May 28, 2002

     When the Tolland High softball team plays its Class M state tournament first round game Wednesday at Waterford, Bill Baiocchi won't be there. He would like to be coaching the team he guided into the state tournament in 2001, but he can't
     Softball coaches have to be able to position outfielders. They have to be able to relay signs. They have to be able to point out flaws in a swing.
     But to position outfielders, you have to be able to see them. To relay signs, you have to see who's getting them. To point out flaws in a swing, you have to see who's doing the swinging.
     Baiocchi, 55, could barely do any of those things toward the end of last season.
     You think losing games is tough? That pales in comparison to losing your eyesight.
     "Five years ago there was a hemorrhage in my left eye," Baiocchi said. "I lost the center vision of my left eye through the hemorrhage. Because of all the laser technology used to keep the fluid from building up, that caused the macula degeneration of my good eye."
     "It's called the hidden disease. I could be walking around and hear people say 'Coach Baiocchi,' and I don't even know who's coming. The more light the better, but I can only see bodies, not faces."
     Baiocchi has no center vision in his left eye. He has only partial vision in his right eye. There is no history of this type of disease in Baiocchi's family. Doctors don't know why it picked him. Baiocchi tried bravely to carry on toward the end of the 2001 season, but his players knew his eyesight was failing. They knew and they cared about a man who had spent three years coaching junior varsity, and four more coaching varsity softball at Tolland
     "Finding out that he was still planning on coaching and attending games at the end of last season despite the fact that he couldn't read small print, drive or see more than shadows was truly an inspiration to me and everyone who knew his story," said Laura Mozzer, a senior captain on this year's Tolland team. "My friend Lauren O'Connor and I sometimes had to go pick him up for practices and games. It was worth it. He was the heart of our team and kept us pumping."
     "Disguising his disability with a positive 'don't worry about me, just play the game and win' was the kind of attitude that really touched me and helped our team soar into the state semifinals last year. It was devastating not to have him back this year, but I know that it was as hard for him as it was for us."
     I'm not sure I've ever heard such compassionate words about a coach from a player - particularly a high school athlete. Baiocchi must be some kind of special coach to elicit such loyalty
     The members of the 2002 Tolland team know Baiocchi would be disappointed if they dwelled on his misfortune instead of concentrating on winning games. So they responded by going 13-5 during the regular season.
     "I'd like to give them credit for having a great season under Don Faye, who was my assistant," Baiocchi said. "It's a credit to the kids that they're staying focused."
     Baiocchi can't drive himself anywhere. He is mostly confined to his home in Ellington. But don't think he's sitting around feeling sorry for himself. Baiocchi is immersing himself in the organization of a couple of girls basketball summer camps.
     "In a typical week, I try to get up and walk, jog, and do my camp stuff," Baiocchi said. "I talk a lot on the phone with basketball coaches, I'm working on the Northeast Camp that will be at South Windsor High and the Hoop Mountain Camp in Northfield, Mass., which is the best girls camp in the entire northeast."
     "I have great coaches who are friends that take me where I need to go. Joe Tycotsky, who is the director of the Connecticut Starters, has been amazing with keeping me going with off-season activities. Most of these organizations have been good enough to give me an assistant to do the paperwork. Tom Frascino, who I've coached with for years at South Windsor, has also been tremendous. And my daughters, Jacy-Lynn and Lindsey, have been just incredible. I couldn't ask for two better daughters."
     The camps are what keep Baiocchi's spirits up. A disease may be eating away at his eyes, but it has yet to touch his heart.
     "This isn't going to stop me from doing my camps," Baiocchi said. "It's not going to stop me from doing shooting clinics. I don't want to stop. I can't just sit here. I'm just bound and determined to get through this."
     Baiocchi is holding out hope that a surgical procedure will come along that can help restore sight in his left eye.
     "I have two separate problems," Baiocchi said. "I have macula degeneration in my right eye for which there is no cure. I have fluid in my left eye. There's a specialist in Maryland working on a procedure to go to the center of the eye and try to dry up the fluid. It's a 50-50 thing. It could be all or nothing. I could be waiting a year. I'm hoping to get partial vision back in the left eye, but the right eye I can do nothing about."
     Baiocchi realizes that a cure for his disease may never be found. But he knows that he has plenty of friends and relatives that are rooting mightily for that cure to be found.
     "Coach is in our motivation, our smiles, and most of all, our hearts," Mozzer said.
     Here's hoping that the wonders of medical technology will someday enable Baiocchi to see his way through this.
     Webmaster Note: Bill, you are an inspiration to all of us in the Starter family, and the words spoken by Laura Mozzer are echoed by all of us. God Bless You!