It's time for my final prediction. Due to bad Oregon weather and six teams fleeing the state during spring break, I've only seen three teams - Marist and Sheldon once each, and North Eugene twice. I'm not changing my groupings of teams, but I'm changing the final order a little bit.
Top three group alpha order: Marist, North Eugene, Thurston - throw a blanket over them. It's a three way race to the title for these teams. But here is how they will finish (hopefully, blogs are editable in two months).
1. Marist: Marist bats are hot early. Offense: I saw the Spartans in a losing cause against North Medford. The Spartans were hitting the ball hard and on the button, but right to people. I left between games to dry off my camera and didn't come back to watch Marist hammer three homers (Silver, Swindling and Inuoye) against the Tornado. At least 8 players have tripled!
Pitching: I'm putting a lot of pressure on seniors Zach Eyster and Kevin Haskin, but they have started strong and combined with the Marist bats, should pick up a lot of W's.
Defense: Defense is what keeps the best teams at the top, and Marist has it all. Their backstop is catcher Will Swindling, headed toward the University of San Francisco on a baseball scholarship. The Spartans have some speed in the outfield and are quick in the infield. The gap in the quality of defenses in the league has closed and generally, most teams aren't losing games because of bad fielding. Still some teams are better than others and Marist will be one of the better D's.
All in all, Marist's defense will keep the Spartans in almost every game. I believe it will be their bats, especially early in the season, that will carry them to the title.
Marist sits out the opening day of MWL league games with a bye.
2. North Eugene. The Highlanders should be an automatic number one pick as they return six players who played in the state championship game, including the winning pitcher Andrew Moore. I'm betting that Moore will come close to running the table in league. He's just that good at hitting the corners and changing speeds, of which he has a lot of. In any other year, North's number two pitcher would be good enough to win most of the games that Moore doesn't pitch. But this isn't just any year because almost every team has an ace who can beat anyone. It looks like the number two will be either of the tall lefties, Toby Woods or Big Cat Clayton. (Moore, Woods and Clayton will return in 2012). Defensively, Kyle DeHaven returns behind the dish. The Highlander infield is as good as it always is, which is usually the best in the league. There might be a lack of speed at a spot or two in the outfield, but you won't find these guys making mental mistakes, so they'll be fine in the outfield.
North Eugene opens by hosting Thurston, my #3 pick. Gonna be a great league opener. I'll be there.
3. Thurston. I didn't see the Colts in preseason, and they didn't have impressive scores out of Arizona, where the MWL went 9-14 against competition that had a couple of weeks head start on Oregon teams. I'll base my ranking on who is returning for Thurston and the overall program.
Tyler Johnson was listed number 30 on Baseball Northwest's Watch List for Oregon players. His batterymate will be junior Jarren Goddard, ranked number 27 for the class of 2012. Goddard hammered four dingers in Arizona and TJ added one more. Sophomore Kyle Watson is ranked number 19 as a pitcher and 1st baseman for the class of 2013. MWL fans would probably agree with these rankings and agree that the Colt pitching staff is in good hands.
All leaguer Zach Kopczenski, will help anchor down the infield with TJ when TJ isn't on the mound. Tyler Dumilieu returns as an all-leaguer in the outfield.
I think the Colts bats will be good, but not dominant. Goddard brings the power to the Colts lineup (.413 in league last year). Kopczenski (.326) and TJ (.379) are going to have to be hot in key games if the Colts are going to win the MWL title. Dumilieu (.367) has wheels and will be a pest on the bases. If the Colts don't find power at the plate, they have the speed to play small ball and everyone's favorite, the hit and run.
4-7 Alpha order: Sheldon, South Eugene, Springfield, Willamette - Who will improve the fastest?
4. Sheldon. Sheldon is loaded with potential. Where the Irish finish will depend on how fast they come together as a team. Senior Cason Cunningham will lead the Irish on the mound. He's had a fine spring so far, including a no hitter in Arizona. The Irish have at least four players on the BBNW watch list - Cunningham, Ryan Land, Cooper Stiles, Brett Nielsen.
Sheldon plays Churchill in the league opener. Two young teams in a very important early season game.
5. Springfield. It appears all league MVP Kameron Bates has fully recovered from his injury. Kameron is not only a good pitcher because he throws strikes, but he and Andrew Moore are among the most focused and intense players in the league. The Millers have only played three games so far, so there hasn't been a chance to develop a number two. Malik Evans, ranked number 16 for the class of 2013 by Baseball Northwest, and senior Blaine Dudley have to develop for the Millers to end up in 4th, or even 5th.
Offensivley, Dudley, Bates and senior Ryan Helfrich will likely provide power at the plate. However, the Millers send a lot of new varsity players into the teeth of a lot of good MWL pitchers. Don't expect much out of the Miller bats early in league play.
Springfield travels to South Eugene, my #6 pick, to open league.
6. South Eugene. South Eugene features two returning all league players who are also listed very high on Baseball Northwest's Watch list. Senior Gus Craig is listed as number 7 in the Oregon class of 2011, while Joe Schindler is ranked number 2 in the class of 2013. Senior Carlos Larson and junior outfielder Max Morrison are also on the watch list. The Axemen are pretty young, but are 3-2 on the season just three days before league starts.
I'm hoping to see them today, Wednesday, to get more info on the Axemen.
7. Willamette. Willamette has all of the pieces to make a run as high as third. It's just a question of whether or not this is the year that pitching finally comes through. The Wolverine MaxPrep roster has 11 pitchers listed, which I assume isn't right, but.....
There are six seniors on the roster. You're sure to remember Ryan Concannon Tony Svensson and Matt Erickson. Willamette was very young last year, which could have hurt their chances of earning all league honors. But they picked off several all league spots with frosh and sophs. Cole Urioste, Scott Kuvaas and Trent Waggoner were all league and have at least one more year after 2011.
Willamette's bats were up and down in Arizona. But last year in league, Kuvaas hit .372, Urioste hit .349 and senior all leaguer Tony Svennson .356. I'm thinking Waggoner will do well on the mound. Willamette's D has improved tremendously the last four years. If the Wolverine's second and third pitchers come through they will place high in the standings. But I'll let them prove it.
Willamette hosts Marshfield to open league.
8. Churchill. Churchill had just three non-seniors last year. This year they have just three seniors. Do good programs like Churchill really have rebuilding years? Or are they reloading with a good JV team? Churchill's football team has reloaded several times after losing good seniors, and I've always ranked them quite high. It's dangerous ranking Churchill this low, but I doubt they can climb much higher than fifth this year.
Pitchers Jordan Thompson (soph), junior Jake Lessel (number 20 on BBNW, class of 2012) and Brandon Doerkson have all shown glimpses of brilliance at times in pre-league play. You and I know the Lancer D will be good. Good infield play is just built into the Churchill program. The Lancer bats are mostly new to varsity play in a year with at least one very solid pitcher on each team. How fast can these young Lancers get up to speed at the plate? Senior Bryson Jones, junior Chase Kearney and Thompson are also on the BBNW watch list.
9. Marshfield. The Pirates are going into the season with no seniors. Out of nine potentail returnees, only three came back. But coach Hall, has a solid group of sophomores and juniors and has some hungry and talented frosh. The best chance of Marsfield ruining another team's RPI ranking will be when sophomore Doug Moltzan is on the mound pitching to Raymond Jones. Juniors Devon Knowlton and Mason Anderson, sophs Alex Dew, Tyler Johnson, along with Jones and Moltzan will be trying to pull along the hungry, agreesive frosh - Johnny Phillips, Anthony Ross and Drew Jones.
Let me know if you agree or disagree or want to sneak your name (or son's name) in here for a semi-legitamate reason. Gary at mwlnow@yahoo.com
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Out of State Wipe Out?
I don't like to blog without seeing any baseball, but my trips to Springfield this week only ended up in wasted gas. With no more games scheduled locally this week, I may as well make a stab at how our teams are shaping up.
Arizona - Nevada Wipe Out?
It looks like the six teams that went south for spring break will each get in from three to four games. So far, we are 3-10, with Willamette (2) and Marist (1) picking up the wins. But keep in mind that most of our out of state opponents have been playing since mid February. Opponents bats and pitching are undoubtedly a little more dialed in than ours.
My three pre-season league favorites, Marist, North and Thurston all travelled South. Marist picked up a 6-1 win, and I might add they were coming off of a great performance in the second game of a double header against North Medford last Saturday. Marist is holding their opponents under 3 runs per game. Keep pitcher Zach Eyster on your watch list. That's a great sign for the Spartans. Combine the defense with 7 runs per game on offense, including several dingers and I feel good about my prediction of Marist being in the top three. Silver, Swindling and Ryan Inouye all jacked one in the second North Medford game. For those not familiar with Marist baseball, just think football. These guys hit as hard in baseball as they do in football. Matt Beattie and Austin Baird are two more gridiron jocks who have had good games at the plate.
Thurston's defense looks good, giving up three and a half runs per game this year. Colt bats haven't exploded, but they've been playing tough opponents. There are going to be a lot of strong pitching staffs this year, and Thurston's Tyler Johnson and Kyle Watson are bound to generate buzz on the mound. You can expect these guys to be in the top three, too.
North Eugene lost a 2-1 game to a Selby coached Sierra Vista team. Doesn't that sound like Highlander baseball!? The Highlanders have given up over five runs per game; unusual for North. But in the games Moore pitched, North is giving up just 1.66 runs per game. With a league full of really tough pitching this year, North's other pitchers will have to step up. Lefties Chris Clayton and Toby Woods have looked good at times. I think North bats are ahead of where they were last year at this time. True, I'm comparing to an abysmal start last year, but this year's Highlander's are looking much more confident at the plate.
Springfield and Willamette should be very good this year, if.....
If Kameron Bates is full strength. The Millers have only played one game, but 2010 league MVP had a stellar pitching performance and appears to be back to full strength after knee surgery. Blaine Dudley is going to try and be the other stopper. Soph Malik Evans returns on the mound after a successful W-L year in 2010. Dudley and Evans are going to have to come through if the Millers are to repeat. I'm curious to see how Ryan Helfrich does at the plate this year after ringing up 10 RBIi's in league last year.
If Willamette's pitchers don't walk batters. Willamette is my surprise team of 2011. I've said this program is on the rise bigtime, and so far they haven't disappointed. The Wolverines are 2-1 in Arizona. Willamette's Achilles heel has been their pitching, but it looks like that is coming under control. Trent Waggoner, Ryan Concannon and Koleton Williams gave up just three walks over the last two games. Keep in mind that Willamette returns two all league sophs, Scott Kuvaas and Cole Uriste.
South, Churchill and Sheldon are my unknowns. I haven't followed the 6A schools the last four years and Churchilll only has three players returning from last year's roster. Of the three, Churchill (2-2) and South Eugene (2-2) look to be doing a little better at this early stage. Churchill scores a lot in it's first three games and defense had a shut out against Elmira before they left for the sunshine. South Eugene's Gus Craig is sure to create some talk and maybe the entire team will, too. South Eugene gave up just four runs in the last two games. Axemen bats need to get hot as they are averaging just 3.3 runs at the plate. Sheldon has played five games and given up at least 10 runs in three of them, one of which was an Irish win. Let's just say this is a very young team with a lot of potential. The Irish will progress rapidly as they gel as a team.
Marshfield has lost the only two games it has played. Like several recent years, I expect the Pirates to steal a couple of games and foul up some team's seeding. By the way, Marshfield's softball team has a 4-0 record so far!
RPI fun
Springfield is 1-0 with an RPI of 472. Sheldon is 2-3 with an RPI of 521. Willamette is 2-1 with an RPI of 'NA'.
I don't know why, but the RPI's are swinging a lot, sometimes several hundred points in a day for a team. Sometimes over one hundred points for teams that haven't played. I followed the RPI closely in football and basketball and this type of gyration did not occur in those sports. I know some of the RPI weirdness is due to out-of-state games not counting much in RPI calculations, but that doesn't account for everything. It's a good thing we have 16 league games. The RPI will start to smooth out as we get into league play.
Roster loaded with frosh and sophs
I have four complete rosters and a pretty good list of players from some other teams. I thought the Peach Fuzz award would go to Sheldon with six sophs, but it goes to South Eugene with five frosh!
It will be interesting to watch Churchill, which has only three players returning. The Lancers have three seniors and nine juniors and only two sophs. That might make Churchill, along with Thurston, one of the 'older' teams in the league. I'm betting that their defense will be good and they'll do just fine.
The Colts are fielding five seniors and six juniors, making Thurston the senior citizens of the league. I love their pitching staff. The Colts may pitch their way to the title in a year with a lot of good pitchers.
North Eugene has about four seniors, but they have four juniors who played on their state champion team last year and several more who were on that roster. The Maine import has a wicked 12-6 curve coming from the left side. North has to have a number two develop into an ace if they are going to take the MWL.
Willamette has five seniors, six juniors, and five sophs. The Wolverines are returning a lot of players of all ages. They looked fundamentally sound last year, but the pitching just didn't come through. The pitching is much better and the rest of the lads are older and stronger.
I haven't been able to scratch together a player list or roster from Marist, Marshfield or Springfield, so other than knowing that Marist is loaded, has a fair number of seniors; and Marshfield is planning on playing several frosh and may have just one senior, I'm in the dark about these teams.
When I lived in DeSoto, Texas, the local high school's goal was to get a two-year or four year off for each senior on the team. They had met their goal seven years in a row. They also had ton's of seniors on their team every year, and the JV team was loaded with juniors awaiting their turn on varsity. What a contrast to seeing so many frosh and sophs on our MWL teams over the last decade. (A lot of people think football when they think of high school sports in Texas, but I can assure that baseball is just as intense.) If you haven't seen the All-Teams-At-A-Glance roster, here is what I have so far. If you can help out on the missing teams pleast do. All Teams One Page Roster.
Thanks to all of the coaches and parents who have texted/emailed recaps this week. I know it's not easy texting recaps on phones or finding computers and wireless access.
Bring some sunshine back, league games start next week.
Arizona - Nevada Wipe Out?
It looks like the six teams that went south for spring break will each get in from three to four games. So far, we are 3-10, with Willamette (2) and Marist (1) picking up the wins. But keep in mind that most of our out of state opponents have been playing since mid February. Opponents bats and pitching are undoubtedly a little more dialed in than ours.
My three pre-season league favorites, Marist, North and Thurston all travelled South. Marist picked up a 6-1 win, and I might add they were coming off of a great performance in the second game of a double header against North Medford last Saturday. Marist is holding their opponents under 3 runs per game. Keep pitcher Zach Eyster on your watch list. That's a great sign for the Spartans. Combine the defense with 7 runs per game on offense, including several dingers and I feel good about my prediction of Marist being in the top three. Silver, Swindling and Ryan Inouye all jacked one in the second North Medford game. For those not familiar with Marist baseball, just think football. These guys hit as hard in baseball as they do in football. Matt Beattie and Austin Baird are two more gridiron jocks who have had good games at the plate.
Thurston's defense looks good, giving up three and a half runs per game this year. Colt bats haven't exploded, but they've been playing tough opponents. There are going to be a lot of strong pitching staffs this year, and Thurston's Tyler Johnson and Kyle Watson are bound to generate buzz on the mound. You can expect these guys to be in the top three, too.
North Eugene lost a 2-1 game to a Selby coached Sierra Vista team. Doesn't that sound like Highlander baseball!? The Highlanders have given up over five runs per game; unusual for North. But in the games Moore pitched, North is giving up just 1.66 runs per game. With a league full of really tough pitching this year, North's other pitchers will have to step up. Lefties Chris Clayton and Toby Woods have looked good at times. I think North bats are ahead of where they were last year at this time. True, I'm comparing to an abysmal start last year, but this year's Highlander's are looking much more confident at the plate.
Springfield and Willamette should be very good this year, if.....
If Kameron Bates is full strength. The Millers have only played one game, but 2010 league MVP had a stellar pitching performance and appears to be back to full strength after knee surgery. Blaine Dudley is going to try and be the other stopper. Soph Malik Evans returns on the mound after a successful W-L year in 2010. Dudley and Evans are going to have to come through if the Millers are to repeat. I'm curious to see how Ryan Helfrich does at the plate this year after ringing up 10 RBIi's in league last year.
If Willamette's pitchers don't walk batters. Willamette is my surprise team of 2011. I've said this program is on the rise bigtime, and so far they haven't disappointed. The Wolverines are 2-1 in Arizona. Willamette's Achilles heel has been their pitching, but it looks like that is coming under control. Trent Waggoner, Ryan Concannon and Koleton Williams gave up just three walks over the last two games. Keep in mind that Willamette returns two all league sophs, Scott Kuvaas and Cole Uriste.
South, Churchill and Sheldon are my unknowns. I haven't followed the 6A schools the last four years and Churchilll only has three players returning from last year's roster. Of the three, Churchill (2-2) and South Eugene (2-2) look to be doing a little better at this early stage. Churchill scores a lot in it's first three games and defense had a shut out against Elmira before they left for the sunshine. South Eugene's Gus Craig is sure to create some talk and maybe the entire team will, too. South Eugene gave up just four runs in the last two games. Axemen bats need to get hot as they are averaging just 3.3 runs at the plate. Sheldon has played five games and given up at least 10 runs in three of them, one of which was an Irish win. Let's just say this is a very young team with a lot of potential. The Irish will progress rapidly as they gel as a team.
Marshfield has lost the only two games it has played. Like several recent years, I expect the Pirates to steal a couple of games and foul up some team's seeding. By the way, Marshfield's softball team has a 4-0 record so far!
RPI fun
Springfield is 1-0 with an RPI of 472. Sheldon is 2-3 with an RPI of 521. Willamette is 2-1 with an RPI of 'NA'.
I don't know why, but the RPI's are swinging a lot, sometimes several hundred points in a day for a team. Sometimes over one hundred points for teams that haven't played. I followed the RPI closely in football and basketball and this type of gyration did not occur in those sports. I know some of the RPI weirdness is due to out-of-state games not counting much in RPI calculations, but that doesn't account for everything. It's a good thing we have 16 league games. The RPI will start to smooth out as we get into league play.
Roster loaded with frosh and sophs
I have four complete rosters and a pretty good list of players from some other teams. I thought the Peach Fuzz award would go to Sheldon with six sophs, but it goes to South Eugene with five frosh!
It will be interesting to watch Churchill, which has only three players returning. The Lancers have three seniors and nine juniors and only two sophs. That might make Churchill, along with Thurston, one of the 'older' teams in the league. I'm betting that their defense will be good and they'll do just fine.
The Colts are fielding five seniors and six juniors, making Thurston the senior citizens of the league. I love their pitching staff. The Colts may pitch their way to the title in a year with a lot of good pitchers.
North Eugene has about four seniors, but they have four juniors who played on their state champion team last year and several more who were on that roster. The Maine import has a wicked 12-6 curve coming from the left side. North has to have a number two develop into an ace if they are going to take the MWL.
Willamette has five seniors, six juniors, and five sophs. The Wolverines are returning a lot of players of all ages. They looked fundamentally sound last year, but the pitching just didn't come through. The pitching is much better and the rest of the lads are older and stronger.
I haven't been able to scratch together a player list or roster from Marist, Marshfield or Springfield, so other than knowing that Marist is loaded, has a fair number of seniors; and Marshfield is planning on playing several frosh and may have just one senior, I'm in the dark about these teams.
When I lived in DeSoto, Texas, the local high school's goal was to get a two-year or four year off for each senior on the team. They had met their goal seven years in a row. They also had ton's of seniors on their team every year, and the JV team was loaded with juniors awaiting their turn on varsity. What a contrast to seeing so many frosh and sophs on our MWL teams over the last decade. (A lot of people think football when they think of high school sports in Texas, but I can assure that baseball is just as intense.) If you haven't seen the All-Teams-At-A-Glance roster, here is what I have so far. If you can help out on the missing teams pleast do. All Teams One Page Roster.
Thanks to all of the coaches and parents who have texted/emailed recaps this week. I know it's not easy texting recaps on phones or finding computers and wireless access.
Bring some sunshine back, league games start next week.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Arizona here we come, will it rain there?
Just Monday morning I was in 75 degree weather in New Orleans. My on time flights got me back to Eugene in time to rush over to Swede to watch North Eugene host West Albany. It was a good day for the MWL as three of the four teams scheduled to play got their games in and won. But since then, with the exception of Sheldon getting a win on an artificial turf infield at McMinnville high school on Wednesday, we've had eleven rainouts. At least we haven't lost a game yet.
ARIZONA HERE WE COME
The list of teams not going south is much shorter than the list of those heading to dry country.
RPI and out of state tournaments
Churchill, Marist, North Eugene and Sheldon are all tied for first in the RPI standings with a .625 score. But winning against out of state opponents won't count much, if at all, in RPI calculations. (The OSAA hopes to fix that in time for the 2011-2012 sports seasons). So if these teams travel all the way to Arizona and end up facing another Oregon team, don't feel too bad. They'll earn RPI points even if they lose to a fellow Oregon team. If you want to feel sorry for a team, you can feel sorry for Pendleton, who is 2-0 on the season, and has an RPI score of "N/A" because both of their wins are against out of state schools which are closer to them than most Oregon schools.
Oddities from the first three games.
There were at least three unusual, if not oddball, events in the first four games and all involved the umps:
The list of MWL players playing baseball in college is quite large this year. My current count stands at 26 players. Thurston leads my list with 7, North follows with 5, Springfield has 4, Sheldon and Churchill have 3. Jeff McKay is coaching at Corban University and has four former MWL players. You can find 10 MWLer's on the Lane CC team. I'm probably a little light on players from Marist, Sheldon and South Eugene as I haven't followed them the last four years. If you know of anyone else, let me know. Here is the list. MWL college players
Pros
I haven't started the update of MWL players in the pros in 2011. But if you know of anyone, please let me know. Here's last year's list. MWL in the Pros
Photos
If you see a great, or not so great, photo in the SmugMug gallery that interests you, please consider buying it. I recommend waiting until at least halfway through the season if you are thinking of buying photos of just one or two players. During football, a couple of schools had one person make an order to buy photos of lots of different players, thus keeping shipping costs down. Also, if you have any special requests, such as larger size photos, please let me know at mwlnow@yahoo.com.
Some of you may have noticed that during basketball I did not use the copyright image over the photos on SmugMug. That's because I don't consider myself all that good at basketball photography yet. But there may come a day that I will charge for basketball, too.
Finally, please keep in mind that regular reporters get free access to their sons photos so they can print them at home.
Please let others know about the website.
There are still a lot of MWL parents and players who haven't run across the website yet. Please let them know. In general, the more people who visit the site, the more income I generate. How much income you might ask? Well, since I added Google Ads, it took 19 months to generate the first 100 dollars and I'm hoping to make the next $100 in just six months. My cost of the photo catalog SmugMug is 150 bucks a year, and I've generated about $150 dollars in profit in photography in one year. (But half of the photography profits go back to booster clubs.) Your support helps cover my gas and occasional tickets to playoff games. If I ever figure out to make some real money, I'll buy a new $6,000 camera body, and then you'll see some awesome photos!
PS.
Some of you have known my wife, Jennifer, for many years. The reason I was in Louisiana was to attend her oldest son's wedding. Ben Brink swam in the 2000 Olympic Trials, but was forced out of the sport due to injury just one year later. In 1999 he set the OSAA state meet record in the boys 200 IM. The record still stands. Ben married a wonderful Southern Belle, Hillary Hanna, and they will be living in Houston. That's two boys married off and two to go for Jennifer and I. Oh, we also worked in Fat Tuesday in N'orleans.
ARIZONA HERE WE COME
The list of teams not going south is much shorter than the list of those heading to dry country.
- Marshfield - North Marion Tourney
- South Eugene - Glencoe Tourney
- Springfield - Double header at Ashland
- Churchill, Marist, Sheldon, Thurston, Willamette are in Arizona
- North Eugene is pulling up short of Arizona with a tourney in Las Vegas
RPI and out of state tournaments
Churchill, Marist, North Eugene and Sheldon are all tied for first in the RPI standings with a .625 score. But winning against out of state opponents won't count much, if at all, in RPI calculations. (The OSAA hopes to fix that in time for the 2011-2012 sports seasons). So if these teams travel all the way to Arizona and end up facing another Oregon team, don't feel too bad. They'll earn RPI points even if they lose to a fellow Oregon team. If you want to feel sorry for a team, you can feel sorry for Pendleton, who is 2-0 on the season, and has an RPI score of "N/A" because both of their wins are against out of state schools which are closer to them than most Oregon schools.
Oddities from the first three games.
There were at least three unusual, if not oddball, events in the first four games and all involved the umps:
- One occurred in the North game. This one involved the high school no contact rule. West Albany had been having a horrible day throwing the ball to the bases on routine plays. So when they finally turned an easy to turn double play in the third inning, the first baseman was so happy he forgot that Shawn Boehm had headed over to third. Boehm noticed that the first baseman had temporarily checked out, so Boehm tried the Kidsports steal of home.... The Bulldog bench finally gets the gloveman to throw to home, but he short hops it. The catcher, who is protecting home plate with his tush and knee, knocks the ball down to the ground. Boehm, who would have been out by five feet on a good throw, now finds himself with an easy score, that is, if the catcher isn't blocking the plate without the ball. Shawn Boehm did what I would have done, he instinctively lowered himself to 'nudge' the catcher off of the plate. As soon as the catcher felt contact, he also did what I would have done. The catcher double arm wrapped Boehm and took Boehm to the ground in a great wrestling move. Result and umps call? Boehm was called out at home for making contact, and both players had to take a seat. I'm by no means a rules expert, but I think the umps technically got it right. But what is a runner supposed to do if the ball is on the ground and a player is blocking the base? I guess high school baseball needs to develop a sign for the runner called "The I am being polite and not initiating contact even though it is clear I would be safe because the fielder doesn't have the ball in his hand or glove Rule." (By the way, good job North and West Albany players for not starting a riot after the collision at the plate)
- I'd hate to be the ump on this one. Have you ever watched the home plate ump stare at the plate to make sure a player steps on the plate after a player hits a homer? I'm sure no ump ever wants to call this one. But in the Marist game, a Spartan put the rule to the test, and just like the ump in the first game, this ump made the right technical call. I guess. So, batters, touch home plate!
- And when is the last time you saw an ump overrule himself? In the Sheldon game, a Sheldon pitcher wasn't stopping out of the stretch before he threw to home. The ump missed it, but was put on the lookout. No biggie, that happens. So, a couple of pitches the later, the pitcher doesn't stop again and the ump calls a balk. Problem being that the pitcher threw to first. The McMinnville runner was sent to second, but the ump realized what he had done and reversed his call.
The list of MWL players playing baseball in college is quite large this year. My current count stands at 26 players. Thurston leads my list with 7, North follows with 5, Springfield has 4, Sheldon and Churchill have 3. Jeff McKay is coaching at Corban University and has four former MWL players. You can find 10 MWLer's on the Lane CC team. I'm probably a little light on players from Marist, Sheldon and South Eugene as I haven't followed them the last four years. If you know of anyone else, let me know. Here is the list. MWL college players
Pros
I haven't started the update of MWL players in the pros in 2011. But if you know of anyone, please let me know. Here's last year's list. MWL in the Pros
Photos
If you see a great, or not so great, photo in the SmugMug gallery that interests you, please consider buying it. I recommend waiting until at least halfway through the season if you are thinking of buying photos of just one or two players. During football, a couple of schools had one person make an order to buy photos of lots of different players, thus keeping shipping costs down. Also, if you have any special requests, such as larger size photos, please let me know at mwlnow@yahoo.com.
Some of you may have noticed that during basketball I did not use the copyright image over the photos on SmugMug. That's because I don't consider myself all that good at basketball photography yet. But there may come a day that I will charge for basketball, too.
Finally, please keep in mind that regular reporters get free access to their sons photos so they can print them at home.
Please let others know about the website.
There are still a lot of MWL parents and players who haven't run across the website yet. Please let them know. In general, the more people who visit the site, the more income I generate. How much income you might ask? Well, since I added Google Ads, it took 19 months to generate the first 100 dollars and I'm hoping to make the next $100 in just six months. My cost of the photo catalog SmugMug is 150 bucks a year, and I've generated about $150 dollars in profit in photography in one year. (But half of the photography profits go back to booster clubs.) Your support helps cover my gas and occasional tickets to playoff games. If I ever figure out to make some real money, I'll buy a new $6,000 camera body, and then you'll see some awesome photos!
PS.
Some of you have known my wife, Jennifer, for many years. The reason I was in Louisiana was to attend her oldest son's wedding. Ben Brink swam in the 2000 Olympic Trials, but was forced out of the sport due to injury just one year later. In 1999 he set the OSAA state meet record in the boys 200 IM. The record still stands. Ben married a wonderful Southern Belle, Hillary Hanna, and they will be living in Houston. That's two boys married off and two to go for Jennifer and I. Oh, we also worked in Fat Tuesday in N'orleans.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
2011 Baseball is Here
Five years ago it would have been hard to believe that the MWL would become a state power in baseball. However, in the last four years, three different MWL teams have earned their way to the state finals, culminating in back to back titles by Thurston on '09 and North Eugene in 2010.
North, Thurston and Churchill have all made it to the finals recently. North has always had a strong program, while Thurston and Churchill upgraded their physical plants and their quality of play over the last six years. Now it looks like it's Willamette that is stepping into the Bigs. Last year the Wolverines featured two 1st team all league frosh, Cole Uriste and Scott Kuvass. Throw in a honorable mention all leaguer, Trent Waggoner, and the huge new Ark to practice in, and you have a program ready to excel.
With the exception of Churchill, the MWL was pretty young last year. And all three of our playoff teams made the quarterfinals! North and Thurston return a ton of talent. Churchill graduated all but three of their players, so it could be a tough season for Churchill in a year the MWL features a ton of returning all leaguers. Springfield graduated a fair amount of players, but if league MVP Kameron Bates recovers from a ligament injury suffered during football season, the Millers might pitch their way back to the quarterfinals. If you're wondering who will win league, factor in up-and-coming Willamette with four returning all leaguers; and Marist with four all leaguers - Marist's Will Swindling and Logan Silver doubling up as all staters.
I haven't been keeping up with Sheldon and South Eugene so I don't have a feel for how they'll do in 2011. Both teams got pounded in the Southwest Conference last year, finishing fifth and sixth in a six team league. It must have made the Irish and Axemen feel better when South Medford made it all the way to the finals, finishing second in state.
So, my early thinking goes like this...
Be a score reporter or game recapper. It's an easy way to get your kids name on this website. With three new teams in the league and some parent reporters graduating with their kids, I'm looking especially hard for reporters from:
Churchill
Marist
Sheldon
South Eugene
People who recap games and are regular score reporters get free access to their kids photos. They also get extra emphasis when I am shooting at games.
You can text me scores during and immediately after games at 541-337-1311. I Twitter out the results during the game that I'm attending. It's fun to share the scores all around the league. Email game recaps to me by 9:30 for posting that evening. If you get it in later than that, it's better than nothing, but probably won't get posted until the next day.
I am redoing the website and kind of blew it up. Each teams main baseball page should be okay, but it may be difficult to find old info until I get around to fixing the site. Please be patient.
Thanks a million
Gary
North, Thurston and Churchill have all made it to the finals recently. North has always had a strong program, while Thurston and Churchill upgraded their physical plants and their quality of play over the last six years. Now it looks like it's Willamette that is stepping into the Bigs. Last year the Wolverines featured two 1st team all league frosh, Cole Uriste and Scott Kuvass. Throw in a honorable mention all leaguer, Trent Waggoner, and the huge new Ark to practice in, and you have a program ready to excel.
With the exception of Churchill, the MWL was pretty young last year. And all three of our playoff teams made the quarterfinals! North and Thurston return a ton of talent. Churchill graduated all but three of their players, so it could be a tough season for Churchill in a year the MWL features a ton of returning all leaguers. Springfield graduated a fair amount of players, but if league MVP Kameron Bates recovers from a ligament injury suffered during football season, the Millers might pitch their way back to the quarterfinals. If you're wondering who will win league, factor in up-and-coming Willamette with four returning all leaguers; and Marist with four all leaguers - Marist's Will Swindling and Logan Silver doubling up as all staters.
I haven't been keeping up with Sheldon and South Eugene so I don't have a feel for how they'll do in 2011. Both teams got pounded in the Southwest Conference last year, finishing fifth and sixth in a six team league. It must have made the Irish and Axemen feel better when South Medford made it all the way to the finals, finishing second in state.
So, my early thinking goes like this...
- Order of finish 5A = North Eugene, Marist, Willamette, Springfield, Churchill, Marshfield
- Order of finish 6A = Thurston, Sheldon, South Eugene
- Combined Order = North Eugene, Thurston, Marist, Sheldon, Willamette, Springfield, South Eugene, Churchill, Marshfield
- If Kameron Bates is 100% out of the blocks, move Springfield up a spot in 5A only, and two spots in the 9 team combined league.
- North Eugene brings back Andrew Moore (2010 league ERA 1.54), Kyle DeHaven (1.49) and Chris Clayton (0.47) on the mound. It was North Eugene's defense that got them into the playoffs. MWL opponents are going to be hoping that North hits like they did most of last season.... miserably. The Highlanders couldn't hit, earn a walk, or lay down a bunt until Coach Nicholsen had a night time batting practice late in the season that seemed to ignite the North bats. If that nighttime practice hadn't worked, my last photo of Nicholsen would have been of him lying in the third base coaches box, clutching his chest after a missed sac bunt. But instead of resting in peace , he survived and got to watch the Highlanders take home the state title. Other players opponents wish had graduated: Garrett Harpole (hit .347 in league) and Erik Long (.317). By the way, anyone hoping North Eugene goes deep into the basketball playoffs?
- Thurston also returns a tough pitching staff. Tyler Johnson (league ERA 1.19) and soph Kyle Watson (1.77) were a combined 5-1 for the Colts. They'll be getting most of the starts now that Dawson Phinney (5W-3L) graduated. Junior Jarren Goddard brings the power to the Colts lineup (.413 in league last year). Zach Kopczenski (.326) and TJ (.379) are going to have to be hot in key games if the Colts are going to win the MWL title. Tylor Dumilieu (.367) has wheels and will be a pest on the bases.
- Marist's all state catcher Will Swindling has already committed to the University of San Francisco. Another all-stater, Logan Silver, is headed to Holy Cross for football. Seniors Zach Eyster and Ryan Inouye were all league Sky-Em last year. Matt Beattie and Bennet McKee are on Baseball Northwest's Watch List. I don't think Marist has enough top-notch pitching to take the title, but if everyone beats up on everyone else, they could sneak all the way to the top.
- Sheldon returns a couple of all leaguer's - Cason Cunningham, a first baseman, and outfielder Ryan Land. Stan Manley returns to Sheldon as head coach. Jim Fryback is helping out with pitching. These two have taken several teams deep into the playoffs. They'll have a challenge this year.
- Willamette is my surprise pick of the season. Coach Guldager started changing the program four years ago. Attention to detail and a committent to baseball by the players is expected and Guldager is getting results. Fans could see the change in attitude on the field the last couple of years, but the club just wasn't deep enough in quality pitchers and the defense was porous at times. That's all changed - although we need to see proof on the mound. Key players: Soph Scott Kuvass was a vacuum clearner at short as a frosh and earned 1st team all league honors. Kuvaas also hit .372 in league. Another soph, Cole Urioste also made 1st team last year and hit .349. Last year's youth movement included all leaguer Trent Waggoner, a junior now. Senior all leaguer Tony Svennson hit at a .356 clip last year and was second on the team in league rbi's. These guys have been able to work out in the Ark all winter and should be ready to play on day 1.
- My favorite team last year because of their spunk and team chant, Springfield rode league MVP Kameron Bate's arm (4-1 in league) to the league title. I'm dropping the Miller's down as I have concern's about Bates recovery from the ligament injury. Also, while the Millers return a few of their key players, they lost a lot of speed and sass in last year's group of seniors. But consider this, if Bates is healthly, team's will also have to deal with one of last year's other frosh phenom's, pitcher Malik Evans (4-0). Two quality pitchers are enough to go deep in the playoffs, but might not get the Millers into the upper half of the nine team MWL. All Leaguer Blaine Dudley and senior Ryan Helfrich will provide the Miller power at the plate.
- Like Sheldon, I haven't followed South Eugene the last four years after the OSAA split into six classifications. The Axement have three all leaguers returning from the tough Southwest Conference. They are 2nd teamers senior Gus Craig in the outfield and sohpomore Jay Schindler in the infield. Carlos Larson was an honorable mention pitcher.
- Churchill missed the playoffs for the first time in eight years last year. They fielded an almost all senior team, with just three underclassmen on the schedule. The good news is that they finished on a four game win streak. The potential returning varsity players are Chase Kearney, Jacob DeZarn and Kylan Pomerey.
- Marshfield continues to retool their program. Junior Zach Thrall made all league last year. Promising left handed senior pitcher Kane Rowley is probably out for the season due to an injury. Another key junior is catcher Raymond Jones. The Pirates need to find some horses to throw to Jones. Other: Tyler Davidson returns and may be the only senior if Rowley can't go. Coach Hall will probably be in the spoiler role once again this year, a role the Pirates play quite well. Davidson, Thrall and Jones will be joined by juniors Deven Knowlton at 1b, Mason Anderson at 2B, and sophomores Alex Dew, Doug Molzahn and Tyler Johnson.
Be a score reporter or game recapper. It's an easy way to get your kids name on this website. With three new teams in the league and some parent reporters graduating with their kids, I'm looking especially hard for reporters from:
Churchill
Marist
Sheldon
South Eugene
People who recap games and are regular score reporters get free access to their kids photos. They also get extra emphasis when I am shooting at games.
You can text me scores during and immediately after games at 541-337-1311. I Twitter out the results during the game that I'm attending. It's fun to share the scores all around the league. Email game recaps to me by 9:30 for posting that evening. If you get it in later than that, it's better than nothing, but probably won't get posted until the next day.
I am redoing the website and kind of blew it up. Each teams main baseball page should be okay, but it may be difficult to find old info until I get around to fixing the site. Please be patient.
Thanks a million
Gary
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