Mickey Alvarado's blog

The first portion of the following column ran in this week's Tecumseh Herald but I've added additional highlights and personal notes from the Tigers' game that readers may, or may not, find interesting.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Comerica Park was sold out as Justin Verlander attempted to pick up his 25th win of the season last Saturday and despite being given a no-decision I was glad I went to see it.

The Tigers lost 6-5 against the Orioles but I was able to watch local hero Duane Below in action — before the game even started. He’s been turned into somewhat of a utility player as the Tigers scour their roster deciding who will advance into the post-season. Below caught the first pitch in front of a sold-out Comerica Park.

I caught up with Below in the Tigers’ Clubhouse after interviewing a calm but noticeably perturbed Verlander.

The Tiger’s ace and Cy Young award contender said his poor outing wasn’t a case of being nervous. It was a matter of not getting ahead in the count that was his problem.

“I put myself in a couple of jams and they came out big,” Verlander said. “You’ve got to be able to turn the page quick in this game, so, after three innings we’re down five nothing and my job from there is to go out and keep zeros up on the board and give our offense a chance, because with this offense you never know — we came pretty close.”

Verlander is in the running for Major League Baseball’s MVP award and has been compared to some of the game’s greatest as of late, but he said he doesn’t worry about that stuff — he steps to the mound and just thinks about getting the job done each and every game.

Did anyone notice? Tecumseh High School is taking applications for a new varsity boys basketball coach. Brandon Schmidt resigned from the position on March 24, according to athletic director Casey Randolph.

Schmidt held the position for three years, replacing head coach Griff Mills for the 2008-2009 season. The Indians finished 0-21 overall and 0-16 in the Southeastern Conference this season (2010-2011). The position is an internal or external posting and will be open until filled.

Tecumseh Public Schools is also seeking an assistant varsity football coach for Al Romano, a middle school football coach, a head girls varsity cross-country coach, an assistant freshman football coach and a varsity cheerleading coach.

Waking up first thing this morning and seeing at least a foot of snow in my yard, I almost officially declared my own snow day. Instead, I sped up my routines and shoveled the driveway to get to work on time.

Upon arrival, which was 10 minutes early, I was somewhat surprised to see several other diehards in the City of Tecumseh who had made it into work before me. Mind you they’re calling this the Blizzard of 2011. I’m not sure why but suddenly my respect for those folks went up a notch just knowing that there are service oriented people who can be counted on to be there day in and day out regardless of the conditions.

There are small tractors out clearing sidewalks and large trucks plowing the main roads. The police are still on duty using whatever means necessary to get around including large four-wheel drives. Corrections officers are still watching our convicts; emergency room personnel continue providing care, as do the paramedics. Knowing those people will show up when needed gives me added confidence in our system.

Now don’t go thinking just because us knuckleheads are out there on the roads driving around that you can too. I wouldn’t recommend it and neither does the city or county for that matter. As a matter of fact they have asked that everyone stay off the roads until everything settles down, unless it’s absolutely necessary. One of the problems rescue personnel run into is having vehicles out creating even more hazards. And with the snow rising a foot and beyond from the wind conditions there’s more than a ditch to worry about. People are getting stuck in the middle of the road. When police were calling in abandoned cars along the road this morning all the dispatcher could say is “I’ll add it to the list.”

Do be careful as you deal with this blizzard of ‘11. Absorb it, take it all in, and remember what a real snow day looks like!

Clinton’s Board of Education announced during its Monday, Jan. 17, meeting that Steve DeGood was hired as the Redskins' new varsity baseball coach, replacing Jim Roberts. DeGood was head coach from 1991-2003 but resigned to spend time with his growing family. He has also previously coached football and is currently coaching both middle school boys and girls basketball.

A call came in today, Thursday, Dec. 2, just after noon saying that Jason Mensing had stepped down as Tecumseh High School's varsity football coach. Within the hour another football fan stopped in to relay the same information. A call to Tecumseh High School confirmed the reports - Jason Mensing turned in his letter of resignation for the varsity coaching position yesterday. Earlier reports stated a meeting with Tecumseh football players and their parents is set for Monday and that Mensing told the team players today. Tecumseh High School Athletic Director Casey Randolph was unavailable for comment.

Whitetail deer have been laying low since opening day of Michigan's regular firearm deer season and with the limited number of hunters submitting bagged deer photos it appears there are a lot fewer successful hunters this year. I was surprised when visiting Cabela's in Dundee to see their buck pole completely empty after opening morning's hunt. On the other side of Lenawee County at Knutson's it was an altogether different story. There were bucks galore hanging by noon and I'm sure many more before the end of opening day. On the drive between the two locations I kept an eye out for the telltale sign of hunter orange on the edge of woodlots but saw none. It was a Monday but it never seemed to make much of a difference what day opening day fell on in the past.

Is hunting fading away around here, I wonder, or is it just uncouth to show yourself in a photo with your kill?

As a kid I was introduced to deer hunting by my high school buddies, when opening day was a very big deal in Michigan. I remember the grownup hunters taking, at the very least, opening day off if not the entire week. I hunkered down in the woods in Lenawee County for years while everybody and their brother packed up and headed up north for better hunting grounds. Those were the good ol' days. Have all of the hunters just left Michigan in search of sustenance elsewhere?

Maybe it was my lack of advertising our buck pole this year? Did the same amount in the years of past and didn't seem to matter. Not one successful hunter pulled up to the front of the Herald this year looking to get their photo taken with their trophy buck or doe.

We have so many deer around here they wander the city streets apparently looking for headlights to jump into. Who or what will maintain deer herd numbers if not hunters - cars? It can't be an easy thing trapping a deer for spade and neutering like they do to all the feral cats around here.