Category: Adult Leagues

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Falcons 2012 MVP Ryan Bird making news across the Atlantic

Herts baseball fans followed the playoff race this season while keeping one eye on the German Bundesliga where 2013 Herts Falcons MVP, Xavi Gonzalez, reached the semi-final after his transfer to the Stuttgart Reds.

News has just emerged that the 2012 Herts Falcons MVP, Ryan Bird, is making news across the Atlantic with the Mayfair Fighting Irish in the Greater Philadelphia Men’s Adult Baseball League (GPMABL). The 3-time National Baseball League started the season with the Herts Falcons, but his move to the USA meant that British baseball had to begin search for a new Ryan Bird. He marked his final game for the Falcons with a towering home run against the London Mets. It looks like his excellent performances continue in America.

He made his debut for the Mayfair Fighting Irish on 8 June 2014 going 2-for-5 and driving in a run against the Quad County Brawlers. Since then he has been producing phenomenal numbers which has moved him to the top in some of the key statistical rankings. At .529 Ryan Bird has the second highest batting average in the whole league (159 players). The Mayfair Fighting Irish must have seen his impressive pitching stats in the British leagues and have added Bird to their pitching staff. He currently has one of the lowest ERAs (1.10) in the whole league.

Ryan Bird’s view from the dugout during the GPMABL 2014 All Star Game

Despite arriving partway through the season, his performances earned him a place in the League’s All-Star game which was played last week at Frawley Stadium, home of the Wilmington Blue Rocks, which is the Single-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.

Herts fans enjoy seeing updates about former players making news across the globe and we will keep you informed about Ryan Bird, Xavi Gonzalez, Riley Fisher and other Herts players who have moved on to other parts of the world.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Conner Brown is the first pick in the 2014 Hunlock Series Draft

The 2014 Hunlock Series Draft was completed a few hours ago. The managers of the four teams had a plethora of talent to choose from with 74 players drafted over 19 rounds.

THE FIRST ROUND PICKS

On a toss of a coin Blue Dogs had the first pick. Without hesitation co-managers, Charlie Day and Manny Banson, announced that the first pick of the 2014 Hunlock Series Draft is Herts Falcons and Great Britain Under-17 national team catcher, Conner Brown. Brown was the second pick 12 months ago so his market value appears to have gone up over the course of the 2014 season.

Next it was the turn of the Black Widows to make their first pick. Manager Colin Whitton selected pitcher Abel Salas. Salas has had an excellent 2014 season with the Herts Falcons in the NBL both on the mound and with the bat.

White Lightning Manager, Sony Lama, decided to select Herts Falcons shortstop, Ryan Hackel. In Hackel White Lightning has picked up a gold-glove infielder who was also added to the Herts Falcons pitching rotation in the final few weeks of the NBL season.

The last pick of the first round was made by Red Roosters Co-Managers, Glen Downer and Ken Pike. They selected Herts and GB U17 National Team pitcher, Zack Longboy. The 16-year-old was rostered with the Herts Hawks at the start of the year, but finished the season as starting pitcher for the Herts Falcons in the National Baseball League where he has a 100% winning record so far.

FREE AGENTS AND TRADES

The full team rosters determined at last night’s draft are shown here. Several more players have become available as free agents after the draft and they will be drafted 48 hours before the next round of Hunlock Series games. We will keep you updated about free agent signings and trades over the course of the Series.

New players aged 14 or above, regardless of whether they are members of Herts or another club, can be added to the teams at any point. To be added to the teams or for more details contact Herts Baseball Club.

OPENING DAY

The Series commence on Sunday, 7 September, with all 4 teams in action. The first games start at 1:00pm at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead. Admission is free and fans can enjoy food and drinks at the concessions stand. For complete Series schedule click here.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Can you survive 12 ninth innings in 1 day?

The games schedule for the 2014 Hunlock Series has been published. In the league stage all games will adopt the “9th Inning” format where games are decided over one inning only. This format recreates the tension and drama of the ninth inning. The Red Roosters open with a 4-game series against the Blue Dogs, while last year’s winners, the Black Widows start with four games against White Lightning.

The Hunlock Series Rules have also been published and they include the following regulations which apply to the “9th Inning” format.

• The batting order of each team remains unchanged for the duration of the day unless a substitution is made.

• A substituted player cannot re-enter the same game, however that player can re-enter a subsequent game.

• The batter who was next to bat upon completion of the previous game will be the first batter in the next game with the rest of the batting lineup coming up to bat in order.

What is also noticeable from the schedule is that the home team alternates over the course of the 4-game series which implies that the fielding team in the bottom of the inning will remain on the field in the top of the inning of the subsequent game. This scheduling approach was adopted in 2012 and it sped-up the games enormously as there was no need for teams to go in and out of the field. There even was no need for warm-up pitches as the pitchers were ready. The downside is that a pitcher will need to stay on the mound for 6 outs without a break as opposed to usual 3 outs, which could mean twice as many pitches thrown in an inning. This is where defence can really help pitchers, by minimising errors and not adding to the pitcher’s pitch count.

Over the course of the league stage each team will play a total of 24 games, 8 games against each of their three opponents. The team finishing top of the league standings will go automatically into the Hunlock Series Final. The fourth and third placed teams will play in the quarter-final. The winner of that game will progress to the semi-final to face the second-placed team. The winner of the semi-final will meet the top team in the final.

The other rules which differ from what teams are used to in the BBF leagues are:

• Pitching Restrictions. A player can appear as a pitcher in one, two or more games per day, but no player shall accumulate more than 3 innings (9 outs) as a pitcher over the course of the day. It is the responsibility of the opposing team to inform the umpire when a pitcher reaches the limit. Managers must inform opponents of the number of innings pitched by each of their pitchers during the day prior to the start of each game.

• No Mercy Rule will be in force.

• If the game is tied after completion of the final inning, each team is awarded half a win and half a loss in the standings.

The 2014 Hunlock Series Draft takes place this Thursday, 28 August at 8:00pm. This year the Draft will not be televised but, with social media challenging TV as a media platform, coverage of this year’s Draft will be via Facebook. It will enable participants to interact more easily as the managers make their picks. For more details follow Herts Baseball Club on facebook.

Who will be the first Draft pick?

If you have not signed up to play in the Hunlock Series, it is not too late. Contact Herts Baseball Club for details on how to sign up.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Hunlock Series managers announced. The Draft is at 8pm Thursday, 28 August

We are counting down to the 2014 Hunlock Series Draft which will take place this Thursday, 28 August at 8:00pm. This year the Draft will not be televised but, with social media challenging TV as a media platform, coverage of this year’s Draft will be via Facebook. It will enable participants to interact more easily as the managers make their picks. For more details follow Herts Baseball Club on facebook.

Four teams enter this year’s competition and the managerial appointments have just been announced.

Ken Pike has previously won the Series and he is back in the managerial seat. He has teamed up with Glen Downer as the co-managers of the Red Roosters.

The Blue Dogs will be managed by two players who will be making their managerial debuts. Charlie Day and Manny Banson played for the Herts Raptors during the regular season. The Hunlock Series will give them the opportunity of seeing what life is like as a manager and it will be interesting to see if they can outsmart their more experienced counterparts.

Black Widows won the Series 12 months ago. They will be managed by Colin Whitton, who is a member of the Herts Harriers (U17) coaching staff and of course is also the manager of the Bracknell Blazers who came so close to reaching the National Baseball League playoffs this season. Colin’s son, Dan, who plays for the Herts Harriers in the U17 League, the Blazers in the NBL and also for the GB U17 National Team, is among the players who will be drafted on Thursday Night. Will Colin manage to pick Dan or will one of the other teams snatch him ahead of his father.

White Lightning will be managed by Sony Lama. He has played for the Herts Raptors, Hawks and Eagles in the Single-A, Double-A and Triple-A leagues and will go into the Draft with good all-round knowledge of the capabilities of most of the players in the Draft.

Fans will see some new faces in the Hunlock Series this year who have joined the club in the last few weeks, so there will be an element of surprise in Thursday’s Draft. Some of them may be new to Herts fans but they are not new to the game. The Hunlock Series could be a glimpse at some of the new players who will be wearing the Herts uniform for the first time in 2015.

by Rob Jones

Raptors roll over Redbacks to wrap season

Raptors shortstop Jamie Lang makes the catch for the final out of the final game of the 2014 season for the team

“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
… gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here” – William Shakespeare

There was a special feeling in the air as the Herts Raptors gathered in a field in Essex for the rescheduled final game of their 2014 season. Partly it was an end of term relaxation, a looseness – but that brought confidence, too, that things could end on a high.

But the hometown Redbacks stood in the way of a win — and they had no intention of letting Herts spoil their own finale.

The Raptors started with intent. Joseph Osborne-Brade led off with a single, and stole second. Manager Geoff Thomas, starting at third base, would drive him home, before scoring himself. The entire Raptors line-up came to bat, but Essex held them to just 3 runs.

In the second, the Raptors went round again and this time they brought in 5. The game was starting to look like a traditional Single-A division run-fest, and Herts maybe thought it was going to be in their favour. Second baseman Charlie Day and shortstop Jamie Lang were among those getting in on the act with the bat.

But Essex hit back in the bottom of the second, scoring 4 runs of their own. And then, after Herts catcher Rob Jones cleared the loaded bases with a loud single into centre field in the top of the third, this game suddenly changed.

The score stood at 11-5 to the visitors, and when Essex pulled a hard-throwing reliever from their bag of tricks this became a pitchers’ duel. For the next five half-innings nobody scored. Starting pitcher Greg Bochan threw up zeroes on the board to match the new rival, with his defence helping out. Osborne-Brade ended the threat in the fifth inning with a trademark spectacular sliding catch at the foot of the fence in centre field.

Essex then started to chip into the lead, pulling a couple back in the sixth, then another with a lead-off home run in the seventh. But the Herts team were hanging in, too, even as they tried to work out their timing for the fiery reliever. First baseman Jeff Witter led off the sixth with a walk and scored with the help of a passed ball and a single from substitute Drew Mayhew. Manufactured runs kept Herts ahead.

And Witter was back in the frame when hero-time came. The top of the ninth, Herts still holding the lead but by just 13 runs to 10. The Redbacks had been edging closer all the time and could sense a come from behind win. But the doughty first baseman was hit by a pitch in his soft area, to ensure the crucial lead off man got aboard. He moved up to second before Glen Downer got on the same way. And when he scored, he was cheered loudly by the Herts bench.

The Redbacks pitcher was reaching into his last reserves and was sacrificing some control. By the time he had hit a third batter, three runs had scored and the wind was in Herts’ sails.

There were 6 runs in all and as Bochan took the mound, now guided by substitute catcher Kal Dimitrov, he was defending a 9 run lead. The first out was popped to the infield, the second was a grounder. And as the third Redback launched a high pop up to short left field the Raptors gathered a round to make the final out.

It was Jamie Lang, soft of hands, recently returned from a summer stint in the States, who took it in. And the win was complete.

The Raptors co-manager Geoff Thomas said: “It was a fantastic game and great to end the season on a high. I think we really showed what we were capable of and hopefully can carry this into next season”.

Herts had led this game from the start to the finish, and had dug deep instead of crumbling when the Redbacks made a spirited fightback. It was the third Raptors win of the season, and it couldn’t have come at a better moment to give optimism for the future.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Players have started registering for the 2014 Hunlock Series

The 2014 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 eighth 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.

NEW FORMAT

This year’s competition will be played over 3 weeks. The opening games will be played on Sunday, 7 September.  The second round of games will take place on 21 September with the final round scheduled for 28 September.  Sunday, 5 October has been reserved in the event of rain or other rescheduling requirements.

After its successful introduction in 2012 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?

Aspi Dimitrov, Hunlock Series Commissioner, said: “The 9th Inning Weekend was very exciting in 2012. Last year it was wiped out by the weather and we know everyone was looking forward to it, so it is back this year.” Dimitrov added: “The pressure of the ninth inning comes once a day for MLB managers. Let’s see how the team managers and players will handle it when every inning is the ninth inning.”

THE DRAFT

As in previous years, the 2014 Hunlock Series managers will select their teams during a live 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 2015.

To be eligible for selection during the live draft, players must register and enter their availability details online by 7pm on Wednesday, 27 August. 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 2014 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 2014.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Longboy winning debut for Falcons in season-ending triple-header


Abel Salas ended his outstanding season in style with a grand slam home run (photo by Paul Holdrick)

The Herts Falcons were eliminated from the National Baseball League playoff race seven days ago, but on the final weekend of the regular season they had a chance to ruin the plans of the Essex Arrows who needed a win to secure top spot and an automatic place in the National Championship final. The Falcons planned to unleash their ace pitcher, Abel Salas, on them but a back-muscle injury before the start of the game meant that Darrin Ward had to take his place. Despite a closely fought battle, the Arrows pulled away in the late innings to win 10-2 and clinch top spot taking pole position going into the playoffs. They will meet either the London Mets or Southampton Mustangs or Southern Nationals in the NBL Final.

Two more games were played on Sunday which enabled the Falcons to end their season on a positive note. 16-year-old pitcher Zack Longboy made his NBL debut and pitched a complete game winning 11-6 against the South London Pirates. The arm injury prevented star-player Abel Salas from pitching, but that didn’t stop him from hitting a grand slam home run in that game.

In the Single-A League the Herts Raptors suffered a 39-14 defeat against the Essex Archers.

This was the final weekend of a disappointing season for the four teams from Hertfordshire. None of them reached the playoffs and, despite a dramatic playoff push by the Herts Falcons in the NBL, they and each of the other three Herts baseball teams ended the year with more losses than wins.

The work begins now to put together teams which are able to compete much better at all four league levels in 2015. The promising performances of young players like Carlos Casal Jr, Conner Brown, Liam Green, Tom Everex-Armstrong, Will Zucker and Zack Longboy in the NBL this season has given Herts fans hope that the Falcons will be in a much better position to compete next season. Many other Herts youngsters have made similar progress with the other Herts teams in the minor leagues.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Last minute reshuffle will see 3 NBL games played at Grovehill Ballpark on Sunday

One of last week’s rained-out Falcons vs Arrows games has been salvaged (photo by Richard Lee)

Over the last 5 days NBL teams have been making frantic efforts to try to fit as many of their rained out games as possible in this final weekend of the regular season with the playoff race finely poised.

By Friday no agreement could be reached by the affected teams, but a confirmation has just been received that the Herts Falcons vs South London Pirates games have now been moved to Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead in order to fit one of the two Essex Arrows vs Herts Falcons games rained out last Sunday.

This means that the following games will be played at Grovehill Ballpark this Sunday, 17 August.

10:30 Herts Falcons @ Essex Arrows
13:00 Herts Falcons @ South London Pirates
16:00 Herts Falcons @ South London Pirates

Grovehill Ballpark will host one additional game from the Single-A League between the Herts Raptors and the Essex Archers. First pitch is at 12pm.

by Rob Jones

Catching a break

After a lifetime of clear vision, it’s a shock to see life from behind bars. But don’t worry, I haven’t finally been jailed for crimes against the English language. I have instead made my debut as a catcher, writes Rob Jones.

Let’s be honest, it’s hard to see from behind that mask. And it’s damned hard to move with all that extra armour, and that helmet. It’s distracting, especially for a skinny guy like me. Not every catcher is necessarily a beast, but even at single-A level they tend to be solid. I am an exception.

Andy Cornish catching
Herts’ own Andy Cornish in catching action

Hopefully more wearing of the “tools of ignorance” will help get me used to them. Because even after giving it a try, the idea still appeals to me.

Let me back up slightly and explain the context. This all happened one Saturday a couple of weeks ago, in a friendly game between the Herts Raptors and the development side being nurtured by the excellent London Mets club. The team is currently called the Mountaineers, though it doesn’t play league games. Yet.

Eye-opening

This was a chance for them to face an opponent in a real game setting, and for that opponent to be a genuine league team. For us, it was a chance to try some new things. For example, our centre fielder became a starting pitcher, the right fielder became a second baseman. And your correspondent — usually a jobbing infielder – became a catcher.

In the end it was for just one inning, as I am not the only player with designs on the job. But I’m glad I got in that one inning as it was eye-opening (and not just because that was the only way to see clearly!)

The armour does have a real impact on your movement. I had to tighten it all up to fit me, of course. But still the way it affects your speed and your flexibility surprised me. I felt like a racehorse confined in plaster casts, or perhaps as if I had been lightly dipped in concrete to perform my job.

Then there is the glove. I don’t doubt that there are excellent reasons for having a special glove. But it was another thing to get used to. Whenever I play first base I always do it with my own glove, a standard 12.5″ infielders glove. I just find that I am more used to it and more in tune with what it can do. So experiments with a first baseman’s glove are always short lived. With the catchers mitt, you have to persevere. I think I improved in the course of the inning I was there. But it will take more work.

The ball is in play…. always

There is also so much to think about. So much. When one ball got away from me and that mitt I failed to react for a second. And the base-runner took the chance to move up. Just as I would’ve done in his place. At any position you have to always remember that the ball is in play, but even more so as the catcher.

In theory, of course, I should be following the count, too. I’ve got much better at this sort of stuff over recent years (sometimes now, I even remember the score too!) But on one occasion I was caught out.

Baseball
The aching legs which only a catcher can know

The umpire said the count was full, but Greg who was pitching had correctly counted it to 2-2. He fired one down as he thought he could waste one more ball, and was surprised when the guy then walked. I needed to have helped him out at that point. It is something else to remember.

There are two reasons I wanted to try catching. First, it’s the one thing I have never done in a game. Secondly, I feel that my sporting background as a football goalkeeper will help me get my technique right to block stray balls. It took years of baseball before I “unlearned” the habit of getting my knees down and getting everything behind a ball. You simply don’t have time for that on the infield. But as a catcher I feel it would help save on pass balls. I still felt that was true after my one inning of work.

I don’t know how much I was able to put it into effect as I wrestled all the strange, fish out of water feelings that I have described above. But I think the only balls to get by were that one which I just dropped, and one more which I tried to block correctly but which still caromed off my shoulder.

I remember the difference the catcher can make for the pitcher from one of my experiences on the mound a couple of years back. The multi-talented Andy Cornish — who I don’t think even catches regularly now — was making a guest appearance for the Eagles when I pitched in relief. He was so effective in saving all those balls I put wide and in the dirt and I was very grateful — as I’m sure was the team.

The final thing to say about catching is that it is flat-out exhausting! The observant among you will recall that I only did one inning. In my defence I will say that it was the final inning of the game, and we had been going for a couple of hours by then. But I will freely admit that this was far more tiring than any other inning of the day.

Carrying round the extra weight, and constantly crouching down and jumping up, make a wicked combination. If you see me return from the off-season with chunky thighs and an enormous grille across my face you know that I have given in to the temptations of the catcher.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons out of NBL playoff race

With the Falcons eliminated, Herts hopes rest on the club’s 3 youth teams. The Herts Harriers (pictured) were national runners-up last year. Can they go one better this time. (photo by Chip Andersen)

Hurricane Bertha wiped out all of the baseball league games involving teams from Hertfordshire, but the biggest damage was caused by the result in South London where the Southern Nationals won both games of their doubleheader against the South London Pirates. This implies that the playoffs are now out of the reach of the Herts Falcons regardless of what happens on the final weekend of the season.

This was always going to be a transitional year for the team after losing six of its nine starting players from the team which finished top of the NBL regular season last year with a record of 24 wins and 4 losses. In addition, the team suffered a series of injuries. More players were sidelined over the first four weeks of the season than in the previous three years.

Despite this the Falcons managed to regroup acquiring some outstanding players including Abel Salas, Jose Sosa, Ryan Hackel and Zac Malone and mounted a major playoff push in the last two and a half months. Players who had come through the club’s youth programme were asked to perform on the big stage and they came through with flying colours.

“The players gave everything this season. We just ran out of games at the end” said manager Lee Manning. “Everyone will feel some disappointment as we had a team capable of competing and we recorded a win against every team in the league including the league leaders”.

The Herts baseball teams are out of the playoff races in the respective leagues, but on the final weekend of the season they will have a say in who will occupy those playoff places after the final out of the regular season.

This is the first time since 2011 that Hertfordshire will not be represented in the postseason playoffs of the four tiers of the adult leagues of British Baseball. The hopes of Herts baseball fans now rest on the shoulders of the club’s three youth teams which are preparing for the playoffs in the under-17, under-14 and under-12 leagues. Boys and girls from around the region are still contacting the club and signing up to play in these exciting games to determine the national baseball champions, so it is not too late to get involved (click here to contact the club).