Former Gamecock baseball players rally to help Powell

Former USC star and major leaguer Landon Powell, left, takes part in an exhibition game that helped raise money for his family, which recently lost their 5-month-old daughter to a rare autoimmune disease.

The (Columbia) State

Published: Friday, July 5, 2013 at 10:37 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, July 5, 2013 at 10:37 p.m.

The Columbia Blowfish defeated a team made up of Gamecock Alumni 8-6 in an exhibition game earlier this week, but in reality everybody associated with the event won.

The game coincided with a silent auction featuring Gamecock memorabilia, with the proceeds going to help Landon Powell and his wife, Allyson, deal with the cost of medical bills accumulated when their daughter Izzy was battling a rare autoimmune disease that ultimately cost her her life.

Izzy, who was born last September, died in January.

Trey Dyson, a former teammate of Landon's at USC, helped organize the game and auction as a way to give back to his friend.

The Blowfish and Gamecock Alumni have played annually each of the past seven years, but when Landon informed Dyson that he would play in the game, Dyson immediately began working to figure out ways to raise money and make this year's game special.

His first call was to the Blowfish's owner as Dyson wanted to convince him to hold the game in remembrance of Izzy with the proceeds going to the Powell family.

?I called Bill Shanahan and before I could finish telling him the story he said it's done. We're doing it. From that Monday around 5 or so I started getting on the airwaves and calling my friends at local TV stations to try and get the word out and it really came together in two days,? Dyson said.

Former players currently playing professional baseball such as Michael Roth, Christian Walker, Jackie Bradley Jr., Evan Marzilli and Adam Matthews donated signed memorabilia for the silent auction.

Other former Gamecocks that played in the exhibition game, like Dyson, Bryan Triplett, Kip Bouknight and Brian Buscher, also offered signed items.

John Taylor, who was part of USC's back-to-back national titles in 2010 and 2011, offered his cleats worn during the College World Series for the silent auction.

?The outpouring of support that was shown really, in my opinion, was not surprising; it's just what we do as Gamecocks. Gamecocks help out other Gamecocks,? Dyson said. ?It just warms the heart to see an event come together like that in such a short notice. It was great for Landon's family.?

In total the event raised about $6,000 for the Powell family.

Landon said the outpouring of support from the Gamecock community was overwhelming.

?Trey told me they were going to play the game in my daughter's honor and donate all the money for her and her bills, and I'm very humbled by that,? he said. ?I know I have a lot of great friends and teammates and when guys rally around you like that in tough times it shows you how much goodness is in people's hearts. I was very happy and proud to be a Gamecock that day.?

Dyson said the show of support is an example of the togetherness of the USC program.

?The Gamecock baseball program is a family and Coach (Ray) Tanner and Coach (Chad) Holbrook, their leadership is the reason why the Gamecock baseball family is so strong,? he said.

Landon added that there is a special bond between guys that have played baseball at USC.

?All of us that played in that uniform and wore the garnet and black, it's a family. A lot of us know each other whether or not we spent a lot of time together. We all know each other pretty well. You are kind of like a brotherhood,? he said.

Landon said right now there is some unknown as to how much he and his family still owe in medical bills.

They are resubmitting bills to the insurance companies to try and get as much of the bills covered as possible.

?We've got some pretty big bills that we don't think we'll be able to cover, and that's why we're trying to resubmit them. Overall we're OK,? he said.

In the meantime, he and his family are dealing with the loss of their daughter Izzy by spending as much time together as they can.

Landon and Allyson have two kids, a son, Holden, and Izzy's twin, Ellie.

?We're trying to just be a family and be around each other and spend time with our kids. I think everything that we went through put a lot of things in perspective about life and about family,? Landon said. ?I think that's what we're trying to do; we're trying to enjoy our kids and our family time as much as possible and take all of that other stuff kind of day-by-day.?

Landon was in the New York Mets organization earlier this season but recently retired to spend more time with his family.

The 30-year-old catcher played three seasons in the major leagues with the Oakland Athletics, totaling 10 home runs and 45 RBIs in 123 games.

Landon said he has been contacted by other teams about joining their organizations but he is ready to move on from playing baseball.

He has received offers to coach and business offers and is currently weighing his next move.

?I'm ready to be home and start that next step of my life. I played professionally for over 10 years. I had a lot of success and a good career,? Landon said. ?For me it's just a time to move on, especially with everything that I went through losing my daughter. It makes it more important right now to be home than ever before.?

Source: http://www.goupstate.com/article/20130705/articles/130709793

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