Stephen Hudak
Plain Dealer Reporter
Tallmadge — Only death itself kept funeral director Chad Clisby from seeing the first pitch of the 2003 Little League World Series.
Clisby patiently helped a client with arrangements at Hennessy Bagnoli Funeral Home as Tallmadge’s lanky lefty, 12-year-old Jake Mays, fired Strike One yesterday at the series in Williamsport, Pa.
“I’m headed home to watch now,” Clisby said, climbing into his van a short time later.
The kids’ ballgame also seemed like life and death yesterday to others in Tallmadge, a city of about 17,000 peo´ ple, including the 12 boys representing the Great Lakes region at the annual event.
John Geer, co-owner of a root beer stand where the Little Leaguers cool off after long practices and hard games, defied rules for businesses in the city’s historic district and put up a good-luck banner.
“I care about rules,” he said. “But supporting the boys is important, too.”
At Delanie’s Neighborhood Grille, owner Nick Dadich rolled in two big-screen TVs for the boys’ appearance against Saugus, Massachusetts, a team represent´ ing the New England states.
He expected three times his normal dinner crowd, and he got it.
His restaurant was packed with families, roaring and groaning at umpire’s calls.
“Yeee-ya, that’s the way,” bel´ lowed Douglas Hukill, startling his 7-year-old son, Dallas, when Tallmadge second baseman Matt Keen turned a double play to end Saugus’ half of the third.
A table away from Hukill, Ian Manka, 13, devoured an order of wings as he watched his friends play baseball on a national cable broadcast. He said he used to play ball with many of them.
“It’s just overwhelming,” he said. “Just think. Out of the thousands and thousands and thousands of kids who want to be there, they made it. They were good enough to make it,” he said.
In Tallmadge homes and in the city’s businesses that were wired to cable or a satellite broadcast, the local boys were on TV. In shops that weren’t, the boys were on the employees’ minds.
Dave Denholm impatiently called home from the parts counter at The Henry Bierce Co., where he works as tool rental manager for the Tallmadge store. It was the second inning.
He couldn’t find a radio broad´ cast, and the hardware store didn’t have cable.
Denholm, 41, said he desper´ ately hoped to persuade his girl´ friend, Benita, to put the tele´ phone next to the TV so he could hear the ESPN2 broadcast of the game. She didn’t answer.
Asked why he cared so much about the team, Denholm said: “They play because they love the game. No shoe contracts. No Hummers. They play for the right reasons. They play for fun.”
Tallmadge lost yesterday, 2-1.
But they play again today at 8
p.m. on ESPN2 and Monday at 3
p.m. on ESPN. They can still ad