But he was quick to put his hand in his pocket. Just how quick, Mabel Bexley remembers.
Some pro athletes have a reputation for slapping around their wives and girlfriends.
In 1998, he and his wife, Cass, co-chaired The Spring's fundraising campaign. At every home game, Dilfer paid for tickets for two dozen kids. Some of them always came from The Spring, where women escaping violent relationships seek shelter. I didn't want to seem self-serving, and now that he's going, I will write, because I will miss his leadership. Then there was Tampa Habitat for Humanity.