September 10, 2010
Another CAL grad reaches the major leagues
By TOM WILLIAMS
Sports Columnist
When Vineland High School grad Darren Ford scored the winning run for the San Francisco Giants
last week, he became the latest on a short list of Cape-Atlantic League grads to play in the major leagues.
And his family has a nice share of that list.
Ford, 24, was drafted in the 18th round by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2004. He was traded to San
Francisco four years later. His uncle, Ted, was an 11th round draft pick of the Cleveland Indians in
1966. He played in 240 major league games, including 129 as a regular outfielder in 1972 – hitting
.235 with 14 home runs and 50 RBIs. And Lambert Ford, another relative, was drafted in 1968 by
the Astros in the fifth round.
The last CAL player to play major league baseball before Darren Ford’s debut was 22 years ago.
Randall Byers of Cumberland, who was a 22nd round pick of the Blue Jays in 1982, played 21 games
for the Padres in 1987-88. Millville’s Larry Milbourne, who was not drafted, signed as a free agent
with the Orioles and played in 989 games for the Phillies, Yankees, Astros, Mariners, Twins and
Indians. He hit .327 in 14 post-season games in 1981 for the Yankees, who lost the World Series
to the Dodgers in six games.
The first graduate of a CAL school to play in the majors graduated from Atlantic City High School
26 years before the CAL was formed. Roger “Doc” Cramer played in 2239 games for the Athletics,
Red Sox, Senators and Tigers over 20 seasons. He was a five-time all star with a .296 lifetime
average. He hit .387 in nine World Series games.
Millville’s Mike Trout, a first round pick in 2009, has moved steadily through the Anaheim Angels system.
He has played in 175 minor league games and is hitting .344 with 11 home runs, 83 RBIs and 69 stolen
bases. If Trout doesn’t get the call to the Angels this month, he is likely to get it sometime next season.
Then there is Matt Szczur.
Szczur was drafted by the Cubs. The current stats for the Lower Cape May grad --- five carries for 15
yards and five catches for 16 yards and a touchdown. Szczur, a draft pick of the Chicago Cubs, left
baseball early to return to Villanova for his senior year of football. He played 25 games for three minor
league teams in the Cubs organization this summer, hitting .347. At least one coach in the CAL thinks
that Szczur was every bit as good as Trout in high school.
Regardless, it will probably not be another 22 years before the next CAL grad reaches the majors.
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On the last Saturday in February, the coaches of the four champion basketball teams brought their teams
to Egg Harbor Township High School to battle for overall Cape-Atlantic League championships. Both
games were thrillers, going into overtime.
Now, a little over six months later, three of those four coaches are gone!
Laurie Carter, whose Atlantic City Vikings won the girls game, recently stepped down and is in the process of being
replaced. Larry DiGiovanni, whose Holy Spirit Spartans lost to ACHS, retired and was replaced by Dennis
Smith, a HSHS grad and Cherry Hill East assistant. And Pat Holden, whose Lower Cape May boys lost a
two-overtime game to Ocean City, also retired. He was replaced by his brother, Scott.
The lone survivor is Ocean City’s John Bruno, who will return for his 22nd season.
Carter, DiGiovanni and Holden are part of a list of successful CAL coaches who will not be back for the
2010-11 school year. The group also includes Gene Barber and Greg Goodwin of Absegami, Trish LeFever
of Ocean City, Bob Weiss of Atlantic City, Scott Parker of Oakcrest, Ed Belfi of Vineland and Lee Chappine
of Middle Township.
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This is not really a sports story but it is about the high school that supplies most of our sports stories in
The Gazette.
Ocean City High School was the only Cape-Atlantic League school, and one of just seven in South Jersey,
to be listed among the top 100 public schools in the state by New Jersey Monthly magazine.
OCHS was No. 99 in the state ratings, which evaluate average class size, student-faculty ratio, average SAT
score, advanced proficiency on HSPA tests, number of AP tests offered and the student success rate, and
graduates going on to college. The top five in South Jersey, in order, were Haddonfield, Cherry Hill East,
Eastern, Cherry Hill West and Haddon Township. Right behind Ocean City was Shawnee. The No. 1 school
in the state was Millburn.
But, when New Jersey Monthly broke down their ratings according to socioeconomic factors (wealthiest
to the poorest) OCHS was No. 3 in its financial class, trailing only Dwight Morrow of Englewood (John Travolta’s
alma mater) and Palisades Park.
The Ocean City stats? Average class size was 18.8 and student-faculty ratio was 10-1. SAT average was
1511, there was an average of 21 percent who got advanced proficiency on HSPA and 75 percent scored
high on AP tests. A total of 51 percent went on to four-year colleges and 34 percent to two-year schools,
a total of 85 percent taking their education to the next level.
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Another member of the Ocean City sports community – and a big part of the community, as a whole – died
late last month.
Tom Williams was a former school teacher who developed his little deli on Asbury Avenue between 10th and
11th Streets into a gathering place for 32 years before retiring. It was the sandwiches, to be sure, but it was
also his personality. He had a great sense of humor and there always seemed to be a smile just about to
flash across his face.
His son, Scott, attended St. Augustine Prep and became a youth coach locally in baseball and wrestling.
His grandson, Scooter, was a successful football player and wrestler at OCHS. And Tom was on hand for
most of their games, another of the important people giving support behind the scenes.
We offer condolences to the extended Williams family. What would really be appropriate would be a moment
of silence at Fenway Park.
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Tom Williams' columns