After much ado, the 2008 Kyle Hunlock Series awaits its dramatic conclusion on Saturday, as the Black Widows look to three-peat with another win over their co-finalist Red Roosters.

Last Sunday's showdown was postponed due to inclement weather, but the Hunlock Commissioner has given the green light to Saturday's Final come rain or shine.  Manager Marty Cullen hopes to lead his Black Widows onto the field of battle and clinch the 2008 Hunlock trophy.  The Widows have twice beaten the Red Roosters and fellow-Manager Hunter Devine.  Will Saturday yield more roast-chicken, or will Devine herd his henhouse to greatness and steal the title from the over-confident Widows?

The Hunlock Final has twice seen a shift in format this year.  Following last Sunday's postponement, fickle Commissioner Jason Greenberg pushed for a three-team round-robin style climax to this year's dramatic three team tie.  However, limited player availability for Saturday's rescheduled match has forced a recourse to the original gameplan: the bested Blue Dogs have been carved up and redrafted by Cullen and Devine, and will join their new teammates on the diamond for a two-team-only knockout round.

The redraft – conducted Thursday night in a closed-door session in the Commissioner's Office – lasted only 7 minutes and proved easy-pickings for the finalist managers.  The result is a 31 player extravaganza.  Devine and Cullen will have nearly the entire Herts Baseball Club to draw on over nine dramatic innings.

Blue Dogs Manager Tim Elkins was unavailable for comment following Thursday's redraft.  However, sources confide that Elkins was chagrined to learn that his team was – after all – destined for the carving board following last week's strange developments.  The Blue Dogs, of course, have suffered a roller-coaster ride in this Series… the last loopty-loops coming as Commissioner Greenberg first rewarded all three teams for their nearly identical play in the Hunlock qualifying matches by reformatting the Championship Game, but then reversing course and reverting to a two-team face-off… and the abolition of the 2008 Blue Dogs.

Saturday's game begins sharply at 10am.  All players are reporting at 9am, allowing only a quick warm-up before play gets underway.  A coin will be tossed for home field advantage.

Following the Hunlock finale is the 2008 Herts Little League Home Run Derby and Awards Ceremony… and a Herts Family and Friends Softball Game and Picnic.  Local residents are welcomed to the field and – with a little luck – the sunshine will reign over Grovehill for one final day in 2008.

THE 2008 HUNLOCK SERIES FINALISTS

In a flurry of Friday afternoon action, several players exchanged hands midway through the 2008 Kyle Hunlock Series.

Rookies Jack Moon (Red Roosters), Reagan Wood (Blue Dogs) and Ebow Halm-Quashie (Black Widows) were picked up on waivers.  They will join their benches for the first time on Sunday.

Widows Manager Marty Cullen kept up the pace, today, trading RBI-machine Jamie Munn to the Blue Dogs for a waiver option.  Cullen still looks to spend his waiver before Sunday – time is not on his side as this weekend's sudden-death qualifiers approach.

The unofficial rumour mill reports some hefty trade proposals have been quashed at the last moment, including a straight up swap of Widow Aspi Dimitrov for either Rooster Andy Cornish or Jason Greenberg.  No trades have been announced, but such negotiations are prone to delays due to a disputed contract clause or a shaky player physical.

In a surprise move Thursday, Black Widows Manager Marty Cullen designated Alex Casey for the DL and claimed clutch Canadian Chris Barnes off waivers.

Barnes – who works in the north and makes the long trek Sunday to aid the Widows in the qualifiers – has yet to complete a full season with the BBF Herts Baseball Club.  No doubt his big bat, quick feet and keen eye in the outfield will help the pennant 'fade to black.'

Casey is listed week-to-week and is not expected to play in the Series.

According to an unnamed Newswire source, all eyes are on Tim Elkins and co-manager Hunter Devine.  Both hold waivers and are eagerly scoping out their free agent possibilities.  Sources suggest Devine and his Red Roosters will be first to respond to the Widows aggressive off-day dealings.

Herts Baseball Newswire has been alerted to the fact that the 2008 Kyle Hunlcok Series is being covered by other media outlets.  Below is an article published on www.baseballgb.co.uk BaseballGB is a site dedicated to writing about baseball from a British perspective, with contribution from writers such as Joe Gray, Matt Smith and Steve Bartley, among others.

Beautiful weather is not wasted thanks to innovative baseball club

September 21st, 2008 by Joe Gray

After the persistent rain made the National Finals rather less enjoyable than they could have been back on the first weekend of this month, the September sun is familiarizing itself once again with our green and pleasant land. Thankfully, there is still baseball being played, so the solar rays are not going to waste.

I’ve just returned home from Hemel Hempstead, where a 3-week, end-of-season tournament is being run within the Herts Baseball Club (today is the first of three consecutive Sundays). This is the club that put together what was probably the most innovative Spring programme seen in the country for a number of years, with the Herts Spring League. And now the club is ensuring that the season runs through into Autumn with the Kyle Hunlock Series. Hunlock, who played for the Herts Baseball Club in 2005, tragically died in 2006 after an industrial accident in Ohio, USA.

This is the third year that the series has taken place, but this year there was added excitement as the rosters for the competing teams were selected in what is thought to have been the first live radio draft in British baseball.

And this is not the only baseball action still to come in 2008. There is the match between the GB national team and a squad of top cricketers already mentioned on this site, which is taking place on Saturday 4 October in Taunton. Furthermore, I have heard that the rescheduled AA-final between the Bournemouth Sharks and the Sindwinders is set to be played at 1pm on Sunday 28 September, at Bracknell’s ground. If you are interested in that game, keep an eye out for details on the British Baseball Federation site.

Visit BaseballGB for more indepth analysis of baseball from a British perspective.

The first round of the 2008 Kyle Hunlock Series was a validation of the free-market draft system, and an affirmation of the depth and unity of the Herts Baseball Club.

In an intense, fiercely contested day of baseball in which no runaway victors emerged, it quickly became apparent that the three Hunlock squads are well-balanced and full of surprises.  By the end of play each team had secured one win and suffered one loss, and the standings remained dead-even heading into next Sunday's final-round qualifying matches.

Many of the players remarked how evenly matched were the Red Roosters, Blue Dogs and Black Widows.  These three teams – selected in Thursday's Live Hunlock Draft – are comprised of pitchers, catchers and fielders, sluggers and liners, and 2008 season Raptors, Hawks and Falcons.  Speculation abounds as to which team sports the more dominant pitching staff, stronger offensive lineup or tighter defense.  But everyone agrees that the Herts Baseball Club is surprisingly 'deep' in every facet, and this intra-club competition bodes well for Herts' 2009 regular season prospects.

Some of the most impressive plays of the day came from 2008 Raptors.  Rookie Jamie Munn connected for his first Herts hit (a convincing 3 RBI stroke) and former Raptors shortstop Rod Ariss went 3-for-4 with 2 RBI.  Speedster Rob Jones was 2-for-4 scoring 4 runs.  Andrew Slater, Ilya Dimitrov, Mark Hoffman and rookie James Roberts all connected for solid hits up the middle against Falcons Championship pitcher Darrin Ward.  Roosters manager Hunter Devine crushed the ball all day long, and turned the series web gem from deep in the hole at second base.

WP: Aspi Dimitrov(3). PB: Kal Dimitrov(5). T: 2:00. A: 68.

HBP: by Darrin Ward (James Roberts). . WP: Mark Hoffman, Darrin Ward. PB: Andy
Cornish, Paul Auchterlounie(3). T: 2:00. A: 68.

(Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire)  In a surprise move, Black Widows Manager Marty Cullen spent both his remaining trade waivers on free agents Arnold Longboy and Mr. Ariga.  Following Thursday night's exciting live draft, the Widows and the Blue Dogs were shorted two critical final round picks and acquired two draft waivers.  Waivers are used to sign free agents, or to initiate an unbalanced trade (e.g., one player for two prospects).  Saturday's surprise move leaves the Widows with no trade flexibility before Sunday's first round, while patient Dogs manager Tim Elkins stands alone with unspent waivers, and could surprise the league with an eleventh-hour trade.

Arnold Longboy and Mr. Ariga – the enigmatic Japanese superstar who goes only by one name, like Hall of Famer Ichiro – are both highly-prized Herts Little League parents.  As fathers to Zach Longboy and Mikito and Yuki Ariga, respectively, talent obviously runs in the family.  Nevertheless, their positional and athletic abilities are yet to be determined, and Hunlock Series insiders are curious whether Cullen's move will prove impressively prescient or highly risky.  Only Sunday's first round qualifier results can say.

In a related development, Black Widows Carlos Casal and Louis Hare will arrive late to Sunday's Hunlock games, and are likely to miss the early action at Grovehill.  Casal and Hare hope to be on-hand to push the Widows through the later stages of Sunday's showdown with the threatening Red Roosters.

At last night’s Live Draft the spotlight was firmly on the players, but when the Series begin this Sunday a key role will be played by one person – the Umpire.  In any sport, the officials usually remain unnoticed, but the umpire’s influence on the game is undoubted.  A good umpire can turn an average game into a crisp, pure and enjoyable game of baseball.  Consistency is key when it comes to baseball umpiring and only a good official can achieve it and set a game environment which pitchers, batters, runners and fielders can excel in.

The upcoming Kyle Hunlock Series is very fortunate to have one of the best umpires in Great Britain – Geoff Hare. 

Geoff is a true legend of Herts Baseball Club. He wore the Falcons number 10 jersey for over a decade, and before that played with the Hemel Red Sox.  Everybody connected with Herts Baseball Club knows Geoff.  He has become one of the most respected members of the club.  A magnificent short stop and a leadoff batter, a player who can hit for power and for average, Geoff has always been the first name in any Herts manager’s line-up. 

Three years ago, at the age of 52, Geoff decided to hang up his glove (way too early in the author’s opinion) and joined the British Umpires’ Association.   Like everything else which he does, Geoff would not accept anything less than 100% effort and dedication and this is exactly how Geoff took on the new challenge of being an umpire.  Over the years he has become one of the very best umpires in this country, umpiring the top games in the British National League and the GB National team, recognized and respected by every player who has ever been on the same field as him.

Yes, the players of the three teams in the Series will have the opportunity to work alongside a real pro, who manages to stay unbiased no matter what…having said this players would still be advised not to start analysing the secret to a well toasted bread or how amazing the band Queen is.