ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 9, 1996 TAG: 9602090044
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-14 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
TYPE: COMMENTARY
SOURCE: RAY REED
Hot stoves, cold facts and biased reporting:
Baseball wasn't exactly dead at Narrows High when Rick Franklin first strolled into the dugout as the Green Wave coach, but the sport was looking like it had been kicked down the stairs and had its cap pulled down around its ears.
But that's getting ahead of ourselves. Actually, Franklin wasn't making his Green Wave debut back in the cold spring of 1987, he was just making his latest appearance. Franklin, now 38, had flashed the leather and pounded the baseball playing for Narrows before earning his way onto the Emory & Henry infield during his college days.
Green Wave baseball, which has had many a fine hour over the years, was feeling rather poorly when Franklin took up the fungo bat and lineup card. Narrows was in the midst of a 17-game losing streak that would soon be 24.
With the assistance of guys such as sweet-swinging Whitey Blankenship, slick fielders like Rodney Perdue, Kelly Lowe and McCreery Mann, hurlers such as Mason Bragg and Jeff White, and all-purpose guys such as Chris Dunford and Ripper McGlothlin, Franklin got the Wave flowing in the right direction again.
At the end of last year, Franklin's resume read 84 victories, 49 defeats, and two Mountain Empire District championships. Hang up those numbers and call it a career.
``We've seen both ends of the spectrum since I've been here,'' he said.
Franklin intends to keep up his duties as the high school's athletic director and he'll continue to be an assistant coach in football. Baseball he'll turn over to veteran assistant Ed Shannon, who in turn will be assisted by Bryan Patteson.
Franklin said he liked the predictability of football: practice every day and play once a week. That is contrasted with baseball, whose schedule often as not is a good-natured joke. Usually scheduling amounts to a noon phone call:
``Hey Coach, is it snowing over there yet?''
``Not yet, Coach, but it looks like it could any time.''
``Let's go ahead and play, then.''
``See you at 3:30.''
Come to think of it, that sounds kind of like what Franklin the AD has been going through this winter.
``Want some basketball postponements?'' he was asking a caller after the latest whiteout. ``They'll be good for another 12 hours.''
MEDIA EVENT: Eric Webb and Jon Lilly are coming back home to take up the pen and Shayne Graham and Jawan Clark are walking across the Pulaski County High parking lot to the field house for a Friday ceremony in which all four will sign big-time college football letters of intent. Graham will sign with Virginia Tech, Clark with North Carolina State, and Webb and Lilly with Middle Tennessee State, which is making the transition from NCAA Division I-AA to I-A status.
Webb and Lilly, who are 1995 graduates, went on to postgraduate years at Fork Union Military Academy. They wanted to return to their old haunts for the signing ceremony.
Four Division I prospects from one school in one year is almost unheard of in these parts since the great Radford High teams of the early 1970s. The Pulaski County quartet is also the last link with the Cougars' 1992 state Group AAA Division 6 state champions.
Needless to say, their families, their school, and their community - not to mention Cougars coach Joel Hicks - is proud of them.
DECK THE HALL:The recent Salem-Roanoke Baseball Hall of Fame ceremonies had a New River Valley-type flavor for reasons including but not restricted to the induction of Virginia Tech dugout boss Chuck Hartman. Among the guests were Hartman's former ace right-hander, Mike Williams of Newport, now in the employ of the Philadelphia Phillies; left-handed flame thrower Billy Wagner, who has a Dublin address and soon will be taking his mail at the Houston Astrodome; Virginia Tech AD Dave Braine (who was spotted hitting up inductee Kent Tekulve and speaker Bobby Thomson for autographs); and Radford University coach Lew Kent and assorted Highlanders players including former Timesland player of the year Chris Carr. Hotshot Highlanders shortstop Kelly Dampeer was expected for the festivities, according to his father.
Speaking of inducting people into the Salem-Roanoke hall, how about right-handed pitcher Bob Porterfield of Newport?
In addition to 12 years in the big leagues (Washington Senators, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates), he did a minor-league stint in Radford, which would qualify him for induction in the Salem-Roanoke hall.
Porterfield, who was born Aug. 10, 1923 and died April 28, 1980, had a major league career record of 87-97 with a 3.79 earned run average and 23 shutouts. In 1953 while playing for a bad Senators team, Porterfield had his best year, going 22-10 with 24 complete games and nine shutouts. He led the American League in victories that year.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 linesby CNB