) they can’t afford it, or 2) it’s not big enough deal compared to football and basketball.
“I can’t think of anything more valuable amateur baseball at this time than positive coverage and publicity.” – Grove City coach Ryan Alexander
“I can’t think of anything more valuable to amateur baseball [at this particular time] than positive publicity and coverage,” adds Grove City head baseball coach, Ryan Alexander. “A lot of us appreciate the effort.”
As for the foreseeable weekend, baseball coverage will flourish on Press Pros, to anyone who cares to read…to hopefully boost the dreams of thousands of boys not participating this weekend, but who knows…maybe someday!
So our work space will be full at Canal Park, and busy constantly this weekend – yours truly, Julie McMaken Wright, Steve Blackledge, and of course…Hal McCoy.
“I remember you guys from last year,” said Akron Rubber Ducks director of media relations, Jimmy Farmer. “You’re the ones that come for the whole weekend and write about all the games. That’s impressive.”
High school baseball, regardless of those who don’t get it, deserves nothing less.
Wilson orthopedics proudly sponsors the OHSAA state tournaments on Press Pros Magazine.com.