What a pity that Terrell Owens’ mental instability overshadowed what should have been the biggest story to hit Philadelphia since the Eagles Super Bowl loss to New England.
A young, African-American Major Leaguer by the name of Ryan Howard won the prestigious National League Rookie of the Year Award on Monday. Howard, a St. Louis native, attended Lafayette High School. A multi-sports star, he excelled at baseball and was in the Phillies’ minor-league system when he got a call-up to the big leagues to replace injured first baseman Jim Thome. The overpaid and under-productive Thome came back and Howard was sent back down to the minors.
Did he whine like a T.O.? No, he waited for another chance and, when he got it, played so well the Phillies couldn’t part with him. In fact, Howard almost helped lead the Phillies to the Wild Card playoff berth, finishing just two games behind the Houston Astros.
Since Major League Baseball officials are saying they want to see more black players on the field, Ryan presents a perfect chance to market the game to young African Americans. He, like the Florida Marlins’ Dontrelle Willis, truly enjoys the game and he shows exuberance and passion while playing.
But, of course, Howard’s heroics barely made the national sports cable news because he was announced as Rookie of the Year on the same day the Eagles said Owens would not return to the team.
Now that T.O. is gone for good, hopefully Philadelphia will realize that they have a gem in Howard and shower him with the affection that was wasted on the selfish and self-destructive Owens.
By the way, Howard’s teammate Ugueth Urbina was arrested on a charge of attempted murder, police said on Tuesday.
Last month, Urbina and a group of men allegedly wielded machetes at several employees at his family’s ranch in his native Venezuela and poured gasoline on them in an attempt to set them on fire. Five workers were injured, and one of them suffered burns on the back and right arm, police said. Naturally, that hogged the headlines for another day. Howard just can’t catch a break. Oh, Urbina has insisted he had nothing to do with the violence at the ranch.