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Friday Baseball — Central Valley Easter Classic at BLD NBAPlayoffs — Celtics at Knicks, Game 3, 4 p.m., ESPN NBAPlayoffs —Lakers at Hornets, Game 3, 6:30 p.m., ESPN MLB— Athletics at Mariners, 7 p.m., CSNC MLB— Braves at Giants, 7 p.m., MNT-21 PGA— The Heritage, Second Round, Noon, TGC Spartans 3-1 at Easter tourney BASEBALL The Spartans will play in today’s 3 p.m. consolation championship at the 2011 Shasta Lake Bass Easter Baseball Classic being held at Big League Dreams in Redding after going 3-1 in the first two days of the tournament. Red Bluff won their opener 9-1 over Trinity, Wednesday, behind a strong performance by Tyler Reed on the mound. Reed struck out five batters and allowed just two hits in six innings pitched. Cody Case pitched the last inning. Gerald Baker hit a two-run homer in the first inning and Modesto Ramirez went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Red Bluff lost their next game 6-0 to Marysville to send them to the consolation bracket. “Great ball game, they just strung together the hits,” coach Joe Gallaty said. Baker pitched the entire game, which was 1-0 headed into the sixth inning. Ramirez doubled and Baker, Joel Duggins and Taylor Figgs had base hits. On Thursday the Spartans rebounded with great pitching. First Duggins struck out 13 batters in five innings as Red Bluff beat South Lake Tahoe 11-0. Mitch Robison had three hits, Jordan Fox and Storm Lewis each drove in two runs and Figgs picked up two hits. In the night cap, Red Bluff beat Central Valley 5-0 behind a one-hitter from Lewis. Robison and Baker each drove in a run and had a pair of hits. One of Baker’s was a double. Robby Lasby also doubled for the 19-4 Spartans. It starts at home I love watching a ball game. I mean, I absolutely love it. In the fall, on a Friday night, I think my adrenaline starts running about mid-afternoon just like a player's does. When I walk into a gym in January, nothing erases my trou- bles like hearing sneakers squeak- ing on the hardwood floor. But above all those things, my favorite story to write — absolutely the best story I cover — has to be a senior signing his letter of intent. Every time I write that story, the coach is there filled up with the feeling of satisfaction that made him devote his life to coaching in the first place. Mom is there, nervous, sad and excited about her Rich Greene child leaving the nest. Dad's swallowing back his own pride so it doesn't show. And the kid — hell, the kid has no idea what he's get- ting himself into. It's a special time. They may be the end of a high school career, but they're actually the start of fairy tale-like stories, captur- ing that “Once upon a time” feeling you want your chil- dren to believe exists when they're little. They're tales born from some strange brew of god- given talent, self-determination and probably a little luck, but what I've noticed over the years is they have something else as well — strong family involvement. A wise coach once told me he's rarely seen a kid from this area reach an athletic scholarship without the latter. Iwould agree. I was fortunate enough to write this story again this past week when Red Bluff's own wrestling sensation Dillon Reid found the perfect athletic and academic fit at South Dakota State University. Just like this coach had suggested, there was a pair of loving parents along to share the moment with their son. Every time I've wrote this story these past few months it's been the same — there's family there that cares. Spartan pitcher Storm Lewis had a mom who was so excited to tell me about how her son was following in her grandfather's footsteps as a great athlete it might have been a tad embarrassing for him. But he'll never doubt how much she loves him. His teammate Zane Medeiros has a father Brian, who I think everyone in town knows in some capacity. And everyone who does, knows how he beams in pride when Zane is mentioned. As good as their pitching arms are, for as many sec- tion titles as they have — it's a parent that helps them take the next step as an athlete. That's no knock on Dillon, Storm or Zane. They put in their hours, but they also had parents willing to drive them around and give up their own time as well. Since I already told you my favorite story to write — I'll let you know my favorite compliment. It's those readers that tell me they don't care for the sports pages, but they read this column anyway. Seems sports can be a nice analogy for life. Seems to be the case here as well. This thought process of parents who care leading to successful children, well my undocumented proof leads me to believe this rings true outside of athletics. Debates over budget cuts, standardized testing, pri- vate, public, charter...forget about it. There's an easy solution when it comes to ensuring your kids reach that next level. One no increase or decrease in dollars spent for stu- dent will ever accurately account for. Parents who care. Daily News Sports Editor Rich Greene can be reached at 527-2151, ext. 109 or by e-mail at sports@redbluffdailynews.com. ALAMEDA (AP) — Hue Jackson has hired a staff, talked strategy and philosophy with his new assistants, put together a playbook and promoted the Oakland Raiders in the com- munity as he prepares for his first season as a head coach in the NFL. The only thing Jackson hasn’t been able to do as of yet is what he does best, coach a football team. Like 31 other coaches in the league, Jackson’s job is on hold as the NFL has locked out its players in a labor dis- pute. ‘‘I want to get to what I truly get paid to do, which is coaching football, as soon as I can,’’ Jackson said Thurs- day. But instead of installing his playbook, getting to know his new players and running offseason workouts, Jackson is left to prepare for next week’s draft and wait for a resolution to the lock- out. The Raiders may have to wait longer than any other team to pick, having traded their first-round pick to New England before the 2009 season for Richard Sey- mour. Oakland is pleased with the results of that deal as Seymour has become a leader on defense and was picked for the Pro Bowl last season. The Raiders have had a first-round pick every year since 1989, although they had to deal back into the round in 2005 to take Fabian Washington 23rd overall after trading the sev- enth pick to Minnesota in a package for Randy Moss. Jackson did not rule out dealing into the round one again, saying the team would not ‘‘leave any stone unturned.’’ It could be more difficult this season with the lockout because teams can only trade picks — not play- ers — during the draft. The lockout has made much of the offseason diffi- cult as teams head into the draft not knowing which potential free agents they will lose or sign and which players they could potential- ly acquire in a trade. That could make it more difficult to decide what the biggest needs are. ‘‘We’re all in the same boat,’’ Jackson said. ‘‘We wish we weren’t, but we are, and we’ll all deal with it accordingly. You wish you knew exactly what you have and didn’t have. Obviously, we all do. You can’t worry about it. You have to contin- ue to press on, go forward and make the decisions that you know you need to make.’’ The Raiders do have one advantage, with owner Al Davis having signed some key potential free agents to contracts before the lockout started last month, including Seymour, cornerback Stan- ford Routt, linebacker Kamerion Wimbley, defen- sive tackle John Henderson, backup running back Rock Cartwright, safety Hiram Eugene and backup quarter- back Kyle Boller. Even if Pro Bowl corner- back Nnamdi Asomugha and starting free safety Michael Huff leave as free agents, the Raiders have most of their defense back for next season, as well as almost all of their skilled position players on offense. ‘‘We have a defensive football team that can hit the ground running,’’ Jackson said. ‘‘A very talented defen- sive football team that I feel very comfortable putting out on the field and playing with.’’ The defense will be working under a new coor- dinator as Chuck Bresnahan was hired to replace John Marshall. Jackson has spent lots of time working with Bresnahan, new offensive coordinator Al Saunders and returning special teams coordinator John Fassel. The lockout has given him more time than usual to talk philosophy with his coordinators so things will go more smoothly once the players return. But Jackson acknowl- edges it might be harder to implement all the changes he wants with less offseason time with his players. He has already put in place con- tingency plans for what he would do if training camp is MCT file photo Oakland Raiders head coach Hue Jackson is preparing for his first season, lockout or not. shortened if the lockout con- tinues into the summer. ‘‘We’re going to go do what we need to do. Now, can we do it on a wide scale? No. Probably not,’’ he said. ‘‘But there will be changes. There has to be. This is now going to be my imprint on this football team. We’ll come in here and we’ll be a different group, and I think our play- ers know that, and I think our organization knows that and I think our fans know that. Our expectation’s dif- ferent. We expect to win, and I think we will.’’ Jackson also said he was concerned about three off- season arrests for his play- ers. Running back Michael Bush was charged with dri- ving under the influence in Indiana in February; offen- sive lineman Mario Hender- son was charged in March with carrying a concealed firearm without a permit in Florida; and receiver Louis Murphy was arrested earlier this month in Florida for possession of Viagra with- out a valid prescription, fail- ure to obey an officer, and nonviolent resisting arrest. ‘‘I’m very disappointed about it,’’ Jackson said. ‘‘It’s not very Raider like, but obviously there’s nothing I can do about it. The rules won’t let me talk to those particular players or any- thing. But I am disappointed. I’m sure when we’re allowed to address it we will.’’ Sports 1B Friday April 22, 2011 Sacramento begins pitch to NBA SACRAMENTO (AP) — Sacra- mento Mayor Kevin Johnson and other political and business leaders emerged from meetings with NBA officials Thursday optimistic about their efforts to keep the Kings in town. A week after Johnson made a des- perate pitch to the NBA Board of Gov- ernors in New York that persuaded the league to dispatch a fact-finding team to Sacramento, the mayor believes he made another splash when they arrived. He presented $9.2 million in commitments for new advertising, ticket purchases and other financial support from regional businesses and other backers to prevent the team from moving to Anaheim. Johnson said his pitch to Clay Ben- nett, the Oklahoma City Thunder owner and the NBA’s relocation com- mittee chairman, and league attorney Harvey Benjamin made a strong impression. He originally promised $7 million to league owners and NBA Commissioner David Stern. ‘‘If you go back a week ago from today, we thought it was virtually over,’’ said Johnson, a former NBA All-Star. ‘‘And not only did we prevent the team from leaving, we got a chance to show them who we are. And when ‘‘If you go back a week ago from today, we thought it was virtually over. And not only did we prevent the team from leaving, we got a chance to show them who we are. And when we said $7 million, and the commissioner said, ’Well, prove it,’ he sent a team out and we over delivered. I mean, this is Sacramento. This is what makes us great.’’ Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson we said $7 million, and the commis- sioner said, ’Well, prove it,’ he sent a team out and we over delivered. I mean, this is Sacramento. This is what makes us great.’’ The meetings began two days of talks with the two NBA representa- tives. Johnson, Bennett and Benjamin first met in California’s Capitol in the office of Senate President Darrell Steinberg. That meeting included local political leaders. They later met at the U.S. Bank tower downtown with business leaders, including Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce President Matt Mahood. The relocation team headed by Ben- nett, who moved the Seattle SuperSon- ics to Oklahoma City three years ago, also was expected to tour proposed sites for a new arena. Stern wanted to investigate further because he said past arena efforts in Sacramento were ‘‘usually an eye- roller’’ and didn’t know if Johnson’s assertions were ‘‘real or a pie in the sky.’’ ‘‘They’re sort of verifying some of the representations by Mayor Johnson about how to produce so much in increased sponsorships, so much in increased ticket revenues,’’ Stern said See KINGS, page 2B Jackson prepares for 1st season Sacramento Kings 2011 Shasta Lake Bass Easter Baseball Classic Oakland Raiders