Category: Adult Leagues

by Rob Jones

Marauders take Eagles treasure in tropical heat

London Marauders 42-14 Herts Eagles, Sunday 7th July

The powerful London Marauders brought their 6-2 record to Grovehill on the hottest day of the year so far, looking to maintain  their challenge for a playoff spot. The Herts Eagles stood in their way, trying to fight back towards .500 and continue their learning curve.

It’s hard to ignore the weather for this clash, as an early morning start and the punishing heat all played a part. But nobody was complaining that the British baseball season had been kissed by the sun at last.

Hunter Devine
Eagles on their knees? Hunter Devine swings away

The early exchanges were fairly even. Ben Marques continued his varied season for Herts by making his pitching debut. His two-seam fastball was effective, but finding consistency in the zone was harder.

However, Marques and his defense limited the Marauders to just three runs in the first. The Eagles’ lead-off man, catcher Hunter Devine, then got on base, promising a quick response. He was stranded at third thanks to solid work by the visitors. 3-0 after the first.

Then the Marauders broke out big-time, plating 11 runs with Adam Landau-Smithers scoring the only Herts reply. Three more runs and London were threatening to make it a massacre.

But the Eagles responded impressively in the bottom of the third inning. They rallied to score nine runs before making an out. The London pitcher Sam Melton, who had been solid and crafty up to this point, tired in the heat, giving up three walks in a row at one point.

Ben Marques
Ben Marques pitching for Herts

There were two hits for the Eagles manager Duncan Hoyle, one for new recruit Rob Gibson, and a second hit of the day for Jamie Lang. The comeback was finally snuffed out when Hunter Devine was doubled off at third by an alert fielder.

Sadly for the Eagles, they were not able to build on the momentum they had created. John Peters came in as relief on the mound, and pounded the strike zone with impressively fast fastballs.

There had been just one strikeout in first three innings, but there were another six in the final four innings. DH Adrian Smithers and Tomasz Kosak were among the only players who could get a bat on the ball.

Having been hauled back into range at 17-10, the Marauders then piled on another eight runs by the bottom of the fourth, and 11 more in the fifth. Their offense was as unforgiving as the Hemel Hempstead heatwave. Rob Jones pitched a scoreless seventh for the Eagles, but it was a mere consolation prize.

London ran out 42-14 victors and are two games ahead of the Mavericks in their pool. There was no shame for the Eagles in defeat to a strong side which looks set for the playoffs.

There must be special mention for Devine, who caught the full game of some four and a half hours without passing out from the heat. Will Belbin also played the full game, securing two hits and a run, and Rob Gibson made a dramatic outfield catch — even sliding into the fence — to end an inning.

No matter the result, there are good points for the Eagles to carry with them. And the game was played in an excellent spirit, with sunshades and cold drinks very much the order of the day once it was over.

by Ken Pike

Raptors bats ablaze to clinch playoffs on hottest day

Will Zucker hits another grounder as the Raptors drove through their nearest opposition in 30 degree heat

by Ken Pike

 

The Raptors hosted Southern Single A Pool A rivals Milton Keynes knowing that a win would clinch a  guaranteed playoff position and set them up to win the pool outright and earn a first round bye at Farnham Park. They were facing a team that had beaten them by the narrowest of margins earlier in the year, and while the self assured pronouncements that the Raptors had been missing key players were not without basis, there was still room for doubt and question over what the result would be.

In 32 degree heat the Raptors had taken a very easy warmup to conserve energy and hydration levels while Milton Keynes took the opposite approach. After watching their sister team, the Eagles’ playoff hopes sadly fail at the hands of the Pool C leaders, London Marauders the delayed Pool A titans clash could commence. Young Brodie Caress’ reassured mound performance only saw a couple of Coyotes get on base, but the first inning was ultimately cleaned out without any damage being done. The Raptors’ bats had been vicious all year and if anything the sun had set them on fire as they made mincemeat of the opening Coyotes pitcher going around the order and drawing a replacement pitcher to the mound before three outs were recorded opening up an 11 run lead right from the word go.

Back in the dugout a touch of overconfidence asserted itsself with players lamenting that the Raptors could have been looking at a perfect season were it not for a couple of weak performances, but Milton Keynes came back to the field with more intent. They notched up two scores as some defensive errors started to creep into the Herts team. T he sun played a serious part with several balls lost in the blazing sky and the heat causing some more lapses of concentration. The starters for the home side have an average on base percentage of well over .500 and more than 170 stolen bases (17 per game) before going in to this game so two runs was hardly a concern. The Raptors promptly brought around another 8 runners to pump the lead to 17.

The third inning played out somewhat differently though. Whether the heat had finally got to the Raptors as well, or whether Brodie Caress’ young arm was getting tired is uncertain but a series of errors and missed chances allowed 8 Milton Keynes Players to cross home plate. The final out came courtesy of short stop Will Zucker who ignored the fact that he could not see the ball which had again disappeared in the sun, and he guessed at its location… correctly. Certainly a wobble for the home defense, but quickly mitigated with 4 reply runs leaving a reduced lead of 13.

The Raptors blip was shortlived however as they came back refocused. Brodie struck out two Coyotes before the final out at first retired the side in order and the Raptors bats came back out to knock in another 3 and the lead looked healthy again at 16. The young pitcher’s arm and concentration had been shot by the fifth inning where five players crossed the plate. Never the less it was far too little as the Raptors brought in another 10 going around the order one and a half times in the bottom of the inning and putting the game beyond any reasonable doubt with a lead of over 20 runs.

In an effort to shut down the game and get out of the sun, coach Arnie Longboy brought out sidearm closer Will Zucker. Will made a slightly shakey start, thanks in part to accidentally hitting a Coyote very squarely on the knee with a wild pitch. While it took him an inning to get his composure fully back he allowed only 2 runs in the sixth and seventh while the Raptors responded with 2 of their own.  The lead remained at 20 at the top of the last inning, but this was too much of an ask for a now dehydrated and exhausted Coyotes team who valiantly got 2 runners around before Will Zucker struck out the final batter to bring the Raptors team to ecstatic jubilation knowing they had just secured the first playoff in Raptors history.

As the players cheered and embraced it was plain to see what this result meant to them, and it is certain they will be bringing their determination and love of the game to Farnham park for the off season. Having beaten every team they faced over the past 7 games, including the heavyweight Marauders, Blackjacks, Arrow and now Coyotes they carry a serious momentum with them. Another win and they top their pool, while topping the single A league can be guaranteed with three straight wins inthe remaining games or a mixture of wins and Marauders losses.

Raptors coach Arnie Longboy said: : “I am so proud of the team and what we’ve done to get this far.  A few people have asked me how we’ve managed to score so many runs this season.  First of all we have had production throughout the entire line up.  The fact that our number nine hitter leads the team in RBI’s should tell you something.  Secondly I think the guys have come to realize that just some basic fundamentals of base running and situational hitting can make a big difference.  Yes, we continue to have the occasional fielding errors and that’s to be expected.  But more importantly we have managed to eliminate almost all mental errors on the base paths that cost us outs.   And with our mix of young talent, sophomore players, and veterans really starting to gel it should make for an exciting rest of the season and of course Farnham park!”

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R
MK Coyotes 0 2 8 0 5 2 2 19
Herts Raptors 11 8 4 3 10 2 0 38

 

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

British League braces itself for the Grabowski factor

It would be fascinating to see how Doug Grabowski would compare to some of the top pitchers in the NBL like Herts Falcons' Robbie Unsell (pictured), Michael Osborn, Jordan Farkas, Ryan Bird and Darrin Ward among others (photo by Richard Lee richardleephotography.org)

The Herts Ravens travelled to the Cambridge Royals upbeat after a good run of 5 wins and 1 loss in the last six games put them back in the playoff race. They knew they were about to face one of the favourites for the AAA title, but they were not aware that just a week ago Cambridge had made a player signing which could turn the league on its head.

Doug Grabowski arrived from America on duty with the nearby US air bases. He is around 6 feet and 5 inches in height and has the physical attributes which have become the standard for the pitching staff of MLB teams. Similar to Roy Hobbs in the movie “The Natural”, there is little information about his career on the internet, but we understand he has played at the college level back in America.

AAA League (Game 1): Herts Ravens 0 Cambridge Royals 10 (click to view box scores)

His fastball overwhelmed the Ravens. Perhaps they would have had some success after a few innings of getting the timing on their swings right, but that became impossible when he introduced his knee-buckling curveball and changeup. Grabowski is certainly the best pitcher in the AAA League and Herts Ravens Manager, Carlos Casal, went a step further. “He is probably the best pitcher in any of the British Leagues today. We didn’t have a radar gun on hand but it probably reached 85-90mph.” said Casal.

From the 20 plate appearances made by Herts batters only 5 resulted in the ball being put in play. The remainder were 12 strikeouts and 3 walks giving Doug Grabowski a complete game shutout no-hitter on his British baseball league debut. He also proved to be a class act quietly shaking the hands of every Herts player during the break between the two games. Players like him are a rarity and his presence can have a very positive effect on efforts to promote baseball and the league. The British Baseball Federation should not miss the opportunity to publicise outstanding players like him.

In this first game of the day the Ravens were not able to keep up despite good pitching from Petar Kikel.

AAA League (Game 2): Herts Ravens 3 Cambridge Royals 13 (click to view box scores)

The Ravens were eager to see the back of Doug Grabowski and face a different pitcher in the second game of the doubleheader. Levandowski seemed a much more hittable pitcher, but despite a much slower fastball Herts only managed 3 runs on 3 hits and 3 walks. The hits came from Conner Brown, Gilberto Medina and Liam Green. The 3 runs were not enough and the Ravens went down 13-3.

The Herts Ravens had to face the Royals without ace pitcher Louis Hare who fractured his left elbow in a football game at the end of June. They need him back if they are to stand a chance of somehow getting back in the playoff race especially as the club will be losing Seth Lipstock in the coming weeks as he flies back to America.

It will be interesting to see how the introduction of Doug Grabowski will affect the AAA League as we enter the deciding final third of the season.

Our visit to Cambridge gave us a lot of food for thought. The Royals team includes a large number of players from the US air bases. With the news of the their neighbours, Lakenheath Diamondbacks, struggling this Sunday in their NBL game at Southampton, the door is open for the two clubs to consider a merger in 2014. While Lakenheath have American Air Force players, they appear to lack the administrative infrastructure and community activities of the Cambridge Royals. Bringing the two teams together would create a very strong multi-team organisation which would have the potential to become a major force in British Baseball. Lakenheath or Cambridge club officials reading this article may want to schedule a meeting in October to secure a merger deal.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Falcons extend winning streak to stay top of the League

Xavier Gonzalez was in the zone on Sunday hitting two homeruns for the Herts Falcons in their wins against the Bracknell Blazers (photo by Richard Lee richardleephotography.org)

written by Randy Brenzen for britishbaseball.org

The Herts Falcons extended their winning streak to 13 games in the BBF’s National Baseball League on Sunday 7 June with a doubleheader sweep over the Bracknell Blazers at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead.

NBL (Game 1): Herts 8 Bracknell 3 (click to view box scores)

Robbie Unsell’s two-run single, followed by Xavier Gonzalez’s two-run home run, both in the bottom of the sixth inning, propelled the Herts Falcons to an 8-3 victory over a tough Bracknell Blazers squad in Game One.

Crafty veteran Darrin Ward took to the mound for the Falcons in search of his third win of the season but instead found himself in a bit of a pitcher’s duel with Blazers’ youngster Jordan Edmonds. Both Ward and Edmonds lasted 5.1 innings but did not factor in the result.

Ward struck out two and allowed six hits, three runs (two earned) and two walks while Edmonds surrendered four earned runs on four hits and four walks with six strikeouts. Both then gave way to the bullpen.

Ryan Bird replaced Ward for the Falcons and held down the fort en route to his second relief win of the season. Henry Collins took over for Edmonds but was shelled by the Falcons offense. Collins gave up four runs (all earned) on three hits and a walk in just two-thirds of an inning for his third loss of the season, but his first from a relief appearance.

Xavier Gonzalez went 1-for-3 with three RBIs and a stolen base to lead the Falcons’ offense while Robbie Unsell also had a good game, going 2-for-3 for a double and two RBIs in the win.

Blazers’ starting pitcher Jordan Edmonds had the best game at the plate for Bracknell, going 2-for-2 with a pair of singles and a walk in the loss.

NBL (Game 2):  Herts 15 Bracknell 1 (click to view box scores)

The Falcons put their hitting trousers on for Game Two and exploded for 13 hits in a mercy rule-shortened 15-1 victory over the Blazers.

It was a start that Camrin Opp, fresh off a win in his NBL debut last weekend, will hope never happens again in his career. The rookie southpaw got rocked by the Falcons’ bats, surrendering 14 earned runs on nine hits and five walks while striking out three batters in just two innings of work.

Brendan Hassan then took over for Opp and did well in relief. Hassan allowed just three hits and one run while walking one and striking out two in his two innings of duty.

For Herts, Robbie Unsell allowed just two hits, a Camrin Opp single and a Fraser Duggan double, over three innings before letting Jordan Farkas get some work in on the mound for the final two innings. Unsell was his usual spectacular self, giving up just those two hits while walking one and striking out five. Farkas, meanwhile, surrendered one run on three walks in his two innings of mop-up duty. He also struck out one Blazers batter.

The dominant Falcons offense was once again led by Xavier Gonzalez. The talented Venezuelan went 2-for-3 with a home run, three RBIs and three runs scored while Cristobal Hiche (3-for-3, double, walk, one RBI) once again reached base safely in every at-bat. Other men to pick up RBIs for Herts were Lee Manning (1-for-2, two RBIs), Michael Osborn (2-for-3, three RBIs) and Ryan Bird (1-for-3, two RBIs).

Game Two might not have provided much positive feedback for Blazers Head Coach Colin Whitton, but he did mention that there were things to build on from Game One.

“We played some great ball in Game One,” said Whitton. ”Jordan Edmonds had great control on the mound. Unfortunately, silly errors at key points gave Herts the opportunity to put runs on the board in the bottom of the sixth.”

On the other side of the diamond, Herts Manager Lee Manning was quick to give praise to the opposition. “Bracknell played well and the scores don’t reflect the games played,” he said. “Again, our pitching was amazing and timely hitting in Game One gave us the win. Every Falcon has improved as the season has gone along and they’ve all contributed to the bingo-bango style that we play.”

The next action for the league-leading Herts Falcons (18-4) will be Sunday 21 July when they welcome the visiting Lakenheath Diamondbacks (9-11) to Grovehill Ballpark. Meanwhile, the Bracknell Blazers (11-11) will go from the frying pan into the fire. Their next action will be Sunday 4 August when they visit the third place Southampton Mustangs (17-5) at Mustangs Field.

by Cristobal Hiche

Falcons and Nationals keep fans on the edge of their seats in a thriller at Grovehill Ballpark

The Falcons came out of the dust as the winners, but the Nationals deserve a lot of credit for a fantastic game of baseball (photo by Richard Lee richardleephotography.org)

written by Cristobal Hiche

BRILLIANT! That’s the only way to describe two well played games both of which were literally decided on the last pitch. More importantly, Falcons came away with two important wins, keeping them on top of the National Baseball League.

NBL (Game1) Herts Falcons 3 Harlow Nationals 2 (click to view box scores)

The first game was an MLB classic with a pitching duel by veteran and All-Star Michael Osborn for Herts and Marty Cullen Jr.’s debut against the Falcons. It was not meant to be an easy task against a powerful Falcons lineup but Cullen Jr. managed to give up only 3 hits in 5 and two-third innings. Unfortunately for him, Osborn again grabbed the spotlight with another pitching gem, despite the Nationals taking a lead with an unearned run in the top of the 3rd inning after two unexpected errors by the Falcons defence. Herts reacted quickly in the bottom of the inning. Marty Jr. with 2 outs lost a bit of concentration and hit Cris Hiche. A wild pitch and an error by 2B Matt Gilbert extended the inning. With men on 1st and 3rd the always dangerous Jordan Farkas came to the plate and punished the Nats with a 2-run double to put the Falcons in the lead. The great pitching duel continued but Cullen Jr. made a small but costly mistake at the end. In the bottom of the 5th he walked Robbie Unsell to start the inning. Falcons needed the insurance run so they were aggressive with Robbie stealing second and then third base. Cullen Jr looked to end the inning by striking out Cris Hiche but with 2 outs Ryan Bird was able to bring the run home with a double. Harlow needed to react but with a man on 1st and 1 out, Osborn turned up the heat and struck out the next two batters. The Nationals were following Yogi Berra’s quote “it ain’t over till it’s over”, determined to try and get a lead in the last inning with the top of the batting order coming to the plate. Falcons looked poised to win with Roberto Almanzar on 1st base and having the always dangerous Maikel Azcuy hit a fly to CF to record the 2nd out. Unfortunately Osborn seemed to lose a bit of gas and although ahead in the count to both Edwin Acantara (1-2) and Jarrod Pretorius (0-2), allowed singles to load the bases. Credit must be given to the Falcons defence which was well positioned to make sure no runs were scored on Jarrod’s single even with Robbie Almanzar’s great speed and being in scoring position. Manager Lee Manning decided to call the bullpen and put flame-thrower Ryan Bird to close the game. The crowd went numb when Ryan walked Dan Parker on four straight pitches to bring the 2nd run home (the only earned run credited to Michael Osborn). A hit could potentially put Nats ahead. More importantly could Ryan find the strike zone? It was an intense moment for fans on both sides of the field. With the count 1-1, Matt Gilbert hit a laser beam towards 1st base and Herts’ hearts (no pun intended) stopped beating for a second. It was a potential bases-clearing double but Darrin Ward was able to catch the line drive, end the game, and make everyone’s heart beat again. A dramatic but well-deserved win for the Falcons.

NBL (Game1) Herts Falcons 8 Harlow Nationals 5 (click to view box scores)

Either Falcons players were still thinking and celebrating the victory of Game 1 or Nats were absolutely determined to reverse their faith, but 2 consecutive errors and a wild pitch opened the gate for the Nats to score 4 runs and could have been worst since they had 2 runners on base with only 1 out, but left them stranded. Given the result of the first game and Harlow having Matt Gilbert on the mound, this could potentially be enough for the visitors. However the instructions heard from Falcons dugout were to adopt the ‘one run at a time’ philosophy and it looked that way when in the bottom of the 1st with 2 outs, Cris Hiche and Ryan Bird were able to manufacture a run between them. Unfortunately, Maikel Azcuy had none of that and silenced the stadium with a blast to RF to keep the 4-run lead. Falcons responded in the bottom of the 3rd when after an 8-pitch battle, Cris Hiche hit a home run to centerfield to close down the score 5-2. Falcons made everything interesting again in the bottom of the 4th when they pulled a string of hits to manufacture two more runs and reduce the deficit down to 5-4. On the other hand, Jordan Farkas was able to settle down after the 1st inning and keep the dangerous Harlow Nationals bats quiet. On a hot day in Grovehill, both starting pitchers looked tired and both managers decided to go to the bullpen. Coincidentally, both brought the same relievers as in Game 1, Ryan Bird (Herts) and Robbie Almanzar (Nationals). In the bottom of the 6th Robbie Unsell again started the inning with a single and knowing how important it was to score at least 1 run, Phil Clark moved Robbie to 2nd with a sacrifice bunt. Cris Hiche was able to reach base on an infield single and all of a sudden the Nats went into a meltdown. Robbie balked bringing the tying run and destroying the potential double play. Then he hit Ryan to put him on base. Following that, Luis Goncalves made a throwing error sailing into right-field and this brought two more runs home. Several batters later Dave House hit a double with Jordan Farkas on third base. With 2 outs Luis Goncalves made another fielding error to bring Jordan home. Falcons had a 3-run lead with only 3 outs left and Ryan Bird on the mound. Game over, right? Well, in what is becoming a Herts tradition, it needed to end dramatically. Robbie Almanzar started the top of the 7th with a single and Ryan Bird walked Edwin Alcantara. The tying run was at the plate with the powerful and always dangerous Jarrod Pretorius stepping to the plate. Fortunately he flew out to centerfield to record the second out and Ryan was able to strike out Dan Parker to finish the game. Game over.

An ecstatic Lee Manning said after the game, “happy with the way we played today: solid defence and strong pitching again. Timely hitting helped us catch them in Game 2. My only concern is the amount of runners we left on base”. He also put emphasis on the quality of the games today and the pitching duel in Game 1 by adding “I must say that Marty Jr. did an amazing job in Game 1 to keep toe-to-toe with NBL legend Michael Osborn”.

These were quality games by both teams who showed great pitching, good defence, and some power hitting too. These games showed how close the league is and how a single fielding error, a bad pitch, or a bad inning can make a difference in the outcome of the game. The crowd responded with a record (or near-record) attendance and I think they left happy. There is another opportunity to come and support the Falcons this Sunday as they host the Bracknell Blazers and, with the summer finally here, pick up a nice sun-tan along the way!

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Good outing for the Hawks in South London

Andy Cornish (left) and Andrew Slater (right) had business on their mind at Roundshaw Park

report by Kal Dimitrov

The Herts Hawks faced the South London Pirates for a double header in the AA League South.

AA League (Game1) Herts Hawks 18 South London Pirates 2 (click to view box scores)

The first game was a one-sided affair, as the Pirates proved unable to adjust to the cunning pitches of Andy Slater, who went on to pitch five innings, giving up 2 runs, none of them earned. He was helped by a steady defence, with some spectacular plays by Carlos Casal Jr at short and Ilya Dimitrov in centerfield. The Hawks were able to mount some big rallies, capped by an inside-the-park-3-run-home-run by co-manager Andy Cornish. The game ended in 5 innings.

AA League (Game2) Herts Hawks 19 South London Pirates 8 (click to view box scores)

The second game started better for the Pirates, who had a one-run lead into the third inning facing Slater, who remained on the mound until all the gas could be squeezed out of him. An astute managerial decision resulted in Greg Bochan coming in on the mound and Conner Brown taking his place at third. Neither disappointed, with Conner making steady plays as well as attempting a spectacular diving catch in foul territory. Bochan, in the meantime, came up and did not allow a single run for the rest of the game, with 3 strikeouts and some handy plays, including a couple of outfield catches by John Kjorstad and one by Tomasz Kosak. The Hawks put together some steady hitting from the fourth inning on, with particularly good performance by Ilya Dimitrov who went 4 for 5 in the game with 5 RBIs, Greg Bochan – 3 for 4, and tireless running by Carlos Casal Jr., Jose Morillo and Conner Brown.

The two wins mean that the Hawks have a .500 winning percentage and move into the playoff zone. The top two AA South teams at the end of the regular season will go through to the quarter finals while the teams finishing between third and sixth place will have to go through an extra playoff round. If the regular season ended today, the Herts Hawks would have to face the Daws Hill Spitfires. There are 6 more games to be played in the regular season.

 

by Ken Pike

Raptors win puts them on the brink of playoffs

Baseball teams from across the UK are jostling for playoff positions.

The Raptors top the single A league and stand on the brink of clinching a playoff spot thanks to another big win today. Sadly, having not been there, I cannot report on the game itsself, though the 24-6 drubbing of the contenders for Pool B’s lead is certainly another impressive head to add to recent victories over the Blackjacks and the Marauders. So, with Pool A rivals, the Coyotes, coming to Grovehill next week, just what are Raptors’ chances of making the post season?

To win Pool A and get a first round buy, a win against the Coyotes next week would put the Raptors 2.5 games clear with only 3 remaining after that, so again either 1 win or a Coyotes loss would furthermore seal Pool victory. A loss would put the Raptors only 0.5 games ahead with 3 remaining and head to head results means the Raptors would have to win as many as the Coyotes do or slip behind them.

If that did happen and the Raptors didn’t top the pool, then they would have to go for a wildcard place. The Coyotes replace them at the top of Pool A and would be out of wildcard equations. The Blackjacks and Marauders who top their Groups would also be irrelevant (all coloured blue in tablefor demonstrative purposes).

With that in mind, the table is currently as follows:

Team Wins Losses Games back
Raptors 8 2 0
Marauders 6 2 1
Mavericks 5 3 1
Coyotes 6 3 1.5
Blackjacks 4 4 3
Archers 3 4 3.5
Redbacks 3 4 3.5
Tonbridge 4 5 3.5
Eagles 3 6 4.5
2Sox 2 5 4.5
Old Timers 3 6 4.5
Dukes 3 6 4.5
Key Divisional leaders if Raptors fail to secure Pool pennant
Unable to surpass Raptors

 

The Eagles, 2Sox, Old Timers and Dukes do not have a mathematical chance of overtaking the Raptors now as they are 4.5 games back with 4 games remaining. (coloured grey on chart).

This leaves only the Mavericks, Archers, Redbacks and Tonbridge to go for the remaining three wildcard spots. Currently the Mavericks are only a game back, so even if they finish ahead of the Raptors there are two places left for wildcards.

The Archers, Redbacks and Tonbridge are all 3.5 games back, meaning 1 more win for the Raptors would put all three out of contention of overtaking the Raptors. A loss by any one of those teams would also put that team out.

Thats basically it. One more win and the Raptors are through to the post season as a wildcard or better. Failing that, one slipup by any two of those three teams and they are through as well.

 

The remaining games are:

Coyotes (6-3) @ Raptors

Raptors @ Mavericks (5-3)

Raptors @ Dukes (3-6)

Raptors @ Tonbridge (4-5)

 

 

 

by Ken Pike

Raptors make Blackjacks walk the plank despite downpour

By Ken Pike

What a difference a month makes in baseball. On the third weekend in May the Raptors had just suffered the second defeat in a row levelling their record at 2-2 after what had been a very promising start to the season. Errors had plagued the team, and while part of the damage came from notable absences of the younger members having to undergo end of year exams, the remaining players had to admit at the time that lapses of concentration had cost them dearly. Playoffs still seemed a very long way away and it was clear that no more mistakes could be tolerated if those were to ever become reality.

Fast forward four games and victories against league leading London Marauders, the solid Redbacks, a dominant performance over the 2Sox, and vengeance against their sister team the Eagles had restored their position at joint top of Single A Pool A and revitalised faith in their abilities. What’s more, the manner of victories had also been resounding – four straight mercy rule games, with a significant drop in error rates, and impressive pitching performances.

Yet much more was to come. Despite the continued success there was no light between their Pool opponents the MK Coyotes and the next few games saw them face 2 pool leaders (including MK), a team that could top their pool if they won their games in hand, and a series of teams all with winning records. First up, the Haverhill Blackjacks, a team that had suffered a rocky start to the season before notable acquisitions from the local US Airforce base had significantly improved their fortunes with rumours of a near unbeatable pitching/catching partnership.

The first inning started with a touch of the shakes for Herts. A couple of fielding errors led to three unforced runs scoring for the Haverhill team, but the Raptors had seen far worse starts turn to victory and were barely phased by that. The Raptors offense is rapidly making a name for itsself having outscored every other team in the league by 50 runs over the season. The bottom half of the first saw Ken Pike get on base and test the fabled visiting battery early on with a steal to second. A hit moved him to second before he took his opportunity on a pass ball. In what was a close play the pitcher made the mistake of stepping over the plate into the path of the 13 stone Raptors catcher. The wind promptly knocked out of him, the ball was no-where near a glove and the home team were on the scoreboard. Only one more runner would score to bring the game back to one.

The second inning saw the Raptors defence hit their stride. Young Will Zucker was cutting through the Haverhill lineup and a series of powerful plays saw the side retired without further score. The bottom half of the inning saw a significant change of pace. Perhaps the pitcher had suffered slightly from his collision, or perhaps the batters had taken heart from the fact the battery wasn’t as dangerous as they had heard. Either way they batted around the order nearly twice with 13 runners scoring before the side was retired (not before Haverhill had gone through two pitchers and descended into a full blown on the pitch argument with themselves). No fancy homeruns required for the home team, just a solid on base percentage with the youthful and fast side making the most of any opportunity to advance.

The third inning saw Will Zucker swapped for the equally young Brodie Caress on the mound, but little else changed. One Blackjack came around before the side was retired, barely denting the Raptors lead of 12. Said lead was promptly restored in the bottom of the inning, but not with quite as much aplomb as the previous inning. Three runners scored – a lead of 14 runs. Sadly not without loss of limb (though thankfully not life.) The cursed first base on the old Grovehill diamond had struck again as Warwyk Byrne landed awkwardly on his hand while returning to first on a pickoff attempt adding a broken finger to the long list of Herts players having suffered in the same position (Duncan Hoyle, Ken Pike, Rob Jones, Joe Osborne-Brade etc etc etc).

Brodie’s performance on the mound continued into the fourth too, this time retiring the side in rapid progression, the first two batters departing within 3 pitches. A walk later the fourth batter went for a simple fly out with barely 15 pitches having passed all inning. Again, another 3 Raptors runs were added stretching the team’s lead to 21-4.

With clouds looming the fifth inning proved more exciting. Caress’ arm was clearly tiring and despite him comfortable lead some of the accuracy had departed. Six runs from Haverhill gave them a fighting chance but they still had work to do to overcome the mercy rule which loomed within two innings. Sadly for the away team, their work should have started on defence in the bottom of the fifth. Instead the Raptors went to town again putting the game well beyond doubt, going around the order again plating 10 more runs to extend the lead to 31-10.

As the sixth started an increasing rainfall started to play havoc with Caress’ accuracy before the heavens opened deluging the field sending both teams heading for umbrellas as umpire Adrian Smithers called for a rain timeout of 5 minutes. Those minutes passed without change for the better and the game was called with a result being called and Havehill’s score being pulled back to the end of the fifth. End result 31-10.

Raptors manager Arnie Longboy praised another great performance: “I think our offense had another explosive game against a tough opponent.  I want to be sure though that we can keep up the momentum for our next two opponents.  Sony Lama continued his hot hitting streak with two singles, a double, triple – just missing the cycle by a homerun.  Jim Arnott’s production also carried over with a team season high seven RBI’s . And of course Ken Pike added to his team lead in stolen bases with another 3.”

The Raptors have now convincingly demolished the leaders of both other pools, and thanks to the Coyotes – Marauders game being postponed by two weeks they now sit top of their group by a half game. They face MK in two weeks, and suddenly the resurgence of faith and potential has turned into a serious charge for the end season. No predictions can be made in what is a very close fight to the finish in all the pools, but whoever wins that game will be strong favourites to finish top of their group. That said, that might make little difference the second team in pool A will be very strong candidates for the first of the three wildcard spots. What will matter however is pride, bragging rights, belief, and above all, momentum.

 

Team 1 2 3 4 5 R H E L
Haverhill Blackjacks 3 0 1 0 6 10 7 5 3
Herts Raptors 2 13 3 3 10 31 15 4 7

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Surely it’s too late for the 2012 awards

Joseph Osborne-Brade (right) received 3 awards in an outstanding season with the Herts Eagles

The 2012 schedule of events was so hectic and was followed by an equally busy 2013 Spring Training timetable, which left very few dates for the club to fit the 2012 Awards Event. As a result the club’s adult and youth teams have been presenting the 2012 awards at separate events over the last few months.

The full list of award recipients is shown below with the exception of the Herts Falcons who are planning to announce their awards separately.

For the Herts Hawks Louis Hare picked up 4 of the trophies including Most Valuable Player (MVP). Gilberto Medina collected three of the awards in the batting category for the Herts Raptors, while Zack Longboy was voted MVP and also collected the Best Pitcher award. Herts Eagles’ Joseph Osborne-Brade received three trophies including the Outfield Gold Glove and Most Stolen Bases. Theo Scheepers was the MVP, Best Pitcher and Infield Gold Glove for the Eagles in a very successful year for the Single-A League team. Andrew Fulford picked up the Play of the Year award in a very competitive category which included some outstanding plays by all the Herts teams across the leagues. The play was his game-changing Grand Slam home run in the AA playoff quarter final at the Guildford Mavericks. Fulford also received the Herts Hawks Home Run Champion.

...and the Nob-Out Award goes to...the whole Herts Hawks team

For the first time in the club’s history, the dreaded Nob-Out award went to a team rather than an individual. The whole Herts Hawks team was the recipient for their extravagant celebration in their good win against the Daws Hill Spitfires invading the field only to find that there is one more inning left to be played.

In the youth leagues, Zack Longboy received the best pitcher award and was voted as the Herts U17 MVP. Liam Green is now 17 so 2012 was his last season in the youth leagues which he marked by collecting the Home Run Champion and Most Stolen Bases awards. Jake Caress and Kyle Lloyd-Jones also played their last season in the youth leagues and received the Infield Gold Glove and Batting Champion awards, respectively. Tom Everex-Armstrong collected the Outfield Gold Glove and Warwick Byrne was awarded with the Rookie of the Year trophy after an impressive first season with Herts.

Callum Vangundy’s outstanding performances were recognised with 4 awards, including the MVP, Batting Campion, Home Run Champion and Most Stolen Bases. Tom Jansson-Wright was the Rookie of the Year. Drew Mayhew and Tom Adams received the Infield and Outfield Gold Gloves, respectively. Alec Broadbent who is recovering from an athletics injury this year received the Cy Young trophy. He started to be used as a pitcher late in the season and impressed quickly especially in the pressure postseason games.

In the U11 League, Christian Lynch and Ozan Martin were the stand-out players for the Herts Giants and Herts Dodgers, respectively. They each received the MVP and Batting Champion titles. Oliver Durer’s (Giants) and Thomas Garton’s (Dodgers) hard work was rewarded with the Infield Gold Gloves, while Alex Jones received the Outfield Gold Glove. Alex Trautman and Jonathan Wakelam were the Most Improve Players in the U11 League. Slugger of the Year was Lewis Auchterlounie and Katie Everex-Armstrong received the prestigious Coach’s Award. Noah Lynch and William Morillo are two of the smallest players in the club, but they are also the club’s biggest prospects. They received the Rookie of the Year Awards.

HERTS HAWKS (AA LEAGUE)
MVP Louis Hare
Batting Champion Louis Hare (Avg.486 15 RBI)
Infield Gold Glove Louis Hare (F% .833)
Outfield Gold Glove Jon Lewys (F% 1.000)
Best Pitcher Nick Russell (5 W 2.18 ERA)
Most Stolen Bases Paul Auchterlounie (9 SB)
Home Run Champion Andrew Fulford (2 HR)
Most RBIs Louis Hare (15 RBI)
Coach’s Award Nic Goetz
HERTS RAPTORS (A LEAGUE)
MVP Zack Longboy
Batting Champion Gilberto Medina (.608)
Infield Gold Glove Jose Morillo
Outfield Gold Glove John Kjorstad
Best Pitcher Zack Longboy
Most Stolen Bases Ken Pike
Home Run Champion Gilberto Medina (1 HR)
Most RBIs Gilberto Medina
Rookie of the Year Ben Marques
HERTS EAGLES (A LEAGUE)
MVP Theo Scheepers
Batting Champion Reagan Wood
Infield Gold Glove Theo Scheepers
Outfield Gold Glove Joseph Osborne-Brade
Best Pitcher Theo Scheepers
Most Stolen Bases Joseph Osborne-Brade
Home Run Champion Adrian Smithers
Most RBIs Duncan Hoyle
Coach’s Award Joseph Osborne-Brade
CLUB WIDE AWARDS
Play of the Year Andrew Fulford (Grandslam in Playoffs)
Nob-Out Award Herts Hawks Team
HERTS ALL STARS (U17 LEAGUE)
MVP Zack Longboy
Batting Champion Kyle Lloyd-Jones (.421)
Infield Gold Glove Jake Caress
Outfield Gold Glove Tom Everex-Armstrong
Rookie of the Year Warwick Byrne
Home Run Champion Liam Green (HR 2)
Most Stolen Bases Liam Green (SB 10)
Cy Young Award Zack Longboy
HERTS ALL STARS (U14 LEAGUE)
MVP Callum Vangundy
Batting Champion Callum Vangundy (.526)
Infield Gold Glove Drew Mayhew
Outfield Gold Glove Tom Adams
Rookie of the Year Tom Jansson-Wright
Home Run Champion Callum Vangundy (3 HR)
Most Stolen Bases Callum Vangundy (3 SB)
Cy Young Award Alec Broadbent
HERTS GIANTS (U11 LEAGUE)
MVP Christian Lynch
Batting Champion Christian Lynch
Infield Gold Glove Oliver Durer
Outfield Gold Glove Alex Jones
Rookie of the Year Noah Lynch
Most Improved Player Alex Trautman
Slugger of the Year Lewis Auchterlounie
HERTS DODGERS (U11 LEAGUE)
MVP Ozan Martin
Batting Champion Ozan Martin
Infield Gold Glove Thomas Garton
Rookie of the Year William Morillo
Most Improved Player Jonathan Wakelam
Coaches’ Award Katie Everex-Armstrong
by Herts Baseball News Editor

The Champions are coming to town this Sunday

The highest attendance at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead during the 2012 regular season was at the NBL game between the Harlow Nationals and the Herts Falcons. At the time the Nationals were leading the league with 10-3 record and the Falcons were second, standing half a game back (9-3). The two teams went on to meet in the 2012 national final where the Nationals took the title in game 6.
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This season the balance of power has shifted slightly. The Falcons and the Mustangs are tied in first place with the London Mets one game back but with games in hand. The Nationals find themselves in fourth place 5 games behind the leading pack with a 9-9 record so far. Some would suggest that the Nationals may not be able to retain the title, but just like Major League Baseball the key in the regular season is to get to the postseason. It does not matter whether you do it convincingly or whether or squeeze into it on the last day of the regular season. The Nats are in a pack of 4 teams divided by 1 game and only 3 of them are likely to go through to the postseason. The South London Pirates may even mount a challenge to get into this group. This makes Sunday’s game a must-win for Harlow.
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At the same time the Herts Falcons know that all of the hard work they put in to win the last 8 games may go to waste if they make one wrong step and slip up against the Nationals in Hemel Hempstead this Sunday, June 30. A loss could see the Falcons drop down from first to third place which would mean that they will have to go through a 1-game playoff decider to book a place to the National Baseball Championships in September.
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This is a good opportunity to look at the Herts Falcons stats with 12 games remaining in the regular season.
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BATTING

AVG.

SLUG%

HR

RBI

Ryan Bird (.550)

Ryan Bird (.900)

Cristobal Hiche (2)

Cristobal Hiche (15)

Jordan Farkas (.458)

Cristobal Hiche (.674)

Ryan Bird (1)

Jordan Farkas (10)

Robbie Unsell (.400)

Robbie Unsell (.533)

Ryan Bird (9)

PITCHING

ERA

K

W

Robbie Unsell (0.70)

Robbie Unsell (32)

Michael Osborn (3)

Michael Osborn (1.40)

Michael Osborn (18)

Jordan Farkas (3)

Darrin Ward (3.50)

Jordan Farkas (15)

Robbie Unsell (2)

Darrin Ward (2)

RUNNING

STOLEN BASE

Robbie Unsell (19)

Ctistobal Hiche (10)

John Blose (8)

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The doubleheader starts at 12:00pm at Grovehill Ballpark, Hemel Hempstead (click for venue details). The second game is expected to start at 2:30pm and end at around 4:30pm.
The Herts Raptors are also in action at the same time as they clash with their rival for a playoff spot, the Essex Archers. The game starts at 12pm on the Old Diamond at Grovehill Ballpark.