I know I have talked about this forever but I had lost the VHS tape that it was on. Well now someone finally posted it on YouTube about 2 months ago!

Yellow sweatshirt ;-)

Andre Dawson was just named as the only 2010 Inductee of eligble players to the Hall of Fame. Bert Blyleven falls short by 5 votes and first timer Robbie Alomar just misses.

"The Hawk" as Dawson was known, was one of the most feared hitters in the 80's and had one ofthe best arms in the outfield. Dawson definitely deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

Andre Dawson is another Hall of Famer that I have caught a game home run from. In 1990 I caught Dawson's 40th home run of the season. I almost grabbed another which was part of the infamous "Mailman" incident. A mailman working his route nearby ended up with a Dawson HR and was fired shortly after for leaving his mail truck unattended and unlocked while being interviews on WGN!

Here is a list of Official Game Home Runs that I have caught from current Hall of Famers:

Gary Carter - 310th career home run

Carlton Fisk - 2 including his 350th career home run

Kirby Puckett

Jim Rice

Ryne Sandberg - 3 home runs

Mike Schmidt - 523rd Career HR at my first ever Dodger game

Dave Winfield - 2 inclding his 450th career home run

I am also going to add this 2010 Hall of Fame inductee to my list of Home Runs from a Hall of Famer, DOUG HARVEY (umpire).

On May 24th, 1990 Juan Samuel was playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the 4th inning he hit a home run to the left field bleachers at Wrigley Field. As is the tradition when an opposing player hits a home run the fan threw it back onto the field. As the ball came in to the infield 3rd base umpire Doug Harvey picked the ball up and threw it out of the stadium.

Those of us on the street were just returning from running towards where the ball went in the bleachers when I heard a "THUD" by the building across the street. I ran over and picked up the ball and saw that it was a game ball. We all laughed and then one of our spotters in the bleachers yelled, "That's the Samuel homer! The 3rd base umpire picked it up and threw it out of the yard!"

It was definitely the oddest way to get a home run ball, especially outside of the stadium but it was still a home run and one I will never forget! Thank you Doug Harvey!!

Angels broadcaster Rory Markas has died of an apparent heart attack at the age of 54. Rory was an amazing guy, I had the chance to talk to him on several occasions over the years and he was always positive and fun to talk to. Living in the midwest I was fortunate enough to get to listen to Rory not only here in LA but also when he was in Milwaukee.

Rory was also the voice USC basketball and did many other things in the LA sports scene.

 Simply put, Rory was an amazing indiviual with a passion for sports and life in general. RORY WILL BE MISSED not only by Angel and Brewers fans but by sports fans everywhere! GOD BLESS YOU RORY!!

After a recent meeting with the Orange County Chapter of MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) we all came to the agreement that with the success of Baseballs 4 MADD in 2009 we will bring it back in 2010!

I am definitely looking forward to the 2010 season. Last year it was thrown together after the tragic death of Angels pitcher Nick Adnehart and friends Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson. Jon Wilhite was the lone survivor of the accident and is a true life miracle!!

With a year under our belts and hopefully a little more local publicity we hope to raise $5,000 or more for MADD! We also hope to get Ballhawks participating in the Ballhawk League to get involved with their local MADD chapter and do something similar. Whether you will catch 20 balls or 200 baseballs it will all still add up and make a difference in helping MADD!!

Please check out my website at http://mlballhawk.com and click on the BASEBALLS 4 MADD link at the top of the page!!

First of all let me start by saying that this is not an attempt to "steal" Ballhawks away from the original Ballhawk League. As with minor league sports there is enough room for 2 leagues.

Eriks league concetrates on every ball you get no matter how you get it. The Professional Ballhawk League will base itself more on catching and chasing down balls than asking for them or using a device to get them. The PBL will use a point system, will have awards and even jerseys for the participants to wear if they choose to get one!

It will simply be a lot of fun! I encourage Ballhawks of all ages to sign up for BOTH Ballhawk Leagues next season. It will be fun to see how each league works itself out? Will the person with the most balls still win both leagues? Who knows!!

The following is from the 2010 Professional Ballhawk League MLBlog at http://ballhawkleague.mlblogs.com

If you are someone that takes a glove to a baseball game hoping to catch a baseball then you are eligible to play in the 2010 Professional Ballhawk League. There will be 2 divisions in the PBL. You will have the Veteran division that will consist of Veteran Ballhawks that have caught over 100 baseballs at Major League games and at least 1 game home run, foul ball or 3rd out ball caught. Then you will have the FAN Division which will consist of everyone else!

All participants must have a MyGameBalls.com profile to keep track of their 2010 Ballhawking Stats along with a MLBlog where there will write about each game that they attend and Ballhawk at

There will be awards for each division at the end of the season including Veteran and Rookie of the Year awards and the MVB (Most Valuable Ballhawk) aka Ballhawk of the Year!

To sign up please send an email to commissioner@ballhawkleague.com

This is the final total for me in 2009 and career to date:

Baseball Totals

Knowing that this was likely the last game that we were going to see in Anaheim actually made the afternoon more fun. Rob, TC and a few other regulars were out in right field for out final BP of the season. We all had a good time running after baseballs. Every time a ball went into the corner where I usually stand I would count it and tell everyone I just got another one!

It was all in good fun! At one point Rob said that he wasn't going home empty handed. In fact if he had to he was going to rush the Angels locker room and steal a ball if he had to.

Ok so I only ended up with 1 baseball and I don't even know who hit it but the last day of the season is always fun! With the 1 ball today I end the season with 91 balls caught. 

The great thing is that early next season I will be hitting a few different milestones. I will talk more about those later. Right now I have to get ready for another exciting day at work!

Yes even though it was a day game they did take batting practice however for me it was totally uneventful and crowded. Since I did not ask for any baseballs I went home empty handed!

There were only a handful of balls hit into the right field stands today!

Here are some photos from the game!