Category: Youth Leagues

10 November 202217 November 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts publishes AGM details

AGM NOTICE

In accordance with the Club’s Constitution, this is a notice of the upcoming 26th Annual General Meeting of Herts Baseball Club. The AGM will take place as follows:

DATE
Sunday, 27 November 2022

TIME
10:30am (AGM expected to end at around 12:30pm-1:00pm)

VENUE
This year’s AGM will be held online via Zoom. Club members will receive an email with details how to join the Zoom call.

JUNIOR MEMBERS
Under the Club’s Constitution, members under the age of 14 on 31 December 2022 are classified as Junior Members and do not have voting rights at General Meetings. Regardless of this, if you are under the age of 14, you and your parents are very much invited to attend the AGM, especially as so many of the parents of our youth members are involved as players, coaches, volunteers and members of staff.

POTENTIAL NEW MEMBERS
Although only 2022 club members have the right to vote at this AGM, the meeting is very much open to potential new members who are considering joining the club in 2023. This is a good opportunity for new players, volunteers and members of staff to learn more about the club and meet its members. If you fall into this category and wish to attend the AGM, please contact the club.

OBSERVERS
The meeting is also open to observers who are not members of the Club. If you fall into this category and wish to attend the AGM please contact the club.

AGM PACK
Ahead of the meeting, the AGM Information Pack will be sent out to 2022 members. It will include information such as the AGM agenda, 2022 annual report, election details and more.

ELECTION OF 2023 BOARD MEMBERS
In accordance with the Constitution, a number of Board positions will be up for election at the upcoming AGM either as part of the annual retirement of a third of the Board positions or because they are vacant.

The club is now inviting nominations for the following board positions:
BOARD POSITIONS (appointment term in brackets)

President (term ends 31.10.2025)
Secretary (term ends 31.10.2025)
Facilities Manager – Grovehill (term ends 31.10.2025)
Manager (NBL)² Falcons (term ends 31.10.2025)
Manager (Triple-A)² Cardinals (term ends 31.10.2024)
Manager (Single-A)² Hawks (term ends 31.10.2025)
Manager (Single-A)² Raptors (term ends 31.10.2023)
Manager (Single-A)² Londoners (term ends 31.10.2024)
Manager (Single-A)² Eagles (term ends 31.10.2025)
Head of U15-Hemel (term ends 31.10.2024)
Head of U13-Hemel (term ends 31.10.2023)
Head of U11-Hemel (term ends 31.10.2025)
Head of U15-London (term ends 31.10.2024)
Head of U13-London (term ends 31.10.2024)
Head of Softball (term ends 31.10.2023)

Notes:

² The leagues which Herts teams will enter in 2023 will not be known until after the AGM. The Club may also decide to add or remove teams from the BBF leagues depending on the number of players registering for 2023. If the club enters fewer teams than expected, one or more of these board positions may be removed after the AGM.

Current Board members are eligible to stand for re-election. All members are invited to consider any of the Board positions and put their names forward for one or several of them.

Being a board Member is an excellent opportunity to be involved in shaping the future of Herts Baseball Club. If you are considering applying for any of the positions, but are unsure about it, you can get in touch with current or past board members who can give you more information about what the role involves and what to expect, if elected. If you require more information about any of the above board positions please contact the club.

HOW TO CONFIRM YOUR CANDIDACY
If you decide to run for any of these board positions please confirm your candidacy by posting a message in the Herts Baseball Online Forum. If you have difficulties accessing the forum with your username and password please contact the club.

NOMINATION PROCESS
Nominations require two votes – nomination and second. Nominations of Board members can be received at any time, including during the AGM. Nominations can only be accepted from persons eligible to vote at the AGM. To nominate or to second a candidate, post in the Herts Baseball online Forum.

BOARD AND STAFF MEMBER REBATE
Ahead of the Board elections, a reminder that, in consideration of the time and effort which Board members give in performing their Board roles and which effectively means that they are unable to enjoy the full benefit of their membership, they will be entitled to a membership fee rebate. The Board reviews the rebate system from time to time. Here is an example of how it is likely to be applied during the upcoming season:

members of the Board are expected to be entitled to a rebate of around 50% or more of the respective membership fee payable by them during the year.
if one Board role is held by two or more individuals, such individuals can share the rebate between them as the burden of performing the role is shared between them.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
In accordance with article 14.3 of the Club’s Constitution “Additions to, or alterations of the constitution shall be submitted to the Secretary not less than 10 (ten) days before the date of the meeting. No resolution involving an amendment to the constitution may be proposed or amended from the floor of a meeting.” If any members wish to propose a constitutional amendment please send it by contacting the club by 23:59 on 17 November 2022, at the latest. You can find a copy of the Constitution on the club’s website (click to view).

7 November 20227 November 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

2022 MVP vote results are in

The Most Valuable Players (MVP) of the thirteen Herts adult and youth teams have been announced. The players of each team voted to determine their team’s MVP so the results reflect who the players consider to have been the most influential members this year.

The Cardinals voted for Tyler Cote (pictured above) who proved to be one of the team’s most effective pitchers picking up 3 wins, one of which included an outing where he went five innings without allowing a hit. He led the pitching staff with 29 strikeouts. He also put up good offensive numbers including 2 home runs.

From the five Herts teams in the BBF adult leagues, the Herts Hawks had the best regular season record reaching the playoff semi-final and Harry McMenamin was one of the driving forces behind that success. With a .594 batting average and .844 slugging average he was among the top three batters in the team. But his contribution was in all aspects of the game including an ERA of 2.00* on the mound and one of the team’s most reliable gloves in the infield (Fielding % .967). This is only McMenamin’s second season in the BBF leagues and he has now been voted MVP in both. Last year he was the Herts Raptors MVP. What will he do in 2023?

The Londoners also qualified for the postseason and there were a number of strong candidates for MVP, but it was first baseman Kenny Liao who led the team in so many different statistical categories including batting average (.646) and RBI (37). Whenever he stepped up to the plate there was the confidence that Kenny Liao will get on base and drive runs home. Pitcher and infielder Nic Goetz was a close second in the MVP vote.

Last year the Eagles were the club’s best performing team but they were missing some key players in big games which certainly cost them a number of wins this year. However, there is real excitement about the prospect of seeing 17-year-old pitcher Alex Trautman develop over the next few years. He was chosen as the MVP. He had the most wins and his 7.88 ERA came second behind Mike Wakelam’s 6.30. Trautman recorded 32 strikeouts – a phenomenal rate of 2 strikeouts per inning. He is now also starting to put up high offence numbers.

The Raptors voted John Kjorstad as their MVP. He led the team in RBIs, home runs (3) and slugging average 1.000 and came second in batting average (.481) behind Thomas Browne (.556). It was Kjorstad’s two home runs and 7 RBI in the Raptors’ win against the Eagles that helped the team end a 21-game losing streak.

Kjorstad’s performance on that day was also nominated for Play of the Year and it received the most votes in that category coming ahead of Zak Beller’s Grand Slam in the deciding game versus the Mustangs and the Eagles comeback from 1-9 to win 12-11 against the Londoners.

The Herts youth team coaches had the difficult task of breaking a number of ties in the MVP voting for the eight Herts teams. The MVPs were:

Ben Peters, Herts U15
Chi Laam Wong, Herts U13
Kieran Mucklow, Herts Falcons U11
Emmett Rose, Herts Hawks U11
Joseph Kjorstad, Herts Raptors U11
Violet Jones, Herts Cardinals U11
Dimitri Petromarkov, Herts Eagles U11
Isabel Jones, Herts Londoners U11

Surprisingly, there were only two nominations for Nob-Out. Londoners Eddie Wang was nominated after calling time halting their away game in Guildford to walk over to the opponents’ dugout to claim the game ball which he hit over the fence for his first home run of the season a minute earlier. But it was Aspi Dimitrov who received the most votes. On the final weekend of their regular season, the Herts Londoners won two hard-fought games against Herts Eagles to ensure that London Mustangs are not able to overtake them in the Playoff race thanks to a better head-to-head record in a 2-way tie, only for Aspi Dimitrov to put the celebrations on hold when he informed the team several hours after the win that there is a peculiar scenario where other games could produce a 3-way tie which would bizarrely take Mustangs above Londoners. Celebratory social media posts had to be amended or put on hold over the course of that nail-biting week.

With 2022 award-winners confirmed, attention is already turning to preparations for the 2023 season. What will the new year bring? How many Herts teams will we see and which leagues will they play in? Which players will be challenging to move up the leagues and will a Herts team bring a national championship trophy home.

New players who are hoping to play in 2023 or would like to try baseball to help them decide, should contact the club so they stay updated about 2023 Spring Training.

* – based on the games that we have stats for.

6 October 20227 October 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Kids from around the UK enjoy October baseball in Hemel Hempstead

The Herts Falcons won the U15 division of the Herts Futures Tournament and the Herts Hawks won the U11 bracket but all the teams played their part in making this another successful edition of this competition.

The number of teams who entered the tournament was considerably lower than previous years but it is in the context of the BBF national youth baseball championships being cancelled a week earlier due to lack of teams so this is positive news that teams from Essex, Hertfordshire, London, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire came to play.

This was the first time that the Herts Futures Tournament is played in October but the weather conditions were ideal for baseball.

The day started with the traditional opening ceremony introducing the teams and umpires. With Great Britain U18 Head Coach, Jonathan Rodriguez, being present, this was a perfect opportunity for the players and fans to mark what has been a very successful year for the GB U12, U15, U18, GB Women’s team and of course for the GB senior team who made history by qualifying for the 2023 World Baseball Classic just a few weeks earlier.

The playing of the national anthem was followed by players and fans chanting “Let’s go GB”.

The first U15 game of the day was closely fought between the Herts Falcons and Essex Redbacks. The Falcons came out on top but by the narrowest of margins winning 4-3. Redbacks put on another great performance in their second game of the day against the Northants Centurions but were once again edged out, this time 2-3.

This set up a clash between the Falcons and the Centurions for the U15 title. The Falcons came out on top.

WATCH: Highlights of Herts Falcons U15 vs Essex Redbacks U15

WATCH: Highlights of Herts Falcons U15 vs Northants Centurions U15

In the U11 division, the Herts Londoners put up a good fight against the Nottingham Rebels and Herts Hawks but were on the losing side in both games. That set up a dramatic match-up between the Hawks and Rebels. The hometown team seemed to be in control but a grand slam by the Rebels in the penultimate inning tied the game.

There was little room for error in the bottom of the final inning. The Hawks managed to drive the winning run across the plate to win an edge-of-the-seat encounter.

Since its creation in 2008, the Herts Futures Tournament has been a great day for the youth baseball community to get together at the end of the year. The club was delighted to see so many players, parents and coaches come along to enjoy it once again.

Our full photo album from the day can be seen on our Flickr page – please feel free to find yourself!

View the HFT scoreboard and final standings.

photos by Rob Jones

28 September 202228 September 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

WATCH: Highlights of 2022 Herts Youth Baseball League U15 Final – Herts Falcons U15 vs Herts Hawks U15

27 September 202227 September 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts Futures Tournament this Saturday.

7 teams will be in action at the 2022 Herts Futures Tournament (HFT) which will take place this Saturday, 1 October 2022. The number is considerably lower then in previous years but it is in the context of the BBF national youth baseball championships being cancelled last week due to lack of teams so this is positive news and an opportunity to end the 2022 youth baseball season on a high.

U15 Division

Essex Redbacks (U15)
Herts Falcons (U15)
Northants Centurions (U15)

U11 Division

Essex Redbacks (U11)
Herts Hawks (U11)
Herts Londoners (U11)
Nottingham Rebels (U11)

The opening ceremony will take place at 10:45am. The first games begin at 11:15am and games will be played right up to around 3:30pm.

To view the games schedule click here.

“Herts Baseball Club welcomes new players at any time of the year” said the club’s co-Director of Youth Baseball, Aspi Dimitrov. “Any children aged between 6 and 14 who are interested to give baseball a try should contact the club. It is not too late to play in these games, regardless of whether you are a complete beginner or an advanced player.”

The HFT was first held in 2008 and is now a permanent fixture in the British baseball calendar. It brings together youth teams from across the country for a day of baseball at one of the best baseball venues in the United Kingdom.

For more information about the event visit the Herts Futures Tournament homepage.

26 September 202228 September 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Falcons U15 and Cardinals U11 are the 2022 Herts Youth League champions.

The Herts Youth Baseball League Finals had everything – drama, home runs, walk-off, web gems, comebacks, pitching duels, and most importantly lots of smiles on the faces of players, parents and fans.

These were the first youth league games since the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the teams and fans held a minute of applause to express their gratitude and respect, which was followed by the playing of the national anthem.

A large number of fans came out to enjoy this occasion and they were not disappointed as the boys and girls put on a show.

First up were the Herts Cardinals and Herts Falcons in the U11 final. Both teams dominated in the regular season with records of 8-3 and 7-3, respectively. The Cardinals took an early lead and in the first three innings it looked like they would cruise to victory but in the fourth the Falcons U11 struck back with four runs to reduce the deficit to 8-4. This included a home run by debutant Flynn Dunn.

Cardinals U11 responded immediately in the bottom of the inning to extend their lead to 13-4 and their defence shut the Falcons down in the final inning to clinch the Herts U11 championship.

.@HertsCardinals are the 2022 Herts U11 League Champions pic.twitter.com/t6SfLOgYQ8
— Herts Baseball Club (@HertsBaseball) September 24, 2022

In the U15 Final, we saw a proper pitchers’ duel. Ben Peters started on the mound for the Falcons U15 and Chi Laam Wong for the Hawks U15. The Falcons put up one run in the first and one in the fourth but every other inning had a zero on the scoreboard until the fifth inning when the Hawks hit back – Sammy Assael-Francis with the head-first slide beating the tag at home to tie the game at 2-2.

Relief pitchers Kobby Kofuor Darteh and Yaroslav Yefimov continued the dominance which we saw from the starting pitchers and no runs were scored in the next inning.

This final had to be decided in extra innings. The rule putting runners on second base was in force. With one out, the Hawks advanced that runner to third base and put a second runner on first base, but an outstanding double play by the Falcons defence ended the threat and the inning.

It was time for a hero to emerge and that hero was 11-year-old Violet Jones. With runner on third base and one out, she drove the ball up the middle to bring the winning run home prompting wild celebrations to end the 2022 Herts Youth League season on.

Next up is the season-ending Herts Futures Tournament on Saturday, 1 October, at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead. New players can still register in time to play at this event.

15 September 202215 September 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts youth baseball league U15,U13 and U11 finals moved to 24 September

Herts Baseball Club received the news that only one other baseball club is likely to enter teams in the BBF national youth baseball championships which were expected to be played on 24-25 September. In view of the difficulties which this presents, Herts has decided not to enter its teams in the various age divisions of the tournament.

In place of that event, the club has now moved the finals of the Herts U15, U13 and U11 leagues to Saturday, 24 September. All games will be played at the newly upgraded Basing Hill Ballpark in London.

In the U15/U13 division, the Herts Falcons and the Herts Hawks find themselves tied in the standings and they will meet in the final at 12:15pm to determine the champion.

HYBL U11 Standings

Pos	Team	W	L	Pct	GB	RS	RA	Diff	Strk	Next Game
1	Mets U11	4	0	1.000	0	48	11	37	W4	-
2	Raptors U11	1	1	0.500	2	29	32	-3	T1	-
2	Falcons U11	3	3	0.500	2	69	75	-6	W1	-
4	Londoners U11	5	6	0.455	2.5	54	71	-17	L2	-
5	Cardinals U11	2	3	0.400	2.5	24	26	-2	W1	-
6	LYBL U11	0	1	0.000	2.5	5	7	-2	L1	-

In the U11 division the final will be contested between the Herts Cardinals (8-3) and Herts Falcons (7-3) who are in first and second place in the standings, respectively. The winner will become the U11 champion. The game will start at 10:30.

British youth baseball teams have started entering the 2022 Herts Futures Tournament

In the following week, the Herts U15, U13 and U11 teams will be joined by teams from around the United Kingdom to play in the 2022 Herts Futures Tournament. All the games will be played at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead on Saturday, 1 October.

30 August 202230 August 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

British youth baseball teams have started entering the 2022 Herts Futures Tournament

Herts Baseball Club has confirmed that the 2022 Herts Futures Tournament will take place on Saturday, October 1st.

The Herts Futures Tournament (HFT) was first held in 2008 and is now a permanent fixture in the British baseball calendar. The number of teams entering the tournament has been going up. The highest number of entries which we have managed to accommodate in previous years has been 21 teams. It will be interesting to see how many teams will enter this year. If the number continues to increase the club will have to consider ways of expanding the venue further.

The event brings together youth teams of various age groups from across the country for a day of baseball at one of the best baseball venues in the UK. Grovehill Ballpark is the home of Herts Baseball Club. Over the years the venue has been selected to host some of the biggest events in the British baseball calendar including the National Baseball Championships and Great Britain National Team events.

During the Herts Futures Tournament additional diamonds are added to cater for the different age groups.

This year’s edition is expected to cover the Under-15, Under-13 and Under-11 age groups.

For more information about the event, how to enter your team in the Tournament or how players can join the Herts teams to play in the HFT, visit the Herts Futures Tournament homepage or contact us.

17 August 202217 August 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts youth teams gear up for the National Baseball Championships. Badenhorst and Barrett to manage the U19s.

Herts is preparing to enter teams in all age divisions of the of the 2022 National Youth Baseball Championships – U19, U15, U13 and U11. The event is expected to take place on 24 and 25 September.

New players are continuing to register to play for the Herts teams in these games which will give them the opportunity to represent the club and compete with teams from around the UK for the national title.

The majority of these players are playing baseball for the first time in their lives this year so it will be interesting to see how they will respond to the challenge.

The club has also confirmed that Duane Badenhorst and Colin Barrett (pictured above) will be the joint managers of the Herts U19 team. Both bring a wealth of baseball experience having played and coached in South Africa and Great Britain, including at international level with the South Africa U12 National Team, South Africa Men’s Softball Team and, currently, the Great Britain Men’s Softball Team.

*Duane Badenhorst (centre) with the Herts U17 team in the Youth NBC*

Six members of the Badenhorst and Barrett families have worn the Herts jersey over the years and fans of the club will be delighted to see them back.

For more details about joining the Herts youth baseball teams for the upcoming national youth baseball championships contact us.

25 May 202225 May 2022 by Herts Baseball News Editor

Coach Monte Brooks is coming back to the UK to work with Herts players

In June 2019 the head coach of The Master’s University baseball team, Monte Brooks, was a special guest of Herts Baseball Club and Herts players had the unique opportunity of being coached by him.

He will be coming back to the UK and he will once again be working with the Herts adult and youth teams at the club’s two branches in Hemel Hempstead and in London. The two events which he will be taking part in are:

6pm, Wednesday, 1 June, Grovehill Ballpark, Hemel Hempstead
6pm, Thursday, 2 June, Basing Hill Ballpark, London

Brooks has just completed his 26th season as head coach of The Master’s University baseball team in the USA. He is the program’s all-time leader in wins with a record of 790-535. He has led the Mustangs to four NAIA World Series appearances (2000, 2013, 2016, 2017) and three regular-season GSAC titles.

As a player, Brooks was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 1987 with whom he spent four seasons in the minor leagues and later coached in the Padres organisation before his appointment with Master’s University.

Players who have developed through The Master’s University have gone on to be drafted by MLB clubs. One of them is Conner Menez (pictured above) who was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 14th round of the 2016 MLB Draft. Shortly after Coach Brooks’ visit to London in 2019, Menez made his MLB debut for the Giants where he played until last year. This season he was signed by the Chicago Cubs and with rumours going around that the 2023 MLB London Series will feature the Chicago Cubs and the St Louis Cardinals, Herts fans may have the opportunity to see Menez in action at the London Stadium.

Coach Brooks’ area of expertise is working with hitters and infielders so his visit to the club is a fantastic opportunity for players from the various Herts teams.

The sessions are open to all current Herts members as well as new players who are considering joining the club. If you are not a current club member and wish to take part in one of these sessions, please contact us.