Jeff Weiser, Rolco Sports Network
DETROIT– The highlights and accomplishments of inductees, Danny Ozark, Kristy Kowal and Jane ‘Peaches’ Bartkowicz was the focus. The funny baseball stories kept the audience smiling. It was all part of induction day for the recent honorees of the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.
Ozark, a former Dodger coach under Walt Alston, had been retired and living with his wife Ginny, in Vero Beach, Florida. They had been married for 60 years. He passed away last year at 85.
Photo caption: Greg Luzinski, Raymond Rolak and Tom Paciorek celebrate the 2010 National Polish American Hall of Fame inductees at the Hockeytown Cafe.
A native of Buffalo, New York, he was celebrated for leading the Philadelphia Phillies to three straight National League East titles in the 70’s. He was National League Manager of the year in 1976. He also had a special celebrity for the way he fractured the English language. His most remembered saying was, \”Half this game is 90 % mental.\”
He started in professional baseball as a minor leaguer for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1942. His baseball was interrupted by World War II. After recovering from shrapnel wounds received at the Battle of the Bulge, he embarked on a long career in baseball.
Kowal was both an NCAA Champion and Olympic Medal winner. She was NCAA
Women of the Year in 2000 and a multiple times NCAA All-America.
‘Peaches’ Bartkowicz was noted for all her International Championships including the 1964 Women’s Jr. Wimbledon title. She won three medals at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, (demonstration sport).
Baseball funnyman and 18 year major league veteran, Tom Paciorek, kept the audience lively with stories of hasty dugout snacks, some prudent and mostly clandestine.
Paciorek recalled what a tremendous influence Tommy Lasorda had in his career and life. He then amazed everyone by listing all the major leaguers from the 1972 Albuquerque Dukes team. The list made an impression on the baseball enthusiast’s in attendance.
\”I learned how to play first base from Danny Ozark when I just came up to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1973,\” Paciorek added.
The former University of Houston, All-America in football and baseball, exclaimed, \”I am 1,000 % Polish and proud of it,\” Paciorek started.
Paciorek told of the Chicago Connie’s Pizza chronicles. He needed no further prompting as he
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