Pictures of Pitchers

I watched the Sandburg Eagles play the Oak Lawn Spartans in a sophomore baseball game in Oak Lawn yesterday. While I was there, I captured photos of the pitchers from behind the backstop. Sports photographers refer to this position as TTF ("through the fence"). If you are interested in viewing the photos, you may CLICK HERE.

I experimented with some processing techniques to give a few of the photos a vintage look. Here's an example of one of those. You may click on the photo for an enlarged view:

Staying Alert

Some of the most serious baseball injuries take place outside of the playing field. While players in the game are usually alert, that's not always the case with spectators, coaches or players in the on-deck circle or dugout. Recently, a coach was seriously injured when a foul ball struck him in the eye. Unfortunately, Luis Salazar lost his left eye because of this accident.

In all the years that I've coached, the most serious injuries that I've witnessed have occurred in the stands at Major League stadiums. Twice I saw line drives strike people directly in the face while they were not paying attention to the action on the field. One lost several teeth and the other had to be removed on a stretcher after his nose was shattered.

The vast majority of serious injuries that I've witnessed while coaching baseball involved players who were not playing in the game or practice. A few times players have been struck with overthrown balls while not paying attention while standing behind first base. Years ago, a player was hit by a bat as he walked by the on-deck hitter who was taking practice swings.

Most experienced umpires and base coaches have learned over time not to take their eye off the ball when they are standing near the coach's box during infield warm-ups between innings. The bottom line is that it's important to stay alert when you are around a baseball field.

Steve Sismelich Becomes a Repeat Winner

Steve Sismelich became the team's first player to become a repeat winner of the Ground Ball Competition. Steve prevailed over Jim Robley in the finals. Both players had won the competition in an earlier practice.

Both players, Steve and Jim, do an exceptional job of consistently getting into a "baseball ready" position just before the ball is hit. They also approach the baseball in an aggressive manner. By not letting the ball play them, they give themselves the best possible chance of making the play.

Jim has played with the Warriors for the past two season. During both of those years, he was one of the leading defensive players on the team. Jim has been a solid shortstop for quite some time. Steve is a first time Warriors and we expect him to have a strong season in 2011.

Uniforms Are In

I picked up our uniforms from Santo Sports on Wednesday. During Wednesday's batting cage session, we distributed uniforms to the 8 players who were present. I would like to thank Lisa Enguita for helping wih the distribution process. We plan to distribute the remaining uniforms at Saturday's indoor workout session.

The uniform components include:

• Red jersey (with number and name)
• White jersey (with number and name)
• Hat (with number)
• Pants
• Belt
• Socks
• Helmet (with number)
• Practice T-shirt (distributed at Kick Off meeting)
• Practice Hat (distributed at Kick Off meeting)

Optional items include:

• Equipment bag
• Hooded sweatshirt

OYA Pony Draft

The OYA Pony League draft is scheduled for Tuesday, March 15th. Shortly after the draft, players will be notified which recreational team they will play for during the 2011 season. All Warriors events will be integrated with the Pony League events so that players will not have to worry about scheduling conflicts.

OYA Pony League practices will not start until April 5th.

Congratulations to Cody Rutledge

The Warriors would like to congratulate Cody Rutledge for being selected to play on Carl Sandburg High School's freshman baseball team! He is certainly deserving of this recognition.

Unfortunately for the Warriors, High School baseball players are not eligible to play with other organizations during the High School season. So, our team will be without Cody until late May. However, the good news is that he will rejoin the Warriors in late May--in time to play in all of our tournaments and the majority of our regular season games. Additionally, this will give our team an opportunity to further develop our other pitchers during Cody's absence.

We wish Cody the best of luck in his High School baseball career and look forward to his return to the Warriors.

Jim Robley Wins Ground Ball Competition

Jim Robley was this week's winner of the Ground Ball Competition. Jim topped Matt LeVigne in the championship round of the competition. Patrick O'Connor and Steve Sismelich were the previous champions.

Pete Rose

Our team goals include respecting the game. Hustling is a way to show respect for the game. Playing hard (giving it your best effort) regardless of the score (whether winning or losing) is something our team strives to accomplish.

Putting aside his gambling issues (which took place after his playing years), Pete Rose was respected by many for always giving it his best effort on the field. Even when he drew a walk, Rose would sprint to first base. His extraordinary effort earned him the nickname "Charlie Hustle".

During the course of his long career, Pete Rose set many career records which still stand today. He is the all-time hit leader with 4,256. Pete Rose played in 17 All-Star games--in which many of those selections were based upon votes from his peers (other Major League players).

Pete Rose only knew how to play the game one way...and that was all out. It didn't matter to him whether the game was a Spring Training scrimmage or the seventh game of the World Series.

In an All-Star game (which is mostly considered to be just a showcase today), the National League trailed the American League by a score of 4-1 in the ninth inning. But, the National League scored three runs to take the game into extra innings.

In the bottom of the 12th inning, Pete Rose stood on second base as the Cubs' Jim Hickman stepped to the plate with two outs. Jim Hickman singled to centerfield. Pete Rose sprinted around third base on his way to score the winning run, but catcher Ray Fosse was about to receive the throw and positioned himself up the third base line.

Rose knew that his only chance to score was to collide with Fosse--and hopefully dislodge the ball. Although this is not a legal play at the Pony level, it is legal at the professional level of play. Rose drove into Fosse and separated him from the ball just before it arrived in his glove. Fosse fell backward and Rose fell over the catcher onto home plate to score the winning run.

Pete Rose missed a few games due to an injured knee, but unfortunately Ray Fosse was never the same after the collision.

Today, many people consider the All-Star game to be an exhibition of sorts. Yet, Pete Rose only knew how to play baseball one way--and that was with maximum effort.

Dropped Third Strike

In the Sunday League (Official Baseball Rules apply), hitters may attempt to advance to first base on a dropped third strike in the following situations:

• Whenever there are two outs
• When there are less than two outs with first base unoccupied (at the time of the pitch)

Pitches that hit the dirt and are then caught by the catcher are still considered to be "dropped" third strikes. In the event of a dropped third strike, the hitter should run hard towards first base while staying on the right side of the foul line. If the batter is on the foul line (or anywhere to the left of it in fair territory), he places himself at risk of an interference (out) call should he get hit by a throw down the line.

This rule is designed to protect the offense against easy double plays. If it were not for the rule (and batters were always eligible to advance on dropped third strikes), catchers would intentionally drop the third strike and then fire the ball down to second for the force out---which could then result in a double play on a subsequent throw to first base.

So, anytime the easy double play scenario exists (less than two outs with a runner on first), the hitter is out immediately on the third strike, whether it was dropped or not.

Bat Restrictions

For the 2011 season, the Chicagoland Metro League has announced the following bat restrictions:

1. The diameter of the bat cannot exceed 2 5/8". 2 3/4" bats are no longer allowed.
2. Bats are limited to a -3 length to weight drop differential.
3. Composite bats are discouraged, but allowed, for the 2011 season.

Warriors Receive First Sponsorship

The Warriors would like to thank the Papoose Children's Center, courtesy of the Sismelich family, for its generous sponsorship of the team for the 2011 season. This contribution makes it possible for the team to play some additional games or perhaps register for another tournament this summer.

Steve Sismelich Wins Fielding Competition

In this afternoon's Ground Ball Competition, Steve Sismelich edged out Matt LeVigne to win the Warriors' second fielding contest. A notable mention goes to Rick Sisco who remained alive for a long time with some outstanding defensive plays. Patrick O'Connor was not present to defend his title.

Hit By Pitch: The Ron Hunt Story

When any part of a batter's body (including the hands while placed on the bat) is hit with a pitched ball, he is awarded first base. There are some exceptions. It is not considered a hit batsman if the pitch hits the batter inside of the strikezone (that is a strike), or if the hitter makes no attempt to avoid the pitch (that pitch is called either a ball or a strike depending upon the location of the pitch). Also, if the batter swings at the pitch, it is considered a strike even if the hitter is hit by the pitch.

Note that it is still considered a hit by pitch if the pitch bounces from the ground into a player. If a pitch hits a batter's clothing, that is also considered a hit by pitch.

A hitter is not credited with an at bat or a hit. But, he is credited with a time on base and a plate appearance. So, a HBP improves a player's on-base % without lowering his batting average.

The hit by pitch can be a painful way to reach base. In the modern era, no player was hit by more pitches than Ron Hunt of the Montreal Expos. Hunt's motto was, "Some people give their bodies to science; I give mine to baseball." Hunt led the National League in getting hit by pitch in each of his final 7 seasons. Most years, he was hit about 25 times. But, in 1971 Ron Hunt set the modern day record by getting hit 50 times in one season!

In 1969, Ron Hunt tied a record by getting hit three times in a single game! When he retired, his 243 HBP's were a career record. Hunt insisted that he never deliberately got hit by a pitch, but many opposing pitchers disagreed with his claim. Since then, Craig Biggio topped that career record by getting hit an astounding 285 times.

"Stay in the Game" Clinic

The University of Chicago Physicians is hosting a free "Stay in the Game" clinic led by Tony Garofola, former head Athletic Trainer for the Chicago Cubs. The session will provide information regarding how to prevent shoulder and elbow injuiries.

The event will be held on March 2nd in Tinley Park. Click here for more information.

How Baseballs Are Made

CLICK HERE to view an interesting video which shows how baseballs are manufactured.

Warriors Take a Break...and Other Ramblings

Not too long ago, baseball began in the Spring. As a kid, I always looked forward to hearing the crack of the bat as it was a sure sign that Spring had arrived.

Now, youth baseball travel teams practice nearly all year. This helps players develop their skills. However, baseball will always be a Summer game. Much of the appeal of the game comes from being able to play in nice weather outdoors.

Since I will be vacationing for the next two weeks, our Warriors team will take a break until mid-February. Our next practice is an 8:00 pm batting cage session at Junior Diggins on February 18th.

After that, we'll continue our individual development, batting cage sessions and indoor workouts until mid-March. Hopefully, the weather will improve by mid-March and we can finally move outdoors for some practices. Weather permitting, we will begin scrimmaging against other teams in late March. Things will pick up more in April as we begin to play games.

Our team will begin Chicagoland Metro play in mid-April. The OYA season begins in late April. And, our first tournament is scheduled for the Memorial Day Weekend.

As soon as our team enters a tournament (and we are striving for four), I will post the information on our team's website. Our team is made up mostly 8th graders--and many events arise surrounding graduation. The OYA Pony League and our Warriors team will be idle on June 5th as most graduations in the area are scheduled for that day.

As tournament scheduling information is provided to you, PLEASE PLAN ACCORDINGLY. If you are planning a graduation party, sometimes adjusting the start time by just a few hours can make the difference between the player participating or being absent for a team event. When players miss games, the team is at greater risk of losing (or even forfeiting) games--which means a higher risk of elimination from the tournament and fewer games played for everyone.

In an effort to promote greater participation, I am investigating the possibility of having those players on our team who make their High School team eligible for play with the Warriors. This is a new approach (most likely in accordance with all OYA, Chicagoland Metro and ISHA rules) which will allow us to retain all of the players on our current roster. More on this later.

The Importance of the Count

In a recent posting, I wrote about how Ted Williams refused to swing at pitches outside of the strike zone. At the Pony level, it is critical for hitters to be selective at the plate and only swing at strikes. Once a hitter is ahead in the count (e.g., 2-0, 3-1), the pitcher is forced to throw a very hittable pitch--or he may start aiming the pitches and walk several consecutive batters.

The statistics support the fact that a hitter's count benefits the offense. In a recent study of college baseball statistics, the batting average for hitters with a 2-1 count was 150 points higher than for hitters with a 1-2 count! This benefit becomes even greater with more favorable counts such as 3-1.

Letting pitchers off the hook by swinging at pitches outside of the strikezone has just the opposite effect. Pitchers get an immediate sense of relief when a bad pitch turns into a strike. They can then ride that momentum to get back into a groove. We often tell our hitters to "make the pitcher work" or to "make the pitcher earn it."

Although it is more difficult than it looks, one of the goals for this team is to be more selective at the plate. We want our hitters to be aggressive, but we also want them to be aware of the count and when it is appropriate to be aggressive.

Positions by Number

Typically, baseball position numbers are used for scoring purposes. However, our team will use these numbers as part of calling certain plays--particularly when a runner is on third base. We'll talk more about how these plays will be called during an upcoming practice. All of our players should be familiar with these numbers.

Following is an illustration of how baseball positions are numbered:

Warriors Enter First Tournament

The Warriors registered for its first tournament of the season. The Chicagoland Memorial Weekend Tournament is scheduled from Friday, May 27th through Monday, May 30th. Most likely, the opening round games will be played in Frankfort or Palos.

For this tournament, the team will play three "pool play" games. Only the top teams from each pool will proceed into the next round.

The Warriors will enter three more tournaments in June/July. I'll publish those dates as soon as they become available--most likely in late February. Please be sure to plan accordingly.

Pat O'Connor Wins Ground Ball Challenge

Patrick O'Connor won the team's first Ground Ball Challenge on Saturday morning. Pat edged out Jim Robley in the final round of the competition.

Winning these challenges requires outlasting 12 opponents and usually means successfully fielding at least 35 to 40 ground balls.