Category: U12

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Walk-off homerun clinches U14 national semi-final place for Herts Cardinals. Herts U12s are also through.

There was a double celebration for Herts Baseball Club as its Under-14 and Under-12 teams secured a place in this Saturday’s National Baseball Championship (NBC) semi-final.

UNDER-14

Herts Cardinals 19 Brentwood Bucks 8 (click to view box scores)

Three teams went into the U14 Wild Card Playoff contest which was held at Grovehill Ballpark in Hertfordshire. The winner was to be decided in a round-robin tournament format. First up were the Herts Cardinals and the Brentwood Junior Bucks. Shane Richards started on the mound for Herts and he produced a solid performance pitching three no-hit innings and striking out 5. There was an initial period of pitcher and catcher trying to get into a rhythm and Brentwood took advantage of a number of walks. Going into the fourth inning Herts had a 10-6 lead helped by a 3-run home run by Shane Richards who went 4-for-4 with 5 RBI in the game.

Shane Richards reached his regulation pitch limit and he was relieved in the fourth inning by Mikey Sylvester who pitched excellent two innings allowing only 1 run on 1 hit and striking out 5. That enabled Herts to build a commanding lead and win the game 19-8. Sylvester’s pitching performance was matched by his batting as he went 3-for-3 which included a double, 4 runs and 2 stolen bases. Ben Hitch (2-3, RBI), Ryan Pocock (1-1, R) and Kento Sasaki (1-3, 2RBI) also had a good game at the plate.

Brentwood Bucks 24 Essex Redbacks 22 (click to view box scores)

The Essex Redbacks went into this Wild Card Playoff as the favourites. They had a comfortable 20-16 lead going into the final inning of the game. Brentwood needed an epic comeback and that’s exactly what they produced. They drove in 8 runs to turn the game on its head and go into the bottom of the final inning with a 4-run lead. Alfie Denwood (4-5, 4RBI), Matt Law (2-4, RBI) and Ethan Brown (3-3, RBI) stood out in the Bucks batting lineup.

The pressure was now on the Essex Redbacks to come from behind. Brentwood recorded two quick outs, but the Redbacks kept going. They scored two runs, but at the end it was not enough as a diving catch by Elliot Burke in centerfield ended the game with a 24-22 win for the Bucks.

Essex Redbacks 13 Herts Cardinals 14 (click to view box scores)

Herts Cardinals knew that a win in the final game against the Redbacks would secure a place in the National Championships Semi-Final for the first time since 2011. The Redbacks were not out of it. A win with a sufficient run-difference would be enough for them.

Kento Sasaki was Herts’ starting pitcher and he was on fire from the very first pitch recording 3 strikeouts in the first inning. Another two Redbacks struck-out in the second inning, but Sasaki seemed to be troubled by his arm. Manager Jake Caress decided to take him out of the game as a precaution. Theo Longboy took Sasaki’s place on the mound in the pressure-cooker situation of a deciding playoff game. The main problem for most of the teams was walking too many batters, but Theo Longboy remained composed all the way to the end of the game. She got into a pitching groove and even added gentle grunting to her pitching delivery, something which we would expect to hear on the tennis courts of Wimbledon or the US Open. It certainly worked. Perhaps it will become her trademark delivery.

Going into the final inning the Redbacks had a 13-10 lead. They struck out the first two Herts batters. Ryan Pocock singled and was driven home by Theo Longboy’s base-hit. With runners on first and second, up stepped Shane Richards to drive the ball deep down the right field line for a walk-off 3-run home run to the delight of the Herts fans. That was the second home run of the day for the Herts Cardinals.  Mikey Sylvester hit a 2-run bomb in the fourth inning.

They can now look forward to a semi-final clash against the reigning national champions and top seeds, the London Mets, this Saturday, 13 September at Farnham Park in Slough (see game schedule below).

UNDER-12

(photo by Vicky Sinclair)

The BBF has added the Under-12 division to the National Baseball Championships for the first tiem this year. LYBL, London Mets and London Sports have already booked their semi-final places. There was one last place available and the Herts All Stars and Brentwood Bucks met in a double-header to determine who will take it.

24 hours before these vital games, Herts received a blow with ace pitcher Aaron Witter out of the game due to illness. The rest of the team knuckled down and produced an excellent performance. They clinched a 12-5 win in the first game followed by a 13-6 win in the second. This sends them into the U12 Semi-Final where they will face the top seed, LYBL Bulldogs.

(photo by Vicky Sinclair)

NATIONAL BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS GAMES SCHEDULE

The outcome of the Wild Card Playoffs means that for the first time Herts will be represented in all three age divisions (U17, U14 and U12) of the National Youth Baseball Championships on Saturday, 13 September.

The semi-finals and finals in all three age groups will be played at Farnham Park in Slough over two days as follows:

Saturday, 13 September

Time

Division

Away

Home

Notes

10.00am

Under 17

Tornadoes/Redbacks

London Sports

U17 Wild card

1.00pm

Under 17

London Mets

Herts Harriers

U17 Semi-final 1

4.00pm

Under 17

Wildcard winner

LYBL Bulldogs

U17 Semi-final 2

10.30am

Under 14

London Sports

LYBL Bulldogs

U14 Semi-final 1

1.30pm

Under 14

Herts Cardinals

London Mets

U14 Semi-final 2

11.00am

Under 12

London Sports

London Mets

U12 Semi-final 1

2.00pm

Under 12

Herts All Stars

LYBL Bulldogs

U12 Semi-final 2

Sunday, 14 September

Time

Division

Away

Home

Notes

10.00am

Under 17

Loser SF (lower seed)

Loser SF (higher seed)

U17 3rd/4th Game

1.00pm

Under 17

Winner SF (lower seed)

Winner SF (higher seed)

U17 YNBC Final

10.30am

Under 14

Loser SF (lower seed)

Loser SF (higher seed)

U14 3rd/4th Game

1.30pm

Under 14

Winner SF (lower seed)

Winner SF (higher seed)

U17 YNBC Final

11.00am

Under 12

Loser SF (lower seed)

Loser SF (higher seed)

U12 3rd/4th Game

2.00pm

Under 12

Winner SF (lower seed)

Winner SF (higher seed)

U12 YNBC Final

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

British Baseball’s 2014 Youth Playoffs coming to Hemel Hempstead this Saturday

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Britain’s youth baseball teams are about to enter the most exciting part of the season as they battle for the national title.

UNDER-14 PLAYOFFS

London Mets, LYBL Bulldogs and London Sports have already booked their semi-final places in the Under-14 Division based on being the top three seeded teams. Brentwood Junior Bucks, Essex Redbacks and the Herts Cardinals will battle it out this Saturday, September 6, to determine who will take the last available ticket to the Under-14 semi-finals. They will play in a round-robin format with the winner progressing to the semi-final where they will face the top seed, London Mets. These Wild Card Playoff games will be played at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead (click for venue details).

10.30am, Herts Cardinals @ Brentwood Jnr Bucks

1.00pm Brentwood Jnr Bucks @ Essex Redbacks

3.30pm Essex Redbacks @ Herts Cardinals

UNDER-12 PLAYOFFS

In recent years the British Baseball Federation has staged a National Championship only for the Under-17 and Under-14 divisions. This year they have added the Under-12 division. Similar to the Under-14s, the top three seeds LYBL, London Mets and London Sport have been given a place in the semi-finals. The fourth semi-finalist will be either Herts or Brentwood. They will go head-to-head this Saturday again at Grovehill Ballpark. The two teams have never met before so they will not know what to expect. The winner will be determined over a two-game series.  The prize for that team will be a semi-final against the top seed, LYBL Bulldogs.

11.00am, Brentwood Jnr Bucks @ Herts All Stars

1.30pm, Herts All Stars @ Brentwood Jnr Bucks

FOOD, DRINKS AND MORE

Admission to the Under-14 and Under-12 Wild Card Playoffs is free and fans and families can enjoy the baseball action with traditional baseball snacks which will be on offer including hot dogs, Krispy Kreme donuts, Big League Chew and other snacks and drinks. Baseball gloves, bats, bags, and other merchandise will also be on offer at the retail outlets at Grovehill Ballpark.

UNDER-17

The Herts Harriers have booked their place in the Under-17 National Championship Semi-Final on the basis of being the 2013 runner-up. They will face the London Mets on 13 September at Farnham Park in a repeat of the 2013 semi-final.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Grovehill Ballpark to host U14 and U12 Wild Card National Championship Playoffs

The Herts U12 team is preparing for its first ever appearance in the national championship playoffs

With all four Herts adult league teams missing out on the playoffs, the hopes of Herts baseball fans now rest on the club’s three youth teams which are preparing for the playoffs in the under-17, under-14 and under-12 leagues.

The British Baseball Federation has just announced that the Herts Harriers have been awarded a place in the Under-17 national semi-finals automatically as the second seed. In a repeat of last-year’s semi-final, they will face the London Mets who are the third seed.

The path to the final is a lot more difficult for the Herts Cardinals in the Under-14 who will have to go through a 3-team Wild Card Playoff facing the Brentwood Bucks and Essex Redbacks. The Herts Under-12 team will also have to go through the Wild Card Playoff where they will face the Under-12 team of the Brentwood Bucks. The BBF has selected Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead as the venue to host these games on 6 September. The winner of these Wild Card playoffs will progress through to the National Semi-Final where they will face the top seeds in the respective age groups.

Boys and girls from around the region are still contacting the club and signing up to play in these exciting games to determine the national baseball champions, so it is not too late to get involved.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

2014 Herts Futures Tournament details announced

Herts Baseball Club has announced that the 2014 Herts Futures Tournament will take place on Saturday, 20 September 2014.

The Herts Futures Tournament (HFT) has been held every year since 2008 and is now a permanent fixture in the British baseball calendar. Last year was a record year for the HFT with 15 teams entering the competition, which makes it the largest youth baseball event in the United Kingdom. Herts Baseball Club Board Member, Aspi Dimitrov, said: “It will be interesting to see how many teams will enter this year. If the number continues to increase we will have to consider ways of expanding the venue as last year we were close to reaching the venue’s capacity.”

The event brings together youth teams of all 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 last few years the venue has been selected to host some of the biggest events in the British baseball calendar including the National Baseball Championships. During the Herts Futures Tournament additional diamonds are added to cater for all the age groups.

In addition to inviting Under-17, Under-14 and Under-12 teams, this year the organisers are exploring the option to add an Under-10 division.

For more information about the event or if you require details about how teams can enter the Tournament or how players can join the Herts teams in time for the HFT, visit the Herts Futures Tournament homepage or contact Herts Baseball Club.

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts U12 wow with triple play and doubleheader win

Herts runner is about to hop over a ground ball as he heads to third in game one versus the Redbacks (photo by Vicky Sinclair)

Mike Wakelam reporting from Forest Glade Field

Saturday saw the Herts U12 squad head to Essex for a double header against the Redbacks for the first time this season. As this was the last game day before a holiday break, the Herts team was itching to go out on a high.

In the first game, they came out swinging, with 5 runs in each of the first and second innings, from a infield hits and aggressive base running. Aaron Witter took the mound for Herts and shut down the Redbacks in the first inning, before a walk came round to score in the second. A second runner trying to steal third was thrown out by Lucas Lebrato, with Oliver Durer applying the tag. Essex tightened things up and allowed fewer base runners for the remainder of the game, but aggressive Herts base-running ended in 16 runs through five. Essex threatened in the fourth with bases loaded and no outs. A fly ball to shallow right was caught by James Dullea, but with runners leaving early, he fired to second for the second out and over to third to complete a triple play – the whole team erupted with excitement.

Aaron Witter didn’t allow a hit through 4 innings, striking out many with heat, but issuing a few walks saw his pitch count climb and so Josh Jones came in to close it out. Essex scored a few runs in the inning before Josh settled down and got the final out to seal the 16-7 victory for Herts. In all, it was a thrilling game and having the pass ball and stealing rule in effect, combined with a close backstop, saw some thrilling plays, including close plays at the plate.

The second game was a much tighter affair, with Essex taking a 3-1 lead in the first, then Herts coming back with 3 in the second. Essex tied it up in the bottom of the inning with one run, but James Dullea’s composure saw him shut down their offence for the rest of the game. James was pounding the strike zone, and the defence was backing him up. Infielders were catching pop-ups, outfielders firing balls back into the cut-offs to limit damage and Christian Lynch was hustling after balls to keep runners at third. Herts scored 2 runs in each of the final 2 innings to take an 8-4 lead, but with James Dullea’s pitch count getting up, the team decided to bring back Josh Jones for the final inning. As he was warming up, Essex advised that he’d throw one too many pitches in the previous game to be used in this game, so James came back on with 10 pitches remaining to try to close it out. He got the first out on the second pitch with a popup to Nicholas Durer at second. After the next batter reached base, James continued to throw strikes, getting a ground ball to third which Oliver Durer got over to first in time for the second out. Having reached his pitch count, Lucas Lebrato came in to close it out. With bases loaded and the tying run at the plate, Lucas struck out the final batter to end the game and complete a double victory in our first trip to Essex this season.

Pitching and Defence wins games. What stood out in my memory after getting home on Saturday, is that I don’t think there was one errant throw or play in the field all day by our under 12s. There were a couple of throws that didn’t make it in time, but no one threw the ball unnecessarily, and no one missed a ball that they could reach. The pitching from everyone was outstanding and everyone was swinging the bats. Two well earned victories to head to the break with. Well done.

 

by Herts Baseball News Editor

Box scores: Herts All Stars 3 London Mets 14 – UK Little League Championship U12


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London Mets U12 at Herts All Stars U12
Score By Innings 1 2 3 4 5 R H E
London Mets U12 0 0 4 5 5 14 14 2
Herts All Stars U12 2 1 0 0 0 3 6 4
London Mets U12 14, Herts All Stars U12 3
London Mets U12 Herts All Stars U12
ab r h bi ab r h bi
V Player 1 p 1 3 1 1 Cal McCreavy 1b-2b 2 0 1 1
V Player 2 c 3 2 1 0 Lucas Lebrato c 3 1 1 0
V Player 3 1b 4 3 3 4 Aaron Witter p-1b 2 1 2 1
V Player 4 2b 4 2 3 1 Oliver Durer ss 2 0 0 0
V Player 5 3b 3 1 1 2 Christian Lynch 3b 1 0 0 0
V Player 6 ss 4 0 2 3 Ben Jupp 2b-xf4 2 0 0 0
V Player 7 lf 3 0 1 0 James Dullea cf 2 0 0 0
V Player 8 cf 3 0 1 1 Josh Jones rf-xh5 2 1 2 0
V Player 9 rf 2 3 1 0 Nicholas Durer lf-xh5 1 0 0 0
Alex Trautman rf-p 2 0 0 0
Jonathan Wakelam rf-xh2 2 0 0 0
Rene Aschmann rf-lf-xh3 1 0 0 0
TEAM TOTALS 27 14 14 12 TEAM TOTALS 22 3 6 2
E: V Player 1, V Player 4, Aaron Witter(2), Oliver Durer, Nicholas Durer. DP: London Mets U12 1. LOB: Herts All Stars U12 8, London Mets U12 8. 2B: V Player 5, V Player 9, Aaron Witter. 3B: V Player 3, Lucas Lebrato. HR: V Player 1.
London Mets U12 IP H R ER BB SO
V Player 1 W 5.00 6 3 2 2 12
Herts All Stars U12            
Aaron Witter L 3.33 2 4 4 5 9
Alex Trautman 0.33 12 10 4 1 1
HBP: by V Player 1 (Rene Aschmann). . . , by V Player 1 (Cal McCreavy). T: 2:08. A: 120.
London Mets U12 – Top of the 1st: V Player 1 walked. V Player 2 struck out swinging. V Player 3 flied out. V Player 4 struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Herts All Stars U12 – Bottom of the 1st: Cal McCreavy struck out swinging. Lucas Lebrato tripled, batted forward to home. Aaron Witter doubled, advanced to home on error, 1 RBI. Oliver Durer reached on error, batted forward to 2nd. Christian Lynch walked. Ben Jupp struck out swinging. James Dullea struck out swinging. 2 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
London Mets U12 – Top of the 2nd: V Player 5 walked. V Player 6 struck out swinging. V Player 7 struck out swinging. V Player 8 struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Herts All Stars U12 – Bottom of the 2nd: Josh Jones singled, batted forward to home. Nicholas Durer walked, batted forward to 3rd. Alex Trautman struck out swinging. Jonathan Wakelam struck out swinging. Rene Aschmann hit by pitch, batted forward to 2nd. Cal McCreavy singled, 1 RBI. Lucas Lebrato struck out swinging. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 3 LOB.
London Mets U12 – Top of the 3rd: V Player 9 walked, batted forward to home. V Player 1 walked, batted forward to home. V Player 2 walked, batted forward to home. V Player 3 tripled, batted forward to home, 3 RBI. V Player 4 singled, 1 RBI. V Player 5 struck out swinging. V Player 6 struck out swinging. V Player 7 struck out swinging. 4 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Herts All Stars U12 – Bottom of the 3rd: Aaron Witter singled. Oliver Durer struck out swinging. Christian Lynch struck out swinging. Ben Jupp grounded out. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
London Mets U12 – Top of the 4th: V Player 8 struck out swinging. V Player 9 doubled, advanced to 3rd on error, batted forward to home. V Player 1 walked, batted forward to 3rd, advanced to home on error. V Player 2 struck out swinging. V Player 3 singled, batted forward to 2nd, advanced to 3rd on error, batted forward to home, 1 RBI. V Player 4 singled, advanced to 2nd on error, batted forward to home. V Player 5 reached on error, batted forward to home. V Player 6 singled, batted forward to 3rd, 2 RBI. V Player 7 singled, batted forward to 2nd. V Player 8 singled, 1 RBI. 5 runs, 6 hits, 2 errors, 3 LOB.
Herts All Stars U12 – Bottom of the 4th: James Dullea struck out swinging. Josh Jones singled, advanced to 2nd on error, tagged out going to 3rd. Nicholas Durer reached on error. Alex Trautman hit into double play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.
London Mets U12 – Top of the 5th: V Player 9 reached on error, advanced to 2nd on error, advanced to home on error. V Player 1 hit solo inside park home run, 1 RBI. V Player 2 singled, batted forward to home. V Player 3 singled, batted forward to home. V Player 4 singled, batted forward to home. V Player 5 doubled, batted forward to 3rd, 2 RBI. V Player 6 singled, 1 RBI. 5 runs, 6 hits, 2 errors, 2 LOB.
Herts All Stars U12 – Bottom of the 5th: Jonathan Wakelam struck out swinging. Rene Aschmann struck out swinging. Cal McCreavy hit by pitch. Lucas Lebrato struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
by Herts Baseball News Editor

Herts U12s heading for Farnham Park as part of a big weekend of baseball

View of Farnham Park from the skies (photo by BSUK)

The baseball weekend begins at Farnham Park as a Herts under 12 All Star team is unleashed on the national scene for the first time in the careers of that age group. They will be competing in the under 12 bracket of the Little League UK Championship and will face the London Mets first up at 12:30pm. Depending on the outcome of that first game they will battle through the tournament tree shown below:

Saturday, 14 June
10:00 London Sports vs Essex Redbacks (Game 1)
12:30 Herts vs London Mets (Game 2)
15:00 Loser Gm 1 vs Loser Gm 2 (Game 3)

Sunday, 15 June
10:00 LYBL vs Winner of Game 1 (Game 4)
12:30 Winner Game 3 vs Winner Game 2 (Game 5)
15:00 Winner Game 4 vs Winner Game 5

The tournament will be held at Farnham Park and will be hosted by BSUK and BBF.

Herts will also be represented in the U17 Little League UK Championship as an All Star team representing all U17 teams from the South of England go head-to-head with an All Star team representing the Midlands and the North. The U17 UK Champions will be decided in a best-of-3 series over the weekend. The winner will progress through to the European qualifying stage which will be held in Italy next month, for a chance to reach the Little League World Series in August.

At the same time at Grovehill Ballpark in Hemel Hempstead the Herts Ravens have an U17 League doubleheader versus the Forest Glade Redbacks. First pitch is at 12pm. Food and drinks will be on offer throughout the day.

Baseball and pretty much everything else in the UK will stop on Saturday night as the England football team plays its first World Cup 2014 game against Italy.

The baseball action continues on Sunday at Grovehill Ballpark with two games from the British adult leagues. In the Double-A League the Herts Hawks will be looking to put their season back on track with a win against the Bracknell Inferno, while the Herts Raptors will be looking for their first win of the season in their Single-A League encounter with Tonbridge. Both games start at 12pm.