Remembering D-Day

The highlight of my weekend was Friday night's first pitch ceremony. 94 year old Dub Karriker, wounded on Omaha Beach in the 1944 D-Day Invasion, brought the heat!

Click here for the video

Local attorney Patrick Byker introduced me to the Karriker family and suggested the first pitch idea. I was all in on the D-Day observance, but skeptical about the toss. Au contraire! Dub has good genes and a baseball pedigree. A Babe Ruth coach for almost 60 years, he's in the League's Hall of Fame!

The Purple Heart recipient and his wife of 71 years, Louise, live at the Durham Regent. They recently moved here from Arkansas to be closer to family. 

It's no surprise that Dub received a standing ovation Friday evening. Thanks for your service and welcome to Durham!

Bulls on Parade

The Bulls had a sell-out Saturday night, and the weekend got even better on Sunday morning when I opened the paper...

That Durham Bulls logo was seen by 63 million people! Parade claims to be the most widely read magazine in America. 

Many of our fans were surprised that the story featured a Little League team in Woburn Mass...but that isn't out of the ordinary. Youth baseball teams all across the country wear our gear. The Bulls' insignia is among the most popular, and team apparel accounts for better than 25% of our retail sales. It's the result of a national licensing program, instituted 23 years ago, by Minor League Baseball. Total sales exceed $55 million for all MiLB teams. That's a lot of baseball caps and t-shirts!