The Heat Index

Michael Bowden is working on a slider that he hopes will make him a permanent big-league pitcher. The No. 2 prospect in the Red Sox organization has an ERA of 6.42 since May 23, according to this Providence Journal feature by Daniel Barbarisi, but that's part of a learning curve.

The 6-foot-3-inch right-hander out of Waubonsie Valley is trying to develop an extra pitch that will make hitters swing and miss. Bowden's numbers are still good - opponents are hitting only .226 against him at Triple-A, and he has a 3.39 ERA overall - but he could use a slider to throw in a two-strike count.

"I think it's going to define him. I really do," Pawtucket pitching coach Rich Sauveur told the newspaper. "I honestly think that pitch is going to define him, to help him get back to where he wants to be."

We're late posting this, but here's an interesting look at the Hairston family from MLB.com reporter Mark Sheldon. Jerry Hairston Jr. reflects on hanging out at the old Comiskey Park while his father played for the White Sox:

"Back then, it was great, but now as I'm older, I realize I got a chance to be around Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines, Greg Luzinski and all those great players," Hairston Jr. said. "There was camaraderie they had on that team -- the older players with kids, too. Casey Fisk, Ryan Luzinski, my brothers and Doug Rader's kids, we always went out and played.

"My father didn't want us running around wild in the clubhouse. He stressed that the clubhouse was a sacred area. Just make sure you respect everybody. He said, 'I'm your father but you have 24 other guys here that have to get ready to play.' I understood at a young age that those guys were there to do a job."

UPDATE: Cincinnati Enquirer reporter John Erardi has more on the Civil Rights Game and its connection to generations of Hairstons.

Spots are still available for the Benet basketball accelerated skills camp. It is open to boys and girls in the fifth through ninth grades and will take place July 13-16 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. For more information, contact Benet varsity boys basketball coach Gene Heidkamp at 630-719-2824 or gheidkamp@benet.org.

Benet senior pitcher John Boyle and Waubonsie Valley junior third baseman Sam Carius were recently named to the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association's all-state team.

Boyle, who will throw for Creighton next season, went 8-2 with a 1.51 ERA. Carius, a unanimous all-Upstate Eight Conference pick, hit .431 with 31 RBI.

West Aurora senior outfielder Brady Renner - son of Robin, the Neuqua Valley head coach - was also selected for the Class 3A/4A team.

For the full list, click here.

The instructions given to Pete Flores, a first-year Utah assistant, were clear and simple: Don't laugh when you see him during warmups.

That's because it's so easy for Stephen Strasburg, who made 94-95 mph fastballs look effortless in between innings (Sunday column here).

"You hope that you just (can) put a ball in play and the defense is on their heels because they haven't seen a groundball or a flyball," said Flores, a DuPage Dragons assistant. "That's one of the things you hope for."

If that sounds desperate, then consider that the year before Strasburg struck out 23 Utes in one game.

"There's a big YouTube video on that," Flores said.

FYI: Our all-city baseball team and player of the year feature will be running in Sunday's print edition.

On Saturday the DuPage Dragons will host "Benet Baseball Night" at Benedictine. Former Redwings pitcher Bryan Roberts is scheduled to throw and Benet graduate Matt Kleifges is also expected to be in the starting lineup.

According to Redwings coach Jeff Bonebrake, portions of the proceeds from ticket sales will go to the program when you mention Benet baseball.

City/Suburban Hoops Report guru Joe Henricksen picked up some good nuggets at the Oswego East Shootout. We're also curious to see how Naperville North responds this year in the DuPage Valley Conference, but finding someone who can create on the perimeter isn't easy - the Huskies have had size for a few seasons now. Henricksen reports:

The DuPage Valley, which was dominated by Drew Crawford and Naperville Central last season when the Redhawks went 14-0, should be a much-improved league this season as a whole. While the defending champs will take a dip with the loss of Crawford, the other seven teams should all be better than a year ago. Glenbard East, which recently went 9-0 and won the Illinois State Team Camp, and West Aurora will be the favorites. But Naperville North, under first-year coach Jeff Powers, will be absolutely huge along the frontline. If North, which will rely on 6-9 Matt Hasse, 6-6 Joe McNicholas, 6-4 James O'Shaughnessy and 6-6 junior Matt LaCosse can get solid guard play and find a perimeter shooter or two, the Huskies could challenge in the DVC. Naperville North played well at Oswego East, even without a few of its key players. Wheaton-Warrenville South has also showed promise this summer with its play.

The Hoops Report took in a couple of nice Naperville North wins as they beat Plainfield Central, a team featuring 6-6 senior Winston Williams and 6-2 talented junior Derrick Marks, and knocked off East Aurora and Ryan Boatright. Speaking of Boatright, the family was still awaiting word from USC and newly hired Kevin O'Neill. In the meantime, the interest has picked up considerably for Boatright as the family and East Aurora coaches have heard from several schools.

Harvard man Dillon O'Neill has been named to ESPN The Magazine's Academic All-District 1 second team. The sophomore outfielder, who also plays on the school's soccer team, was honorable mention All-Ivy League after leading the Crimson with 49 hits and a .410 on-base percentage. The Benet graduate hit .322 and made 38 starts in 41 games.

--Benet senior pitcher John Boyle and Waubonsie Valley junior third baseman Sam Carius were honorable mentions on the Chicago Sun-Times all-area baseball team.

West Aurora senior outfielder Brady Renner - the son of Robin, Neuqua Valley's head coach - was selected to the second team. Wheaton North's Jack DeAno made the first team.

--From Prep Baseball Report guru Sean Duncan, here's more on the pitcher who eliminated Naperville Central in the supersectional round:

O'Fallon junior right-hander Miles Quintal won't light up any radar guns, but the kid knows how to pitch. He improved to 11-2 with his complete-game victory in the Class 4A third-place game. Quintal already has 22 career wins.

--Our all-city baseball package will be running later this month.

The numbers can be misleading when you're working out of the bullpen. Relievers sometimes take cheap wins and losses they didn't deserve and maybe it all balances out. It depends on whether or not the next pitcher bails you out.

Colin Bates - profiled here in a Sunday column - faced only two Arizona State batters on Sunday in the 10th inning of North Carolina's opening game in the College World Series. The Naperville Central graduate got the first to pop out and then gave up a single down the right-field line before giving way to Brian Moran, who entered with an 88-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Then the Tar Heels unraveled in what became a 5-2 loss. Lee Barfknecht picks up the action in the Omaha World-Herald:

Moran got Arizona State's Jason Kipnis, the Pac-10 player of the year, to fly to right. But North Carolina's Garrett Gore, fighting the sun, dropped it for an error.

But this time, he lifted a pitch to left center that the 15-mph breeze grabbed and slung into the fourth row of the bleachers.

So in the final accounting Bates (4-3) is charged with the loss, and North Carolina is one more loss away from elimination. Throughout the tournament, Adam Lucas of TarHeelBlue.com is providing daily links to College World Series coverage.