>> Happy to see this guy enjoy some success. The Kamehameha grad homered again for the Phillies today.

Always a great defensive catcher, Sardinha never lasted very long on big league rosters because of his lack of hitting. But after belting his first major-league homer and a big 2-run double in recent days, maybe he’ll finally stick.

>> 43 percent of voters on ESPN.com say LeBron James will sign end up with the Chicago Bulls. What do you think?

– By Dave Reardon

Topics du jour, plus feel free to order off the menu.

>> LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh a package deal? Hmm ….

>> Strasburg an All-Star? Unless the phenom bounces back from two straight losses, not if there’s a veteran out there who has pitched well throughout the first half of the season. There will be plenty of All-Star games for Strasburg in future years.

>> Hey, FIFA … we know you’re resistant to change, but move the ball back a bit on penalty kicks. Do you really want your World Cup matches decided on the equivalent of layups or football extra points? Give the keepers a fighting chance!

>> Attended the Hawaii Athletic Trainers Association seminar on concussions last night. Very informative, and look for much more on this topic in the Star-Advertiser later this summer.

–By Dave Reardon

It was a good vacation, now back to the word factory.

What kind of sports-related stuff does a sportswriter do on vacation? Here’s what I did:

I went to Arizona for my niece Jennifer’s wedding to her high school sweetheart Tyler. Tyler is also Jennifer’s assistant basketball coach for a team of 12-year-olds. Jennifer gave me one of the Phoenix Mercury WNBA championship replica rings she was given when her team visited the Mercury.

Also, I got to go over my nephew Sammy’s playbook with him. He’s going to be the starting quarterback of his high school team in Ohio … as a freshman. Played catch with him and his older brother Jack, who is a starting receiver.

And watched Brasil play soccer on a big screen TV with my nephew Joey’s wife, Flavia. Her parents are from Brasil, and she’s a huge fan. And Flavia, who played high school soccer, made a simple yet profound statement: “I don’t understand why people don’t respect this game. To play it well is hard.”

We missed the Diamondbacks-Yankees game we’d planned to attend on our last night in Phoenix, but who cares? I’d already accumulated great sports memories just hanging out with the family.

I’ll throw out some topics to chew on for now, but let’s make this the blog equivalent of sports radio “open phones”. Anything sports-related is fair game.

>> Brian Ching should’ve been on the U.S. World Cup team. He’s a closer near the goal, and he’s physically and mentally tough. The Americans needed that against Ghana.

>> How much of an impact will Mouse Davis have on the UH football team this year?

>> “Howzit, Prez!”: Natasha Kai and her Sky Blue teammates (women’s pro soccer champions) are scheduled to visit the White House on Thursday.

–By Dave Reardon

I’ll be on vacation until June 23. The next Further Review column and Quick Reads blog items will appear on June 24 or 25. Feel free to have your own discussions here … comments go directly to the blog now. Just keep it clean, which you’ve always done anyway.

***

The All-Poly Football Camp was going to be at Kaimuki High School, but has been moved to McKinley. The dates are the same; it starts with a combine on June 23, and the camp itself is from June 24 through June 26. This is the second year a camp will be held in Hawaii as well as Utah.

For more info, go to allpolysports.com.

***

-By Dave Reardon

University of Hawaii strength and conditioning coach Tommy Heffernan completed a 37-mile walk yesterday, along with 10 friends and family members.

The walk was a benefit for schooling and therapists for Tommy’s daughter Hilina’i, who suffers from developmental delays, hypotonia and emotional outbursts. Tommy will also donate some of the funds raised to help other children who face similar challenges to those of Hilina’i.

The start and finish points of the walk are symbolic: The beginning is at Hau’ula Elementary (Tommy’s childhood school) and ends at the Variety School (where he hopes to enroll Hilina’i this fall).

Donations can still be made to  Friends of Hilina’i Heffernan at any American Savings Bank.

***

UH track and field coach Carmyn James is in line for a possible bonus in recognition of Amber Kaufman’s national championship performance in the high jump.

***

I really don’t see the NCAA forcing USC to give up a football game this year because rules allow them just 12 instead of 13 because the Trojans are on probation. The game was already scheduled; the intent of the rule is to disallow teams to use the Hawaii exemption because they’re not allowed in bowl games.

We’ll track this though, because the ramifications are obviously large if the NCAA sticks to the letter of the rule and USC has to pull out.

***

The Wahine softball team has three of its favorite bats left that it used to club the NCAA record home runs in a single season. Today’s column takes a look at the 2005 Yellow Easton Stealth, and Stephen Tsai also has a story about the softball composite bat controversy.

***

–By Dave Reardon