Longtime Bay Area sports columnist Mark Purdy

Moving to San Jose from the Midwest in 1984, Mark Purdy planted roots in the Bay Area and seeds in the minds of up-and-coming journalists. Following a 33-year career with the San Jose Mercury News that ended in 2017, Purdy will be inductedd into the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame in the 2021 class that includes Olympic swimmer Summer Sanders, Super Bowl winning coach George Seiffert and Super Bowl champion wide receiver James jones. Purdy and Dave discuss the inspirations for some of his most memorable stories, including being kicked out of his seat by Fidel Castro at the Pan Am Games, lunch with Muhammad Ali and how the San Jose Sharks almost became the San Jose Americans. Humbled by the honor, shares his writing role models, dealing with critics and living with the consequences of asking the tough question.

The Dave Lewis Show
The Dave Lewis Show
Mercury News columnist Mark Purdy humbled by San Jose Sports Hall of Fame honor
/
October 25, 2021

Mercury News columnist Mark Purdy humbled by San Jose Sports Hall of Fame honor

"Honestly, if you have your brain in a place where 'I'm not sure I should ask this question', that means you should ask the question. Because what's the worst that can happen? They're going to get mad at you.....Candy Maldonado came at me once in the Giants' locker room and Roger Craig, the manager, kind of stepped in and saved my life."
July 13, 2021

“Showtime” Taylor’s Story of Redemption Still has Chapters to be Written

"It's never too late. My mind is set here. When I found out I was going to the (parole) board, I automatically said okay, you're going to get out the first time you go so let's start looking at your options. Okay, when you get out, you'll be 54. It's going to be a month before you're 55th birthday. That means you're going to have an opportunity to have a career in sports broadcasting. If you can make it happen, you can start at 55 and possibly go to 80-years-old, maybe 85.... so as long as your vision is good and your mind is sharp, you can have a job in sports broadcasting."
January 5, 2021

NBA insider Bill Herenda on early season trends; Curry explosion.

On the Marvin Bagley controversy in Sacramento: "I think this will blow over myself, personally. They've got to rise above it and realize it's got to be about winning; not about the scuttlebutt or family innuendo...it's unfortunate. I talk to a lot of people and they don't think that players have really changed that much but perhaps the people around them and I think this is a reflection of that. "
November 19, 2018

Fuel for the Fire: Inside the drama at Golden State and a look at the NBA with Bill Herenda

"I think it's foolish to believe that teams don't have some type of dysfunction within them regardless of their record and place in the standings. And this, obviously has gone public But I feel this is more trending toward a bump in the road than an implosion because those guys realize how special it is what they have and I think they'll be hungry to rekindle it and get back to that level of play soon.