Memory lane with Billy Reed

Billy Reed was Hillsborough's baseball coach for 26 years, and to say he had a few good players there would be an understatement. On Thursday, Reed, who is 76, lives in Tampa and still enjoys attending local high school games, ranked the five best all-around players he coached while with the Terriers.

T1. Kiki Jones. Jones was the 15th overall pick in the 1989 amateur draft, but never had great success after high school. Jones was the first of three first-round selections that year by the Dodgers, but became the only one never to make the majors. He finished his pro career with a 23-20 record. As a senior at Hillsborough, he posted a 1.14 ERA.

T1. Gary Sheffield. The Detroit Tigers star has 480 career MLB homers. At Hillsborough, "he had only two strikeouts" one season, Reed said. He also was a very good shortstop/pitcher. Sheffield is known for his power, but it's worth noting that he also carries a lifetime MLB batting average of .296. Six times, he has finished in the top 10 in the MVP voting.

3. Dwight Gooden. Gooden, later a star in the Major Leagues, played pitcher, right field and third base for Reed. Because of Gooden's recent legal woes, it's easy to overlook just how good he was. During his career in the Major Leagues, he won 194 games (with 112 losses), was the 1984 National League Rookie of the Year and 1985 NL Cy Young Award winner. For years, he was known to many as Dr. K.

4. Carl Everett. How good was Everett? In 1990, he was drafted 10th overall by the Yankees. Three years later, he reached the majors with the Florida Marlins. An outfielder, Everett later became a standout with Houston and Boston, posting .300 seasons with both. In 1999, he batted .325 for the Astros. Baseball-reference.com reports Everett made more than $44 million in the majors.

5. Jason Romano. As a senior at Hillsborough, Romano batted .428 and slugged nine homers. He was so good that he earned the annual Saladino Award, which goes to the county's top player. Romano went 39th overall in the draft and reached the majors (he played several positions), but had minimal success once there.

-- KEITH NIEBUHR