I am a sports journalist based in Baltimore, Maryland, and write for many publications including, recently, the New York Times, Sports Illustrated and BusinessWeek. Topics vary, but I have a special interest in the business of sports, sports and law and the role of adults in sports for children.
Until It Hurts took about three years to complete, from my first thoughts about a book exploring why adults are emotionally caught up in the sports lives of kids (and the consequences for young players) to completion of the manuscript. Much of that time was spent speaking with an array of youth sports "experts": children, parents, coaches, pediatricians, orthopedic surgeons, former professional athletes and, my son, Ben. When Ben was 16, he suffered a serious elbow injury pitching in a high school baseball game. It was a classic "overuse" injury that occurs when kids do too much too early in their sports lives. Because we parents and coaches ask them to.
I spent much of 2009 speaking about the book in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Seattle and at Little League Day at the Oakland Coliseum a few hours before an Athletics game. Since the book came out, I've also had a chance to write more about kids, adults and sports. See the "News and Appearances" page for links and to check out reviews and interviews.
Until It Hurts is my second book. In 1998, I wrote with ESPN baseball broadcaster Jon Miller, "Confessions of a Baseball Purist," Jon's anecdotal and analytical take on the National Pastime. I've been a contributing editor at BusinessWeek and a reporter at newspapers in Baltimore, Dallas, Philadelphia and Norfolk, Va.
I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and from the University of Maryland School of Law. I am a member of the Maryland Bar.
I enjoy teaching. In the last year, I've been an adjunct professor at McDaniel College and the University of Maryland-Baltimore County. At McDaniel, I led a graduate seminar in the Department of Exercise Science and Physical Education, "Youth Sports in Society." This spring, at UMBC, I am teaching, "Classic Sports Books of the 20th Century and Beyond."
My current sports passion is running - I've completed 15 marathons in 15 different states, on my way to running a marathon in all 50 states (should I live that long). I train with my pals from the Baltimore Pacemakers. My greatest pleasure is spending time with my wife, Peggy Brennecke and hanging out with our children (my toughest editors) Eli, a freshman at the University of Rochester and Ben, a senior at George Washington University.
