See more people named Joe McCannOthers With a Similar NameGirardi using camera time to promote charities NEW YORK -- Joe Girardi is planning to use his on-camera time for many good causes this season. The Yankees' manager says that he will wear a T-shirt from a different charitable organization during his pregame meeting with the media for each home game. Girardi wore the logo of Shriners Hospital for Children as he discussed Monday's weather postponed game, and then he called attention to Ainsley's Angels of America prior to Tuesday's season opener. "This is just kind of to bring recognition to places or charities that do really good things," Girardi said. "Every day I'm going to try to wear a different T-shirt to recognize the things that people are doing." The idea was hatched by Yankees executive director of communications and media relations Jason Zillo. "It's Jason's responsibility to give me the shirt, and I put it on," Girardi said. "I don't really keep a tidy office when it comes to my clothes, so when it comes to me to have 80 [shirts] laying around, it would be really messy."

Girardi used an off-day this spring visiting the Tampa, Fla., location of the Shriners Hospital, where he spent time with children suffering from burns, spinal cord injuries, cleft palate and lip and orthopedic issues. "I asked a bunch of guys to sign two balls, and I took two balls [in case] they had a favorite player," Girardi said. "I got to go through the prosthetic lab, and there was a boy from Atlanta, his name was Josiah. He was a huge Brian McCann fan, and I happened to have a Brian McCann ball, so it all worked out." The Yankees honored Ainsley's Angels on March 18 as part of the organization's HOPE Week initiative. Ainsley's Angels is a national running organization that builds awareness for America's special needs community and its members through events that focus on their inclusion. Founded in 2008, Ainsley's Angels is made up of running enthusiasts who give the gift of mobility and raise funds by pushing along special needs riders in wheeled "chariots" as they complete various road races and other distance runs.

The organization, which has chapters in 25 states, has seen several members run coast to coast with their riders.Follow him on Twitter @bryanhoch, on Facebook and read his MLBlog, Bombers Beat. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.Speaking out: Soldier C, a grandfather-of-one from Hampshire, could now be hauled before courtTwo former paratroopers face prosecution after being ‘thrown to the wolves’ over the shooting dead of an IRA commander more than 40 years ago.The ex-soldiers had twice been assured they would not be hauled before the courts for gunning down Republican hitman Joe McCann at the height of the Troubles.The British Army pair co-operated with Northern Ireland’s Historical Enquiries Team (HET), which reviewed the case in 2010, and were told by investigators that the matter was closed.But in May this year, the soldiers were informed that the files had been passed to Northern Ireland’s Public Prosecution Service.It means the men, who served with the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment, could be ordered to stand trial for the 1972 Belfast killing – and face jail if convicted.

Last Friday one of the men – identified as Soldier C – expressed anger at events being dredged up after 44 years. The 65-year-old believes the investigation is politically motivated and designed to appease IRA families. His anger was echoed by military veterans and politicians.They compared the paras’ treatment to that of suspected IRA bomber John Downey, who escaped prosecution for the 1982 Hyde Park terror blast, which left four soldiers and seven horses dead, because he was given a police guarantee he was immune from prosecution. Savannah Cat For Sale In OhioDowney has always denied involvement and pleaded not guilty at the Old Bailey in 2014.Soldier C, a grandfather-of-one from Hampshire, said: ‘This has come as a major shock. Apple Cider Vinegar Weight Loss Success StoriesI was told I would not be prosecuted and I truly believed the matter had been dealt with.‘Washer And Dryer Cad Block Free

I thought I was going to live out my life in peace and harmony. Then out of the blue I got a phone call telling me that the police were passing over the files. It is on my mind all day, every day. It is extremely stressful.’ Terrorist: Republican hitman Joe McCann was gunned down at the height of the TroublesSoldier C, who served with distinction for 23 years, said: ‘How can this be justice? It is a disgrace. I was doing my duty in Northern Ireland, trying to protect the public and keep the peace. Now I am being thrown to the wolves.’ McCann, 24, was one of the Official IRA’s most prominent activists, and his seizure of a bakery in Belfast during the internment became part of Republican legend.His unit also ambushed a British patrol in 1971, killing one soldier, and he was involved in the attempted assassination of Ulster Unionist politician John Taylor in 1972.He was regarded by members of the security forces as a dangerous terrorist who would be armed and would not hesitate to use his weapon to resist arrest.

On April 15, 1972 – just weeks after Bloody Sunday – two RUC Special Branch officers recognised the terrorist in disguise near Belfast city centre and decided to arrest him on suspicion of attempted murder.Soldier C and two colleagues on patrol nearby were ordered to help.As McCann was fleeing, it is claimed the soldiers shouted at him to stop or they would shoot. When he failed to halt, the three paras opened fire and he was killed. After a Royal Ulster Constabulary investigation at the time, the soldiers were told they would face no further action.But in 2010, the troops were traced by the HET and two were interviewed under caution in London. A third lives abroad and did not co-operate.Lawyers’ notes show that the senior detective heading the investigation set Soldier C’s mind at rest by telling him: ‘In my professional experience, this ends here for you. You don’t need to worry about this.’ Suspected IRA bomber John Downey escaped prosecution for the 1982 Hyde Park terror blast, which left four soldiers and seven horses dead, because he was given a police guarantee he was immune from prosecutionWhen the HET handed over the report in 2013 it found the soldiers were ‘unjustified’ in gunning down the IRA commander, saying he was unarmed.

However, the report was never made public.Following the disbandment of the HET, the case was passed to the Northern Ireland attorney-general’s office, which has referred it to prosecutors. Lawyers acting for the soldiers are now challenging the case. Philip Barden, of Devonshires Solicitors, said: ‘This is unfair, unjust and clearly political. It is wrong to make a decision not to prosecute and then 44 years later, when the political climate has changed, to seek to reverse that decision.‘It must be remembered that the trial of John Downey was stopped because the British government had told him he would not be prosecuted. The same law should apply here’.Democratic Unionist Party MP Ian Paisley Jr said: ‘This is natural justice turned on its head. The soldiers were trying to uphold the law. This turns them into villains and the villain into a victim.’Colonel Richard Kemp, who served in Northern Ireland in the 1980s and 1990s, said: ‘Our soldier should not be subjected to retrospective, politically-motivated scrutiny over incidents of which they were cleared at the time.