For almost a decade, professional baseball players, broadcasters and managers — from Ron Darling to Ruben Amaro Jr. — have been coming to Hamilton Township to help raise money for local youth sports, all thanks to one dedicated Allentown dad.
Philadelphia Phillies broadcaster and Allentown resident Tom McCarthy hosts the Hot Stove Dinner during the offseason to raise money for the Allentown High School athletic department. McCarthy’s sons played for Allentown while they were in high school, and his two daughters are now involved in local softball programs. Ensuring that children in the community have every opportunity to participate in athletic programs was the driving force behind the fundraiser.
This year marks the ninth and final Hot Stove Dinner McCarthy is hosting, with money being raised for both the baseball and softball teams.
McCarthy will be joined by Phillies manager Pete Mackanin, Phillies broadcaster Ben Davis, and Dan Plesac, MLB Network analyst and former MLB pitcher. During the dinner, which will be catered by Mafalda’s of Hamilton, guests can also participate in a silent auction. McCarthy said this year’s items include autographed items from MLB and NFL players and merchandise donated from Trenton Thunder.
The final Hot Stove Dinner will take place this Friday, Jan. 22 at Cedar Gardens from 6 – 11 p.m. Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased at the door.
Mercerspace.com spoke with McCarthy to find out more about the Hot Stove Dinner, why high school athletics are important to him and the upcoming Phillies season.
Why is this the last year you’re hosting the dinner?
We’ve done it for so many years, and quite honestly, we’ve had so many great guests. My two boys are leaving the baseball program, and although my two girls [Maggie, an AHS sophomore, and Kerri, a seventh grade student] are coming into the softball program, the thought is to try something different.
We may have another one down the road, but I think we’re probably going to alternate one or two years and do something a little different — an art auction, a comedy night, or a golf tournament — just because we don’t want to go back to the same well every single year.
What has the Allentown High School baseball team been able to do with the money raised from the Hot Stove Dinners?
In past years it’s strictly been for the baseball team. This year we’re including the Allentown High School softball team as well because my daughter is a sophomore on the softball team, so I thought it would be nice to marry the two programs. They’re both in need of additional funding. Obviously the school system does everything they can, but funding for athletics is short. It has been over the last handful of years because more of the money is going, rightfully, into the educational programs.
Over the years we’ve been able to fund trips for Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for the baseball team, which has been a great sort of preseason prep for the regular season. We’ve been able to provide them with new uniforms. We’ve been able to put in a gigantic state-of-the-art Daktronics scoreboard for the baseball field, which is absolutely gorgeous…We’ve been able to put an irrigation system in the baseball field…We’ve also purchased a handful of tarps to cover the dirt areas of the fields, so we can make sure if there is a game scheduled, they can actually play the game.
How much money was raised over the years to accomplish all of that?
We’ve raised a little more than $70,000 over the time, and it’s been nice to have. From an athletics standpoint, these are the best years for a lot of these kids. Athletically, it’s the best years of their lives, very few get the chance to go on and play in college. That number is very small — this could be the last time they play — so we’re just trying to enhance their opportunity on the softball field and on the baseball field.
Speaking as both a sports broadcaster and as a parent, how important is it for children and teenagers to have that opportunity to get involved with sports, especially team sports like baseball and softball?
For me, if it weren’t for [high school] athletics I wouldn’t be in athletics. My two boys wouldn’t be playing college baseball if it weren’t for high school athletics. They wouldn’t be pursuing a broadcasting career if it wasn’t for high school athletics. It’s just important on so many levels, for leadership, for time management, for teamwork and for understanding the value of hard work to get to a certain level.
Your son Tommy was drafted by the Phillies last year. What was that experience like for you and your family?
It was unbelievable. He has worked so hard over his years, both of my boys have. They’re two tremendous stories in their own right, but Tommy has worked so hard. He was so driven to be the best baseball player he possibly can. He had gone to a couple different tryouts, and in all honesty we weren’t really expecting anything. I was at the one tryout for the Phillies and he performed exceptionally well. But we had no inkling that he was going to get drafted.
Hopefully it’s the first of two opportunities for him, because I hope he gets drafted again when he’s eligible once his college days are over. But it was an incredible honor for him, for our family, and it proves what hard work can get you if you set your mind to something. His goal was to try to get drafted out of high school. He knew he wasn’t going to sign unless he was a much higher draft pick, but his goal was to get drafted and it’s nice to see him be able to reach a goal. Because now, anything that he wants to do, I think he can do because he’s already been able to accomplish one of his goals.
Are both your sons playing baseball in college?
He is actually going to be playing with his older brother (Patrick) at The College of New Jersey. It’s going to be nice to have them together again. My older one didn’t play a whole lot in high school because, quite frankly, he was more of a basketball player than a baseball player, and he turned himself into a submarine pitcher. He’s been able to work his way into a college program that’s exceptional, and we couldn’t be prouder of him.
Are they both interested in getting involved with broadcasting?
They both are. Patrick’s currently broadcasting at TCNJ and Tommy, once he starts there next week, will also do some kind of broadcasting. They both have done some work with me in the booth at CBS (McCarthy also does NFL games for CBS) and have done some other work for CBS over the last year or so, so they’re on their way.
Did your children naturally gravitate toward broadcasting and playing baseball or softball?
I think so, I think if you ask my daughters they really love field hockey as well, which I think there are some similarities with swinging the stick. I think they all sort of through osmosis have gravitated to either baseball or softball.
Are you looking forward to spring training?
I am. I’m excited because I think the Phillies have turned the corner and are heading the right way, as far as winning and losing goes. There’s a lot of young players and with those young players comes a lot of competition and a lot of energy, and I think we’re all excited to see what happens in the next couple of years.
,
