GaryMrMets
06-16-2002, 02:26 PM
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/tb/news/tb_news.jsp?ymd=20020612&content_id=50981&vkey=news_tb&fext=.jsp
06/12/2002 02:27 am ET
Father's Day: Flaherty one of few dads on Rays
By Paul C. Smith / MLB.com
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Catcher John Flaherty is one of only three dads on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. (We told you they were young.) One of the nicest guys in the Majors, Flaherty also is one of the luckiest. Just months before being traded to Tampa Bay on the night of the 1997 expansion draft, Flaherty and his wife Allyn had decided to move and build a new house in a city neither knew much about: Tampa. Then, five days after the trade, Allyn gave birth to their daughter Kristen, now 4. The couple also has two boys, Brian, 2, and Logan, seven months. Flaherty, 34, is in the third year of a three-year contract with the Rays and has plans to move closer to family in New York when his playing days are over.
MLB.com: All your children have the number 11 in their birth dates. Is that a coincidence or was it planned?
Flaherty: Obviously, that's the way it worked out. But we wanted to have kids in the offseason. My wife is an ex-school teacher, so everything was meticulously planned.
MLB.com: Are any of them named after grandparents or relatives?
Flaherty: No. Kristen, we both just fell in love with that name. Brian was a name we had agreed on for a boy. And Logan, well, all the rest of our first names ended in n, sooo...
MLB.com: After a hard day behind the plate, you go home and, just inside the door, Allyn hands you the baby and points to the other two and says, 'It's your turn.' What do you do?
Flaherty: I get right to it. We have a great setup at our house so I can take them in the pool and let them swim for a while or out on the golf course to play a little if there's no one around. We also go bike riding.
MLB.com: What will be special about this Father's Day?
Flaherty: They all are making the trip to Miami, so it will be nice to have them around. They always make me things, like nice cards.
MLB.com: What did you learn from your father that you find yourself doing?
Flaherty: My father was more of the strong Irish type who worked all day and expected dinner on the table when he came home. He was the disciplinarian. I didn't know if it was good or bad at the time. But it's different now. I am spending as much time as I can with my children. I enjoy sharing the work and being a big part of raising the kids.
MLB.com: How do you deal with being away from them so much? Flaherty: It's wonderful in the offseason with all that time. You are with them morning, noon and night. But, especially my 2-year-old, doesn't understand how it can happen that I have to go away. Early in my career, travel was one of the best things about baseball. Now it's the worst. The guilt is pretty heavy. You have to make the most of the time you do have together.
MLB.com: What are some of the things you find yourself looking forward to with your children?
Flaherty: With my daughter, finding out which way she will go, athletics or dance. Also, her wedding day. I'm dreading that but I know it will be a highlight. With my sons, seeing which direction they go. Brian, all he wants to do is talk baseball. I don't want to be one of those dads who pushes it on them but if they choose it, that would be nice. I also have visions of my sons playing college baseball. That would be special.
MLB.com: What are the chances that a Flaherty child will wear the "tools of ignorance''?
Flaherty: If they run like their dad, pretty good.
MLB.com: Have you had any unexpected experiences as a dad or were you well-warned?
Flaherty: The potty training thing has been a nightmare, pretty frustrating. And before kids, I used to enjoy getting my sleep. I needed to get my sleep or else I would be cranky. Now, it's amazing how you can get by on just a couple of hours here and there, whenever you can get it.
MLB.com: What's the strangest place you've ever changed a diaper?
Flaherty: In a plane on the seat or maybe on the side of the road.
MLB.com: What's their favorite game to play with dad?
Flaherty: They like "monster chase," doing flips or having me spin them around. We are very active until my body tells me I shouldn't be doing it anymore.
MLB.com: Overall, is being a dad what you expected?
Flaherty: It's a lot more fulfilling than I thought it would be. I wasn't really prepared for the range of emotions. One minute there's frustration and then you get a smile that melts your heart.
Paul C. Smith covers the Devil Rays for MLB.com and can be reached at paul.smith@mlb.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2002/06/12/4JEi4CfO.jpg
John Flaherty is one of the few players on the Devil Rays with children (AP)
06/12/2002 02:27 am ET
Father's Day: Flaherty one of few dads on Rays
By Paul C. Smith / MLB.com
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Catcher John Flaherty is one of only three dads on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. (We told you they were young.) One of the nicest guys in the Majors, Flaherty also is one of the luckiest. Just months before being traded to Tampa Bay on the night of the 1997 expansion draft, Flaherty and his wife Allyn had decided to move and build a new house in a city neither knew much about: Tampa. Then, five days after the trade, Allyn gave birth to their daughter Kristen, now 4. The couple also has two boys, Brian, 2, and Logan, seven months. Flaherty, 34, is in the third year of a three-year contract with the Rays and has plans to move closer to family in New York when his playing days are over.
MLB.com: All your children have the number 11 in their birth dates. Is that a coincidence or was it planned?
Flaherty: Obviously, that's the way it worked out. But we wanted to have kids in the offseason. My wife is an ex-school teacher, so everything was meticulously planned.
MLB.com: Are any of them named after grandparents or relatives?
Flaherty: No. Kristen, we both just fell in love with that name. Brian was a name we had agreed on for a boy. And Logan, well, all the rest of our first names ended in n, sooo...
MLB.com: After a hard day behind the plate, you go home and, just inside the door, Allyn hands you the baby and points to the other two and says, 'It's your turn.' What do you do?
Flaherty: I get right to it. We have a great setup at our house so I can take them in the pool and let them swim for a while or out on the golf course to play a little if there's no one around. We also go bike riding.
MLB.com: What will be special about this Father's Day?
Flaherty: They all are making the trip to Miami, so it will be nice to have them around. They always make me things, like nice cards.
MLB.com: What did you learn from your father that you find yourself doing?
Flaherty: My father was more of the strong Irish type who worked all day and expected dinner on the table when he came home. He was the disciplinarian. I didn't know if it was good or bad at the time. But it's different now. I am spending as much time as I can with my children. I enjoy sharing the work and being a big part of raising the kids.
MLB.com: How do you deal with being away from them so much? Flaherty: It's wonderful in the offseason with all that time. You are with them morning, noon and night. But, especially my 2-year-old, doesn't understand how it can happen that I have to go away. Early in my career, travel was one of the best things about baseball. Now it's the worst. The guilt is pretty heavy. You have to make the most of the time you do have together.
MLB.com: What are some of the things you find yourself looking forward to with your children?
Flaherty: With my daughter, finding out which way she will go, athletics or dance. Also, her wedding day. I'm dreading that but I know it will be a highlight. With my sons, seeing which direction they go. Brian, all he wants to do is talk baseball. I don't want to be one of those dads who pushes it on them but if they choose it, that would be nice. I also have visions of my sons playing college baseball. That would be special.
MLB.com: What are the chances that a Flaherty child will wear the "tools of ignorance''?
Flaherty: If they run like their dad, pretty good.
MLB.com: Have you had any unexpected experiences as a dad or were you well-warned?
Flaherty: The potty training thing has been a nightmare, pretty frustrating. And before kids, I used to enjoy getting my sleep. I needed to get my sleep or else I would be cranky. Now, it's amazing how you can get by on just a couple of hours here and there, whenever you can get it.
MLB.com: What's the strangest place you've ever changed a diaper?
Flaherty: In a plane on the seat or maybe on the side of the road.
MLB.com: What's their favorite game to play with dad?
Flaherty: They like "monster chase," doing flips or having me spin them around. We are very active until my body tells me I shouldn't be doing it anymore.
MLB.com: Overall, is being a dad what you expected?
Flaherty: It's a lot more fulfilling than I thought it would be. I wasn't really prepared for the range of emotions. One minute there's frustration and then you get a smile that melts your heart.
Paul C. Smith covers the Devil Rays for MLB.com and can be reached at paul.smith@mlb.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2002/06/12/4JEi4CfO.jpg
John Flaherty is one of the few players on the Devil Rays with children (AP)