Category: Falcons

by Herts Baseball News Editor

NBL MVP expected to wear a different uniform in 2016

Photo by Paul Holdrick

Herts Baseball Club has confirmed that their third baseman Maikel Azcuy is in the process of completing a move which is expected to take him to NBL-rivals Southampton Mustangs.

Azcuy joined the Herts Falcons 12 months ago and proved to be one of the team’s key players. His performances received the ultimate recognition when the National Baseball League announced that he is the 2015 NBL Most Valuable Player. The Falcons finished second in the NBL regular season and lost to Southampton in the Play-Off Semi-Final. 2015 was a very successful season for the team and Azcuy played a central role.

For Maikel Azcuy, last season was the fourth straight year in which he has either tied for the league lead in home runs or won the title outright. He also won his third RBI title in four seasons, moving him past Simon Pole’s tally of two for the all-time lead. However, his batting title was a career first, coming in Azcuy’s 10th season in the NBL. And the batting title was a close-run thing, as Azcuy just pipped Essex’s Jamie Gregory, going 28-for-60 (.467) to Gregory’s 28-for-61 (.459).

Azcuy’s six home runs in 2015 took his NBL career tally to 39, which pushed him past Simon Pole (35) for the all-time lead. He also moved past 200 career RBIs; his current tally of 201 is just 36 short of Brad Thompson’s all-time record.

In their statement, Herts Baseball Club expressed their gratitude for “Maikel Azcuy’s enormous contribution as a player of the Herts Falcons last season”. It further stated that “the Club wishes Maikel success at his next club and with the Great Britain National Team”.

With a large number of places in the Herts Falcons’ starting lineup waiting to be filled ahead of the new season this opens up a great opportunity for the young generation of Herts players and any new arrivals to lead the team into the 2016 season.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Azcuy is the 2015 NBL MVP

This article by Joe Gray first appeared on britishbaseball.org

Maikel Azcuy from the Herts Falcons and Dan Weigel from the London Mets have been awarded the 2015 Most Valuable Batter and Most Valuable Pitcher awards for the 2015 National Baseball League season, following the triple crowns they claimed in their respective disciplines.

Azcuy won the batting title with a .467 average, led the league in runs batted in with 28, and tied Herts Falcons’ teammate Edwin Alcantara for the home run title with six round-trippers.

Weigel led the league in wins with a 7-0 record, and also led the league in strike-outs with 54 and in earned-run average with a mark of 2.25.

MAIKEL AZCUY 

For Maikel Azcuy, a Cuban native who now holds a British passport, 2015 was the fourth straight year in which he has either tied for the league lead in home runs or won the title outright. He also won his third RBI title in four seasons, moving him past Simon Pole’s tally of two for the all-time lead. However, his batting title was a career first, coming in Azcuy’s 10th season in the NBL.

And the batting title was a close-run thing, as Azcuy just pipped Essex’s Jamie Gregory, going 28-for-60 (.467) to Gregory’s 28-for-61 (.459).

Callum Vinall of the Bracknell Blazers also deserves mention. Including Cup games, which the BBF counted in official season tallies for NBL players, Vinall batted .533 for the year. But without the Cup games, he did not amass enough plate appearances to be eligible for the title.

Azcuy’s six home runs in 2015 took his NBL career tally to 39, which pushed him past Simon Pole (35) for the all-time lead. Next among active players is Grant Delzoppo, with 26 long-balls.

Azcuy also moved past 200 career RBIs; his current tally of 201 is just 36 short of Brad Thompson’s all-time record.

DAN WEIGEL 

Dan Weigel’s pitching triple crown reflected an impressive season on the mound. HIs 7-0 won-lost record represented the most wins amassed by a pitcher without a single loss since Roberto Almanzar went 9-0 in his own triple crown effort in 2012.

Weigel’s WHIP of 0.84 was the sixth-best all-time figure in the NBL and the best outright since 2003.

OTHER RECORDS

In terms of career pitching figures, the most significant development in 2015 was Matt Gilbert becoming the NBL’s all-time strikeout leader with a career tally of 418. This moved him past Cody Cain (409), but Cain retains the highest career strikeout rate with 12.7 per nine innings. The next highest strikeout tally among active players is Michael Osborn’s total of 398.

Meanwhile, Ryan Bird’s cameo role during the season improved his all-time record batting average (.508), on-base average (.577), and slugging average (.822).

Finally, Luke Foley became the NBL’s all-time stolen base leader, with his tally of 121 eight higher than that of second-placed Robbie Unsell.

The best single-game batting performance during the season was by Samuel Morris for the London Mets in a game against the Southampton Mustangs on 2 August. Morris had a pair of home runs, one a grand slam, as well as a single and a double. This was the first time a player had amassed at least 10 total bases in an NBL game since 2012.

In the same game, his teammate Jamie Dix also hit a pair of homers, including a grand slam. Dix would go on to accumulate four hits in Game Two of the NBL National Championship final – including another home run – against the same opposition.

The Mets’ victory by two games to nil in the best-of-three final gained them their third national championship, a feat matched or bettered by only 10 teams in British baseball history.

ABOUT PROJECT COBB

The Project for the Chronicling of British Baseball (Project COBB) is an online collaboration aimed at restoring the record of British baseball’s past and preserving its present.

Its website is located at: http://www.projectcobb.org.uk/.

by Greg Bochan

2015 Hunlock Series

The 2015 BBF league season is about to reach its conclusion,  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.

This is the ninth 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 has been increasing every year. As players sign up over the next few days we will know how many teams will enter the Series this year.

SERIES FORMAT

This year’s competition will be played over 3 Sundays. The opening games will be played on Sunday, 27 September.  The second round of games will take place on Sunday, 4 October with the final round scheduled for Sunday, 11 October.

After its success in the 2014 we will see the return of “The 9th Inning Weekend” where games are decided over one inning only. This format recreates 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?

THE DRAFT

As in previous years, the 2015 Hunlock Series managers will select their teams via Draft. 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

Herts players are currently signing up ahead of the draft. New players and players from other clubs can also sign up by contacting Herts Baseball Club.

There has already been interest from non-Herts players located in other regions of the United Kingdom and overseas. Just like last year, the Hunlock Series could provide a glimpse at players who could be wearing the Herts jersey in 2016.

To be eligible for selection during the live draft, players must register and enter their availability details online by 7pm on Wednesday, 17 September. If you miss this deadline, don’t worry. Players would still be eligible to take part but would be added to teams as free agents. Players who wish to register for the 2015 Hunlock Series should contact Herts Baseball Club. To be eligible to play in the Hunlock Series, players must be 14 years of age or above on 31 December 2015.

by Rob Jones

Homer helps Hawks stay high; Falcons fall

Herts Hawks pitcher Andrew Slater set a new season high for strikeouts as his side beat the Kent Mariners 20-3 at Grovehill ballpark. Slater – also the team’s joint manager – whiffed 7 batters and walked just one in a dominant performance. He now leads the league in wins.

Andrew Slater in pitching action

The Hawks remain unbeaten in the British Baseball Federation’s Single-A league, and are looking to secure top seeding for the playoffs.

The offense was again led by Andy Cornish, who had four hits including a triple and a home run. Sonam Lama scored five runs, while Slater himself had a couple of hits. He praised the team effort: “it was a good performance all around.”

Hit 2, scored 2

The Hawks main rivals in the league are the London Musketeers, who are also unbeaten. On Sunday they were taking on the Herts Raptors on Grovehill’s second diamond. Raptors are mainly new players, but fought hard to stay with the unbeaten London side. It was still a respectable 13-6 in the middle of the fifth inning.

Paul Barton on the mound frequently battled out of tough situations as London threatened to surge ahead. He struck out three and walked only one. Matt Corran made his debut for the team, and impressed everyone when he came on to pitch in relief. He ended with a flourish, with a strikeout.

New players hit well, too. In his first start for the team, Matthew White hit 2 doubles and scored 2 runs, while Darren Priest’s first ever hit was a double. In the end, Musketeers had too much power and they piled on runs to win by 25-6 in seven innings.

Earlier in the day, the Raptors won 9-0 over the Haverhill Blackjacks by forfeit.

Raptors manager Rob Jones said: “We played really well against a tough side, and made some great plays. I am really pleased with the progress new guys have made –they will go far.”

At the top end of the club, the Herts Falcons headed to Farnham Park to take on Bracknell Blazers, and the action didn’t disappoint on a great summer day for baseball. Both teams needed the victories; Falcons to stay in 2nd place and more importantly take a big step towards a guaranteed spot in the playoffs, and Bracknell to fight for a playoff spot.

Falcons’ gremlins

The first game started well for the Falcons who scored two runs in the top of the 1st inning and looked poised to take advantage of starting pitcher Jordan Edmonds, who seemed to be looking to find his rhythm in the mound. On the other hand, the Herts starter Jose Sosa — who lately has struggled a bit in the 1st inning — started full steam.

Jordan then settled in and the defense on both teams was playing quite well with a 5-1 lead to Falcons leading into the bottom of the 4th. With 2 outs, Falcons’ gremlins appeared once again and defensive errors allowed Bracknell to extend the inning. Bracknell took advantage of it and became aggressive at the plate and bases to put more pressure to the defense and they succeeded. After the 4th it was tied 5-5.

In the next inning, Bracknell went ahead but Falcons bounced back in the top of the 6th to tie the game. Bracknell responded and again got the lead at the bottom of the 6th. Falcons couldn’t respond this time in the top of the 7th and Bracknell won 7-6 in a very close game.

Robbie Almanzar (photo: Paul Holdrick)

The 2nd game paired another two aces again with Rei Martinez and Robbie Almanzar starting for the Blazers and Falcons respectively. The game started as a pitching duel with the score 0-0 going into the 4th. Both teams knew the game would be decided by 1 or 2 runs.

However, in the bottom of the 4th Bracknell put a few timely hits together with, of course, some very costly errors by the Falcons, and the score all of a sudden was 4-0. Falcons came back in the top of the 5th with 2 runs and Bracknell added an insurance run in the bottom of the inning. Herts wouldn’t give up and scored another 2 runs in the top of the 6th leaving the score now 5-4 for Bracknell.

But in the bottom of the 6th it all went Bracknell’s way — hitting in the gaps, Falcons making more defensive errors, and Robbie running out of gas. Bracknell put up an insurmountable lead 12-4, and although Falcons scored 2 runs in the top of the 7th, it was too little too late. Final score 12-6.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

4 Herts players get GB U19 team call-up for European Championships

Great Britain under-19 National Baseball Team Head Coach Will Lintern and the BBF have announced the roster of 17 players that will represent GB at this summer’s European U19 Championships. The squad includes four players from Herts – Conner Brown, Carlos Casal Jr, Zack Longboy and Will Zucker.

The week-long 10-team tournament will take place from 13-19 July in Ostrava, Czech Republic, where Team GB have been drawn in a pool with the reigning U19 European Champions Italy, as well as Spain, France and Germany. This will be the first time in 10 years that Great Britain has competed in the European U19 Championships. GB booked their place in the tournament with a silver medal finish at last summer’s European U19 Championship Qualifier in Croatia.

The 2015 GB U19 team has to be one of the most well-prepared national teams that GB has sent to a summer competition. The past winter included both Academy and National Team practices, and the second year of the High Performance Academy (HPA). The HPA programme, which is funded by Sport England and supported by Major League Baseball, enabled eligible athletes in England to receive greater levels of support during the off-season. A second HPA venue was added, with practices taking place in Worthing and Wembley, and with players who lived farther afield were supported through a distance learning programme.

Efforts by the GB programme and by BSUK (which runs the HPA and Academy) to develop talent have been noticed by others, as two GB players were selected to play on the European All-Star team in the MLB Academies Tournament earlier this year: Jacob Dean, an outfielder/pitcher from Horsham and Johnny Fretheim, a catcher/outfielder from the London Mets.

Finally, a training camp will be run in the Czech Republic immediately before the European U19 Championships, with half of the players at the camp and the other group in Kutno, Poland representing the UK in the European Little League Big League Qualifier.

SCHEDULE

GB’s round-robin schedule at the European U19 Championships will be as follows, with the home team listed first:

Monday 13 July – GB v Germany (5.00 pm)
Tuesday 14 July – France v GB (3.00 pm)
Thursday 16 July – Spain v GB (11.00 am)
Friday 17 July – GB v Italy (5.00 pm)

Semi-finals will be played on 18 July and the final on Sunday 19 July.

GB Head Coach Will Lintern said, “We have a very strong team. This is the one of the most prepared group of young men we have ever had, and their commitment and dedication puts us in a great position to perform well.”

ROSTER

The players selected for GB for the European U19 Championships are:

PLAYER

POSITION

CLUB

Luke Armstrong

P / INF

Cartmel Valley Lions

Elliot Berger

IB / P

Zurich Barracudas

Conner Brown

C

Herts Baseball Club

Dexter Bohn

OF

London Mets / LYBL Bulldogs

Rich Brereton

INF / P

Darien (Conn) High School, USA

Carlos Casal

UTIL / P

Herts Baseball Club

Rory Chandler

OF

Leicester Blue Sox

Jacob Dean

P / OF

Bracknel l/ LYBL Bulldogs

Johnny Fretheim

C / INF / P

London Mets / LYBL Bulldogs

Eli Hackney-Rose

P / OF

London Mets

Laura Hirai

P

London Mets

Andrew Lee

IF / OF

LYBL Bulldogs

Zack Longboy

P

Herts Baseball Club

Fred Mosier

UTIL / P

London Mets

Miguel Rodriguez

INF / P

Bracknell / LYBL Bulldogs

Matteo Sollecito

P

London Mets

Will Zucker

P / INF

Herts Baseball Club

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons are in the BBF Cup Semi-Final after eliminating Oxford

Good day on the mound for Robbie Almanzar (photo by Paul Holdrick)

The Herts Falcons ended a run of six consecutive league defeats with a win in the BBF Cup quarter-final tie away at the Oxford Kings. Robbie Almanzar was the winning pitcher. Manager Lee Manning was also able to give some of the club’s younger players their Falcons debut and they performed well. Both Takaya Miki and Warwick Byrne did well defensively and offensively.

Young prospects Takaya Miki (pictured above) and Warwick Byrne made their Falcons debuts

This win comes as a relief but psychologically the pressure of the lengthy losing streak in the league will still be on the back of the players’ minds until they can return to winning ways in the NBL. They will aim to do this on 5 July when they travel to the surging Southampton Mustangs who recorded a third consecutive win at the weekend and can leap over the Falcons in the NBL standings if they win both games of that doubleheader next month.

It is now eight wins out of eight games for the Herts Hawks this season. They beat the Old Timers 14-7 away from home and are sitting comfortably on top of their Single-A League Division. On paper this Sunday, 28 June, they should be able to pick up their ninth win of the season easily as they face the Herts Raptors which is one of only two teams in the league yet to record a win this season. However, this is “the Herts Derby” and local rivalries often bring out the best in the underdogs.

The Herts Eagles also have a home game this Sunday against third-placed Brighton Bulldogs. Both games start at 12pm at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Falcons losing streak continues. Hawks walk-off win.

 

Falcons are still in the NBL playoff zone, but can they stay there? (photo by Paul Holdrick)

National Baseball League, Herts Falcons 10 South London Pirates 11 (box scores)

The Herts Falcons lost two more games at on Sunday extending their losing streak to six. In the first game they battled back from being 9-6 down against the South London Pirates to take a 10-9 lead in the top of the final inning. The Pirates responded with two runs in the bottom of that inning to secure a walk-off win in dramatic fashion. New signing Ian Sales made his debut in this game. He struck out 5 batters in his 4 innings of work allowing 8 earned runs. Undoubtedly he would have liked to have been on the winning side on his debut, but he will not have to wait long to have another go as there are some big games coming up.

National Baseball League, Southampton Mustangs 6 Herts Falcons 2 (box scores)

In the second game of the day the Falcons came up against the Southampton Mustangs who, to the surprise of everyone in British baseball, had only 2 wins in 10 games before the start of the day. Those who were beginning to write them off may have to reassess their predictions. Pitcher Francisco Gonzalez was very effective pitching a complete game in which he allowed only 2 runs and 4 hits against an unusually quite Herts batting line-up. Jose Sosa was the starting pitcher for the Falcons and he once again performed well. The 6 runs conceded by the Falcons all came in the first inning but for the rest of the day Sosa completely shut down the Mustangs putting up zeros in the remaining six innings of the game.

This is the team’s longest losing streak since they lost eight consecutive games in 2011. No one could have predicted this after the team’s impressive start of the season winning 5 of their opening 6 games. “We find ourselves in a difficult period and we have to battle our way out of it. We have a tough BBF Cup quarter-final away game against the Oxford Kings coming up on Sunday and that’s the only thing that we are thinking about at the moment” said Herts Falcons manager, Lee Manning.

Single-A League, Guildford Mavericks 17 Herts Hawks 18 (box scores)

There was some good news for Herts baseball fans as the Herts Hawks scored 5 runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to win 18-17 against the Guildford Mavericks. This means that they are still unbeaten with a record of 7 wins and 0 losses. They are top of their division and in a very strong position to qualify for the Single-A League playoffs.

Single-A League, Bracknell Inferno 31 Herts Raptors 12

Herts Raptors are still searching for their first win of the season after a 32-11 defeat against the Bracknell Inferno.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Ian Sales joins Herts Falcons in a big push for the NBL title

The Herts Falcons have announced the arrival of American pitcher Ian Sales. He is expected to make his debut for the Falcons this Sunday, 14 June, in the three-team series against the South London Pirates and the Southampton Mustangs.

The right-handed starting pitcher has just moved to London after graduating from Grinnell College this year. Herts fans will remember that one of its star players, Robbie Unsell, is a Grinnell alumni. Despite being in America, Unsell continues to support Herts and we understand that it was Robbie Unsell who recommended the Falcons to Ian Sales.

Sales just completed his season with the Grinnell Pioneers and was awarded pitcher of the year in his conference. During the season his record was 5-1 with a 2.89 ERA overall and a .238 opponents batting average. His ERA in conference was even better at 1.52 and opponents batting average of .217. He struck out 26 batters and allowed only 1 home run in his 46.2 innings of work over the course of the season. From his 5 wins, two were complete game shutouts.

Prior to Grinnell he played two years for Calabasas High School until 2011. His career also includes a spell with the Columbus Bruins under coach Douglas Myers.

This is a very timely boost for a team which has just lost four games in a row. Despite this the Falcons are in a strong position in the playoff race currently in third place, but they have a major fight on their hands with three teams chasing right behind them. The Falcons have had one of the best batting line-ups in the NBL so far this season , but they have also had the worst defence leading the league in runs allowed, so the addition of a high class pitcher like Ian Sales is exactly what they needed as the team enters the second half of the regular season.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons unable to stop unbeaten Mets despite Azcuy record-breaking home run

(photo by Paul Holdrick)

The Herts Falcons were unable to end the unbeaten run of the London Mets on Sunday, losing both games of the doubleheader. There was a consolation for them as Maikel Azcuy hit career home run number 36 to become the all-time home run leader in the history of the National Baseball League (NBL).

 

In game one the Mets took a 4-run lead in the first inning, but the visitors from Hertfordshire showed determination to stay in the game and fight back. A towering 2-run home run to dead centerfield by Maikel Azcuy brought the Falcons back in the game in the sixth inning. The historic significance of that home run may not have been fully appreciated by Azcuy at that moment as he must have been more excited about the fact that he gave his team a lifeline to come back in this massive game in the NBL title race. However, in the coming days and weeks he will realize that he has set a major milestone in British baseball. He has overtaken the legendary Simon Pole (35 home runs) as well as other big names like Alan Bloomfield (31), Roddi Liebenberg (31), among others. Furthermore, he has many more years to add to his home run tally. Youngsters coming through the youth leagues will face an uphill task if they are to equal or better his achievement.

 

With the game finely poised at 4-2 ,the Falcons had one final inning to stay in the game, but it wasn’t to be. Their starting pitcher Jose Sosa did extremely well to shut down the Mets completely from the second inning onwards, but the best batting lineup in the league could not bring in the runs it needed to bring down the NBL’s best defence.

The second game seemed like a repeat of game one. The Mets took an early 4-0 lead. This included a home run by Grant Delzoppo – 26th of his career, which puts him in fifth place in the all-time NBL home run list. The Falcons fought back temporarily after a solo home run by Edwin Alcantara who has been outstanding this season. This was his third home run of the season which makes him this season’s home run joint-leader in the NBL alongside Maikel Azcuy. Unlike the first game, the Mets didn’t allow any late inning drama and moved up a gear to score seven runs and seal an emphatic 11-1 victory.

After a promising start of the season winning five of their first six games, the Herts Falcons have now suffered four defeats in a row, but manager, Lee Manning, remains positive about his team’s chances. “The four defeats have been difficult for our team to take, but there is a lot of baseball still to be played and we are in a strong position. We have a team of experienced players who have been through tougher situations in their careers and they enjoy playing when the pressure is on” said Manning.

In the Triple-A League, the Herts Eagles missed an opportunity to get back in the playoff chase after they suffered two defeats against bottom team Essex Redbacks who have now leapfrogged the Eagles. The only team from Hertfordshire to win this weekend were the Herts Hawks in the Single-A League. Their win against the Essex Archers extends their unbeaten run to six. The game included a home run by Bobby Graham on his home debut. The fact that this was only the second game of his life brought back memories of Dan Kerry who in 2007, in his very first at bat of his life hit a home run in the same location over the left-centerfield wall at the Old Diamond of Grovehill Ballpark against pitcher Darrin Ward who was playing for the Milton Keynes Hurricanes at the time.

Next weekend the Falcons travel to Croydon for games against the South London Pirates and the Southampton Mustangs.  Both of their opponents are currently below them in the standings and they cannot afford another slip up if they are to stay in the playoff places. Herts Hawks have a home game against the high-flying Guildford Mavericks (10:30am start). This game is followed by the Herts Raptors clash with the Bracknell Inferno at around 2:30pm.

Also this weekend, in the youth leagues the Herts Harriers and Herts Cardinals will play in the Under-19 and Under-15 UK qualifiers with winners progressing through to the European qualifying stage of the Little League World Series.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

BREAKING NEWS: Maikel Azcuy is now the NBL all-time home run leader

BREAKING NEWS: Herts Falcons and Great Britain National Team player, Maikel Azcuy, just hit home run number 36 of his career. He is now the NBL all-time home run leader overtaking previous leader Simon Pole. That was a 2-run home run after Cris Hiche got on base before him with a line drive to centerfield. Azcuy’s home run was hit to dead centerfield.

It comes in the biggest game of the season so far between NBL leaders London Mets and second-placed, Herts Falcons. London Mets had taken an early 4-0 lead in the 1st inning. Azcuy’s home run brought Falcons right back in the game making the score 4-2 to the Mets in the 6th inning.

If you are not at Finsbury Park to watch the game, follow Herts Baseball Club on twitter for game updates.