Interview with Tom DiStefano,
Allentown Ridgebacks

BIGGEST DADDY: Let's get right down to business. Where will the Ridgebacks finish in '04?

TOM DISTEFANO: I’ll go out on a limb and say that we’ll narrowly beat out the Law Dogs for the Higuera division title. But after looking at some of the other teams in the Eck League, I’m not sure how far we’ll get in the playoffs.

BD: At what point would the Ridgebacks consider throwing in the towel and rebuilding? For example, if you get off to a 10-18 Chapter One, or you are ten games out of first by Chapter Two, would the white flag be raised in Allentown? Where do you draw that line?

TD: That’s a good question and one I have been asking myself quite a bit this past off-season. Although the 2004 Ridgebacks won’t be nearly as good as the two previous squads, I’m pretty confident that they’ll be able to compete for a division title. Having said that, I’d be willing to say that there’s no way I’d throw in the towel any time before chapter 3. As the reigning Eck League champion, I feel some sense of obligation to defend that title as best I can.

BD: Aside from Paul Marazita, you are the only person in the BDBL that has managed in more than one World Series. Compare and contrast the '02 Series with the '03 Series.

TD: I thought the 2002 series (against Salem) pitted two very similar teams against one another. Both teams were very strong in the middle of their lineups and had good starting pitching. However, I did feel that I had an advantage in that my starters were a little better (at the #3 and #4 spots in particular with Oswalt and Wade Miller) and I had Barry Bonds in the middle of my lineup. So heading into the 2002 series, I liked my chances.

I wasn’t as confident against Stamford in 2003. The Stamford team featured many more platoon and role players which I figured would create a lot of problems for the Big 3 (Schilling, Johnson, Oswalt). And once those guys got knocked out of the game, my bullpen was pretty mediocre. So unlike 2002, I figured the 2003 series would go to the team that got the clutch hits and caught some breaks. And Stamford definitely caught most of the breaks.

BD: When I say the name, "Mike Magnante", what happens to you internally?

TD: Whenever I hear that name, I have the same physical reaction that I had the night he hit his famous grand slam off John Smoltz. My head begins slowly shaking back and forth and I can’t stop for about 3 minutes. However, since that series turned out ok for me, it’s not as painful as you might imagine.

BD: Here's another name for you: "Clay Condrey." Any reaction?

TD: AAACCCKKKK!!!! You’re not helping the healing process any! There are actually a lot of names from that 7 game series that will haunt me for some time. Clay Condrey, Larry Walker, Manny “F’ing” Ramirez, etc. I really thought the Baseball Gods would smite Condrey in game 4 last year but instead he shut me out for 6 innings and drove in the winning run. Go figure.

BD: Do you find it is now more difficult to trade with people, based on your reputation as a master of Jedi mind tricks?

TD: No. While some people rant about my trades, the truth is that I have given up a lot of talent over the past two years. In 2002 and 2003 alone I’ve dealt Brad Wilkerson, Wade Miller, Justin Huber, John Smoltz, John Maine, Joel Pineiro, Bobby Kielty, Morgan Ensberg, Andy Marte, Jerome Williams, and many other good players. If you ask the teams I’ve dealt with if they’re happy with the deals they’ve made with me, I’ll bet most would say “yes”.

BD: I understand you work for Dow Jones. If the Ridgebacks were a stock, and you were a stock broker, would you advise your clients to "buy", "sell" or "hold"? What is the three-year forecast for the Ridgebacks Corporation?

TD: Hold. I think our “stock price” is probably pretty high right now having come off our second consecutive Eck League title. And while our 2004 squad is solid, I don’t think we’re going to blow anyone away.

The best “Buy” opportunity will likely be after this season when most of my offense leaves via free agency. We will still be bringing back Oswalt, Peavy, Mulder, Ponson, and Randy Johnson and my hope is that a couple of them step up to form a solid 1-2 punch for me next year. Of course, I’d love to see them ALL do well……

As for our future….I’m sure my farm team will take a beating in the annual farm team review because a lot of those guys are no-names who you won’t find on many prospect lists. However, I really like my farm roster and feel that a few of them can be impact major leaguers. Keep an eye on Matt Whitney (if he gets healthy), Nate Schierholtz, Ronald Bay (reminds me of a young Oswalt), and Jake Dittler.

BD: If a movie were made of your life, who would you cast to play the lead role?

TD: I didn’t know how to answer this one so I asked my wife. She said that Charlie Sheen should play me. Apparently she thinks he has the same sarcastic sense of humor as me.

BD: In your profile, you say that you once gave batting lessons to Joan Jett. I have to ask what that is all about.

TD: I was playing baseball for a team in Boston. One day we were taking batting practice in the basement of the Northeastern University gym when all of a sudden, Joan Jett and her band came walking in. Apparently they were setting up for a concert upstairs and heard us hitting underneath them. She said a bunch of hello’s and then announced that she wanted to hit in a cage against one of our pitchers. Our coach, who was a retired Marine and didn’t care much for bullsh**, was aggravated with the interruption and so to get rid of her he sent me to work with her off a tee. To make a long story short, when she went into the cage she couldn’t hit a thing. So she stepped out and asked me for a few tips and was then able to at least make some contact. After that, she asked if I would meet her in the gym for a few days and work with her until the band moved on to the next city.

BD: Colonel Oliver North is your bench coach. What does he know about baseball?

TD: Nothing. But I figured I needed someone who was good at tactical strategy and Colonel North needed a job.

BD: If you were the commissioner of the BDBL for a day, what would you change?

TD: I would look into the possibility of using the projection disk for our league and holding drafts BEFORE the disk came out. That would force owners to speculate on performance instead of relying on hindsight. If it meant changing the schedule around a bit, then so be it. Anything to get rid of our ridiculous reliance on fluky platoon splits.

BD: What do you do for fun outside of the BDBL?

TD: I like to play tennis, read, play around with my 3 year old daughter Tori. I used to be a big NFL fan but my interest in that has waned over the past few years. I think it’s free agency that has taken the luster off the NFL for me as the league seems almost random now. I also love to play cards (Hearts, Spades, poker, whatever) and I have a small group of friends that get together to play as much as possible (which isn’t all that often since we all have very young children). I’m also an animal lover and will occasionally go to dog shows with my wife.

BD: Who is your biggest rival in the BDBL?

TD: Probably Chris Luhning (Kansas). We’ve been in the same division since I joined the league and it seems that our teams are on the same “development curve” so we’ve been competing for the Higuera division title for a few years now. Plus, I think Chris is still mad at me for saying he “wussed out” of the playoff race in 2002.

Another team that seems to dog me is Akron (DJ Shepard). We have similar drafting styles and seem to steal each others players all the time. I shall watch Shepard’s career with great interest……

BD: What have you read recently that you would recommend to others?

TD: The last two books I’ve read have been about math and organizational behavior so I’m pretty sure nobody would be interested in those!

My favorite book of all time, hands down, is Shogun by James Clavell. If you like to read and haven’t read this book, turn off your computer and go to the library and get it.

BD: If you were a closer for a Major League team, what music would you ask them to play when you emerge from the bullpen?

TD: Probably the music that plays in Star Wars whenever Darth Vader enters a room. Some other possibilities would be “Bat Out of Hell” by Meatloaf (my favorite group) or “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”.

BD: Who was your favorite player growing up?

TD: Reggie Jackson. There was just something about the guy that you had to watch him every time he came to bat. You never knew when he was going to hit one over the roof. Jim Thome is like that now. I was also a big Steve Kemp and Willie Randolph fan.

BD: Tell us something about yourself that may surprise us.

TD: Hmmm, let’s see:
�    I was a collegiate ping-pong champion and have played in international tournaments.
�    Ok, I’ll finally admit it. I really do think that the Schilling trade of 2002 was lopsided. But not nearly the worst we’ve seen in the BDBL (Chipper Jones for Ryan Dempster!!!?!?!?!).
�    My wife was in an MTV music video.
�    Despite having played Division 1 baseball, I’m an awful wiffle ball player. I think it has something to do with the bat being so light.

BD: What does your family think about your BDBL accomplishments?

TD: Actually they don’t care very much. My wife (Patty) didn’t care about my interest in baseball at all until last year when I decided to join a roto league and won $900. Now all of a sudden she thinks it’s a good hobby for me.

BD: Pete Rose: hero, a-hole or don't care?

TD: Total a-hole. Rose and some other Phillies players spoke at a Little League banquet that I attended many years ago. Rose got drunk and was throwing food around and just acting like the classless slob that he is.

In sharp contrast, Garry Maddox attended the same banquet and was one of the most polite and articulate athletes I’ve ever met.

BD: Who will play in the 2004 BDBL World Series?

TD: I think the 2004 series will feature Salem from the Ozzie League and Southern Cal from the Eck. And I think Salem will finally bag that long sought trophy this year.