The Boise Hawks haven't given up yet.

But the Tri-City Dust Devils aren't exactly making things easy on them.

The Hawks are playing perhaps their best baseball of the season, and after talking to Casey KOPITZKE over the past week, he doesn't seem to mind it one bit.

I don't think anyone covering or working for the Hawks mind it.

The Hawks decided to START playing their best baseball, right when their schedule weeds down to a long 12-game road trip against the opponents standing in their way at becoming the East Division champs.

Since losing four straight earlier this month, the Hawks are 11-4 and finish up the season against exclusively Spokane and Tri-City.

Perfect timing, since they sit six games behind Tri-City, and one game ahead of the scrappy Indians.

So the top three teams in the division are playing each other as the season winds down. Who wrote this? Disney is waiting anxiously in the wings.

EXTRA NOTE: Braden Tullis of the Indians is hitting the mound for Spokane again tonight to face the Hawks. He's a Boise guy...so don't beat him up TOO bad, guys.

I had to make sure to grab Casey after the game last night and talk to him about the fact that the Hawks are playing better than they have all season.

Possibly.

Of course that's an arguable point, and Casey is not the type that will just accept pure conjecture or opinion like that.

But I doubt he'd be able to deny the noticeable difference in demeanor of ANY manager after a team has won four of five, or five of six, and a manager that is coming off a rough road trip.

It's a "development" league, as I've said so many times this season. But with the way the team has put it together since the losses of their top pitcher and hitting prospect, it seems as though the team has a real interest in winning.

"We're not out of it yet," was all Casey said about that.

"Out of it" implied the division race, and the fact that the Hawks are 7.5 games out of first place doesn't seem to fazed a manager that hasn't seemed fazed by much at all this season.

The team is fired up, and playing some of its best baseball against some of the toughest opponents in the Northwest League.

Even after I tossed a perfect strike (arguable), the Hawks were able to upstage such an event by winning in exciting fashion, pushing runs across when they needed them, and sending the staffers home to nurse the wounds that come during a long season.

Just ask Rohan, who is starting to look like Craig Biggio.

If I've learned anything from Kopitzke, it's that he's going to take this season series by series. And, after taking four of five from Everett, the team is poised to attempt to take the second of two against Spokane.

If they need me, I'll be warming up my arm.

That title will ONLY be used once.

Don't expect me to ever say something even similar.

But last night the Hawks put the HAM crew on the hot seat and had us taste the famous Philly at the stadium. You can see how excited Safford was to take part, and I know Onalee   was appreciative.

I thought it tasted so good I actually glowed, as evidenced by the photo.

Mike Safford

Not bad, above average gourmet ballpark fare...I thought that the meat was solid, better than the meat they had in Yakima, but Yakima had better veggies and a much better roll.

Would I pay $7.50 for it? No...especially not on Family Feast Night.

Where would it rank in the league? Definitely below the Teriyaki Bowl in Spokane (which I am looking forward to on the next road swing), the Bread Bowl in Everett, the Boomer Dog in Yakima, and the Chicken and Chips in Vancouver.

I like the Super Nachos and the Chicken Wrap (without tomatoes) better in Boise.

But - it is very good.

Onalee

I hadn't exactly realized I would be a part of last night's food critique and had already had quite a bit to eat before they brought the philly up, however I didn't want to be the only HAM member not finish the sandwich. 

I powered through it and enjoyed pretty much every second of it.  I'm a huge fan of philies, and this one is one of my favorites. 

But I would cut back on the onions a little bit; they seemed to overpower the sandwich both in taste and consistency.  I'm not quite sure what kind of cheese is used on the philly but I think it is delicious and it seems to meld all of the contents and flavors together. 

I don't know if we toast our buns, but the bread on the philly was just the right consistency--soft in the middle but kind of toasty on the edges...perfect for a heavy-loaded sandwich.  The sandwich is definitely a big one so make sure you are going in on an empty stomach.

Aaaand Me

After I had failed so miserably at finishing what I was given on the first day, I knew I had to go into this one with a full head of steam.

And I did.

I was fully prepared and ready for the sandwich, and it went down like a champ.

ONE problem with the cheesesteak, and that's a problem I have with EVERY one I've ever had. I don't like green or red peppers. But, I dealt with it.

Why? Because I'm a self-sacrificing man.

The meat was well done, and I could have used more of it. Maybe Onalee was right about having fewer onions, but an onion-obsessed HAM member would have argued the opposite point.

The cheese definitely made it worth while, and while the roll wasn't the best, it was high class stuff for a ballpark sandwich.

I give it TWO HAMS out of four.

Wow.

I sat there, looking at my "Super Nachos" last night and felt powerless to finish them.

They were passed to me, Chris Langrill from the Idaho Statesman and Will Love from the Idaho Press Tribune.

I'll give you what they had to say, followed by my own thoughts.

Chris Langrill

At $8, it's not a bad value, because you probably don't want to try to eat these super nachos by yourself. In fact, you probably will want help from more than one friend.
 
Plenty of "layers," so you can pick and choose your ingredients as you scoop. You can go after olives, onions, beans, ground beef, jalapenos, sour cream, salsa and melted cheee.
 
The salsa has a little kick, and the jalapenos allow you to adjust the temperature to your liking.
 
The chips held up well, compared to some that turn into limp, soggy relics after seeing a few nacho toppings.
 
Word to the wise: Bring your friends and eat them quickly. They tend to turn into a gooey mess after a while. But, then again, I don't think the inventor of nachos worried too much about their appearance after a half hour.  
 
Finally, there's the cheese. What can I say? Sometimes you just crave liquid cheese that came from a can and nothing else will do. Other times, not so much.
 
I like to melt Velveeta with a can of Rotel, so I'm not against the whole concept, but I've learned that, alas, my stomach is not usually on board.

Will Love

This is the first time I have had the Super Nachos at Memorial Stadium. Up in the pressbox, I always see fans packing this enourmous dish back up to their seats and wanted to give them a try.

A challenge worthy for the television show 'Man vs. Food,' I think the Memorial Stadium staff were intending to feed the Hawks baseball team -- not a mere mortal as myself. I had to give up about halfway though after giving it my best attempt. (Note: The "best" for a sports reporter shouldn't be taken lightly, we are typically a husky lot of people and like our food.)

I think Mike Sharp put it best when he said, "I worry about the person who can eat the whole thing." With that said, the Super Nacho presented a perfect option for a couple or family attending a game.

It is reasonably priced and probably portioned right for two adults or three or four children.

The impressive thing about the nachos is it gives you options when you take a bite. Maybe on one chip, you will find refried beans, olives and some salsa. On another, you may get some taco meet, onions and cheese. The thing is packed!

I think everyone should try the Super Nachos at least once in their lifetime. My suggestion, though, is get plenty of exercise before you do try, because it is a mouthful!

And ME

I have to agree with the guys. It's probably the best bargain I've seen from the stadium, and if you have children, and/or a small community, this would be perfect for you.

The nature of nachos allows for small portions among a heap of food.

I'm not going to lie, I fell far shy of finishing, but OH did I enjoy the attempt.

I'm not a big Velveeta fan, but the beans and meat made up for it, and I enjoyed having the olives on there as well. I made the comment to Will Love that it's a beer drinker's dream. After two Banquet Beers, I'm going to be digging into that stack like it's nothing.

And it would be, when I finished.

But as a sober man, you see how I did.

 

BOISE, ID - Peter Jackson knew pretty early that his little boy, Brett Jackson, was going to be something special.

"Every dad thinks his son will be that player," Jackson said. "You watch him and say, 'Did you see that?'. The thing was, other people would say that to me. Now, that was kind of kooky."

Brett's effect on his peers' parents only grew, yet he never let what others said go to his head.

"We don't like attitude in this family," his dad said. "So we didn't let him get ahead of himself."

But he was ahead of every other kid.

"In track races, he'd beat everyone by ten feet," Jackson said. "When he was little he didn't have a blanket, he had a bat. He used to run around the house and say, 'Me a baseball man.'"

And a baseball man he became. Jackson grew up on the outside of the "in" group of athletes. And he used his lack of complete acceptance to continue to drive himself.

He played shortstop in high school and decided to try to go to his dad's alma mater Cal.

"I remember recruiting him and asking, 'Hey, listen, how married are you to the position of shortstop? What if we need a third baseman?'," Cal coach David Esquer said. "He said, Coach, I'll play anywhere. I'll play third. I'll play first. I'll play center. I'll play anywhere. Whatever the team needs.' That's kind of his personality."

It didn't take long for Esquer to catch on to the special abilities of Jackson.

"There's just a little more of everything there," said Esquer. "We have some kids that are strong. He's stronger. He has that body that projects out, and that's a major league body on him, you know? Size and strength, his arm strength. He's improved every year in the outfield. I mean, he's a legitimate good outfielder and I think what makes him valuable is he's a centerfielder that's going to stay in centerfield. He's not a college centerfielder that everyone feels needs to move to left or right."

Jackson had to work on his body through his career at Cal. And he was able to put himself in a position of being told he might go early in the Major League Baseball draft.

"It wasn't a calm situation on draft day," his father said, tearing up. "He and I sat in the other room [away] from all our family; it was just Brett and I. We had phone lines, the internet, instant message, and texting. And nothing was ringing. When he wasn't drafted early he blamed himself and said, 'It's my fault. I'm better than that. I know I can do better.' Just then, the Cubs selected him and he looked up at me and said, 'This is what I always wanted to do. I wanted to be a Cub.'"

Now, that humble athlete is working his way up in the Cubs system and he saw plenty of success in a Boise Hawks uniform. It would be easy for his parents to believe he can go as far as he needs to, and they do. But they keep their son in check.

But his coach wastes no time talking about the potential of Brett Jackson.

"I would not be surprised to see him play major league baseball," Esquer said. "I've told him that since his freshman year. I said, you've got a ways to go, but that's what we're working with. so it's worth the time and it's worth the effort because it was in him. I may be going out on a limb here, but I've seen a lot of players that have gone through our program that have got there, and he's got it. He's not an entitled kid. I think he has a great family that really kept him humble and wasn't going to let him get too big headed or let him get ahead of himself. They really understood to be humble they weren't going to let him just kind of live on his successes. I credit his father who's really close to him, really keeping him grounded and really understanding it can be gone in an instant and it doesn't do any good to think you're entitled. Life can humble you."

What began as a little boy with a little bat has grown into a man with professional abilities. But ask his father, his coach, or Jackson himself, and the credit goes to the mother and father that taught him that success went beyond the baseball field.

Success is measured by those you love.

I took the time over the past few days to NOT write anything down.

It was a conscious choice, and involved me showing up to the final two games of the homestand without a notepad in my hand, and with a mind set on attempting to enjoy what I was doing more than just do it for work.

It worked.

I got the chance to see a baseball game for fun for the first time in a long time, and I definitely owe everyone involved a gracious thank you.

But I saw a team that lacks something. I wish I could define what it is. I made the comment to a friend at the game that whatever that "something" is, it's going to start making a regular appearance in the lineup.

Since then, they've lost 4 of 5, and three in a row.

Even the sturdy Ryan Sontag is experiencing a little bit of a letdown.

The question is, will the ship be steadied?

There are plenty of new faces on the team, and there's plenty of talent to win the games, so why has that feat become so difficult?

It goes beyond losing your No. 3 hitter.

Casey Kopitzke has a lot of pride and confidence in his players, and he'll defend them tooth and nail, but this can't be easy for him to watch.

Heck, I'm not even on the road this trip, and it's hard for ME to see.

So now I'm going to have to apologize.

I made the statement on the air the other day in Eugene that I thought the Hawks had a chance at coming back from the hole they sat in, and would be capable of finishing the year in first place.

Apparently, even something as vague as "a chance" is enough to jinx me to a point of humility.

Technically, mathematically, they do have a shot.

But after Brett Jackson and Jeff Antigua got called up to Peoria, and DJ Lamahieu skipped Boise altogether, it looks unlikely.

Casey Kopitzke seemed almost offended at me asking him if there is another guy on the team with Jackson's capability to bring the squad together.

It was Jackson that solidified the unit when he showed up on July 4. It was Jackson that attacked his teammates with shaving cream. And after spending some time in the clubhouse, I could tell the players responded to him.

Kopitzke called Jackson "a piece". As in, a piece of the puzzle. There are a lot of other pieces in the puzzle that have worked hard to get the Hawks back into a position of good baseball.

"We haven't played good baseball here," Kopitzke said of the last three games. "But I don't think that's indicative of us losing Brett Jackson."

He's right, it was an unfair question. The guy had "tools" and definitely assisted a team that needed leadership, but Hak-Ju Lee, Jae-Hoon Ha, Logan Watkins, Justin Bour and others are just as capable of batting in a few runs.

What I would like to see is Greg Rohan step up into a more vocal role as a leader. The guy has the humility to make a difference, and the skills at the bat. He showed that at Kent State.

I guess we'll have to wait and see.

The thing about puzzles is, it takes every piece to make a good picture, and whatever new pieces show up from Mesa, it may take awhile to force them into the vacancies left by the Cubs 1st round pick.