2 men hope to put team on ballfield

In the field of dreams of Everett Gavel Jr. and Mark Paul, there are sounds: beeps and buzzes mostly. And there are cheers; but they come much later, as a final punctuation.

The two men -- both legally blind -- are working to make something special happen this spring. In fact, they're hoping for a home run with the launch of this area's first beep baseball team -- the Coventry South Sharks.

"What we're in most need of right now are players, coaches and volunteers (drivers, seamstresses, etc.) for the coed team, and a place to play," Gavel insisted. In other words, they need just about everything.

The National Beep Baseball Association describes the game in its brochure: "It looks like baseball. There's a ball and a bat.... There are fielders, a pitcher, a catcher and a batter at the plate. But it sure doesn't sound like baseball. The ball beeps, and the bases buzz."

A minimum of six players is needed for a game. Players need to be at least 13 years old and legally blind. "We have a 37-year-old interested in playing," said Gavel.

Two sighted players are allowed on the team.

In fact, all the players are blindfolded because even those who are legally blind may have different levels of vision.

"Basically, we want to give them dreams," Gavel said.

Funds, Paul added, are needed for equipment, uniforms, and travel. Each beeper ball is $25, and a set of bases that buzz costs $385.

Although legally blind, Gavel and Paul are eternal optimists.

Gavel, 32, who lost his sight nine years ago, has been a diabetic since he was 10. "I never wanted to be different as a teen, so I didn't watch my blood sugar," Gavel confessed. That ultimately contributed to diabetic retinopathy.

Paul, 23, has had problems with his vision since birth. He has macular degeneration and has had no central vision since 1986. But he still managed to play noseguard and fullback for Coventry High School's football team. Following an injury to his right knee in his senior year, Paul served as an assistant coach for the remainder of the season, and he was active in the Special Olympics until he was 21.

Beep baseball was developed in 1964 by Charlie Fairbanks, an engineer with Mountain Bell and a Telephone Pioneer.

Gavel and Paul are themselves pioneers, starting this team. Gavel will be the general manager and Paul the manager and head coach.

The Coventry South Sharks would be the 21st franchise in the National Beep Baseball Association, which has been around since 1975, and the third in Ohio. Columbus has the Vipers, and Cleveland has the Scrappers.

The association's first World Series was in 1976 in St. Paul, Minn. The 2003 series will be in Denver.

Gavel and Paul hope beep baseball will fill a major void for the area's young visually impaired citizens who share their desire to be active.

Both men do a great job of challenging themselves, playing golf at Edwin Shaw Hospital for Rehabilitation in Springfield Township. Both plan to go downhill skiing this month in Wausau, Wis.

When they're not involved in or thinking about sports, Gavel and Paul keep busy.

Gavel, who "got tired of being turned down for jobs," works out of his home as a liquidator of overstocked and surplus items.

Paul, who graduated No. 1 in his class from the Ohio School of Broadcast Journalism in Cleveland, hasn't been able to find work. But what seemed like a curse has been a blessing, as he now takes care of his mother, Nancy, who is battling thyroid cancer.

Gavel and Paul already plan to have exhibition games with area high school teams and the Akron Aeros.

They hope those who still have their precious eyesight will want to help the visually impaired get in the game.