Following the spectacular Herts Little League Opening event, the League has be inundated with feedback from players, parents, and residents living in the Grovehill Ballpark area.  One of the Little League members even wrote a poem describing the event. 

On a sun-drenched afternoon, players and fans of baseball had gathered from all corners of Hertfordshire and beyond for the Opening Day of the inaugural season of the Herts Baseball Little League.   The Mayor of the Borough of Dacorum, Councillor Mrs. Carol Green, was the guest of honour who officially opened the 2008 season.  

Addressing the numerous fans, players, coaches and volunteers she said: “Hemel Hempstead has been the home base for baseball in Hertfordshire since the 1980s.  The club now has three adult teams competing in the British Baseball Leagues.  Now we come to the Herts Little League based here in Grovehill.  I understand that last year the club went out to 15 schools in the area and gave a taster session to nearly 1,000 children who learned about baseball.  I think it is wonderful to see what has come out of it here today“.   The Mayor also took the opportunity to congratulate all the fathers who were in attendance on the celebration of Father’s Day.  She concluded by saying:  “It is my pleasure and privilege to declare the Herts Baseball Little League open.   I wish you well and I encourage all your friends to come and join as well.  Good luck!” 

 

Just as American Presidents do every year on Opening Day, the Mayor threw out the ceremonial first pitch and she threw a fireball of a pitch.  Catching for her was Herts Falcons’ shortstop and resident of Dacorum Borough, Andy Cornish. 

Keeping with baseball tradition, the ceremony included the performance of God Save the Queen by 7 year-old Marianna Casal from Hemel Hempstead.  This was very fitting as Opening Day was also the Queen’s official birthday.

 

The spectacular opening ceremony had attracted the attention of residents living close to Grovehill Ballpark and with just minutes before the first league games commenced, players were still streaming down to Grovehill Ballpark applying to register for one of the four Little League teams for the 2008 season.

 

Everything was set for the baseball to begin.  The Herts Yankees got off to a great start of their 2008 campaign with a 10-9 come-from-behind win against the Herts Red Sox.  Yes, that’s right.   A Yankees versus Red Sox clash right here in Hertfordshire.  The Herts Cubs also won their opening game against the Herts Blue Jays, 7-2.   The Blue Jays find themselves bottom of the league after Day One, as they also lost their second game 10-9 to the Red Sox.  But they will hope to bounce straight back into the race for the title next Saturday.

The scene was set for a dramatic end to Day One with the current league leaders, the Yankees and the Cubs, clashing on Field Two.  The Yankees took an early 3-0 lead, but the Cubs came back strong to tie the game and take a 5-3 lead in the final inning.  The Yankees had the bases loaded in the bottom of that inning, but not even the loud chants of “Let’s go Yankees” from the grandstand could help them overcome the Herts Cubs’ late-inning heroics.

The league games continue next Saturday at 12:00pm when the Red Sox play the Cubs and the Yankees clash with the Blue Jays. 

It is not too late for boys and girls to register for the 2008 season.  To register visit www.HertsLittleLeague.com and fill in the online registration form.  Players are able to sign up even partway through the season. 

 

For more information about the event please contact Herts Baseball Club baseball@hertsbaseball.com

 

 

The team jerseys have been ironed, the grass has been mowed, the foul lines have been marked out, and the sunflower seeds are ready.  Yes folks, the long-awaited start of the Herts Baseball Little League is finally here.  This Saturday, 14 June 2008, Herts Baseball Club will make history with the opening of the inaugural season of the first ever Baseball Little League in Hertfordshire.

 

It will be officially unveiled by the Worshipful the Mayor of the Borough of Dacorum, Councillor Mrs. Carol Green, who will also throw out the ceremonial first pitch.  The opening ceremony will begin at 12:00pm and will include the performance of the National Anthem by a special guest.  On Opening Day, Herts Baseball Club will also make a special announcement  about a very exciting development for the club and for baseball in Hertfordshire.

 

After five weeks of intense spring training, boys and girls aged between 6 and 13 from in and around Hertfordshire will put on the Herts uniform and will begin the race for the title.  The Little League Joint-Commissioners, Marty Cullen and Lee Manning, have just confirmed the names of the four teams.  They are the Herts Red Sox, the Herts Yankees, the Herts Blue Jays and the Herts Cubs.  The names were chosen by the players themselves who took part in the voting process. 

 

Last Thursday, Major League Baseball held its 2008 Draft with hundreds of young prospects signing up with the 30 Major League teams.  The Herts Little League will have a similar Draft this week ahead of the opening games and each of the registered players will be assigned to one of the League teams.  Teams will be allowed to trade players during the course of the season as they look to gain an advantage over their opponents. 

 

Some of the youngest prospects will be playing in the T-Ball League, and those T-Ball players who progress well may receive a call-up to one of the four Little League teams for a chance to shine alongside the big boys and girls.

 

Each of the teams will play two games this Saturday.  The first set of games will start immediately after the Opening Ceremony.  This is a fantastic opportunity for fans of baseball to enjoy a snack at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead, watching the baseball stars of the future and maybe joining the other fans in singing “Take me Out to the Ball Game” in true baseball tradition.

 

League games will take place at Grovehill Ballpark almost every Saturday from now until August and the season will culminate with the selection of a Herts All-Star team to represent Hertfordshire at the British National Championship in September.

 

It is not too late for boys and girls to register for the 2008 season.  To register visit www.HertsLittleLeague.com and fill in the online registration form.  Players are able to sign up even partway through the season. 

 

For more information about the event please contact Herts Baseball Club baseball@hertsbaseball.com

There are just 2 weeks remaining before the 2008 Herts Little League Opening Day and the team uniforms have just been unveiled. 

All the league teams will have a home and away shirt.  Both of them have the famous Herts logo on the chest of the shirt, exactly the same as that on the jerseys of the Herts Raptors, Hawks and Raptors – the organisation’s adult teams.  The teams will need both the home and away shirts on every game day as they may be designated as the home team in the first game of the day and as the away team in the second game, or vice versa.  In keeping with tradition all uniform items carry one or more of the club colours – red, black and white.

The pants are produced by Majestic and bear the MLB logo on the back pocket.  Players will be able to choose from the pants with belt loops or the pull-up pants (elastic waistband with drawstrings).

The cap is the club’s brand new design carrying the letter H.  This will also be the new design for the adult teams who will also be able to get their hands on them as soon as they are delivered.  

The uniforms are being customized at present and will arrive in time for Opening Day on 14 June 2008.

 

On Saturday Herts Baseball Little League players returned to the baseball diamond after a long winter.  They are preparing for their first ever Baseball Little League in Hertfordshire which starts next month.

 

There was a very good turnout with many new players joining those who took part in last year’s Baseball Summer Camps.  They were put through an intensive session by the Little League coaches.  Many parents were in attendance giving their support and words of encouragement from the sidelines.  Some of the parents have had previous baseball experience and they generously agreed to join the other members of the Herts Baseball Little League coaching staff.

 

The session was meant to be 2 hours and 15 minutes long but with so many kids eager to play baseball the session had to be extended and at the end it lasted over 3 hours.

 

The players will be back next Saturday once again at 10am for the second pre-season session.  New players are very much welcome to join in at any time and make baseball history in Hertfordshire this season.

 

An army of kids will be heading to Grovehill Ballpark in Hertfordshire this Saturday for the start of spring training ahead of the inaugural season of the Herts Baseball Little League. 

 

Last year Herts Baseball Club with support from BSUK, staged nine baseball summer camps, which were attended by around 50 boys and girls.  They will be joined by many more players who have pre-registered online for the League over the winter months. 

 

The season is scheduled to commence on 14 June and all league games will be staged at the baseball complex in Hemel Hempstead.  But before this, the players will go through five weeks of intensive spring training.  The training sessions will be ran by baseball players from Herts Baseball Club’s three adult teams, as well as parents who have already shown interest in getting involved in a coaching or other capacity.

 

Herts Baseball Club Vice Presidents, Marty Cullen and Lee Manning, who set the foundations for this project in 2007 are looking forward to what promises to be an unmissable event for children in and around Hertfordshire. 

 

Manning said: “Little-by-little all the pieces are coming together and it is very exciting to see so much interest being generated.  It seems like Hertfordshire will be going baseball-crazy this summer and it is not too late to join.  Those who are interested to get involved should go on www.HertsLittleLeague.com and complete the pre-registration form.”  

 

Cullen added: “We were hoping to have three teams in the League’s first season, but it looks like we may be able to have more than three teams.  We didn’t expect such interest so early, but our club has the capacity to accommodate many more teams.  Last year we went out to around 20 schools located close to our ballpark.  This year we are expanding our coverage and thousands of promotional flyers will be going out to 50 schools over the next week or so.”

 

Apart from playing Herts Little League games this summer, players will have the opportunity to earn a place in the Herts All-Star Team.  The team will represent the Herts Baseball Little League in the British National Championships (known as the Final 4) where they will face the best baseball players from around the country.  The Herts All-Stars have been given a wild card entry and if they win their one-game playoff they will qualify for the prestigious Final 4 event. 

 

The Final 4 events attract a great amount of interest not only from fans but also from the coaching staff of the Great Britain National Teams.  Last month a member of the Herts Baseball Little League received a call-up to the Great Britain National Team, which is another indication that, with hard work and dedication, the boys and girls of the Herts Baseball Little League have the opportunity to progress to the highest levels of baseball.

 

For more details and information how to join please visit the official website of the Herts Baseball Little League www.HertsLittleLeague.com