Kendrick's father honored at Citizens Bank Park

PHILADELPHIA -- As Kyle Kendrick has begun to establish himself in the big leagues, much has been made about the impact teammates Roy Halladay and Jamie Moyer have had on him. Halladay is a disciple of late sports psychologist Dr. Harvey Dorfman. Kendrick has also spoken recently about how much pitching coach Rich Dubee has helped him.

But there's another man in the 28-year-old right-hander's life who has impacted him greatly, and who hasn't gotten as much attention: Maury Kendrick, his father.

As part of their annual father's celebration Sunday at Citizens Bank Park -- the team plays at Colorado on the official Father's Day, June 16 -- one dad is selected to come to Philadelphia. This year, the Kendrick family was selected.

"My dad has been huge," Kyle said. "He watches every game [at his home near Seattle]. We text before every game and after every game. I was in love with the game because of him. He coached all of us, he played semi pro, he played college ball. He has been great to me."

Maury helped Kyle learn what to do -- and what not to do.

"I never got drafted. I took some bad turns in life when I was in college," Maury said. "I shared that with the kids. And Kyle bought into it. Kyle was a poster child for saying no to drugs and alcohol in high school. And he was such a good athlete. Peer pressure never got to him. Kids didn't push him because he was a leader in all the sports. He knew what he wanted to do and he wasn't going to let that get in the way. To his credit, because it's not easy to do that."

Major League Baseball uses Father's Day to help promote prostate cancer awareness.

"I don't have anybody close to me who has had it, but it's obviously a big deal," Maury said. "I'm 55, so you start getting checked. It's a big deal to me."