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Porcelli: Tampa's Man For All Seasons
And it's all incompassing.
Porcelli is Tampa Bay's sponsor. His team's life support. If the team needed a leader, there was no need for a nationwide search. All Porcelli had to do was look in his bathroom mirror. He is the team's president, coach, and if need be, a pinch-hitter.
First, there are two sides to Porcelli.
He can charm the pants off you. Be your arch-angel. Then, with quarter-sized turn, he can appear to be biggest egotist you ever met. It's his ball. And he's going to run with it. But in his world, this is no time to be timid.
He's not a bad guy. Let's just say he remains an unlikely candidate to chair the company committee on diversity. Because he's a one purpose guy. And he's unlikely to detour from it.
It's all about wins.
If you are a Tampa Bay Smokers' fan, you love him. And nobody needed him more than Tampa Bay did. After all, Porcelli is all about winning. Sometimes at any cost. And that just might be the rub. He hates to leave anything to chance.
And he usually doesn't.
If there's a chance to get a Darrin Zack, Todd Martin, or Shawn Rychick, consider it done. It is. In this age of free agency, Porcelli didn't invent the rules. He just enforces them.
It is all about wins.
There isn't any lottery situation with him. No drawing. There isn't anything left to luck. He doesn't send a representative to a to an NBA lottery-type Ping-Pong match wearing Peter Porcelli's lucky boxer shorts.
But if need be, he would.
Why not?
You get something that works, you stay with it.
Let's review.
Once upon a time, in central Florida, the Clearwater Bombers were the legends of men's major fastpitch softball. Then, they became a only a memory until 1992, when Mitch Harder revived their efforts, finishing third to Sioux City's National Health Care in Salt Lake City's ISC World Tournament.
Then, like Puff The Magic Dragon, Harder couldn't sustain the Bombers' revival. They needed a sudden halt. His honeymoon with the central Florida fastpitch softball fans was over. Bleeding in a sea of red ink.
If men's major fastpitch softball was to ever survive in central Florida again, it needed a kick-start.
Enter Peter Porcelli. He took Harder's baton.
Porcelli has been like a rocket launcher. A sonic boom.
And fastpitch softball has been like a fix for him. Not a hobby. But a way of life.
It's all about wins.
Reviews have always been mixed about Porcelli.
Some people applaud his efforts. Others think there isn't a enough muster in the world to cover his efforts.
But consider this:
Harder's baton was inching daily toward an abyss of mediocrity. And Porcelli has always been willing to risk public wrath for a shot at champions again.
And consider this, too:
In Porcelli's world, if his Smokers are winning championships, like they have--the ISC World Tournament (1996), and the ASA National (1997)-- nobody cares who likes whom.
It's all about wins.
It's a business with him. All business.
If this was about personalities, Porcelli might not even be in men's major fastpitch softball. If toes needed to be stepped on, so be it. And thanks for coming out.
Despite his critics, Porcelli has to be respected. Chances are, they probably wouldn't have had men's major fastpitch in central Florida, without him. They thank for having the brass to do it. They think he is a modern-day Renaissance man.
To the Floridians, he's painted an indelible picture. That of a winner.
And if he had failed, it wasn't going to be his fault. He took the risks. His loot. His ideas. His marketing. His attitude. His image.
Everything that is done with the Smokers has his fingerprints all over it. His teams win at an alarming rate. And they always go first cabin. The only thing which might upset him is United's newly enforced two-bag, carry-on policy. His teams have been slaves to frequent flyer miles. They travel anywhere and everywhere. Join the Smokers and see the world.
It's all about wins.
He deals with pressure every day. It comes with the fear of failing. He lives with it. He lives with the pressure to make something happen, leaving nothing to chance. But don't blame the entire situation on him. He seen what had to be done to be a winner. And he didn't just seized the opportunity. He engulfed it.
There has been no quit in him. An until burns himself out, Porcelli will be with us. And it appears, his tires still have plenty of tread left.
Let's not forget. Or how could we?
This is the Peter Porcelli era.
One that is all about wins.
Editor's Note:
DAN PATTISON has been a sports writer and columnist for over 30 years with
The Deseret News, Salt Lake Tribune, Las Vegas Sun, The Sporting News,
Basketball Times & USA Today. He is currently enjoying his
association with men's major fastpitch and as an ISC Commissioner.