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• Lodi home destroyed in blaze

• Mokelumne River School done with asbestos removal, ready to move forward

• Library moving to temporary home during its renovations

• Galt school board member may be censured for e-mail

• State requiring eighth-graders to be tested in algebra

• Regional Roundup

November 21st, 2009

• Logbook

• Holiday drive spreads cheer to U.S. troops

• Galt High students want board to approve open-campus policy

• Poisoning victims remain hospitalized

• Expert: Half a mushroom cap can be deadly

• Tokay grad files claim over Lodi's Grape Bowl

• Lodi Middle School holds annual Turkey Trot

• Regional Roundup

• No motive or suspect in shooting

• Sacramento cop arrested for alleged kidnapping

November 20th, 2009

• Acampo woman killed

• Salvation Army Kettle Kickoff

• Advocacy groups sue East Bay Municipal Utility District over Pardee expansion

• Regional Roundup

• Galt plans to help residents with energy-efficient projects

• Stable southeast of Lodi approved

• One year after a heart attack, Lodi's Judy Mims thanks rescuers

• National Guard troops return home in time for the holidays

• Real estate market gets on more solid ground

November 19th, 2009

• Operation: Christmas

• Logbook

• Suspect arrested after hiding in fridge

• Chase ends in crash

• Galt Joint Union High School Distric hires new superintendent

• Sales tax hike yields dividends: 5 new officers join Galt Police

• Lodi Unified School District board votes to cancel summer school for 2010

• Water surges in Mokelumne River yield more salmon

• Lodi City Council will consider redevelopment next June

• Lodi City Council plans to cap number of taco trucks at 22

• Corrections

November 18th, 2009

• Regional Roundup

• Paranormal group conducts second investigation of building

• Congress allocates money for local water projects

• Sarah Palin's book hits the shelves: Locals react

• Lodi man finds wife's ashes during police display of stolen property

• Galt City Council rejects study on rent stabilization

November 17th, 2009

• Paying tribute to a Lodian

• Lodi Budget and Finance Committee to look into ways to save money on employee benefits

• Regional Roundup

• Decision on summer school expected at tonight's Lodi Unified School District meeting

• Clements gets free water rescue boat

• Redevelopment to be discussed by Lodi City Council again

• Court reinstates death penalty for killer of Lodi grad

• Clarification

November 16th, 2009

• Correction

• Public Meetings

• City Council 'triple-dog dared' to ditch cars, use Lodi buses

• Sierra Adventure store to close after four years in Downtown Lodi

• Lodi's First Sip event showcases area wineries' latest vintages

• Three members of Lodi-area family fall ill after eating poisonous mushrooms they reportedly found at Lodi Lake

• Regional Roundup

November 14th, 2009

• Galt school district narrows superintendent search to one

• Regional Roundup

• Despite budget cuts, some Lodi Unified School District salaries continue to rise

• Watchful neighbor in Lodi helped bust suspected burglars

• New Galt city manager juggles job, family

• Despite an increase in homeless students, school districts look to bolster enrollment, raise revenue

• A first look at 2009 vintages at Lodi's First Sip wine-tasting event

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• The country's mess is our fault (165)
• Obama is not a moderate (130)
• Sarah Palin's book hits the shelves: Locals react (70)
• Lodi City Council plans to cap number of taco trucks at 22 (48)
• The haves should help the have-nots (30)
• Public health care is a Christian option (29)
• Tokay in, traveling to unbeaten No. 3 Grant for football playoffs (25)
• Government-run health care is a bad idea (17)
• Young woman fatally shot at Acampo home (17)
• Sierra Adventure store to close after four years in Downtown Lodi (16)

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Tokay baseball legends honored

George Cecchetti, David Cooper jerseys retired; field named after former coach Paul Lovotti

Three Tokay High baseball legends were honored by the Tokay Baseball Boosters Club on Friday night at the Waterloo Gun and Bocci Club.

George Cecchetti

George Cecchetti and David Cooper each had their respective jersey numbers, 19 and 8, retired. In an unannounced surprise ceremony, the Tokay High junior varsity diamond was named after legendary former varsity head coach Paul Lovotti.

An estimated 150 people were on hand to see Cooper, the University of California first baseman who was selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft this summer by the Toronto Blue Jays and inked a contract which included a $1.5 million signing bonus just days later.

David Cooper

Cooper started the season in the minor leagues, making two quick stops at Auburn (New York) and Lansing (Michigan) before finishing the year with the high Class A Dunedin Blue Jays of the Florida State League. In 69 games in the minor leagues, Cooper hit .333 with 91 hits in 273 at-bats, including 29 doubles, five home runs and 51 runs batted in. In his last 10 games at Dunedin, Cooper hit .395.

Despite his success and quick promotions through the Blue Jays farm system, Cooper, 21, is not sure where he will be when spring training starts for the 2009 season.

Paul Lovotti

"I don't know where or at what level I will be playing at next year. I got off to a great start and then when I got to Dunedin, I started to struggle a little bit," Cooper said of his rapid ascent. "The caliber of players and the level of pitching is not really all that much different from college. Once I got settled in, my hitting just took off."

Cecchetti was drafted in the 19th round by the Cleveland Indians as a first baseman in 1979 and played eight seasons in the minors, reaching the Triple A level with Maine of the International League before retiring with a .252 batting average.

Today, Cecchetti is the head of Cecchetti Olive Oil, Inc., and served as Tokay's freshman baseball coach last season. He will coach the junior varsity this upcoming spring.

Lovotti, who coached both players and retired from Tokay after a 29-year coaching career in 2005, said both Cecchetti and Cooper were extremely talented players.

"Cecchetti and Cooper were the only two players that ever hit over .500 for Tokay. There were many similarities between the two of them," Lovotti said. "Both were left-handed, both played first base and also pitched. Both were extremely hard workers. Cecchetti was all about power, and Cooper was very serious about the game."

A white, purple and black hand-lettered sign inscribed "Paul Lovotti Field" along with his nickname "The Big Fella" was presented to Lovotti. It will be permanently installed at the junior varsity diamond on the Tokay campus in the spring.

All proceeds from the benefit dinner and dance went to the Tokay baseball program, according to current Tigers varsity head coach Aaron Misasi, who singled out several families for their efforts.

"I want to thank the Sharp, Costa, Waugh and Lucchessi families as well as Ann Marie Addler for their help in making this such a successful event," Misasi said. "It was a very special night in honoring two outstanding players and a coach that have been so instrumental in establishing the baseball tradition we have at Tokay."