"Honoring Mike Coolbaugh
ROUND ROCK – What has for years been a tradition in minor league baseball will now become a tribute to baseball veteran Mike Coolbaugh for the remainder of the 2007 Round Rock Express season.
When Round Rock returns home on Aug. 1, the team will begin a stretch of 20 home games in 34 days. Every time an Express player hits a home run, the traditional helmet will be passed around The Dell Diamond seating bowl. Only now, all of the money placed into the helmet will be donated to the Mike Coolbaugh Memorial Fund.
Coolbaugh, who spent three of his 16 professional playing years with the Houston Astros’ organization and was named the organization’s Triple-A Most Valuable Player while with Round Rock in 2005, was killed Sunday when a line drive foul ball struck him as he coached first base for the Double-A Texas League Tulsa Drillers. The 35-year-old San Antonio resident left behind two sons, Joseph, 5, and Jacob, 3, and his wife, Amanda, who is expecting their third child in October.
Round Rock – which will also wear a patch for the remainder of the season featuring Coolbaugh’s initials and his Express uniform number, 32 – will honor Coolbaugh throughout the team’s game against Colorado Springs on Friday, Aug. 3 at The Dell Diamond. A moment of silence and a memorial pitch will begin the game, the homerun helmet will be passed for donations in the seventh inning and a special tribute video will follow.
Fans wishing to obtain more information, or to drop off donations prior to Friday’s game, may visit the customer service booth located behind home plate at The Dell Diamond. Placards honoring Coolbaugh will also be available at customer service.
“Mike Coolbaugh wasn’t just a dedicated baseball player, he was someone who genuinely cared about everyone around him,” said Express veteran Travis Driskill, who also has two young sons. “It’s hard to imagine a loss of that magnitude. We can all grieve, but we can all also help his family.”
The passing of the helmet has long been a staple of the minor leagues. After a home-team player hits a homerun, his helmet is passed around the crowd and stuffed with dollar bills. Round Rock has hit 42 home runs at The Dell Diamond this season.
In addition, donations for the Mike Coolbaugh Memorial Fund can be dropped off weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at The Dell Diamond, located at 3400 E. Palm Valley.
All donations collected will go directly to a fund set up for the family at Spirit Bank in Tulsa, Okla. Checks can be made payable to the Mike Coolbaugh Memorial Fund and may be sent to the Mike Coolbaugh Memorial Fund, c/o Spirit Bank, 1800 S. Baltimore Ave., Tulsa, OK 74119. In addition, all fine money from the Texas League, plus an additional $1,000 for each of the league’s eight teams, will go towards the fund. The Nolan Ryan Foundation and Spirit Bank have each donated $5,000 to the fund."
--From the Express email
Good to see.
