In 1997, when Teixeira was 17 years old, he played first base for Severn Post of Annapolis, Md., in an American Legion Fourth of July invitational hosted by Amherst Post 148.

"I saw just about every game in that tournament. Amherst and Northampton (Post 28) played along with Severn and teams from the Northeast," said Jerry Tierney, who now serves as Baseball manager for Easthampton Post 224.

Severn went on to win the Maryland state title and the Mid-Atlantic regional for a berth in the American Legion World Series at Rapid City, Iowa. Teixeira hit .449 in the nationals, which were won by Sanford, Fla.

In 1998, the Boston Red Sox drafted Texeira in the ninth round. He eschewed signing, instead going on to play three seasons at Georgia Tech. The Texas Rangers drafted him No. 1 and signed him in 2001.

ECHOES OF DOUCET:

When the Toronto Marlies met the Springfield Falcons on Dec. 20 at the MassMutual Center, the Canadian national anthem, "O Canada," was performed before the game.

The recording used features the voice of the late Roger Doucet, a powerful tenor famed for singing "O Canada" before home games of the Montreal Canadiens, Expos and Alouettes. He died in July of 1981.

The recording was donated to Falcons management by Ross Hunt of Springfield, a season tickets holder.

"It's good to know that Mr. Doucet finally got to sing in Springfield," Hunt said.

CUP OF TRICKS:

Semifinal matches in the World Cup of Trickshot Billiards, which were taped at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn., will be carried by ESPN Sunday at 4 p.m.

The first match has Mike Massey and Tom Rossman playing for the United States against Europe's Nick Nikolaidis and Ralph Eckert.

The second match features South Hadley's Bruce Barthelette, who will play with Andy Segal for the Team USA against Europe's Stefano Pelinga and Luke Szywala.

The finals will follow at 6.

This marks the third meeting in the World Cup series, with each team holding a victory.

BALDELLI TIME:

Rocco Baldelli of the Tampa Bay Rays has confirmed that he will attend the annual awards dinner of the Boston Chapter, Baseball Writers Association of America, set for Thursday at the Westin Waterfront Hotel.

Baldelli will receive the Tony Conigliaro Award in honor of his comeback from mitochondrial disorder which sapped his strength and caused him to miss most of the 2007 season.

Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and Jim Rice will be among other award winners at the head table.

Dinner tickets, at $150, can be had by sending a check to Boston Chapter BBWAA, PO Box 7346, Nashua NH 03060.

BEST BET for the weekend:

The Atlanta Falcons.

Garry Brown can be reached at gbrown@repub.com