Mirror photo by Gary M. Baranec The Curve’s Ke’Bryan Hayes is the son of ex-big leaguer Charlie.

Most dads love giving advice to their kids, whether they’re experts on a subject or not. It’s just sort of an unwritten “dad code” or something.

Sometimes, though, dear old dad truly is an expert on something, and his advice carries a lot of weight. That’s often the case in sports, when dad competed at a high level and wants to pass his knowledge along to the kids.

What is the best sports advice a dad can give?

That question was posed to a handful of players on the Curve and New Hampshire Fisher Cats who know all too well what it means to have a successful sports dad.

Sometimes the advice was simple.

“Just work hard and have fun,” said Curve third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, whose father, Charlie, played 14 years in the major leagues.

“The best thing I got from my dad is about discipline,” said pitcher Elvis Escobar, whose father, Jose, played for the Cleveland Indians in 1991.

Sometimes the advice was really a life lesson.

“Always (be) doing what you’re supposed to do,” said New Hampshire third baseman Cavan Biggio, son of MLB Hall of Famer Craig Biggio. “Always working hard, always striving for your goals in life. … If anything gets in the way of your goals and stuff, then it’s probably not worth doing. It’s just something that I’ve kind of stuck with my whole life from a very young age, and it kind of applies to everything.”

Sometimes a dad’s advice can be very specific, and change over time. That’s been the case for Curve relief pitcher Bret Helton, whose father, Barry, won two Super Bowls as the starting punter for the San Francisco 49ers.

“Honestly, it’s been with the steps,” Helton said of his dad’s best advice. “He’s been with me through everything and through every sport. I played a million back then, played at so many different levels.

“There’s (no advice) he’s really given me that was something he kept giving. … Every bit of advice he has comes when it needs to be there, and it comes at the right time when I need it. He’s been perfect in staying with me the whole way and always having something to say, because he’s been through it all.”

Helton’s dad was an All-American punter at Colorado in the mid-1980s before going on to NFL success. He was on the legendary 49ers teams led by Joe Montana and Jerry Rice and won Super Bowls XXIII and XXIV.

As he’s gotten older, Bret Helton said he’s enjoyed hearing more and more stories from his dad about his football career.

“It’s awesome because I’m starting to hear more stories that, not that he forgot, but when I tell him experiences that I go through, he goes, ‘Oh wait, we did this, these guys did this,'” Helton said.

Bret Helton also was a good high school quarterback and had some Division I football offers, including Princeton and Columbia. His dad was a pro football player, but he never tried to sway Bret to one sport or the other.

“He knew that what I wanted was what I was going to go after, so he just wanted to make sure I was positive in my decision,” Helton said. “If it was football, he was going to love it. If it was baseball, he was going to love it. I can’t say that he pushed one or the other because he was trying to think what was best for me.”

Helton is believed to be the first Curve player whose father won a Super Bowl, and yes, he said his dad does still wear his championship rings.

“Most the time it’s because someone will call and say, ‘You’ve got to wear it today, I need to see it,'” Bret said. “So he brings them out for whoever wants to see them. When he dresses up fancy he’ll wear it.”

Ke’Bryan Hayes’ dad has a World Series championship ring from 1996 with the New York Yankees. Charlie Hayes even had the honor of catching the final out of the World Series, on a foul ball to third base.

Ke’Bryan said he’s very proud of his father and that he hears about that World Series catch “all the time” from people.

“It’s awesome to be able to have a father that played in the big leagues,” Ke’Bryan said. “At a young age, he’s always put me in the situations to help me get there.”

It’s not easy, though, being the son of a successful major leaguer, and Charlie made sure Ke’Bryan knew that.

“Ever since I was little,” Ke’Bryan said, “he’s always told me to work hard, because even though he played, that’s really going to make it hard for me.”

Why?

“Because I’m going to have a target on my back,” he replied.

When it comes to succeeding in sports, Charlie Hayes told his son, the only way to do so at higher levels is to work hard.

“I’ve played with a lot of guys that are very, very talented,” Ke’Bryan said. “But at some point in your career, everyone’s going to be very talented. It’s (about) who’s going to put the extra work in.”

Charlie Hayes hasn’t been able to visit Altoona yet this season to watch his son, but he’s still a very proud dad.

“It’s funny, people are always telling me he’s posting on Facebook like my stats from every game,” Ke’Bryan said.

Escobar said his father’s advice of staying disciplined has been a constant since he was very young.

“This game is about proper discipline,” Escobar said. “You can have raw talent, but if you don’t have discipline, you won’t make it to the major leagues.

“(My dad) didn’t play for much time in the major leagues, but he said the time in the major leagues was because of discipline.”

The advice has gotten Elvis to Double-A and his brother, Edwin, to the big leagues, so dad certainly knew what he was talking about.

“I think he’s so proud of me and my brother,” Elvis said. “My brother made it to the major leagues, and hopefully I’m on the way to it. But (my dad) has been so proud.”

Curve manager Michael Ryan has two sons, ages 9 and 7, and said the advice he gives them is to have a great attitude and never quit.

“Those are the two things that I try to instill in them, and that you’ve got to earn everything,” Ryan said. “Try to live by that not only in sports, but in their everyday life. That’s the best advice I think I can give them.

“You’ve got to earn everything. If you want something, go get it and earn it. That’s just the way I live my life and try to have my sons do it the same way.”