Category: Adult Leagues

by Cristobal Hiche

Herts Falcons sweep on Opening Day

Jarrod Pretorius marked his Herts Falcons debut with a home run (photo by Richard Lee richardleephotography.org)

by Cris Hiche, Grovehill Ballpark, Hemel Hempstead

As the saying in sports goes, a new season brings new hope! Herts Falcons were looking for this after a challenging 2016 season. Their addition of Jarrod Pretorius, Miguel Hector, and the return of Cris Hiche were a good improvement. Furthermore the youngsters were a year older, stronger, and with a year experience in the NBL under their belts. This had the fans bullish for this season. But all is fine on paper but this Sunday was the opportunity to test the team against a strong, young Brighton Jets team.

Harry O’Brien and Matt Gilbert were the starting pitchers for the Jets and Falcons respectively on a pleasant day conducive to a good game of baseball. Matt took the mound and looked poised for a great start by getting ahead 1-2 to leadoff Jacob Dean. However Jacob was able to square a pitch inside to send it over the fence and put their team quickly ahead. Oh no! Fans were already thinking this might be a very looooooong season ahead. However Matt Gilbert was able to finish the inning with only one run on the scoreboard. Now he was hoping his teammates would pick him up…and they did by scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 1st. With the score 2-1 for the Falcons, the 2nd and top of the 3rd inning went scoreless. In the bottom of the 3rd, Cris Hiche put the first big smiles for the fans by connecting a 2-run homer and putting the Falcons 4-1 ahead. Meanwhile, fans were starting to enjoy some fine pitching by Matt as he was controlling batters with wicked control, crucial K’s, and when needed some great plays like John Blose in left field with a diving catch near the left side fence risking his body to catch the ball. The offense was slowly increasing the gap, including a bomb by Jarrod Pretorius to leave the score 7-1 in the bottom of the 5th. By the end of the game, Falcons celebrated their 1st victory of the year with a final score of 8-1. Everybody played very well both defensively and offensively. Generally, the home runs take the spotlight but the player of the match needs to be Matt Gilbert who pitched a gem not seen in many years in British baseball. Complete game, 2 hits allowed, 7K, and using only 107 pitches to do the job!! That’s a challenge for any pitcher to beat this year!

The 2nd game was a different story. Young starting pitcher Will Zucker started for the Falcons and quickly allowing some walks and the Jets capitalising with some key hits. Will Zucker was struggling with his command and although post-match interviews has him quoted as “It just wasn’t my day…”, sources tell us he was suffering from a hand injury which would have certainly affected his performance. Regardless, the Jets took advantage and were 5 runs ahead by the middle of the 1st inning. Manager Lee Manning had to even bring Jarrod to finish the inning. It was now going to be a long day for the bullpen. On the other hand, Jacob Dean started the 2nd game for the Jets and after 3 innings he had allowed only 1 run. Brighton was playing a sound game and it was almost a flip from the 1st game. Both teams playing well but Brighton capitalising the little advantages given by Herts and in the 4th they scored another one to make it 6-1 in the middle of the 4th. But then Herts got a lucky break when Jacob Dean developed some sort of cramp which sidelined him from the game. The Jets had to use their bullpen with Dan Whitton taking the mound. He was also doing well but soon the Jets went to relief pitcher Connor O’Shaughnessy. With Connor’s fastball a few mph slower than Dan and Jacob, the Falcons hitters were able to make adjustments at the plate and start to put the ball in play. Timely hits, some lucky bounces, and a great “See-ya-later” by Darren Meintjes meant putting 2 runs in the bottom of the 4th and 6 in the bottom of the 5th. That offensive punch put the Falcons ahead 9-6 changed the whole momentum of the game. The Falcons added some insurance runs in the bottom of the 6th with the final score of 11-6 for the Falcons. Worthy mentions for Miguel Hector who went 2-2, 3R, and Moises Vasquez with some nice defensive gems and starting the 1st double play of the season. However the player of the match goes to Darren Meintjes who went 2-5,HR,3RBI at the plate and pitched 5IP, 1R, 6K. Outstanding performance!

The Falcons will be tested this upcoming weekend when travelling to Southampton to face the reigning champions Mustangs who split their first two games against the London Mets.

Follow the Falcons and show your support through Twitter and attending the next home games!!!

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons, Hawks and Wildcats win the HSL titles after 23 games in the sun and the longest coin toss in history

After 23 games over 3 weekends in perfect Florida-weather the teams are ready for the 2017 British baseball season. In the HSL Majors Division, Herts Falcons came out on top with a 100% record. In second place were the Taunton Tigers, who will feel a little hard done as they also had a 100% record but missed out on first place due to having played fewer games and thus ending up half a game back on the Falcons. When they entered the HSL we advertised them as the team from Taunton playing in the South West Independent Baseball League, but since then we have learned that this is a brand new team based in Taunton which will be playing in the BBF Triple-A League. They have an array of international talent including several GB Under-23 National Team players. It will be interesting to see how they will do in their debut season going straight into the third league tier of British baseball.

The biggest shock in the HSL came just hours before the first games when rumours started circling around that the South London Pirates are about to withdraw from the National Baseball League. In fact there will be no Croydon-based teams at all as their second team will not be playing in the BBF leagues either. The hope of everyone in British baseball is that this famous baseball club will manage to somehow get back on its feet, especially as it has such a rich history and a high standard baseball venue. It would be a big loss if Roundshaw Playing Fields disappears.

Dennis Grogan on the mound for the impressive Birmingham Bandits

In the HSL Double-A Division the Birmingham Bandits and Herts Hawks ended up at the top of the standings with identical record of 3 wins and no losses. The HSL rulebook came into action as one tie-break rule after another could not separate the teams. They even had the same 0.815 runs per inning conceded over the course of the competition which meant that the winner had to be decided by a toss of a coin. It proved to be the longest coin-toss in history, 3 hours and 21 minutes to be precise. With the final HSL game day coinciding with MLB Opening Day, the HSL organisers announced that the New York Yankees opening day game at the Tampa Bay Rays would be used instead of a coin toss. A 7-2 win for the Rays meant that the Herts Hawks were awarded first place. In fairness, Birmingham Bandits looked impressive throughout the HSL and they wouldn’t have been out of place in the HSL Majors Division.

Herts fans who think they have seen this pitching delivery before, are not wrong.

The HSL also revealed that former Herts Falcons pitcher, Pete Kikel, will be making his come-back in the British leagues but this time with the Essex Redbacks as he has relocated and is no longer close enough to Hertfordshire. He looked impressive making a major contribution in the Redbacks 6-7 loss to the Birmingham Bandits which was arguably the best game of the 2017 HSL.

In the HSL Single-A Division Tonbridge and Herts Raptors finished at the top of the standings with identical records of 2 wins and 1 loss. First place was awarded to Tonbridge on the tie-break rule as they had beaten the Raptors in the head-to-head matchup. This was an exciting division as the top 4 teams in the table were divided only by half a game at the end.

On the final weekend umpire Dr. David Jones set a HSL record umpiring 42 innings at the plate over a 48-hour period. We must tip our caps to him and all the umpires without whom the Herts Spring League would not be possible.

View HSL scoreboard

View HSL standings

With Spring Training completed, British baseball teams up and down the country will hope that this will be their year. The NBL teams already opened their 2017 season, while the other three leagues commence this Sunday, 9 April. Follow us on twitter and facebook for a comprehensive coverage of the 2017 baseball season.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

HSL to use New York Yankees vs Tampa Bay Rays game instead of coin toss to break tie for first place

The Herts Spring League issued an announcement that it will use today’s MLB Opening Day game between New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays instead of a “coin toss” to break the tie for first place in the HSL Double-A Standings between Birmingham Bandits and Herts Hawks. See the full statement below.

STATEMENT

The final games of the 2017 Herts Spring League took place this weekend. Birmingham Bandits and Herts Hawks both finished with a 3-0 record and are tied for first place in the HSL Double-A standings. The first, second and third tie-break rules did not break the tie as both teams conceded 0.815 runs per inning over all of their HSL games. The fourth and final tie-break rule stipulates that the tie will be broken by a toss of a coin.

As today is Opening Day in MLB, it has been decided not to toss a coin and instead the New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays game will be used to break the tie. It has randomly been determined that a win for the New York Yankees would imply that the Birmingham Bandits have won the coin toss, while a win for Tampa Bay Ray would mean that the Herts Hawks have won.

The Yankees @ Rays game commences at 6:10pm UK time and can be watched on BT Sport or on MLB.TV.

Commissioner
Herts Spring League

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Two-time NBL champion joins Herts Falcons in time for Opening Day

With only three days before the start of the 2017 National Baseball League (NBL) season, the Herts Falcons have added two-time NBL Champion, Jarrod Pretorius. The 31-year-old slugger was a key member of the Harlow Nationals team which dominated the NBL winning it in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

Many would argue that if Pretorius was not with the Nationals, the Falcons would have become NBL Champions in 2012. In Game 6 of the NBL Final it was Jarrod Pretorius’ 3-run home run after a memorable at bat versus pitcher Ryan Bird which proved to be the difference in the Nationals’ 6-3 title-clinching win.

In that year the South African was also voted as the NBL’s Most Valuable Player (MVP). In 2013 he was once again instrumental when the Nationals eliminated the Falcons in the NBL Semi-Final at Farnham Park.

A look at the NBL archives from the 2012 and 2013 season shows Pretorius leading in various statistical categories, including best batting average (.500) and slugging average (.760) in 2012, NBL Third Base Gold Glove in 2012 and First Base Gold Glove in 2013.

Safe or out? Cris Hiche (left) and Jarrod Pretorius (right) in one of the many titanic battles between the Falcons and Nationals in 2012.

In 2015 he signed for the Tubingen Hawks in the German Bundesliga. In a key game he suffered a serious arm injury. This kept him out of the game for a lengthy period, but he is ready to make his comeback now and Herts fans can look forward to seeing him in a Herts jersey. It may take some time for him to get back to full fitness but even at less than 100%, he is a formidable force and his energy is expected to add enormous value to the club on and off the field. His arrival adds to the large number of South Africa-born players who will be wearing the Herts jersey this season including Duane, Josh and Tyler Badenhorst, Robert Smith, Darren Meintjes, Iain and Dylan McCrimmon.

Jarrod Pretorius is expected to make his debut this Sunday, 2 April, as the Falcons start their NBL season with a home doubleheader versus Brighton Jets. The first game starts at 1pm at Grovehill Ballpark.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts teams announce preliminary 2017 HSL rosters

The managers of the Herts teams which will be playing in the 2017 Herts Spring League over the next 3 weeks have announced their preliminary rosters. We understand that these rosters are not fixed and it is very likely that there may be movement between teams over the course of the HSL. Some players may be asked to play for more than one team as managers look to evaluate players ahead of the announcement of the 2017 Opening Day rosters.

New players are registering every week, therefore some new names may be added over the course of the HSL and into the league season.

HERTS FALCONS

Aaron Witter

Andrew Fulford

Andy Cornish

Cristobal Hiche

Darren Meintjes

Jake Caress

Jamie Warren

Jeremy Lengyel

John Blose

Jonathon Lewys

Lee Manning

Louis Hare

Mario Escobedo

Robert Smith

Tyler Badenhorst

HERTS HAWKS

Andrew Slater

Andy Cornish

Aspi Dimitrov

Dan Bartram

Duane Badenhorst

Ernest jr Ayala

Ernie Ayala

Gilberto Medina

Greg Bochan

Hunter Devine

Iain Mccrimmon

Jamie Lang

John Kjorstad

Jonathon Lewys

Louis Hare

Matthew Gentry

Michael Cresswell

Rod Naghar

Simon Langton

Sonam Lama

Tim Elkins

HERTS RAPTORS

Adam White

Andrico Patsalides

Arnold Longboy

Ben Sinclair

Clive Johnson

Darren Butterworth

Darren Priest

James Emblow

Jim Arnott

Joseph Osborne-brade

Martin Rooney

Matthew Jackson

Michael Johnson

Mitchell Taylor

Nick White

Paul Auchterlounie

Paul Barton

Rahie Rahman

Rich Brown

Rob Jones

Tim Lawrence

Tom Carson

William Belbin
by Herts Baseball News Editor

Countdown to HSL – first chance to see the teams ahead of the 2017 British baseball season

The biggest pre-season baseball competition in Britain is back. Commencing on March 18, the Herts Spring League (HSL) will see 16 teams compete over the 3 weeks of the HSL. Organised by Herts Baseball Club, it is Britain’s very own version of MLB’s Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues currently under way in the US, and it signals that the season is just around the corner.

FORMAT

The 16 teams will be entered into three HSL tiers. The top teams in the country from the National Baseball League and Triple-A Leagues will play in the HSL Majors. The HSL-AA is the second tier of the Herts Spring League. It will feature predominantly British Double-A League teams. The third tier is the HSL-A consisting mainly of Single-A teams.

The organisers considered the possibility of a tournament format, but ultimately adopted a league format in the same way as the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues in MLB. “The objective of the HSL is to enable the teams to prepare for the new season and we have noticed that teams are increasingly starting to approach the HSL in the same way as MLB teams approach the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues” said HSL Commissioner, Aspi Dimitrov. He added “we have taken this into account when formulating the schedule putting greater emphasis on the preferences and preparatory requirements of the teams over the format of the competition”.

The teams finishing at the top of their respective division will win the HSL. The “games-back” column in the standings will be critical, but undoubtedly some teams will end up with the same record and so it may go down to the number of runs conceded per game to break the tie.

THE VENUES

The action will take place at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead, the home of Herts Baseball Club.

SCHEDULE

23 games are scheduled to be played on the two diamonds. The competition begins on March 18 with a clash between the Bracknell Inferno and the Kent Mariners in the HSL Single-A bracket. The HSL Majors commences on the same day when the London Mammoths will face the Lakenheath Lancers while the HSL Double-A division will open with an encounter between the Essex Redbacks and the London Marauders.

In the final weekend of the HSL the schedule will include the National Baseball League season opener between the Herts Falcons and the Brighton Jets. It will be interesting to see if the attendance at Grovehill Ballpark will be higher than that at Farnham Park on the same day for the other NBL clash between the London Mets and the Southampton Mustangs.

Click to view full 2017 HSL schedule

EXCITEMENT BUILDING UP

The Herts Spring League adds a competitive edge to Spring training. It’s the time for managers to work out their winning formula going into the BBF league season. It is an opportunity to evaluate existing and newly recruited players. Which players will earn a spot in the pitching rotation and who will be batting where in the batting order? Who will make the first team and who will have to work their way up with the minor league teams? Not forgetting, it’s a chance to size up your rivals for the year ahead. It’s the first big challenge and the first big excitement of the baseball year. Don’t miss it.

GET IN THE GAME

For more details about the event or if you are interested to give baseball a try in this competition contact Herts Baseball Club.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

16 teams will signal the arrival of Spring in the 2017 HSL

Herts Baseball Club has confirmed that 16 teams have entered this year’s Herts Spring League (HSL). The teams come from all British baseball leagues including the National Baseball League (NBL), Triple-A, Double-A and Single-A Leagues. This year the lineup has an added international flavour with the entry of the Lakenheath Lancers which is a team made up of American high school players based around RAF Lakenheath. The last team coming out of RAF Lakenheath to play in the HSL was the Lakenheath Diamondbacks who won the Majors division in 2012.

This year’s HSL will also feature the Taunton Tigers which is a team from the South West Baseball League which is an independent league.  Another team making their HSL debut is the Birmingham Bandits who have impressed in the BBF Midlands conference over the last few years.

The HSL teams will be divided into three divisions as follows:

HSL – MAJORS

TEAM

CLASS

HSL RANKING

South London Pirates

NBL

1

Herts Falcons

NBL

2

London Mammoths

AAA

2

Lakenheath Lancers

International

4

Taunton Tigers

Ind.

5

HSL – AA

TEAM

CLASS

HSL RANKING

Essex Redbacks

AAA

6

Birmingham Bandits

AA

7

Milton Keynes Bucks

AA

8

London Marauders

AA

9

Herts Hawks

AA

10

Cambridge Monarchs

A

11

HSL – A

TEAM

CLASS

HSL RANKING

Tonbridge

A

12

London Musketeers

A

13

Herts Raptors

A

14

Kent Mariners

A

15

Bracknell Inferno

A

16

SCHEDULE AND FORMAT

The HSL will be played over three weeks commencing on the weekend of 18 and 19 March and ending on 1 and 2 April. The HSL format and games schedule are expected to be announced shortly and hertsbaseball.com will bring this and all other HSL news as they happen.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Raptors manager announced

Paul Barton has been confirmed as the manager of the Herts Raptors and he also joins the club’s executive board. He co-managed the team in 2016 alongside Michael Cresswell, but this season Cresswell is looking to try out for one of the other Herts teams playing in the higher leagues. This means that Barton will take charge in the more conventional way of having only one person at the helm.

Paul Barton made his league debut for the Raptors in 2015 and his tremendous performances were recognised as he was voted Raptors’ Most Valuable Player. In 2016 he and Cresswell managed to turn the team’s fortunes around ending the regular season with a .667 winning percentage, which was even better than the Herts Eagles .500 in 2012 – an amazing achievement for the team in the Herts hierarchy which is made up of newcomers most of whom play baseball for the first time in their lives. In the playoffs the Raptors went on to eliminate the reigning Single-A national champions, Tonbridge Bobcats, at their own ground, and were knocked out at the quarter-final stage by the eventual winners, Herts Hawks.

The team had tremendous chemistry last season where players enjoyed being part of the Raptors’ journey and Barton will be looking to continue it in 2017. Will the Raptors be able to repeat or even improve on their 2016 performance? A lot will depend on the next few weeks as the rosters are put together. At this time of the year the club usually sees many new players join the club, some of whom may have never played baseball before, but go on to become key players for the Herts teams. Spring Training continues this Sunday, 19 February, with another open sessions which anyone over the age of 12 is welcome to attend. Contact the club for more details.

With the earlier announcement of Mike Wakelam also joining the Board, the number of members on the Herts Baseball Executive Board is now 11, which puts the club in a strong position ahead of the 2017 season.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Teams starting to enter 2017 Herts Spring League

The Herts Spring League (HSL) has confirmed the game dates for the 2017 edition of the competition*.

HSL (Week 1 of 3)
Sat, 18-Mar-17
Sun, 19-Mar-17

HSL (Week 2 of 3)
Sat, 25-Mar-17
Sun, 26-Mar-17

HSL (Week 3 of 3)
Sat, 1-Apr-17
Sun, 2-Apr-17

Spring is the time when managers put together their teams and aim to turn them into winning machines ahead of Opening Day. Similar to the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues in MLB, the HSL provides a competitive edge to spring training. This is the tenth year of the HSL. Every year this competition keeps growing. The geographic spread of participating teams seems to be expanding as well. For more details visit the HSL site.

LEAGUE FORMAT

Teams will be placed in two or more divisions (HSL Majors and HSL Minors) based on the teams’ ranking going into the new season. The exact format will depend on the number of teams entering the HSL and the availability of venues, therefore full details will be published when the league line-up is confirmed.

TEAMS

Over the years the HSL has featured teams from the National Baseball League (NBL), Triple-A, Double-A and Single-A Leagues, as well as international teams such as the GB Under-19 and Under-16 National Teams and the ASL Eagles.

“The number of team entries has been going up every year. Last year we somehow managed to fit all of the entrants, however in 2017 we have to be mindful of the fact that we may once again reach our full capacity and we may have to restrict team entries when we reach that level again.” said HSL Commissioner, Aspi Dimitrov.

The addition of U19 and U17 league teams in previous years has worked very well. The high standard of most of the BBF U19 and U17 League teams will certainly enable them to comfortably compete at the level of adult teams from the Double-A and Triple-A League teams, or perhaps even the NBL.

Teams from around the United Kingdom will be submitting their entries over the next few weeks and the HSL lineup and games schedule is expected to be published in early March.

* – The HSL dates are based on the indication that the BBF league season will start on April 2 for NBL teams and on April 9 for all other leagues. If these dates change the HSL may make adjustments where necessary.