Sigma October 2005

Sigma Summaries Volume 32, No. 10 October 2005 “Let’s All Pitch In” A friend recently remarked that corporations rarely give back to their communities, a comment that I thought was a gross overstatement and incredibly narrow-minded. Nonetheless, it got me to thinking and I realized that corporations represent nothing more than the collective characters that make up the board of directors, senior management and rank and file employees. Hence, a corporation will only be as committed to supporting a community as their people. This further got me to reflecting on how the individuals at Sigma spend their non-work hours. I am pleased to note that there is a great deal of community involvement, from Marisa Lenhard’s volunteer work as the treasurer of the Detroit based, non-profit arts group, Scarab Club, and Ken Bernard’s leadership on the board of Yad Ezra, a local food pantry, to Roger Steeds’ leadership role in the Sigma Investment Counselors/Ellington-White Project joint effort at implementing the Student Economic Partnership, or STEP, a financial literacy program aimed at inner-city Detroit youth that kicked off this past summer. Of course, Dave Bergman has a long-standing reputation as one of the Detroit area’s foremost promoters of amateur baseball through his Baseball Showcase, for high school baseball players interested in playing professional baseball or obtaining scholarships to play college baseball. Detroit Free Press sportswriter Curt Sylvester is guest writing this months Sigma Summaries, with an exposé on the 2005 Baseball Showcase. We hope you enjoy reading it. Dave Bergman thought he knew Okay, two teams instead of one – chosen by a group of the original what he was getting into. He’d take with Griesbaum, the Grosse Pointe players after seeing Bergman’s a team of 14-year olds – including South coach, and Braun, a Grosse Illinois State University Redbirds his son, Troy – coach them through Pointe attorney with a love of the jersey framed in the basement of his four seasons in the Macomb Amateur game – and they’d keep them going home. “Midway through the Baseball Federation and that would for four or five seasons. It sounded process, as it stands now, Tony Braun be it. That’s what he thought 13 perfectly reasonable. “Then from – along with Dick Swarthout – years ago – in 1992 – when he was two teams we went to four teams,” presented to me that he’d like to do wrapping up a successful 16-year Bergman recalled. “And there was a showcase and things got crazy,” professional baseball career and was a time we actually had five teams.” Bergman said, laughing. “But convinced by a sports writer/baseball Sure, four teams – one in each of without all the help and without all coach wanna-be that he’d enjoy the four upper age groups – a team the commitments from the passing along his knowledge of the for the 15-year-olds, a team for the volunteers, none of this would work game to youngsters in the east side 16-year-olds, one each for the 17s because I just don’t have the time to program. “I just thought it was going and 18s. And, yes, why not a team put into working this 24/7. When to be one team, take it all the way for the college kids? you’re running all these teams and a through and see what happens,” showcase, it requires a lot of time.” Bergman said recently. “Then, of With his former Tigers teammate course, I became good friends with Kirk Gibson helping him launch To be sure, there are volunteers; Danny Griesebaum and Tony Braun, and finance the project, the concept Bergman can be very convincing and they kind of convinced me and the program grew, taking on an when he goes through the maybe two teams would make some identity of its own. The team community looking for volunteers. sense.” became the Redbirds – a name He has coaches with strong baseball 26261 Evergreen • Suite 455 • Southfield, Michigan 48076 • (248) 223-0122 • Fax (248) 223-0144 backgrounds – Griesbaum, Braun, Gibson, a World Series hero for two happens with guys like Dave – when Dan Cimini of University Liggett teams – the Tigers and Los Angeles you get into it – your passion for the schools, Mike Getz, whose family Dodgers – has witnessed Bergman kids takes over and that’s why you has been involved in east side perform on two levels – as a Tiger expand,” Gibson said. “It’s fun, it’s baseball for several decades, John hitter in a difficult role of valued passionate, it’s rewarding and, with Hackett, one of the best east side utility man and as a teacher of young his background, it’s a special service players ever, Mike Stevenson, an players on the amateur level. On the to the community. And you know assistant coach at Grosse Pointe professional level, Gibson saw Dave’s motivation for these kids. He North, former Tigers trainer Pio Bergman at his best in a 17-pitch at wants to get them into college, to the DiSalvo and others. bat against Roy Lee Jackson of the next step. It’s beautiful.” Toronto Blue Jays during the Tigers’ Their teams play as many as 40 or pennant drive in 1984. “It’s kind of It’s difficult to get an exact count on 50 games during two months of the what defines you,” Gibson said. “It the number of players who have gone summer, the players learn to play the takes a lot. There’s a lot going on and from the Redbirds program and their game correctly and – with the game can get fast; you have to showcase to play college baseball but Bergman’s driving force behind keep it slowed down. When it gets it is several dozen. Rich Maloney, them – a high percentage of them use fast, some people can’t handle it but the Michigan baseball coach, had a the late-summer showcase to catch – hey – that’s fun.” Bergman fouled former Redbirds player – Chris Getz the attention of college baseball off pitch after pitch until he got the of Grosse Pointe – on his 2005 team coaches. Bergman accepts 156 one he wanted, then deposited it in and sees the solid foundation of skills players – mostly high school juniors the seats in right field at Tiger and baseball savvy. But Maloney and seniors – to compete and show Stadium for an important Tigers says Bergman teaches life skills that their baseball skills for three days in victory. “He fouled off 13 pitches are just as important. “Quite August. College coaches are invited and six of them were probably balls,” honestly, I think that’s more and virtually all of Michigan’s major Gibson said. “I say that kiddingly important than baseball,” Maloney colleges and universities are and it probably wasn’t that many but said. “Honestly, that’s the reason I’m represented. the fact is, it’s one of the arts of a coach. So many people breathed hitting – to stay alive. The more it into me and now I have a chance Dale Petroskey, the president of the pitches you see, the better to breathe it into young people. Baseball Hall of Fame in opportunity you have to center one, That’s exactly how Dave sees it. We Cooperstown, N.Y., has a high even if it’s a good pitch he throws see it bigger than the game of school age son who has participated you but, even more so, if he makes a baseball. We see baseball as a game in the showcase and he has seen mistake.” that we certainly want to reach our Bergman in action. “I see Dave full potential in and we want to play walking around, talking to college Bergman has discussed coaching and it to the highest level that we can. coaches, saying ‘You ought to really front office opportunities at the But at the end of the day we want to look at this kid, he’s got heart, he major league level but decided after develop young men into people that loves to play the game, he will give retiring from the Tigers in 1992 that will be productive and make a you 110 percent and, believe me, he’s he had spent enough time on the difference in other people’s lives. It’s got the grades to go to any school he road. He decided to stay closer to kind of like passing the baton….... wants to go to,’ ” Petroskey said. home with wife Cathy, daughters we’ve got to pass it on to the younger “Dave is the champion for all these Bria and Erika, and son Troy as well kids and, hopefully, they’ll pass it on kids, although he doesn’t give false as Sigma Investments and the to the next generation.” hope either. The thing about Dave is Redbirds. He stays close to the that he’s going to tell it like it is. He Tigers organization but clearly has There are currently five former understands what it takes to play at found a way to pass along the Redbirds – including Getz and Sean these different levels and he’s going knowledge he accumulated during Dobson of Eastpointe — playing to make sure the kids get the most his baseball career via the Redbirds professional ball at various minor out of their ability.” organization. “I don’t know if he league levels. Getz is a middle anticipated it but I think what infielder drafted in the fourth round by the Chicago White Sox in June.

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