Sam Carchidi: Celebrating that summer of long ago

Anybody who has ever played Little League baseball probably has memories of players they  knew  would some day reach the majors. Growing up in Haddon Heights, I was sure I was witnessing two future big-leaguers when I watched Mark Ewell and Don Newell pitch for their respective youth teams.

I was convinced they threw as hard as Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson, and that they certainly were better than some of the retreads in the Phillies' rotation. The only reason they didn't have their pictures on baseball cards - ah, I can still smell the sweet aroma that the powdery gum gave those wax packs - was because they were only 13 or 14 years old. At least that was my perspective at the time. I'm sure some kids who played for Penns Grove/Carney's Point felt the same way when they watched Bruce Ulissi, Larry White, Steve Cooker, Mike Ayers, ...