New Head Baseball Coach @ UNCA

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

hiring his son would be a mistake

how could his son be a mediator between a player/coach dispute when he's related to the head coach?

or the other way around?

players need an outlet somewhere to complain about playing time, coaching, whatever, and the coach's son probably isnt the best place for that.

there are other things about him that i'd worry about...like no coaching experience what-so-ever...as well as some anecdotal (sp) evidence to suggest he might not be the best role model for impressionable young men

coach smith seems to be a good man, someone who genuinely cares.

his personality is dynamic ( i hear ) and he's easy to talk to and be around. dont know much about his kid, but i do know a lot about aaron rembert...he's nice, but not much personality there and i know nothing about his pitching knowledge at all.

why is the pitching coach always the recruiting coordinator as well? pitching at unca needs your full freakin attention based on their team era...i think the HITTING guy should be the first assistant and recruiting coordinator.

hitters play every day and are generally smarter, better athletetes, and better looking than pitchers who are dumb, slovenly and smelly...as a rule

thoughts?

[pullin4thesparkplug]

agreed, pitchers spend far too much time shagging BP in the outfield making up little inside jokes that no one in the world would find funny unless you were a quirky (i.e. fu**ing weirdo) pitcher. im sure pitchers start out as normal people when they are freshmen in high school, but by the time they are 20, there have been far too many group pitcher jogs and fly balls fielded in practice to be normal anymore. and lefties are 100x worse than righties. lefty pitchers are as socially inept as pasty red heads. is rembert (sp?) a lefty? if he is, he should not be recruiting coordinator. is he a lefty ginger? if that is the case, he should probably be thanked for his interest in the program and willingness to give back for a meager salary, but unca is dysfunctional enough and we don't need a lefty ginger being the face to enter some 18 y/o's house in an attempt to recruit him.

pullin4thesparkplug out!

[pullin4thesparkplug]

on a more serious note, the point about having a 2nd assistant/volly to gripe to is a good one and young smith might not be able to fill that role for obvious reasons.

[uncafan]

agreed, pitchers spend far too much time shagging BP in the outfield making up little inside jokes that no one in the world would find funny unless you were a quirky (i.e. fu**ing weirdo) pitcher. im sure pitchers start out as normal people when they are freshmen in high school, but by the time they are 20, there have been far too many group pitcher jogs and fly balls fielded in practice to be normal anymore. and lefties are 100x worse than righties. lefty pitchers are as socially inept as pasty red heads. is rembert (sp?) a lefty? if he is, he should not be recruiting coordinator. is he a lefty ginger? if that is the case, he should probably be thanked for his interest in the program and willingness to give back for a meager salary, but unca is dysfunctional enough and we don't need a lefty ginger being the face to enter some 18 y/o's house in an attempt to recruit him.

pullin4thesparkplug out!

wow, that is one of the greatest posts I've ever seen in my life... glad we've got some actual baseball guys in here now, unbelievable!

[kingaling42]

Lefty pitcher?? What's that?? Sure made it easy to coach/hit against knowing that there wasn't a lefty on the entire roster last year.. again, I'm no baseball expert but seemed to be a problem....

Hiring his son as an assistant would be a step in the wrong direction in my eyes- it's one thing to bring him in if he had ANY coaching experience, however, playing at WCU certainly doesn't impress me to think that he's a quality choice as a full-time coach.. Kenny needs to gain some experience- hell, he can volunteer too, but putting him in a coaching position would indicate to me that Tommy's as bright as Janet Cone- which means we'll stay in the dark as a program for awhile longer...

[UNCA Alum]

Speaking of recent UNCA baseball alums, I saw T-Wall on I85 driving an old school 15passenger van a few weekends ago with what had to be an AAU or legion baseball team of some sort piled in the back.

Really random. And pretty funny.

[POP13]

hitters play every day and are generally smarter, better athletes, and better looking than pitchers who are dumb, slovenly and smelly...as a rule.

Hey now! I'll have to defend pitchers some because my son is one... he usually doesn't smell all that bad!

I do think it is when they reach the college level that they truly become pitchers. My son carried a bat in his batbag all fall during his freshman year. I asked him why and he said it just didn't feel natural without it. He got past that in the spring (and I admit, he did get a little weirder) but then this past fall they had him playing some defense and taking his turns in the BP rotation. In the spring, he actually played a few innings in the field and had a couple AB's... actually three, but they gave credit for his last pop out to someone else, a hitter whose BA was a point or two lower because of this "gift". He never did strike out.
This summer, with his CPL team, at the beginning of the season there were no mid infielders due to players still playing in the NCAA's. Guess who ended up playing shortstop for the first eight games? At the plate, he started out pretty hot, hitting in the .300's. He is now at .200 after going 0'fer his last couple of games hitting. That's still not bad for a "pitcher" hittin' with a wood bat. His average is actually higher then a few of the guys that are supposed to be hitters.
Coach Smith was the one who encouraged him to hit at school, so no telling what will come this fall. I just hope that those mouth breathing, knuckle draggin', hairy-assed, talk to themselves when they get fooled by a pitch postion players can field the ball and get some hits when the season starts next spring!

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

best evidence against pitchers having any purpose in life and being total non-athletes:

Ryan Dempster will miss one month after breaking his toe because he's too much of a righy ginger gooftroop to hop a dugout fence and land so he can celebrate with his more deserving and coordinated teammates.

JOKE

also, with a team era over over 8...the ol' bulldog hitters better all be on he juice if that's the type of pitching there getting...cause 8 EARNED runs doesnt even include all the errors that allwed extra runs to score.

now, the bulldog hitters are just as terrible...but i just hate pitchers

now, onto the CPL, when was the last time that league was relevant? i guess it's better than the other leagues that unca sent players to, considering that some of unca's d1 players are playing in mens leagues and i'm pretty sure one is in american legion ball..JOKE

the CPL 8 years ago was the number 2 league behind the cape, 7 years ago it was 3rd, behind the cape and alaska

now it's full of division 2 and 3 players and low level d1's..it used to be clemson, state, unc, usc, florida, fsu, auburn, bama...i played on a team that ended up having 14 kids drafted and 2 more play pro ball out of the CPL...they might not have had 14 kids drafted in the entire freaking league the last few years.

now, i'm not downplaying your son's skills, at all, all i'm saying is that him hitting 'better than some position players' in the cpl is common, cause most of them cant hit either.

pitchers that hit and pitch usually need to stick to pitching or give it up totally, haveing someone who's not great at either is a worst case scenario...i hope your son chooses one and goes with it and does well, we need him to be a STUD

ZILLA!

[pullin4thesparkplug]

i think this was the van t-wall was driving:

http://videos.streetfire.net/video/Mid- ... 691348.htm

ill give him a call, tell him to lay off that bojangles for safety's sake. can't have that axle breaking while he's transporting a bunch of kids.



POP: tell your boy to keep working hard. if he can contribute both on the mound and at the dish, hopefully he gets a shot to do both. im sure next years team will need the help wherever it can get it.

[POP13]

[quote="TheThrillaNamedZilla"]now, onto the CPL, when was the last time that league was relevant?
the CPL 8 years ago was the number 2 league behind the cape, 7 years ago it was 3rd, behind the cape and alaska"

Relevant? The number one ranked summer colligiate team in the country right now is the Forest City Owls of the CPL. The "Cape" is most definantly the strongest summer league, but there is talent in leagues across the nation.

"now it's full of division 2 and 3 players and low level d1's..it used to be clemson, state, unc, usc, florida, fsu, auburn, bama...i played on a team that ended up having 14 kids drafted and 2 more play pro ball out of the CPL...they might not have had 14 kids drafted in the entire freaking league the last few years.ZILLA![/quote}

Number of CPL players, who have played in the league between the '06 and '09 seasons, who were drafted this past June... a few more then 14... 100 players were taken, with 9 in the first ten rounds.

[sadsite]

POP13, you don't need to defend the league your son plays in to anyone. He's playing ball - great for him ... & I guess it's just unfortunate he doesn't receive the tutelage that I'm sure THE ZILLA can provide. I thought ZIlla was someone I knew at first, but I'm glad I don't. He may be a wonderful teacher of the game for all I know, but I hope he doesn't bring the same type of negative energy to his youth players that he does to this board. The Zilla seems like a coach that isn't happy with his own status & very bitter that he has not progressed further in baseball. As for whoever is demanding an apology from Tommy, UNCA, or anyone else ... grow up. They don't owe you anything. People are hired and fired ... programs win & lose ... To be honest, if this program was funded the way it could be, had better facilities, better coaches, a better history ... the alumni & former players that are always complaining probably wouldn't have been good enough to play here. So, they need to be thankful UNCA gave them an opportunity to play ... or they would be on a Mars hill message board some where complaining and ridiculing like all of you do.

[pullin4thesparkplug]

Me being professional:

Sadsite, it isn't about owing one something. It's about extending an olive branch to those who were burnt by the program. And by burnt, I'm referring to incidents that amounted to gross misconduct, not simply poor win/loss records. Regardless of talent level, a program should be run with integrity and professionalism and UNCA lacked integrity and professionalism the past few years. Without diving into specifics, there are alumni who have very legitamte reasons to be very upset.

Me not being professional:

STFU about s#!@ you obviously know nothing about. Boo-ya!

[the cats]

Good Luck to the Bulldogs with your new Head Baseball Coach.

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

POP13, you don't need to defend the league your son plays in to anyone. He's playing ball - great for him ... & I guess it's just unfortunate he doesn't receive the tutelage that I'm sure THE ZILLA can provide. I thought ZIlla was someone I knew at first, but I'm glad I don't. He may be a wonderful teacher of the game for all I know, but I hope he doesn't bring the same type of negative energy to his youth players that he does to this board. The Zilla seems like a coach that isn't happy with his own status & very bitter that he has not progressed further in baseball. As for whoever is demanding an apology from Tommy, UNCA, or anyone else ... grow up. They don't owe you anything. People are hired and fired ... programs win & lose ... To be honest, if this program was funded the way it could be, had better facilities, better coaches, a better history ... the alumni & former players that are always complaining probably wouldn't have been good enough to play here. So, they need to be thankful UNCA gave them an opportunity to play ... or they would be on a Mars hill message board some where complaining and ridiculing like all of you do.

I'm very proud of my hitters, and spark plug is right, you know nothing about what you're talking about ever...

i'm negative cause i'm honest about the reality of that program, i also said that i hoped pop's son does well, i really want him to succeed. as a matter of fact, pop, send me a message and i'll gladly talk to you in person.

apparently i was wrong about the drafted numbers out of the CPL, i will say i was only referring to one team, one year, of the 2 i played in the CPL that had 14 kids who were eventually drafted. i do know that there are many more low level college players than there were when i played...that's all i'm saying.

The CPL was a great league, now, apparently it's still a good one. My players that hit with me get honest, fair critiques of their skills and are praised for successfully focusing on and correcting mistakes while enhancing their strengths.

I care deeply about the success of my students as honest, disciplined, confident people more than their success in baseball. I am very happy with my position in life/baseball. i will say that playing at unca has negatively impacted my career numerous times as i have been lumped in with unprofessional pathological losers (the coaching staff and program) and that is why i am so passionate about the opportunity for unca to become a respectable program.

example: unc is the best program in the country right now...and 20 years ago, they were terrible...but if you meet a 45 year old man, and he's got a unc baseball shirt on, and then he tells you he played there, he can say it with pride and most people assume he was on par as a player to the current state of the program.

that works negatively as well...so if you're school is terrible, they assume you are terrible

i love you sadsite

ZILLA!

[POP13]

Hey Zilla, I tried to send you a pm but can't get the thing to work!

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

it's messed up...HINT HINT MESSAGE BOARD RUNNER

FIGURE

IT

OUT

GET

A

CLUE

SADSITE

SUCKS

baseBALLS

ZILLA!

[POP13]

Zilla... you need a "slumpbuster"... Ha! Ha! In Asheville, you can find one that's big AND hairy!

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

the only slumpbuster sure thing in asheville was the unca pitching staff

ZINGER

just kidding...not really though, at least with perry gone the team era should drop below 7 and the blood alcohol level will be under the legal limit

DOUBLE ZINGER

cj walker for nba mvp

ZILLA!

[sadsite]

It has taken me a few days to get up the nerve to post again ... it hurts tremendously to get bashed by this crowd ... Anyhow, I noticed how Coach Smith was enjoying his new position by throwing out the 1st pitch on Wednesday evening at the Tourist game. Haven't we lost enough recruiting time? I would have thought TS would have shaken hands at the end of the press conf & hit the road considering the summer is almost over & he very easily could have conducted interviews for his asst. on the road. Surely, this new position hasn't gone to his head. Someone needs to tell him that being the head coach of UNC Asheville Baseball does not make him a celebrity ... If he turns the program into a consistent winner it might, but that won't happen by making guest appearances. The Asheville community will not support UNC Asheville Baseball unless UNC Asheville Baseball does something for the Asheville community first.

[uncafan]

It has taken me a few days to get up the nerve to post again ... it hurts tremendously to get bashed by this crowd ... Anyhow, I noticed how Coach Smith was enjoying his new position by throwing out the 1st pitch on Wednesday evening at the Tourist game. Haven't we lost enough recruiting time? I would have thought TS would have shaken hands at the end of the press conf & hit the road considering the summer is almost over & he very easily could have conducted interviews for his asst. on the road. Surely, this new position hasn't gone to his head. Someone needs to tell him that being the head coach of UNC Asheville Baseball does not make him a celebrity ... If he turns the program into a consistent winner it might, but that won't happen by making guest appearances. The Asheville community will not support UNC Asheville Baseball unless UNC Asheville Baseball does something for the Asheville community first.

I sense no sarcasm in the opening of your post... Coach Smith was actually out recruiting all during the interview process, and I know he has also been out at tournaments every weekend since the official announcement....

Your right of course though, why would TS want to throw out the first pitch? Why would he want to be visible in the community -- its not like he actually recruits local high school players... And of course for sure making a public appearance is going to hurt the school, gotta be bad PR, i mean, don't want people knowing you have a new coach now do you? Oh and the relationship with the tourists, its not like UNCA is working on a plan to play all their home games at McCormick or anything -- so, i mean why go out of your way to be nice to the tourists when they invite you out to throw out the first pitch? In fact, he shoulda called and said he was coming...and then not showed up! That would've showed them!

[CoachMann]

Thrazilluh,
My daughter did a report on CJ Walker and all of her contributions to skin care and such and I was just wondering what that had to do with the Association?

Otherwise most of your posts make me smile. I would like to see a more positive attitude towards your alma mater, or I may request you stop sporting UNCA gear. If you are gonna blast the program, ditch the UNCA hoodie and bulldog trucker hat. I know your identity is cloaked but you are easy to find driving the green taurus with the "my money and my son goes to UNCA" bumper sticker.

I am down with being proud of your alma mater, why else do you think I would wear anything with a Camel on it? Just don't act like you are not kicking it with some old school Bulldog gear on.

Peace be with you-

Paul

[UNCA Alum]

Thrazilluh,
My daughter did a report on CJ Walker and all of her contributions to skin care and such and I was just wondering what that had to do with the Association?

This is one of the funniest thing that I've ever read on this board. I actually had to look up Madame CJ Walker. Hahahahaha. We had a 7 footer play on our basketball team a few years ago with the same name

Otherwise most of your posts make me smile. I would like to see a more positive attitude towards your alma mater, or I may request you stop sporting UNCA gear. If you are gonna blast the program, ditch the UNCA hoodie and bulldog trucker hat. I know your identity is cloaked but you are easy to find driving the green taurus with the "my money and my son goes to UNCA" bumper sticker.

Pretty sure Zilla doesn't have a son at UNCA

I am down with being proud of your alma mater, why else do you think I would wear anything with a Camel on it? Just don't act like you are not kicking it with some old school Bulldog gear on.

Peace be with you-

Paul

[CoachMann]

I meant to imply he was cruising around in his mom's car... my money and my son...

[uncafan]

I meant to imply he was cruising around in his mom's car... my money and my son...

does this mean you were a fighting camel?

zilla's money is going to end up going to UNCA as well...you know he's going to send his kid's to UNCA, to play basketball (not baseball) of course

[Dogs]

I saw Coach Smith at a tournament at Greenwood field this past weekend and he was greeting everyone as they were coming across the parking lot. Seems he is really trying to sell the program. Good for him.

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

first off

if my kids dont get all state in 2 sports at least, as freshmen...NO FOOD

secondly, if my kids go to college, it'll be scholly only...NO MONEY

thirdly, we'll find the booster who wants to give up the most scratch/houses/boats/sweetness and we'll head to that school for a year a la Orange Juice Mayonaise, and then PEACE to the ASSOCIATION

child please, how playa is that

ZILLA!

[UNCA Alum]

If you want them to get all-state in two sports as a freshman, you better send them to some little punk private school in VA or Raleigh where the competition isn't nearly as tough as the NC public schools.

[TheThrillaNamedZilla]

more than likely, the'll be at IMG academy in bradenton florida, on a scholly

believe in the Guru my friends

sophomore year they'll start their 'mr basketball runs' (3 years straight) followed by 'mr baseball' runs of 2 years as well as 'mr badass' awards, that will bear my name: ZILLA!

[UNCA Alum]

They offer men's volleyball at IMG? Didn't know that.

Your kid would make a pretty good setter or libero.

[kingaling42]

Does anyone else feel their IQ dropping???? Cause that's not the sound of new car depreciation.....