Results tagged ‘ ballhawking ’
Sports Illustrated article “The Flight of the Ballhawks”
The Sports Illustrated article that I was interviewed for just went online “THE FLIGHT OF THE BALLHAWKS” It wasn’t the 4 or 5 page article that it was suppose to have been but it is still pretty cool!!
It’s all John Witt and Zack Hample …….. more Hample than me but he can ask for a damn ball in 35 languages and uses tricks to get balls.
ME??? I just use the glove!
All kidding aside Zack and I are good friends. We each throw a few jabs back and fourth for entertainment and we both have a lot of fun pursuing one of the most ridiculous and also one of the most fun hobbies there is!
The article is pretty goo! It mentions my charity work for Baseballs 4 MADD whic is great and hopefully a few of the readers will make a pledge. This year has been a lot slower than last year with less pledges and fewer baseballs since I have been working full time (in baseball of course). I expect to be back at the Ballpark in September running all over the place to get baseballs!
Remember fans, if you want to join me at a game just send me an email and I will give you the details on how to take “BALLHAWKING 101 – The Fly along program!”
Here is where you can find the article online HOWEVER It will be in the AUGUST 16th, 2010 issue of SPORTS ILLUSTRATED which goes on newstands tomorrow (Thursday)
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1173128/index.htm
A Great Christmas Gift for any baseball fan – MY BOOK!!!
Baseballs 4 MADD returns in 2010
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!!
OC Register story & taking photos today plus Baseballs 4 MADD update
Today I met up with an OC Register photographer name Mark over at Cal State Fullerton’s Goodwin Field to take some pictures for a story that should be out tomorrow. The story will talk about BASEBALLS 4 MADD and a little about my Ballhawking.
Can I just tell you that right now it is hotter than hell here in So Cal. Usually when it is 90 degrees it isn’t that bad out here because of low humidity. Today it is 90 degrees with high humidity and it is almost unbearable! I was sweating ridiculously today when Mark was trying to take these photos. I can only hope that he got a couple that were good for the story.
As for a Baseballs 4 MADD update
With a couple more pledges I am up to $4.10 pledged per ball caught. That brings the total to date up to $287.80 raised for MADD. I have a strong feeling that this will rise pretty fast once this story hits the paper.
My original goal was to raise $10,000 for MADD. As crazy as that sounds I truly think that it still can be possible! We will just have to wait and see what happens from here on out!!
Check out tomorrows Orange County Register for the story! At least that is what Mark, the photographer, said it was scheduled to hit.
Photo shoot tomorrow with a local newspaper
I got a call this afternoon from a reporter that a few years back covered the Fullerton Flyers (now OC Flyers) baseball team that I worked for in 2005 & 2006. He is going to do a story about Baseballs 4 MADD. So tomorrow I get to meet up with a photographer who is going to take some photos for the story.
In 2006 the newspaper did a story about my Ballhawking escapades and it can be found here.
Hopefully this will increase the # of pledges that come in over the next couple of weeks. It would be nice to get the total over $20 per ball. That is a long way to go from the $3.35 it is currently at but I think we can make it!
I will post a link to the story when it comes out later this week!
Baseballs 4 MADD!!! Teaming up with Mothers Against Drunk Driving and catching baseballs to raise money for a great cause!!
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As many of you know this year Zack Hample is snagging baseballs for Pitch In For Baseball. After the tragic death of Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and 2 friends caused by a drunk driver I decided to do the same. After talking to the Orange County Chapter of MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) they have given the go ahead to do something similar with them. Read below for more details! Baseballs for MADD!! |
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On Thursday April 9th, 2009 Los Angeles Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart along with friends Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson were killed by a drunk driver. Their friend Jon Wilhite survived the crash but remains hospitalized. As a huge baseball fan and friend of a victim of a drunk driver I felt that there was something I had to do. So this year I will be raising money for MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) by catching baseballs!! You know how some schools hold read-a-thons to raise money for charity and kids get their family and friends to pledge money for every book? Well, that’s kind of what I’m doing in 2009, except I will be catching baseballs instead of reading books! Over the past 33 years I have caught 4,885 baseballs at professional baseball games. over 3,700 of those baseballs are from Major League Games! While the majority of the baseballs that I catch come during batting practice I have caught 99 game home run balls! Let’s say I end up catching 200 balls between the Major League and Minor League games that I go to. If you were to pledge a nickel per ball, you’d end up donating $10 to this cause. If you pledge one dime per ball, that would be $20. And so on. There’s a small chance that I might only snag 50 balls this year, but it’s possible that I’ll catch more than 200 baseballs!! Your pledge will cover ALL Major League Baseballs and Minor League Baseballs that I catch from the World Baseball Classic in March through the entire 2009 baseball season including the Playoffs and World Series!! My goal this season is to raise $10,000 for MADD! MADD is not a crusade against alcohol consumption – MADD’s mission is to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime, and prevent underage drinking. With the money that can be raised through my Ballhawking effort it will give MADD a chance to raise awareness and help victims of this senseless crime known as Drunk Driving! Your information will remain private and only your name, website / company and pledge amount will be listed on my website. All pledges will be handled directly by MADD’s Orange County California Chapter. When you fill out this form it goes directly to MADD and then they send me the information to post on the donor list on my Website. All I do is list each donor on my website! If you would like to make a pledge simply click on the following link: http://mlballhawk.com/Baseballs_4_MADD.html UPDATE: I have received a few pledges already from fans and family and ZACK HAMPLE. If you make a pledge for my cause please check out Zacks website at www.zackhample.com and make a pledge there as well! One last note …… my pledge/donor page will be up on my website soon. I have to update it as I get the information from the great people at MADD OC. You can look at it once it is up by going to my website at www.mlballhawk.com and click on Donors |
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