Popovich goes out in style
If 2010 is truly the final season for Uniontown American Legion coach Ron Popovich, he is certainly going out in style. Popovich was notified in October of his selection to the Pennsylvania American Legion Sports Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will take place on Monday, July 26, during a dinner in Boyertown.
“I was surprised,” Popovich said about his nomination. “Bob Busezak (Region 6 director) nominated me. I felt that Bob looked at my winning record overall and felt I was deserving of the honor.”
After serving as an assistant coach to Tom Landman from 1998 to 2001, “Coach Pop,” as he is known, has been head coach of the Uniontown program for nine seasons and posted a record of 233-73 entering this year’s Region 6 playoffs.
Popovich said he is “99.9 percent” certain that this year will be his last to lead the Uniontown team for the time being.
“I’ve been coaching baseball for 19 years,” Popovich said. “That’s 19 years of eating on the run with baseball. It’s time to step down, although I really do enjoy this. I just want to do some other things in the summer.”
When asked if his wife, Beverly, is happy with the decision, Popovich laughed and said, “I’ll take the 5th (Amendment) on that one.”
Popovich’s involvement in coaching baseball programs was influenced by several well-known coaches.
A 1981 graduate of pre-jointure Albert Gallatin High School, Popovich earned all-conference and all-section honors in football and baseball. In football, “Coach Doc Franks taught me how to work hard. He always had winning seasons and I learned a lot from him.”
Popovich and Landman have coached together from Little League through high school and the American Legion levels. Popovich has been an assistant to Landman for the successful programs at Laurel Highlands High School since 1997 and Popovich said he plans to continue with the high school program at least as long as Landman is involved.
Landman’s son, David, and Popovich’s stepson, Brad Yohman, went through local summer baseball programs at the same time. The fathers became friends and fellow coaches for the remaining years.
Popovich’s Legion teams have won Fayette County regular season championships from 2004 through 2010, and playoff championships in 2004 and 2008, with this year’s championship still pending against Colonial 3. Uniontown qualified for the Region 6 tournament in 2004, 2005, 2008, and 2010 and won the regional championship in 2005.
The 2005 team were “inches away” from being state champions, as Popovich put it. “We lost the first game 4-1, but had a run in with the bases loaded in the first (inning). Josh Guittap hit a line drive and the left fielder dove and made a shoestring catch. I thought we would have won states with better fortune. Pennsylvania has over 600 teams competing to win the state championship. You need some luck to win the state tournament.”
Popovich said the 2005 team won the Region 6 championship over a good Shaler team. “We 10-runned them on a walk off home run by Greg Palladino. We had great players with a lot of heart.”
Those players included Guittap, Palladino, Jacob Barnhart, Jim Blosser, Chris Bondarenka, Cory Borland, Brent Coughenour, Tim Dye, Nathan Fike, Eric Fudala, Mike George, Joe Hoover, Bryan Lipchinsky, Bob Madison, Paul Metz, Nick Midlik, Josh Myers, and Cory Sawka.
He cited Fike as a typical example of the players he has coached. “Nate really wanted to play ball. He was a joy to coach.”
In addition to attending the July 26 induction dinner, Popovich plans to watch the Pennsylvania American Legion All-Star Game, which will include Uniontown Legion representative David Gaisbauer.
Regarding coaching philosophies, Popovich keeps things simple. “In baseball, if you play hard and do the fundamentals, you’ll be there at the end of the game. Win or lose it’s fun.”