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How he made you better.
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Something he taught you.
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ReplyDeleteA wonderful camp this weekend Coach. We could feel your presence there with us.
ReplyDeleteHolly, I wanted to write a note to you, your mother and your sisters about your father. He was a special figure in all of his players' lives. I have no idea what your family is going through, but the least I can do is let you all know what your father meant to me and how he affected my life. In many ways, writing a note to you about your father is therapeutic as we all try and cope with his loss and the many emotions that his passing stirs in each of us.
ReplyDeleteCoach Walsh recruited me on a "hunch", a random kid out of Texas with a long last name that no one could pronounce. I came on my visit and I was sold within the first few minutes in the car with him. Infectious personality and enthusiasm spilled out of his pores. I knew that this guy was a winner.
After I got to school and got to know him better, I realized that I had come to play for a guy who was fearless and took care of his own. If you were loyal to him there was nothing he wouldn't do for you. We both knew that I was a long shot to catch on with a Cape League team. That didn't stop him from driving me down to the tryout camp and getting me the first shot to throw against the rest of the guys trying to catch on. The thing I loved about him as a coach is that he wasn't afraid to stack us up against anyone, anywhere, anytime. A lot of coaches say that. Very few actually do it. Sometimes we'd win those games against heavily favored opponents, more often than not, though, we'd lose. The point is that he gave us the chance to be great, even if for just one day.
He always talked to us about you, Tori, Katie and Kasey. Usually in the context of "pressure". The pressure he felt to be the best dad he could be to the four of you. The pressure he put upon himself to provide everything he could for his family. He was trying to teach a bunch of college kids about the pressure we put on ourselves to perform, athletically as well as academically, and how we needed to keep everything in context.
I don't think I realized how shaken up I would be by his passing. Unfortunately, you never think about the memories, the laughs, the good times and the bad, until they hit you all at once and you realize you were pretty lucky to have had that person in your life. On that trip to the cape for my longshot tryout, we stopped by his old neighborhood in Dorchester to look for a place he used to get ice cream and hot dogs from. I wasn't entirely sure why he wanted me to eat ice cream and hot dogs before pitching in a tryout, but hey, this is the essence of Coach Walsh! Spontaneous, sense of humor, going against the conventional wisdom. Turns out that the place was closed, or we couldn't find it. I forget but I do remember that we ended up eating Burger King. What I didn't realize then that I realize now is that he wanted to show me where he grew up. His neighborhood. 21 year old kids are sometimes too wrapped up in their own worlds to understand what is going on around them. Count me amongst that crew.
I want to end this note with one request of you and the rest of your family. If you guys ever need anything, please give me a call. Coach never hesitated to call, whether it was to round up guys for a beer, find a restaurant for you all to eat at, help a player land a job or help you find that internship. You and your family shouldn’t either.
Take care and I wish you all the best during this difficult time.
MS
So many times I have sat down to write some thoughts. Then I re-read it and delete it because it isn't good enough. So I figured tonight I would just present some memories and get some reaction:
ReplyDelete1) Coach driving from Homestead to Miami, after a tough loss (at around 11PM) with no headlights on. When we told him that he was driving in the dark with no lights, he commented "I know. Makes my eyes stronger." Me and the other players in that van were pretty scared that night.
2) Winning 3 straight Ivy League Championships (so many related to that).
3) The Concrete Jungle speech. Annually. And he was right now that I live in that Jungle.
4) Practice at Boston University's turf field, Coach hits Forst's car with a pop fly. Forst flips. Classic. His reaction is something I will never forget.
5) Coach's cross-country bicycle story. For those that know it, you know what I am talking about.
6) Coach's never ending smile. So powerful. So infectious. The right way to live life.
7) Fall Scout day, Coach flipping out on Ralph when he threw his outfield throws to the backstop to show off his arm. Coach knew Ralph was a sure thing prospect and he didn't have to show off his arm. Coach just lost it.
8) At Northeastern, Carlos Pena crushes a home run into the right field fraternity houses. Turns out Carlos Pena, who started at Kent State wanted to transfer back to his hometown in Boston. As soon as Pena hits the home run, Coach turns to me and says "I recruited you over him. Look what he just did." Awesome...
9) Coach picking a verbal fight with Coach Morris at Miami the weekend we beat them my freshman year. Never intimidated. Never in fear.
This is my quick starter list. I have more to write tomorrow. Each day is hard still, as I loved Coach as my second father. But I am finally able to start communicating. My heart goes out to the Walsh family. I can't imagine how hard this is still on them. To Sandra and all the Walsh girls, you have a very large family in all of his players who love you and will be there for you. We all learned so much from him and owe him so much. My prayers and thoughts are with you and I am willing to help in any way possible.
Thank you 2 for always being there. For not judging me. For kicking me in the ass. For telling how great I am. For believing in me. For leaving behind four daughters who will change the world. For a loving wife who will carry your torch.
ReplyDeleteWe offer you this memorial on behalf of all of your former players, coaches, opponents, umpires, and fans. It has been a wild ride - we will ride on in your watchful, comforting shadow- looking for games and opponents in the farthest reaches of God's green expanse. And if you are pleased with what we do with our opportunities, our at-bats and innings on the bump of life, our efforts and sweat - don't be afraid to shine down a ray of light on us to let us know you are there. We already do.
Rock ('00)
We would like to thank Coach Walsh forall he did for our
ReplyDeleteson Jason Larocque(2000). Coach was always there for Jason at Harvard and beyond. Coach didthe little things that separate the outstanding from the good.
Our sympathies go out to his wife and daughters. Coach
will be sorely missed, but his wit, wisdom, and character,
will never be forgotten!
Bink, you made me laugh. Madhu, you made me cry. Thank you for helping me feel something. SJW
ReplyDeleteI find myself stumped numerous times in writing about Coach Walsh. Not because I lack ideas or thoughts but because I don't know if my words would be good enough or accurate enough to describe Coach's impact on my life.
ReplyDeleteCoach taught me many things. However, he was a unique teacher as he lived the way he encouraged his players to live. Most provide the "Do as I say, not as I do" mentality. That wasn't the Coach Walsh that I knew.
Truth be told I have many things I want to write, so I may write over many nights. The first major lesson he taught me was how he never was intimidated. My freshmen year, we traveled to play a 10-game Florida spring trip that culminated with a 3-game series against Miami. Leading up to this trip, he preached how not only we were going to beat them during the spring trip but then we would continue to beat them through the Ivy League and go for the "whole shooting match". Lo and behold, we went on the spring trip to Miami and beat them. Not once during that series did Coach show fear. After Game 1, he even picked a verbal argument with the Miami coach (Coach Morris) just to show he wasn't intimidated. That lesson is something I go back to daily. Whether it be in business or as a young father, I never can show fear or intimidation for if I do, I am already defeated. He was a winner and taught us how to win, both in baseball and in life.
Secondly, I learned about "picking up your teammates". Baseball provides numerous opportunities to both succeed and/or fail. And if my teammate left a runner on base, that presented me or another teammate a chance to pick him up. Very important trait. That shows an intuitive belief in unity and trust. Critical in all components of life, both in personal relationships and career.
Next, he was creative and coy. I used his "unique vision" daily at work. He realized that baseball can be played many ways. Some teams have a tremendous amount of power or great pitching. We had smart players who understood the dynamics of the game. We played solid defense, had pitchers who through strikes, challenged on the base path and were aggressive in the strike zone offensively. By stealing and being aggressive, we saw many more fastballs and caused many timid defenders. All this put pressure on the defense each and every game. The aggressive nature of the game gave us a comparative advantage more than I ever appreciated.
Next he taught me sacrifice. His family meant the world to him. It killed him the nights he would stay over at Dillon to make the west coast recruiting calls as he was away from Sandra and the girls. But the importance he put on his family demonstrated that love isn't shown always in the number of minutes with his family but the quality of the minutes.
These are just the beginning topics I want to share. Even writing this was hard for me. I love Coach. Other than my father, he is the one person who has shown tremendous belief in me at all times in my life. I never wanted to let him down. I always wanted to be the best player or alumni I could be to thank him for his belief in me. He has had such a profound impact on my life that words don't seem to be an equitable thank you.
There are many other things I remember and will share on this site. But right now I recall his infinite smile. Always happy. His vibrance with life was passed along to all of us.
Thanks Coach. You helped me become me.
Rock asked me to write something, so here goes nothing. The past month has been a whirlwind, as I find myself reflecting daily on Joe's impact on me, baseball and all of the people in his life. You could fill several books with all the stories, and maybe one of us will someday. I think I'll leave it at this for now: he made me want to be a better man, and he made sure I knew he was in my corner rooting for me to do so. I hope Sandra and the girls will take some small measure of solace in the fact that no only did he impact so many of us, but his lessons and passion will continue to impact many generations as we carry on teaching and coaching bringing a part of him with us to the field for every practice and game. Thanks Joe, I miss you, and I hope you knew how much you meant to so many of us.
ReplyDeleteI remember all the good times I had with Joe knowing him for over 30 years. I first met Joe at the Ted Williams Baseball Camp when he was the Head Baseball Coach at Suffolk University. Many people do not know this, but we had tremendous times at the camp. We had a ton of laughs each day during the five summers Joe attended the camp. The website for the alumni is www.twcalumni.com. if you would like to learn about our camp.
ReplyDeleteJoe was passionate for the game, ate, drank and slept Baseball 24/7. He was a true leader and his infectious smile lit up a room.
After many years after working with Joe at the prestigious Ted Williams Baseball Camp, stayed in touch with him and his programs both at Harvard and Suffolk. I then went on to work with him at Harvard and the many camps he ran at the University.
He has a wonderful family man, and is a true hero in my book for what he did for kids. He will surly be missed.
I met Joe 10 years ago, he invited me to work his youth camp. I met some great friends, and heard many of Joe's great stories while watching him as every bit of his enthusiasm flowed through that terrific smile of his. I looked forward to each day that I could be around Joe as he was a baseball guy. I learned many things from coach...some about baseball, some about life and lots of lessons about being a family man. I spoke to Joe often while I was in the car on a road trip knowing that he was probably on one his own. He was my mentor, he was like a dad and he was like a brother. Knowing Joe has made my life better. I am a better father, husband, baseball coach and a better human being. There is not a day that goes by that I do not think of Coach Walsh or his wonderful family. He is gone but will never be forgotten by this baseball guy.
ReplyDeleteCoach was never afraid to be himself.
ReplyDeleteA true teacher gives lessons his students will not truly understand until later in life. His players will evolve from students to husbands and fathers and grandfathers. Coach's lessons will live fierce, his character timeless.
Dan Zailskas
I have been on here multiple times to write my feelings about Coach Walsh but never could find the right story or perfect way to remember him. But I am finally going to give it a shot.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, what an amazingly unique person. He is the type of guy that when his name is mentioned you can literally see people fighting to get the first word in so they can launch into their own favorite Joe Walsh story before someone beats them to it. Like the time he spent the majority of a weekends worth of practices building a dirt mound for his pitchers to throw off to simulate the real feel of a mound while being stuck inside during a snowy January practice. Coach put his heart and soul into that mound. Slaved over every detail to make it as authentic possible for his guys. Finally got it to his liking and threw the rubber down and it was all set to go. He even put handles on the side of the wooden planks that kept the dirt confined to mound area. For two days that mound was his passion. Finally, he called over a few of his freshmen to help move the mound over to the bullpen area so he could mark off 60 feet 6 inches to home plate. This baby was ready for use. Six or seven guys headed to their respective handles to try and lift this insanely heavy dirt mound off the ground and over by the catchers . Almost instantly a loud crack echoed throughout the building and a cascade of dirt and clay came crashing through the bottom of the makeshit mound. Days of labor were ruined. Harvard Baseball's new secret weapon never even got off the ground. Coach just threw his hands up with a horrified look on his face and turned around without saying anything and walked off. The dirt/clay composite was all over the floor of Palmer Dixon. Or maybe it was in Laviettes Pavillion. I am not sure because I wasn't actually there. This is just one of the MANY stories you are greeted to as a freshmen on the Harvard Baseball team. Hearing these stories from the upperclassmen is a rite of passage. "Stories About Joe Walsh" should have and could have been an accredited course at Harvard University. They have been passed down from generation to generation of his players. The man is a Legend and always will be. (CONT)
(CONT)
ReplyDeleteAs I am sitting here after finishing my seventh season I am having a beer and toasting to Coach. Tomorrow when I make my drive home from Ohio to Atlanta I will miss him more than ever. Every time on my drive home at the end of the past seven years I would always call Coach Walsh. Of course, I would have to block out at least two hours before making that call. The man had an uncanny way of giving the longest version possible of every story he ever told. It was great but sometimes I would literally run an errand and leave the phone in the car and come back and it still wasn't my turn to talk. But that was just him. He was the best people person I have ever known. He always had time for you and if he didn't he would make time. A truly special and rare guy.
During my annual call to Coach we would always go through our standard rundown of items-i.e. who he is "recrutin from Jerzey", what "real nice Lefties" he's got coming in next year, a Coach Donovan story or two and updates on old teammates and friends. I know I would always get "the works" during the end of the season phone call. But without fail, we wrapped up each and every one of our phone calls with Coach telling me how proud he was of me and how he would conveniently have my card on hand to tell a recruit and his parents that a guy from Harvard can make it to the Bigs. It always made me feel great, even after my particular crappy seasons. I would in turn thank him for making me the pitcher and person that I am today. I meant it and still mean it now more than ever.
I know that he would have loved nothing more than to have a few words with each of the people he loved before he passed. Coach was very profound and sincere in his own kind of way. Sadly, that didn't happen. It is my hope that we keep "The Story Wall" active to share and preserve our great memories of him. I encourage all those that come here- and like me start to type and delete- to actually write your feelings or at least share your favorite story about Coach. It is a great feeling to take some time out to remember such a wonderful person.
I know it is late to write, but just wanted to let people know I was still thinking about Coach Walsh. I obviously have a lot of memories of Coach. Many from when I was a player, then many more from when I worked his camps over the past dozen years or so.
ReplyDeleteAs a player, how could I have had a better experience? Coach Walsh did not recruit me. He was named the coach during my freshman fall. He was not the reason I attended Harvard, but he had the biggest impact on me while I was at Harvard. I remember in the winter of my freshman year, Baseball America had us ranked 258 out of 280 Division 1 teams. By the end of junior year, we were ranked 24th nationally. Coach obviously was not responsible for all of that turnaround because we had very good players, however he had a great impact in the way we approached the game. He took over a program that was used to losing in recent years. He motivated the older guys and gave them renewed enthusiasm and confidence. And if there were two things coach had it was enthusiasm and confidence. He was always excited to be on the ball field and he genuinely believed his team could beat anyone. His attitude was contagious. As I said how could you not want to play for him? He was not a yeller or screamer nor was he going to chew you out for making a physical error. He just wanted you to play hard and compete. Personally, I owe Coach a lot for the career I had at Harvard. He had the courage to start me the first game of my freshman year. I may have been the only 5 ft. 10 in. 170 lb DH that year. Coach years later told me that not only were some guys surprised I was starting, but some were surprised I made the team. So again I thank Coach for his confidence in me.
During our time in college, guys at times complained about this or that regarding coach, namely organizational stuff. But I have no complaints. I played 4 years for a great team coached by a great man who worked hard on the field and cared about his players off the field.
I continued my relationship with Coach after college when I worked his camps. Coach always was more than generous when paying me for my work, which is no surprise for anyone who knew coach. Also, during these camps if I had not seen Coach for a few months he would ask how I was doing. And as so many people have mentioned he genuinely cared about your answer. The last camps I worked were the two weeks before Coach died. I remember bringing pictures in of my new daughter Claire who was a month and a half old at the time. Coach Walsh's wife was excited to see the pictures, and Coach looked at them and gave a "wow" though you knew his mind was elsewhere, probably trying to figure out where to split the 100 campers up when we stated camp in 5 minutes. His wife had the typical woman's reaction to seeing baby pictures, and Coach Walsh had the typical guy's reaction. What was not typical though was the conversation I had with Coach during the first day of that camp as we were catching up. I told him of my new daughter and how she had been diagnosed with a health issue. He immediately told me of someone else connected with that, and a fundraiser, and the advances that had gone on in the field. The next day he said he could not sleep the night before because he was thinking about my daughter. How many men could you say that about? How many coaches could you say that about?
It was a privelige to play for Coach Walsh and a pleasure to get to know his family. I think of him often now especially when playing with my daughter, because it causes me to remember one of the last meaningful conversations we had.
At a recent fly fishing club meeting in Los Angeles, I met a guy roughly my age who was also a washed up old baseball player. Through our conversation I revealed that I played at Harvard. He immediately smiled and asked, “How did you like playing for Coach Walsh?”
ReplyDeleteAs it turned out, my new buddy was recruited by Coach for the class of 2002. While Coach Walsh had grand ideas for this player, Admissions decided it was not meant to be. Rather than turn his back, Coach Walsh picked up the phone and called the coach at Cal Poly Pomona. The player attended this school, played ball, had a great college experience, and even met his future wife.
I mentioned to my friend that Coach Walsh had recently passed away, but he had already heard. Despite the extremely sad circumstances, it made me happy to know how far Coach Walsh’s influence extended. It was far greater than what happened in Cambridge.
Over the four years that I played for Coach Walsh, my teammates and I consistently tested his emotional well-being. More so than losses (which we had plenty of) or off the field issues (of which there were virtually none, of course) I am certain that the greatest disappointment us players ever delivered to Coach, was when our actions or attitude showed that we didn't love the game as much as he did.
This love for the game drove Coach Walsh to passionate and eccentric acts which created for us players some legendary stories. Almost ten years after leaving O’Donnell Field behind, when a wedding or reunion brings us teammates together over a beer, we still talk Walsh. We remember those great stories that made our experience as a Harvard baseball player very unique, and very special.
Coach Walsh was the common thread that kept so many of us teammates connected to one another, to Harvard Baseball, and even to Harvard in general. My heart is very heavy for Sandra and the girls that Coach leaves behind. I am also greatly saddened by what it means for our Harvard Baseball Family. It will never be the same.
Back in the Fall Semester of 2002, I returned to campus for my sophomore year. My parents had recently moved to Montana where I began to fly fish. Coach thought this was amazing. After describing to him what a beautiful place it was with the mountains and streams, Coach said something surprising and personal and poetic…in a South Boston kind of way. “Sky Mann, when my time comes, I’ll grab me a six-pack, and I’ll head back into those mountains.”
Coach, I hope the view is just as you imagined. Cheers.
- Schuyler Mann
Catcher ('02-'05)