Category: Adult Leagues

13 May 201217 May 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons no longer top of the NBL after extra innings loss at the D-Backs

Kimiyoshi Saionji was one of many Falcons players whose bats were on fire for the trip to Lakenheath (photo by British Baseball Magazine more available on their website. Click image to view.)

The Herts Falcons picked up a very good win in game 1 of the series versus the Lakenheath Diamondbacks, but lost a tense second game in extra innings.

Robbie Unsell was one the Falcons’ big signings in the winter and he made his debut in these series. He played at short stop and was placed at the top of the Falcons batting lineup going 1-for-4 with a RBI double and 2 runs.

This was probably the Falcons’ best offensive performance of the season so far against a Lakenhetah team which is always one of the most difficult teams to play against. Kevin Niedringhaus (3-4 2B 5RBI), Cris Hiche (2-2 RBI) , Jake Michels (2-4 2RBI), Dave Tretheway (2-4 RBI) all had multiple hits. On the mound Jordan Farkas was not shaken by a Max Scholten home run on the first pitch of the first inning. The Herts starter went on to pick up his third win of 2012 with another solid performance. He was supported by a very good performance from the defence behind him which committed only 1 error.

Click to view game 1 box scores and play-by-play

In the second game the Falcons had to battle against a DBacks team eager to bounce back as well as a very small strike zone resulting in a number of walks. Herts allowed 7 runs in the first inning and although they did tie the game up to take it into extra innings it always felt like they were on the back foot. The bottom of the 7th almost ended in fireworks as Lakenheath was in position to win the game when Leo Perez hit a rocket over the left field wall that would have been the game winning homerun only to be reversed by the home plate umpire. The Dbacks eventually won it 14-13 despite a brave effort by the visitors from Hertfordshire who managed to retire Lakenheath twice in extra innings despite allowing two runners on base with no outs. Ryan Riniker picked up the win for Lakenheath and Chase Richey got the save. Mike Osborn was saddled with the loss for Herts.

POST-GAME REACTION

After the games we managed to get the views of both managers, Lee Manning (Herts) and Ken Reber (Lakenheath) who made his return to the team after missing most of spring training, marking it with a 2-run home run in game 1.

Ken Reber: “”Herts simply came out more prepared than us as it felt like we didn’t have our heads in the game for most of the game. Credit Herts starting pitcher for keeping us off the bases”. For game two Reber felt that “”this was a game that probably lasted longer than it should have but we were just glad to have survive with the win.”

Lee Manning: “Lakenheath won game 2 because they adjusted to the umpire before we did. Game 2 was more about keeping the bat on the shoulder and letting the umpire walk the hitters. Lakenheath scored 7 runs in the first inning and we were always playing catch up.” Manning added: “I’m proud of the way the team kept on fighting to take the game into extra innings but our fitness played a big part late in the game. No baseball in the last 28 days did take its toll in the end.”

FALCONS MAKE THEIR RETURN HOME AFTER 6 WEEKS ON THE ROAD

The split at Lakenheath meant that Herts have lost top spot in the NBL after the Nationals and Southampton swept their opponents. They will be hoping to regain top spot next Sunday when they welcome the Croydon Pirates to Grovehill Ballpark. This is the first home game for the Falcons since their Opening Day win against the Bracknell Blazers. Game 1 starts at 12pm.

13 May 201217 May 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Eagles unveil promising new signings in loss versus Old Timers

: Oz Kemal was back for the Eagles

Herts Eagles 7 Old Timers 17.

written by hertsbaseball.com correspondent Duncan Hoyle

Herts Eagles battled well against a typically well organised and disciplined Old Timers team but eventually succumbed 7 – 17. However the Eagles will be able to console themselves with the many positive individual performances from the game.

On the warmest baseball playing day of the season so far, Herts starting pitcher Reagan Wood got off to a great start with 3 first inning strikeouts to keep the Old Timers down to 2 runs scored in the first innings. However the Herts batting unit just couldn’t get going, struggling to come to terms with the Old Timers lefty pitchers curve balls.

Wood was forced to leave the pitchers mound in the second inning with a slight shoulder strain and it was Geoff Thomas who had the difficult job of having to pitch out the rest of the inning. By the time the inning had finished the Old Timers had increased the lead to 8 – 0.

Debutant Craig Le Roux made his Herts debut in the 3rd inning on the pitchers mound, replacing Thomas who had pulled his hamstring during his pitching efforts, and Le Roux pitched superbly from the start. He was working well with Adrian Smithers, who was playing for the first time as catcher to rein in the Old Timers offense. After battling with some initial nerves, Smithers had an excellent game in his 5 innings as catcher, letting few balls get past him and he will gain a lot of confidence from his performance.

The Eagles made some good defensive plays including a good tag out at home plate by Smithers, a great relay play from deep left field which included Senna Ashida, Theo Scheepers and Oz Kemal, and a great 2-out play instigated by 13 year old 3rd baseman Callum Vangundy. Vangundy is a GB U15 international who was making his debut for the Eagles, and the natural quality he brings to the Eagles will be a big boost for the rest of the season.

Le Roux was able to keep the Eagles in the game, only going for a run or 2 each inning. Finally in the 6th inning the Eagles were able to get some much needed production going in the batting department, with another debutant, Rupert Greyling getting the offensive show on the road by nearly hitting a home run. He had to settle for a double, but was brought home to score the Eagles first run. Substitute catcher Oz Kemal got into the action with a superb hit to bat in 2 runs and by the end of the innings the Eagles had scored 5 to give themselves a chance of avoiding the mercy rule.

In the middle of the 7th inning the score was 17 – 5 to the Old Timers meaning the Eagles had to score 3 to take the game into an 8th inning. 15-year-old Will Zucker was another Eagles debutant who has previously played in Japan, and he got a good hit which he followed up with some great baserunning to get round to score. He looks like he will be an another excellent addition to the Eagles roster. Sadly for the Eagles only 1 more run was scored which meant that the mercy rule came into play at the end of the 7th inning.

The Eagles were bitterly disappointed in not been able to go all the 9 innings, but can take great pride in the spirited way in which heads didn’t drop and the fact that there are fixtures to be played in the next two Sundays, starting next week with an away day outing to Billericay in a clash with the Essex RedBacks.

13 May 201217 May 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Hawks are back in the playoff race

Jon Lewys went 1-3 and drove in two runs in the second game against the Mariners

The Hawks suffered a nightmare month of April. On top of the wettest April on record, most of their roster was unavailable for the games versus the Croydon Pirates and the Poole Piranhas, which they lost and many feared that this slip has knocked them out of the playoff race after just 3 weeks into the season.

Earlier in the week a BBF announcement confirmed that the Hawks would need to finish among the top 4 teams in their AA League group to qualify for the postseason. That seemed to give the Hawks the boost they needed. They bounced back sweeping the series against the Kent Mariners. In game one Nic Goetz repeated his Opening day heroics on the mound. This time he pitched a complete game shutout. He allowed only 4 hits. He had a solid defence behind him which committed only one error as well as potent batting lineup which scored 11 runs. Louis Hare and Tim Elkins contributed with 2 hits each with 3 and 2 RBI respectively.

Click to view Game 1 Box Scores and play-by-play

Nick Russell started game 2 and he too pitched a complete game allowing only 4 hits. Kent did score 2 runs in the final inning but by then the Hawks had taken an unassailable 15-0 lead. Louis Hare (2-4 3RBI 2B) and Andy Cornish (2-4 3RBI 2B) stood out offensively for Herts.

Click to view Game 2 Box Scores and play-by-play

Co-Manager Andy Cornish was pleased with the team’s performance. He said: “I think today we made a real jump forward in our fielding game, both pitchers were at the top of their game. Nic Goetz and Nick Russell were great on the mound today.” He added that “The team was really buzzing after the game, and I for one cannot wait for the next game so that we can continue to put in solid performances”. Will the Hawks be able to shock the league by beating the London Mammoths who come to Grovehill Ballpark this Sunday, 20 May 2012 (12:00 first pitch).

9 May 201210 May 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

2012 BBF postseason format and structure announced

The BBF Board has released the “Road to the NBC”, a document detailing the post-season structure and schedules for adult and youth teams vying for spots in the 2012 National Baseball Championships.

The British Baseball Federation has announced the post-season format and schedule for the 2012 National Baseball Championship (NBC), to be held over the late summer bank holiday weekend, August 25-27. The adult NBC will include a double-elimination NBL bracket, semi-finals and finals for AAA and AA and a Single-A final, with the potential for 14 games played over three days at a single venue.

The NBC qualifications will take place on August 12 and/or 19, with 26 teams vying for spots in the finals.

The playoffs and NBC are earlier this year to take advantage of the three-day bank holiday weekend and a return to extended finals competition for the adult leagues, as well as to allow the GB Baseball programme to prepare and fundraise for the European Baseball Championships and World Baseball Classic qualifier in September.

INPUT AND FEEDBACK

The “Road to the NBC” was drafted with input from commissioners and league representatives as well as feedback from the teams themselves following last year’s highly successful Championship weekend. The BBF is hopeful that the adjustments made to the qualification process, structure and schedule — as well as the shift to a three-day event — will make the post-season experience even more exciting than in previous years.

Planning for the NBC is already in progress and the venue will be announced as soon as possible. As in 2011, the Great Britain Baseball National Teams programme will serve as event organisers, facilitating the staffing, catering, sponsorship and grounds maintenance for the NBC on behalf of the British baseball community. The NBC represents one of Team GB’s major fundraisers, and 100% of catering and merchandising profit from the weekend goes to support our national team players in overseas competition.

The Bronco and Pony post-season details, along with the 2012 Youth National Baseball Championships (YNBC) schedule will be announced later in May.

FULL DETAILS

For full details of the postseason playoffs and the NBC view the following documents:

BBF 2012 “Road to the Finals”

2012 Post-Season Structure

6 May 20127 May 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Hawks suffer second loss of the season

Louis Hare recorded 8 strikeouts and allowed only 4 earned runs in 9 innings but it wasn't enough for the Hawks

The Herts Hawks hosted the Poole Piranhas after a two-week hiatus due to lack of rain, according to the ongoing hose-pipe ban policy. The old diamond at Grovehill, which is historically resilient to bad weather, was playable (bar a swimming pool in the visitor’s dugout, but, according to Hawks Co-Manager, Greg Bochan, “That’s why it is called the Visitors’ Dugout”.

Hawks were lucky enough to have several players on secondment, including Louis Hare, Kim Saionji, Arnie Longboy and Zach Longboy, and they were all needed. Despite getting off to a shaky start that resulted in the Piranhas taking a 5-0 lead in the first inning, Hare settled down on the mound (i.e. warmed up) and kept the Piranhas from getting away with the game. Unfortunately, the Piranhas’ pitcher was also on top form, throwing a lot of strikes and mixing in some knee-buckling curves with a difficult to hit fastball, and his defence, in particular the Poole short stop, held firm behind him. Auchterlounie, Saionji, Hare and later Zach Longboy all were able to get base hits off him, but the rest of the Herts bats were kept quiet and the first Hawks’ run came in after 4 innings.

Matt Johnston could be out for 4 to 6 weeks with a hamstring injury

The Hawks’ task was made more difficult when outfield dynamo Matt Johnston suffered a hamstring injury while attempting to steal second base. He had to be carried to the dugout and subsequently to the car park. The Hawks team will be hoping for his speedy recovery. Zach Longboy came in to replace him and did a great job, getting a base hit, but despite providing a creditable performance, turning a couple of double plays and staying in the game, Herts were unable to overcome the 5-run first inning deficit. The game finished Piranhas 9, Herts Hawks 4.

Click to view box scores and play-by-play

Herts Hawks Co-Manager, Greg Bochan, felt that the Piranhas deserved the win. He said: “In the first inning there were a lot of cobwebs being knocked off by Louis who hasn’t pitched in a long while. On top of that there were a few errors. This gave Poole a 5-run lead. After the first inning we started to settle into the game and it was pretty close from there on in. Poole had really good pitching and they held on for the win.”

The Hawks travel to the Kent Mariners next Sunday, 13 May 2012. They will need the missing members of their team to be back quickly and return to winning ways if they want to stay in the race for the postseason playoffs.

28 April 201228 April 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons, Hawks and Raptors games rained out

FALCONS @ METS

It has just been confirmed that the Herts Falcons visit to Finsbury Park for their NBL double-header versus the London Mets has been postponed due to rain.

The Falcons’ last game was the visit to the Southampton Mustangs on 15 April, they rest next weekend and return to NBL action on May 13 on the road at the Lakenheath Diamondbacks. This means that they would not see a competitive at bat for a total of 28 days. This is not ideal and the continuing wet weather is threatening to affect the Falcons’ training schedule as well.

hertsbaseball.com understands that the Harlow Nationals vs Southampton Mustangs games have also been postponed which means that the Falcons will remain joint top of the NBL standings after this weekend with 5 wins and 1 loss, same as the Nationals.

REDBACKS @ HAWKS and OLD TIMERS @ RAPTORS

The games scheduled at Grovehill Ballpark tomorrow, 29 April, have also been postponed. Hawks games versus the RedBacks and the Old Timers visit to the Raptors will be rescheduled and be played later in the year.

This means that the rain has wiped out every single game involving Herts youth and adult league teams this weekend.

28 April 201228 April 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Eagles game in Brighton has been postponed

The Herts Eagles were scheduled to play their first league game on the road this Sunday with a trip to Pavilion Field in Brighton to face the A League expansion team which has been imaginatively named, Hove Tuesday. It has just been confirmed that the game has now been postponed and will be played later in the year.

Hove Tuesday entering the league this year was a very positive development not just because of the growth of the British baseball league, but also because this meant that one of the best baseball venues in the country has found a new tenant and teams will once again be able to play there.

Guess the year of this National League Final played at Pavilion Field in Brighton?

For many years the showpiece end-of-season National Championships were held at Pavilion Field. The facility features top specification dugouts, and had one of the best playing surfaces in Great Britain. In the early 2000s it was the home of the Brighton Buccaneers. The club folded but thankfully the Burgess Hill Red Hats moved in to ensure that the facility kept going. They too folded just a few years later which meant that Pavilion Field was left without a baseball tenant. There was a real fear that this wonderful baseball facility will be lost as local authorities could have converted it to be used by another sport.

It looks like the future of Pavilion Field is now secure once again with Hove Tuesday taking some very positive steps. Similar to Herts, Hove Tuesday also received funding from BSUK not only to bring the diamond to its former glory, but also to create additional baseball and softball fields.

The Herts Eagles will be looking forward to making the trip to Brighton later in the year to play this weekend’s rained out A-League game.

28 April 201228 April 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons off the DL. Could fans be placing bets on NBL games soon?

British Baseball has been paralysed by what seems to be endless waves of rain which has drenched the British Isles over the last two weeks. The prolonged period of rain started as soon as the authorities introduced a hose-pipe ban. Many of this weekend’s league games have already been rained out.

There is no decision yet about the biggest game of the season so far for the Herts Falcons (5-1). They are scheduled to travel to Finsbury Park to face the London Mets (3-1) this Sunday. The team from the capital is seen as one of the favourites in the National Baseball League (NBL). A win for Herts could give them some breathing space at the top of the standings. A sweep for London and they will overtake Herts.

On the eve of this massive game, the Herts Falcons have had some good news with confirmation that 2011 MVP, Mahendra Prasad, has been added to the roster after spending the last four weeks on the DL with a knee injury. Another player who is working his way back to recover from injury is catcher Dave Westfallen. He missed the whole of the 2011 season with a persistent shoulder injury. Since the end of last season Westfallen has had fantastic news with the birth of his son and it also looks like his shoulder is recovering well. He is targeting the end of May to return to full fitness and may start with a few games with the Herts Hawks in the AA League before considering a return to the Falcons roster.

Falcons outfielder Jamie Munn has also had to miss the start of the season with an elbow problem, but Falcons Manager, Lee Manning, is hoping that Munn will be back to full fitness in the next few weeks.

With the positive news of players coming off the DL and the club’s new signings making their debuts this month, the Falcons will soon be back to full strength and fans of the club will have the opportunity to see the team firing on all cylinders. But at the moment all eyes are on the skies above.

Fans of the NBL will be interested to know that the league scores now appear on a sports website where various betting companies offer odds for sports fans to place their bets. The fields which are intended to show the betting odds for upcoming NBL games are currently blank but it would be interesting to see whether betting companies start to cover the NBL as part of their wide range of betting markets.

22 April 201223 April 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Bases loaded for 9th inning comeback but Eagles fail to pull trigger

You are not going anywhere - Glen Downer holding a Mavericks runner at first base

British Baseball A-League

Guildord Mavericks 22

Herts Eagles 19

report by Duncan Hoyle

Guildford Mavericks held off a late surge from Herts Eagles to record their second successive win, in a competitively played game at Grovehill Ballpark.

The Eagles got off to a dreadful start, due to a combination of aggressive baserunning, good hitting from Guildford and some poor fielding to find themselves 7-0 down after the 1st inning. However starting pitcher Theo Scheepers began to find his range, and the Eagles offence started to get some hits to make the score 14 – 5 after 4 innings.

With the possibility of the Eagles falling foul to the mercy rule, manager Duncan Hoyle made some changes at the end of the 4th, bringing in Zack Longboy as relief pitcher, experienced first base man Glen Downer and Ben Marques, who replaced the injured catcher Oz Kemal.

Longboy settled in quick and went on to pitch until the end of the game, only conceding 1 run in the 6th and shutting out the Guildford offence in the 7th to allow the Eagles to get back into the game. Strong hitting from Joseph Osborne-Brade, Ben Marques and Zack Longboy brought the Eagles within touching distance.

Dave Ames dodging an inside pitch on Sunday against Guildford

With the Eagles now having comfortably avoided the mercy rule, the game progressed into the 9th inning, Guildford had added a few more runs to lead 22 – 17. With the Eagles needing 5 to tie and take the match into an extra inning, Marques and Longboy both scored to bring the Eagles within 3. Theo Scheepers looked to have saved the game for the Eagles when he smashed a shot to deep centerfield, however the centerfielder made an excellent catch to keep the runners on base. The Guildford pitcher who had pitched the whole game must have been feeling the pressure, but he kept his cool as it came down to Tak Ashida to try to hit the walk off grand slam, but in giving it his all he could only manager to sky the ball to the third baseman who made the catch and secure the win for Guilford.

The Eagles travel to the magnificent Pavilion Field in Brighton for their first away game of the season to face Hove Tuesday on Sunday, 29 April (first pitch 12:00).

22 April 201223 April 2012 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Depleted Hawks squad runs out of pitchers in late innings at Croydon

Starting pitcher Liam Green allowed only 2 earned runs and struck out 6 Pirates over 4 innings

The Herts Hawks went into their second game of the season with 14 regular players missing. Despite a valiant effort from the team, the Croydon Pirates picked up the win to go top of the AA League.

Inning	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Herts	0	3	2	0	2	2	0	9	7	10
Croydon	1	5	0	0	2	6	5	19	8	2

Among the 14 missing Hawks members were the two co-managers, Andy Cornish and Greg Bochan, and so Falcons player and Herts Under-17 Team Manager, Cris Hiche, was in charge and had the difficult task of assembling a team. There were seven changes in the Hawks starting lineup compared to the nine players who started against the Richmond Dragons on Opening Day last week. Only Tim Elkins, Jon lewys and Ilya Dimitrov were part of the Hawks roster. The remaining squad featured players from across the whole Herts organisation, from U17 players Liam and Lewis Green, to Falcons’ Lee Manning, but the majority were members of the Herts Raptors whose A-League game versus the RedBacks was postponed.

Despite this the boys from Hertfordshire managed to get back in the game after trailing 6-3 at the end of the second inning. Hits from Liam Green (2-4 SB), John Kjorstad (1-3), Seth Lipstock (1-2 2BB 2SB), Amit Odedra (1-3 SB), and Lee Manning (1-3) helped the Hawks to stay in touch. They scored two runs in the top of sixth to take a 9-8 lead, but their depleted pitching staff was starting to get tired.

Croydon took full advantage scoring 11 runs in the next two innings to clinch a 19-9 victory and maintain their 100% record in the league this season.

Stand-in manager Cris Hiche felt that “both teams played well which resulted in a close game, which may not be obvious from the final score”. He added “it came down to which rotation was going to get tired first. Croydon’s pitcher was tired at the end but was able to close us down. On the other hand, our pitcher got tired and left some balls up in the strike zone and they were able to capitalize on it with some timely hits. Credit to Croydon, but we will be looking to get a victory next time we face them”.

The Hawks will hope to bounce back next Sunday, 29 April, at home against the Essex RedBacks.