Category: Eagles

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Spring Training commences for Herts baseball teams

It may be cold outside but, as far as the members of Herts Baseball Club are concerned, the long dark days of winter are over. On Sunday the Herts adult team members reported for the first Spring Training session of 2013. Throughout January and February the Herts teams will be preparing indoors at Berkhamsted SportSpace, which has good facilities including batting nets, however t is becoming obvious that the club has outgrown this venue and must start to look for an alternative in the winter of 2014 as the large number of players found it difficult to fit into the large sports hall. Thankfully the meteorological conditions were very good and the teams were able to use outdoor third-generation artificial pitches.

As usual in these first few weeks of Spring, the coaches put the players through their paces to rebuild physical and arm strength and stamina and work through baseball fundamentals of the defensive and offensive aspects of the game. Gradually the sessions will start to focus on specific positions to fine-tune the club’s pitchers, catchers, infielders and outfielders.

Apart from the returning players, the club had a chance to see some of the new faces which will be wearing the Herts jersey in 2013. The entry of a fifth Herts team in the adult leagues adds a new dimension to the process of assigning players to the five teams and it will be interesting to see which team roster the new recruits will appear in on Opening Day.

Of course the process of recruiting adult and youth team players continues and new players can join at any time throughout the year. With its teams competing in the various major and minor leagues of British baseball, Herts is able to offer baseball playing opportunities to players of any standard from complete beginners to advanced and experienced ballplayers. For more details about joining the Herts teams, contact us.

Quote of the day goes to New Yorker, Greg Bochan. Over the years he has stayed strictly away from discussions linked to football (soccer) in any way. While doing a ground ball drill with Tim Elkins and Rod Naghar, out of nowhere Bochan asked “What did you guys think about Eden Hazard and that ballboy?”

Play of the day goes to new signing John Blose. This was his first appearance in training with the Herts teams. While fielding a fly ball on the run at the indoor venue, he ended up colliding with the wall and taking out the fire exit door in the process. Herts fans should not worry. Blose came out unscathed from the collision.

Spring Training for the adult teams continues next Sunday.

Spring training dates for the Herts youth teams (6 to 16-year-olds) will be announced shortly and new members can sign up for those sessions by contacting the club.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts players report for training this Sunday. 2013 Spring Training dates announced.

The snow has covered the United Kingdom and there is a long way to go before the arrival of the British baseball season, but baseball teams up and down the country are starting their preparations for what they hope will be a winning season.

For the adult team players of Herts Baseball Club Spring Training (pre-season) preparations commence this Sunday, 27 January.

As in previous seasons the teams will start with indoor sessions in the first few weeks of Spring Training at Berkhamsted SportSpace. On 3 March 2013 the players will return to Grovehill Ballpark for the first outdoor training session of 2013.

On March 10 rostered Herts players and all newcomers who are interested to play with Herts in the 2013 league season will take part in the Open Try Outs for adults (players aged 14 or above on 31 December 2013). They will undergo a series of tests and drills which will enable the coaching staff to assess the players before they make their roster picks later in that month ahead of Opening Day.

We are still expecting a final confirmation from the BBF about the 2013 BBF League Opening Day. The latest information is that the NBL season will open on March 30-31 while the minor leagues (AAA, AA, A) will get their season under way a week later on 6-7 April.

The eagerly awaited Herts Spring League dates are still provisional and will be confirmed as soon as the BBF Opening Day is confirmed.

Those adults (aged 14 and above) who are interested in giving baseball a go can come to any of the upcoming Spring Training dates with the Herts adult teams. Regardless of whether you are a complete beginner or experienced player with many years of baseball under your belt, Herts Baseball Club will be eager to welcome you for an exciting season of baseball as the organisation continues its excellent growth. Players aged between 6 and 16 can look forward to joining up with the club’s youth league teams. The Spring Training dates for the youth teams are expected to be announced shortly. For more details of how to get involved with either the adult or the youth teams, please contact us.

Here is listing of the Spring Training dates for the Herts senior league teams (the dates for the youth teams will be announced shortly).

DAY DATE DETAILS VENUE
Sun 27-Jan-13 Spring Training (indoor) Berkhamsted SportSpace
Sun 03-Feb-13 Spring Training (indoor) Berkhamsted SportSpace
Sun 10-Feb-13 Spring Training (indoor) Berkhamsted SportSpace
Sun 24-Feb-13 Spring Training (indoor) Berkhamsted SportSpace
Sun 03-Mar-13 Spring Training Grovehill Ballpark
Sun 10-Mar-13 Open Try Outs Grovehill Ballpark
Sat 16-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark
Sun 17-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark
Sat 23-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark
Sun 24-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark
Sat 30-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark
Sun 31-Mar-13* Herts Spring League Grovehill Ballpark

* – Herts Spring League dates are still provisional and will be confirmed as soon as the BBF Opening Day is confirmed

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Dave Ames appointed to Herts Board

Herts Baseball Club has announced that Dave Ames has been appointed as Club Secretary and member of the Executive Board.

Ames joined Herts 12 months ago after previously playing for the Old Timers. He was part of the Herts Eagles roster during the 2012 season playing second base. His enthusiasm and desire to contribute on and off the field was immediately recognised and Herts Eagles Manager, Duncan Hoyle, quickly moved to appoint Ames as his Assistant Manager. The 40-year-old sustained a nasty injury in May 2012 which has kept him out of action since. Despite this Ames remained very much involved. In July and August he played an important role, along with another Herts member, Ryan Bird, as part of the group of volunteers supporting the GB Programme to host the National Baseball Championships at the home of Herts Baseball Club, Grovehill Ballpark. He has also been exploring potential for a new baseball venue in Letchworth, Herts.

The Club Secretary role remained vacant after the club’s annual general meeting in November and the Board approached Dave Ames. His appointment has now been confirmed officially.

Herts President Aspi Dimitrov said: “Dave joining the Board is fantastic news, not just in terms of increasing the capacity of the club’s front office and Executive Board, but also adds key expertise”. Ames is a town planner and his professional credentials may prove to be very valuable in upcoming club projects.

Ames will undergo a medical procedure on his ankle later this week and the club is hopeful that this will enable him to return to full fitness and back in the active roster.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts AGM appoints 2013 Board Members

With no baseball on TV it is easy to assume that baseball clubs around the world simply lock up their ballparks and fly off to warm destinations for the five months of the winter close season between October and March. In fact the close season is a very busy and important period for the MLB clubs.

This is also the case at Herts Baseball Club. The club held its Annual General Meeting a few weeks ago appointing the Executive Board for the upcoming season.

The club goes into the new season with a strong team in all departments, the number of which seems to be increasing every year. There are some new faces joining the club’s Board who will bring fresh ideas and new energy, and at the same time the club has retained a large number of the 2012 Board members which will provide continuity as the club aims to continue its growth.

The following is the full list of the 2013 Herts Baseball Executive Board. There are several vacant positions which the club is aiming to fill in the coming weeks as it prepares for another season of Herts baseball. New appointments will be announced in due course.

• President, Aspi Dimitrov

• Co-Treasurer, Chris Jones

• Co-Treasurer, Aspi Dimitrov

• Manager (1st team), Lee Manning

• Co-Manager (2nd Team), Andy Cornish

• Co-Manager (2nd Team), Greg Bochan

• Manager (3rd Team), Arnie Longboy

• Manager (4th Team), Duncan Hoyle

• Club Shop Manager, Mark Caress

• Youth League Commissioner, Aspi Dimitrov

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

2013 has arrived

2013 has arrived and over the coming days and weeks we will be publishing details of the upcoming season for Herts Baseball Club, following all the news from the club and from around the British leagues, the latest player transfer rumours, interviews with the people in the news and more.

If you require more details about joining the club as a player, manager, coach, umpire, scorer, member of front office staff or in any other capacity please contact us.

 

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Review of 2012: Progress on and off the field

2012 was the most successful year in Herts Baseball Club’s history in every department on and off the field. It continues to be one of the largest baseball clubs in Great Britain in terms of size, infrastructure, financial performance and is now beginning to mount a serious challenge on the field at every league level with 4 out of the club’s 8 teams reaching the postseason in 2012.

To review 2012, we are publishing excerpts from the End of Year Report at the club’s Annual General Meeting.

GROVEHILL BALLPARK

The Club received a tremendous boost at the beginning of the year with the announcement that its grant application has been successful and it has been awarded £10,000 by BaseballSoftballUK (BSUK), the development agency for baseball and softball in the UK. The club added further £7,000 of funds raised by its members over the years to invest around £17,000 to install the perimeter fence around the two diamonds enclosing the venue completely and installing four dugouts, two for each diamond.

Grovehill Ballpark is currently the best baseball venue in the country attracting the biggest events in the British Baseball calendar, including this year’s National Championships which is the showpiece event of the year.

RETAIL OPERATIONS

The club’s incredible concession stand team set a new record this year. Sales for the year were £3,770. The catering activities help raise funds which go not only towards ballpark development, but also help subsidize youth membership fees making Herts Baseball one of the most affordable sports clubs around for kids.

Astrid Centeno, Kirsten Caress, Susie Longboy and the rest of the concession stand team have worked tirelessly all year long and their efforts help not only with fundraising but very importantly they make the day at the ballpark even more enjoyable.

This year Mark Caress was appointed as the Club’s Shop Manager. In addition to the club’s online shop, Mark set up a relationship with suppliers to supply customised jackets and batting practice jerseys. These proved to be very popular. Mark also imported discounted high quality baseball products which are difficult to find in the UK. This generated sales of £1,621 for the year.

EVENTS

This year the club continued to stage the biggest and best events in British Baseball.

The Herts Spring League and the Herts Futures Tournament once again had record number of teams entering and both have proven to be very successful in raising funds which can be invested in the ballpark or other projects.

Other events included the BBF National Baseball Championships (event was staffed by the GB Team programme), the U17 and U14 Southern Playoffs and the U17 BBF Final, the NBL Special Event in July, and the Hunlock Series which saw a new format and received good reviews.

WEBSITE

The merging of all online activities at the end of last year has proven to be a big success. This combined with the intensive activity on facebook and twitter has generated record traffic for the Herts Baseball website. Number of visits increased by 48%, unique visitors by 33%, and pageviews by 32%, while average visit duration has gone up by 7%.

Fig.1 – 2012 vs 2011 website visits

The top most read articles of 2012 were “NBL’s best pitcher joins Herts” and “Herts acquire catcher from Florida”. We cannot remember a player transaction in recent British baseball history which has attracted as much attention as the acquisition of Robbie Unsell. In third place was “2012 national champions to be decided this weekend in Herts”.

SOFTBALL PROGRAMME

The club combined forces with BSUK to run 8 taster sessions in St Albans throughout the summer months. Dave Tretheway, Ryan Bird and Theo Scheepers were instrumental acting as coaches at these sessions. The club has now built a significant mailing list of people interested in playing softball and the task for the club now is to put a strong team to drive the project forward and take advantage of some real growth opportunities in the region.

 

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Review of 2012: Herts teams in the senior leagues

2012 was the most successful year in Herts Baseball Club’s history in every department on and off the field. It continues to be one of the largest baseball clubs in Great Britain in terms of size, infrastructure, financial performance and is now beginning to mount a serious challenge on the field at every league level with 4 out of the club’s 8 teams reaching the postseason in 2012.

To review 2012, we are publishing excerpts from the End of Year Report at the club’s Annual General Meeting.

HERTS TEAMS IN THE SENIOR LEAGUES

The arrival of some of the country’s best players before the start of the 2012 season has turned not only the Herts Falcons but the remaining Herts adult league teams into title-contenders. Last year the club had 3 teams and they all ended the season below the .500 win-loss percentage. This year the club had four teams and each ended the year at or above .500.

REGULAR SEASON RECORD

NBL
Team W L T Pct GB GP RF RA
Nationals 20 6 0 0.769 – 26 169 123
Herts Falcons 17 6 0 0.739 1.5 23 224 142
Mustangs 17 9 0 0.654 3 26 189 142
Mets 13 10 1 0.563 5.5 24 204 130
Diamondbacks 14 13 1 0.518 6.5 28 192 184
Arrows 9 17 0 0.346 11 26 170 204
Blazers 6 16 0 0.273 12 22 75 144
Pirates 2 21 0 0.087 16.5 23 82 236
AA League
Team W L T Pct GB GP RF RA
Sidewinders 11 4 0 0.733 – 15 152 74
Herts Hawks 11 4 0 0.733 – 15 135 69
Mammoths 11 5 0 0.688 0.5 16 160 108
Spitfires 9 6 0 0.600 2 15 135 98
Redbacks II 5 12 0 0.294 7 17 150 196
Mariners 4 14 0 0.222 8.5 18 128 230
Stags 0 15 0 0.000 11 15 64 250
Single-A League
Team W L T Pct GB GP RF RA
Old Timers 7 2 0 0.778 – 9 164 98
Archers 7 3 0 0.700 0.5 10 181 79
Herts Raptors 6 4 0 0.600 1.5 10 152 118
Herts Eagles 5 5 0 0.500 2.5 10 113 133
Redbacks III 2 7 0 0.222 5 9 87 140
Rays 0 10 0 0.000 7.5 10 12 136

Despite this being the best ever season for a Herts team in the top league of British Baseball, the Falcons felt disappointed to lose in game 6 of the National Championship Final and this is another indication of the amazing turnaround for the club this year.

The club’s second team, the Herts Hawks, also reached the postseason going out in the semi-finals. The success has been a well-deserved reward for co-managers Andy Cornish and Greg Bochan who never gave up despite several very difficult losing seasons.

The club’s success of attracting players who have never played baseball has historically resulted in lack of competitiveness at the Single-A League level, however, even there the club’s two teams turned the corner and despite missing out on the postseason they were both in with a chance of the playoffs right down to the final day of the regular season. Arnie Longboy and Duncan Hoyle should be very proud of what they have achieved in their first seasons as Herts managers. Duncan had the toughest job out of all team managers as he had the last pick from the club’s pool of players. He decided not to accept this predicament and went out to recruit more players through various channels.

Overall there was a 46% increase in adult players this year – which is unprecedented, especially for a club which already had one of the largest pools of players in the country.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts confirm AGM details

Arsenal Football Club held its AGM just a few weeks ago and it was a fiery event. How will Herts Baseball Club's AGM compare?

Herts Baseball Club has confirmed that its 16th Annual General Meeting will take place on Sunday, 25 November 2012.

2012 has been the most successful year in the club’s history with four of the club’s eight teams reaching the postseason in the various senior and youth British Baseball leagues. The AGM will provide a deeper understanding of what that on-field success means for the club’s various departments, whether the club has achieved growth financially and an increase in the number of its members and fans.

Members will receive the AGM Information Pack in due course and that will give a better idea of what to expect. We understand that the meeting is likely to look at the options available to the club to make the step up to the next level and stay ahead of the rest.

Apart from the end of year financial and other reports from the club’s departments, club members will be asked to elect the members of the Board for the forthcoming year. Nominations for Board members are currently invited and those who are interested to put their name forward or second a nomination can contact the club for more details.

Although only 2012 paying members have the right to vote at this AGM, the meeting is very much open to former members and those who are considering joining, the club in 2013 as players, members of staff, volunteers etc. This is a good opportunity for newcomers to learn more about the club and meet its members. The meeting is also open to observers who are not members of the Club, but they would need to advise the club in advance as spaces are limited. If you are not a current member and wish to attend the AGM please contact the club.

This year the AGM will be held at a new venue, just a few minutes away from Grovehill Ballpark. The venue is the Gadebridge Community Centre.

DATE: Sunday, 25 November 2012

TIME: Registration starts at 1:45pm, AGM will commence at 2pm (expected to end at around 5:00pm-5:30pm)

VENUE: Galley Hall, Gadebridge Community Centre, The Nokes, Rossgate, Gadebridge, Hemel Hempstead, HP1 3LF (Directions and Map)

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Hunlock team managers revealed. Stars from as far as Guildford and Liverpool added to the Draft

Cris Hiche (left) and Jarrod Pretorius (right) faced each other in Game 6 of the NBL Final. They will face off again as Hunlock Series player/managers (photo by Jim Garnett, British Baseball Magazine)

We are counting down to the 2012 Hunlock Series Draft which will be shown on the Herts Baseball TV Channel this Thursday, 20 September at 8pm.

Dave Tretheway (left) and Ryan Bird (right) have teamed up with Jarrod Pretorius in an all-South African managerial team of White Lightning

The managers of the teams have just been announced. The Blue Dogs won it 12 months ago and returning to defend the Hunlock Series title is their manager, John Kjorstad. The Blue Dogs swept their opponents away losing only 2 of their 9 games. Can the Blue Dogs win it again?

After a successful debut year as the manager of the Herts U17 team and one of the key members of the Herts Falcons, Cris Hiche has been confirmed as the manager of the Black Widows. 12 months ago they finished last and Hiche will be hoping to improve on their 2011 record of 2 wins and 7 losses.

John Kjorstad (pictured) and Andrew Slater had reasons to be pleased as their Blue Dogs won the Series 12 months ago. Can the Blue Dogs pull it off again.

The Red Roosters have a new manager. Ken Pike had the last 12 months away from managerial duties after managing the Herts Raptors in 2010 and 2011. But he cannot shake off the managerial bug and he is back in the hot seat again. The Red Roosters had arguably the best squad last year and were the hot favourites, so it was a major upset that they could only win 5 of the 9 games.

White Lightning were last year’s expansion team and they will start the Series with, not one but, 3 co-managers – Dave Tretheway, Jarrod Pretorius and Ryan Bird. All three of them played in the Final of this year’s NBL National Championships between the Herts Falcons and the Harlow Nationals. Bird and Tretheway were part of this year’s phenomenal Falcons team while Jarrod Pretorius was arguably one of the MVPs in the NBL with the Nationals.  All three of them have played for the South Africa National Team. Will they target the other South African players in the Draft to turn White Lightning into Team South Africa?

There will be a familiar face in the Hunlock Series as Marty Cullen will be one of the players in the Draft

Performances in previous years of the Hunlock Series will have hardly any bearing on this years competition as all teams start with a blank sheet of paper and will have to build their teams from scratch as part of the Draft.

Ken Pike is back in the hot seat as the manager of the Red Roosters

There will be a plethora of baseball talent to choose from. All members of the Herts Eagles, Herts Raptors, Herts Hawks, Herts Falcons and the Herts U17 All Stars will be up for grabs.

Just like previous seasons they will be joined by stars from other baseball teams from across the country. Jarrod Pretorius is one of three members of the 2012 National Champions, Harlow Nationals, who will be playing in the Hunlock Series. The manager of the Nationals, Marty Cullen, and infielder, Carlos Casal, have also been added to the Draft.

Tetsuro Shinkawa will be making his second Hunlock Series appearance after winning the Series with the Blue Dogs last year. He was the starting pitcher for the Guildford Mavericks in the AA playoff quarter-final against the Herts Hawks a few weeks ago and Andrew Fulford hit a decisive grand slam against him in that playoff game. Shinkawa promised that next time he faces Fulford he will strike him out. We may find out very soon who will win that battle as they are expected to face each other during the Series provided that they are not picked for the same team.

Mario Escobedo in a Liverpool Trojans jersey

This year the Liverpool Trojans will also be represented in the Hunlock Series. Mario Escobedo is well known to fans of Herts Baseball Club as he attended tryouts with the Falcons during the Herts Spring League in March. He is based in Manchester so arranging transport to Hemel Hempstead on a weekly basis proved to be a major obstacle and he joined the best team in the North, Liverpool Trojans, with whom he won the AAA National title just a few weeks ago.

Given the strength of White Lightning on the basis of their 3 co-managers, there will be a restriction on them and they will have to miss the first few rounds of the Draft to enable the other teams to grab some of the top players in this year’s Draft.

We will be publishing more details about Thursday’s Live Draft and the Hunlock Series schedule over the next 48 hours, with Opening Day this Sunday at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts announce new look Hunlock Series. Player registration has started

The 2012 champions in the British senior leagues have been determined, but the best part of the season for everyone connected with Herts Baseball Club is yet to come.

Every year, just when the MLB season enters its most exciting stage, players come to Grovehill Ballpark for a competition in memory of Herts Baseball Club’s number 36, the late Kyle Hunlock.

EXPANSION

This is the seventh year of the Hunlock Series. In its inaugural year in 2006 only two teams were involved, the Falcons and the Hawks. Herts Baseball Club has been growing rapidly since then and the number of teams in the Series increased to 3 in 2008 and went up to 4 in 2011. An announcement about the 2012 Hunlock Series team lineup is expected shortly. There are speculations that the number of teams will increase to 5 this year.

NEW FORMAT

This year’s competition has been expanded and will be played over 4 weekends starting with Opening Day on Sunday, 23 September. The Series will also feature “The Blitz Weekend” where games will be decided over one inning only. This has been introduced to recreate the tension and drama of the ninth inning. Can the teams manufacture the all important go-ahead run? Can they deliver the walk-off hits? Can the pitchers and defence execute with the game on the line?

Aspi Dimitrov, Hunlock Series Commissioner, said: “The Blitz Weekend” has been talked about for several years now, and it was decided to introduce it this year for the first time. The excitement and the pressure of the ninth inning comes once a day for MLB managers. Let’s see how the team managers and players will handle several ninth innings in one day.” He added: “There is a slight risk that adding games decided in one inning can devalue the other games in the Series, but we will have to wait and see how this format will play out and how the managers and players will approach it”.

THE DRAFT

Like every year, the 2012 Hunlock Series managers will draft the teams from all available current and former Herts players as well as free agents from around the UK and other parts of the world. The Live Draft will be broadcasted on the Hets Baseball TV Channel on Thursday evening, 20 September. Who will be the first round picks? How will minor league players perform alongside NBL players?

Over the years we have seen how decisions made during the draft can shape the outcome of the Series before a pitch has been thrown. The managers will have to make carefully calculated decisions if they are to put together a team which can compete for the Hunlock Series title, otherwise they face miserable few weeks.

With all of the club’s managers and coaching staff monitoring these games, players who have been pushing for promotion to a higher league team will have the perfect opportunity to make a claim on the big stage in the coming weeks of the Hunlock Series.

PLAYERS LOOKING TO REGISTER AHEAD OF THE DRAFT

Players are currently signing up ahead of next week’s draft. The Series is open to everyone, not just to current or former members of Herts Baseball Club. Players from other clubs can also take part. Players can register free.  There are no registration fees.

There has already been interest from non-Herts players located in other regions of the United Kingdom and overseas, from as far as Japan. Just like last year, the Hunlock Series could provide a glimpse at players who could be wearing the Herts jersey in 2013.

To be eligible for selection during the live draft players must register and enter their availability details online before 7pm on Tuesday, 18 September. After that deadline and throughout the duration of the Series newly registered players would still be eligible to take part but would be added to teams as free agents. Players who wish to register for the 2012 Hunlock Series should contact Herts Baseball Club. To be eligible to play adult league baseball, players must be 14 years of age or above on 31 December 2012.