 | | | 3/24/2008 12:01:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | High school hardball: The Friedlander Jinx
OK, it's Mea Culpa time. It's all my fault. I'm to blame.
I honestly thought that bad karma (if you believe in that sort of thing) would be left behind in Cobb County when I left there.
However, I now see the dreaded "Friedlander Jinx" is alive and well and living in Gwinnett County.
Local prep baseball teams beware. The covers of Sports Illustrated and EA Sports video games have nothing on me.
Unfortunately, three county teams found that out the hard way last week.
No sooner did I finish singing the praises of the quick starts by Central Gwinnett and Hebron Christian and build up Brookwood's upcoming schedule than all three teams took a hit this week.
For those keeping score at home, all three teams suffered their first losses of the season within days of that column finding its way online.
In Central Gwinnett's case, the Black Knights haven't won since, dropping three straight games last week after rising as high as No. 3 in the state rankings.
I should've known better. I had plenty of examples to learn from.
See, it all started about a year ago while I was still with the Marietta Daily Journal.
I innocently wrote a feature on Charlie Pelt, a former Lassiter High School star who was on the verge or re-writing the record books at Georgia State.
The day after I conducted my interview with him (and the day before the feature appeared in print), he was hit by a pitch and suffered a rib cage injury that kept him out of the lineup for almost a month.
Oh, things worked out OK for Charlie. He does own or share two of the Panthers' career records, and he wound up being drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in June and is quickly working his way up through their minor-league system.
However, the time he missed due to the injury likely cost him at least a share of five other career records (Ironically, one of the two he does own is in hit-by-pitches).
Then there is the story of Willie Harris. A former Division II All-American at Kennesaw State, Harris bounced around three major league organizations as a journeyman utility player until injuries gave him a shot at the Atlanta Braves' starting lineup.
And he took full advantage of the opportunity by hitting - including a franchise record 6-for-6 game - and running his way into being a platoon starter in left field.
No sooner did I write yet another "local kid does good" story then, sure enough, Harris goes into a tailspin and sees his average drop almost 150 points over the rest of the season, and he winds up being released by the Braves in the offseason.
And don't even get me started about the number of kids still in high school who suffered injury, slump or some other strange misfortune after a being mentioned in a feature or notebook of mine last year.
Still, I thought "The Jinx" had blown over. After all, two Cobb teams did play for the Class AAAAA state title for the second straight season last season.
And nothing horrible has happened to any subject of one of my features since I moved back to Gwinnett in September. Not until now, at least.
Hopefully, last week's losses by Central, Hebron and Brookwood after being mentioned in this column is just a coincidence.
Perhaps this would be a very bad time to mention that Mill Creek (No. 8 in Class AAAAA) and Providence Christian (No. 10 in Class A) are among Gwinnett's hottest teams after cracking their respective state rankings last week.
Just in case the worst happens to those teams, though, you folks have been forewarned, and I apologize in advance.
Game of the Week
I'm not sure I should even go here given the subject of the previous 19 or so column inches, especially with so many good choices worth checking out this week.
However, the best of the best appear to be a pair of key early region contests.
This afternoon, Mill Creek travels to North Gwinnett to take on the defending Region 7-AAAAA champion Bulldogs.
Then on Tuesday, third-ranked Wesleyan plays host to No. 6 GAC in a big-time Region 6-AA matchup.
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Reader Comments
Posted: Monday, March 24, 2008
Article comment by: Please jinx my nephew
Last I checked, Willie Harris is with the Washington Nationals.... Please jinx my nephew, he is a rising senior in high school baseball. Keep up the good work in Gwinnett County
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