College Baseball

[batted balls]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

Sorry, batted balls, I don't have the time to read any Dynasty Leagues, but saw your name and just had to check it out. You are so faithful to read mine.

I went to the University of New Orleans and now live in Baton Rouge. But I am no fan of LSU...no one calls it Louisiana State that lives here or is in the SEC...it is just LSU to the natives and surrounding states.

In a word, this league is superb. You really are a great writer. Not only do you cover the league so well, you do it in superlative style and with great humor.

You put me to shame. I must have the most boring dynasty league on the board.

I wish you had been on the Text Team for OOTPB2006. You really have a way with words and a truly fine baseball vocabulary. I spent the last 6 months working on that along with several other fine guys. But it is a massive project to do. It will be much improved over previous versions, but still need a lot of work.

As I said, I just don't have the time to get involved in reading all of these great dynasty reports, but if there is a better League on the Forum, it must really be fantastic. Your talent is unbelievable.

You got to be one of the top dynasties.

Your league has everything...excellent baseball and great entertainment. It don't get any better than that. The graphics are a very nice touch. They add a lot of atmosphere to the thread.

Great job.

Are you a real sportswriter?

You should be.

Eugene,

Thanks for the kind remarks. No, I'm not a "real" sportwriter (although I was a journalism and history major back in my college days of the '80s). I do, however, greatly enjoy the Walter Mitty/J. Henry Waugh world of Out of the Park Baseball. It's my escape from the real world. Some would say it's a hobby that has overtaken my life! Seriously though, I do enjoy OOTP and interacting on the forum with those who share this great pastime.

As for your dynasty, it's clearly one of my favorites. You do an awesome job with it. I'll continue to follow it as long as you continue to post.

As for LSU, you must be enjoying the Tigers subpar season thus far!

[molarmite]

Well Minnesota is catching up to Michigan State.

Quick question, what are you going to do about drafting?

Great dynasty, keep it up.

[Eugene Church]

Originally Posted by batted balls

Eugene,

As for LSU, you must be enjoying the Tigers subpar season thus far!

Yes, I am enjoying it.

But it is a shame that money rules everything in college sports these days. The coach, Smoke Laval, who was just fired, won more games than any other SEC coach during his tenure. I feel sorry for him and his staff. They don't deserve this.

However, attendance has really dropped during Laval's tenure. From 7,000 to 4,000 to 2500 average attendance. The fans still buy season tickets at the rate of 7,000 a year, but don't come to the games like they used to. Bertman, who is a big time money man, had to do something. Attendance is spiraling downward and he has to stop it.

They are getting ready to build a 10 million dollar stadium...which is outrageous for a college baseball team. And because of Title IX, they are going to spend a million dollars for a new women's softball stadium. Both team have old stadiums, that are fine for college baseball and softball, but they have to keep up with the Joneses and build something better than the new SEC stadiums. The SEC and other conferences are going crazy spending money on college sports. They all think that you have to have great facilities to compete. According to sports researchers, spending a lot on money on facilities does not translate into wins. But the schools think it does and continue to spend outrageous sums on athletics, when they should be concentrating on the academics. In Louisiana, the average person would rather have a #1 football team than a good education. That is sad. That kind of mentality is the reason the state is ranked near the bottom in almost every important category.

Laval should never have taken the job. No one should ever follow a legend. It is usually a no-win situation.

I also think they were shafted by not being chosen for the NCAA this year.

I think their prior success and high standards entered into this decision. The selection committee must not like Bertman and took advantage of the situation to leave them out.

I think Skip Bertman just want to come back and coach.

I think he will find it will be harder to dominate these days.

[MorseMoose]

Man...I thought the Gophers would be better with Molitor and Winfield.

[batted balls]

Originally Posted by molarmite

Well Minnesota is catching up to Michigan State.

Quick question, what are you going to do about drafting?

Great dynasty, keep it up.

Molarmite,

Minnesota has shown some improvement. Their pitching continues to struggle, but as Winfield and Molitor develop, the Golden Gophers have some hope. Pitching, however, is such a big part of the game that Minnesota is probably going to be a second-division team.

As for the draft, there won't be one. Instead, I'll just add players to each team as they naturally develop. For example, if someone like Gregory Reynolds from Stanford (drafted #2 overall by Colorado yesterday) turns out to be something, I would add him to Stanford's system. Yes, this method may not be ideal or fair, but that's the way I'm going to do it.

[molarmite]

Originally Posted by batted balls

Molarmite,

Minnesota has shown some improvement. Their pitching continues to struggle, but as Winfield and Molitor develop, the Golden Gophers have some hope. Pitching, however, is such a big part of the game that Minnesota is probably going to be a second-division team.

As for the draft, there won't be one. Instead, I'll just add players to each team as they naturally develop. For example, if someone like Gregory Reynolds from Stanford (drafted #2 overall by Colorado yesterday) turns out to be something, I would add him to Stanford's system. Yes, this method may not be ideal or fair, but that's the way I'm going to do it.

Yea, hopefully Kerry Lightenberg will step things up. How's he doing?

[batted balls]

Kerry Ligtenberg, Minnesota--4.5 stars

1-2 record
1 save
2.56 ERA
56.1 IP
54 hits
17 walks
34 strikeouts

[batted balls]

Originally Posted by Eugene Church

Yes, I am enjoying it.

But it is a shame that money rules everything in college sports these days. The coach, Smoke Laval, who was just fired, won more games than any other SEC coach during his tenure. I feel sorry for him and his staff. They don't deserve this.

However, attendance has really dropped during Laval's tenure. From 7,000 to 4,000 to 2500 average attendance. The fans still buy season tickets at the rate of 7,000 a year, but don't come to the games like they used to. Bertman, who is a big time money man, had to do something. Attendance is spiraling downward and he has to stop it.

They are getting ready to build a 10 million dollar stadium...which is outrageous for a college baseball team. And because of Title IX, they are going to spend a million dollars for a new women's softball stadium. Both team have old stadiums, that are fine for college baseball and softball, but they have to keep up with the Joneses and build something better than the new SEC stadiums. The SEC and other conferences are going crazy spending money on college sports. They all think that you have to have great facilities to compete. According to sports researchers, spending a lot on money on facilities does not translate into wins. But the schools think it does and continue to spend outrageous sums on athletics, when they should be concentrating on the academics. In Louisiana, the average person would rather have a #1 football team than a good education. That is sad. That kind of mentality is the reason the state is ranked near the bottom in almost every important category.

Laval should never have taken the job. No one should ever follow a legend. It is usually a no-win situation.

I also think they were shafted by not being chosen for the NCAA this year.

I think their prior success and high standards entered into this decision. The selection committee must not like Bertman and took advantage of the situation to leave them out.

I think Skip Bertman just want to come back and coach.

I think he will find it will be harder to dominate these days.

A $10 million stadium?! Wow! It's always interesting to hear stories of politics and sports. I live in the Chicago area so it's interesting to hear about sports in the South.

[batted balls]

June 30, 2006

Bristol, Conn.--In a game that featured so many sluggers the likes of Mark McGwire and Lou Gehrig, it was a No. 9 hitter that took home the hardware.

Texas short stop Ron Gardenhire won the Most Valuable Player Award as the West held off the East to win the All-American Baseball League's inaugural All-Star Game 6-4.

"We gave the fans their money's worth," said Gardenhire (shown below). "It was great to win the game, and it was a great honor to be selected as MVP."

Gardenhire was 2-for-3 with a double and a triple. The Texas Longhorn short stop scored twice and drew a bases-loaded walk for his lone RBI.

The game saw the West build a large lead, only to have the East rally late to put the outcome in doubt until the final batter was retired.

The West took an early 1-0 lead when Gardenhire doubled off East starter Jim Beattie to lead off the third. After Beattie retired the next two hitters, West first baseman Bob Hamelin of UCLA singled home Gardenhire.

The East tied the game 1-1 when Sam Mele of Ivy homered off West starter Mark Prior of USC in the fifth inning.

"It was a big thrill to hit one out, especially in front of the home fans," said Mele.

Although the game was played in Ivy's Eagle Nest Park, the West was the home team due to a pre-game coin toss.

The West wound up making Prior the winner by scoring twice in the bottom of the fifth. Gardenhire tripled off losing pitcher Fred Beebe of Illinois. Gardenhire scored the lead run when Texas teammate Grady Hatton singled.

East manager Bob Seddon then pulled Beebe in favor of Florida State left-hander Craig Skok. Center fielder Fred Lynn of USC greeted Skok with a single. Skok, however, retired Hamelin on a fly out. Seddon then brought in Miami right-hander Alex Fernandez to McGwire of USC. McGwire singled to load the bases. Bob Horner of Arizona State drew a bases-loaded walk from Fernandez to give the West a 3-1 lead.. Fernandez then settled down to strike out Reggie Jackson (Arizona State) and got Jeff Kent (Cal) to fly out.

The West appeared to break the game open with a three-run seventh inning. All three runs were scored with two outs as Kent delivered an RBI single off Carl Lundgren of Illinois. Florida State right-hander Richie Lewis entered the game and promptly walked in two more runs.

"I really killed our chances," Lewis said.

Lewis's teammates, however, rallied for three runs in the top of the eighth inning. Minnesota catcher Dan Wilson started the rally by reaching on the game's only error (committed by Gardenhire). Illinois short stop Lou Boudreau followed with a single off Arizona State left-hander Floyd Bannister. After fouling off eight straight 3-2 pitches, Cap Anson of Notre Dame lined an RBI double to right. Anson had three hits in the game. Boudreau scored when Bannister uncorked a wild pitch. Ivy's Gehrig drove in the final East run with a ground out.

West manager Bobby Winkles of Arizona State pulled Bannister in favor of Trevor Hoffman, the Arizona Wildcat closer. Hoffman got the final two outs of the inning.

Stanford's Steve Chitren, the AABL leader with 22 saves, came on to set the East down in order to close out the game.

Linescore:
East 000 010 030 4 9 0
West 001 020 30x 6 10 1

Boxscore
East (AB-R-H-RBI)
Jennings 2-0-0-0
Boudreau 2-1-1-0
Anson 4-1-3-1
Gehrig 4-0-1-1
Clark 4-0-1-0
Thomas 4-0-1-0
Morris 4-0-0-0
Mele 4-1-2-1
Ad**** 2-0-0-0
Evers 2-0-0-0
Fabergas 2-0-0-0
Wilson 1-1-0-0
Blair 1-0-0-0

West
Hatton 3-1-1-1
Kemp 0-0-0-1
McDowell 0-0-0-0
Lynn 5-0-1-0
Hamelin 5-0-2-1
McGwire 3-1-1-0
Horner 4-0-1-1
Koy 0-0-0-0
Incaviglia 1-0-0-0
Jackson 2-1-1-0
Kent 4-1-1-1
Colbern 2-0-0-0
Boone 1-0-0-0
Gardenhire 3-2-2-1

East Pitchers (IP-H-R-ER-BB-K)

Beattie 3-3-1-1-2-0
Beebe, L 1-2-2-2-0-2
Skok 0.1-1-0-0-0-0
Fernandez 0.2-1-0-0-1-1
Broberg 1-0-0-0-1-1
Lundgren 0.2-3-3-3-1-1
Lewis 0-0-0-0-0-2-0
Innis 0.1-0-0-0-0-0
Radatz 1-0-0-0-0-1

West Pitchers (IP-H-R-ER-BB-K)
Prior, W 5-4-1-1-0-5
Mussina 1-2-0-0-0-0
Pugh 1-0-0-0-0-0
Bannister 0.1-3-3-2-0-0
Hoffman 0.2-0-0-0-0-1
Chitren, S 1-0-0-0-0-1

Doubles: Anson, Gardenhire
Triples: Gardenhire
Home Runs: Mele
Errors: Gardenhire
Attendance: 48,559

Diamond Notes: The AABL will resume play Sunday, July 4. Each home team will host a patriotic-themed celebration complete with fireworks . . . Bobby Winkles used nearly every West position player in the All-Star Game. Only Troy Glaus (UCLA) did not see action. West pitchers Jim Barr (USC), Paul Moskau (Arizona State) and Orval Overall (Cal) did not get into the game . . . the only East position players not to appear in the All-Star were Mark Gilbert (Florida State) and Adam Piatt (Mississippi State). Miami reliever Oscar Munoz was the lone East pitcher not to appear . . . USC center fielder saved at least three runs in the All-Star Game with two fine running catches . . . Illinois activated pitcher Jack Thies from the DL . . . Notre Dame activated pitcher Ed Reulbach from the DL . . . Miami called up catcher/designated hitter Mike Piazza from the minors. Piazza was hitting .427 with 11 home runs and 21 RBIs in his brief stint in Triple-A ball.[/I]

[batted balls]

Max Mercy, Jr. here again, folks . . .

Now that the All-American Baseball League has put its first All-Star Game into the books, Ole Max is going to give you all a heads-up on the season's second half.

First of all, most of us saw the West taking the East in the All-Star Game. Not many of us (save a grizzled old scribe) saw Texas short stop Ron Gardenhire winning the MVP.

As for the second half, was it me or was West All-Star manager Bobby Winkles of Arizona State trying to wear down Mark Prior of USC or what? Come on, who throws a pitcher five innings in an exhibition?! It will be interesting to see how Prior throws in his first outing in the July heat.

I, Max Mercy, Jr., have said this many times already but no one will stop Ivy from winning the East title. Bob Seddon's Eagles have it all--pitching, hitting, running and fielding. In addition, look for Eddie Collins to be a big second-half contributor.

Florida State is likely to fade. Can the Seminoles keep counting on Craig Skok to bail them out? Did anyone else notice how bad Skok and teammate Richie Lewis looked in the All-Star game? Just a sign of things to come, I say.

Illinois may stick around, but the Illini won't have the fight in them when it comes to catching Ivy. Their pitching is good and the longball seems to be their game.

Ole Max's biggest second-half surprises from out East? Watch Miami call-up Mike Piazza. Ole Max checked this kid out in Triple-A ball. The night Max saw him, this Italian stallion hit two homers, knocked in five runs and saved a kitten from a burning tree. Mark Max's words, Jorge Fabergas may have been an All-Star, but Mike Piazza will be a Hall of Famer!

Max's other Eastern surprise? Michigan State pitcher Mark Mulder. This kid is 3-1 since moving from the minors to the bullpen to the starting rotation. Yeah, the Spartans are bad, but this lefty is good.

Out West, Max still likes Southern Cal to overtake Arizona State. If Rod Dedeaux can ever get something out of his bullpen, the Trojan horses will catch and pass ASU. Mark Prior has been unbelievable. This guy is a horse. You never have to worry about an injury with this kid. His mechanics are incredible. Jim Barr and Barry Zito have been solid, but Tom Seaver and Steve Busby need to step it up. In fact, Ole Max would replace Busby with someone like that flame-throwing left-hander named Randy Johnson. The kid's hair is wild and so is his fastball, but he'd get the job done.

Arizona State is just so balanced and deep. The Sun Devils rank in the top four of nearly every offensive category. They rank fairly well in the pitching categories as well. Couple that with the fact that starter Craig Swan will be off the DL within a week or two. Heck, Ole Max is willing to bet their Triple-A team could finish ahead of San Diego State and maybe even Arizona and Cal State Fullerton.

As for Max's second-half Western specials, look for UCLA to continue its recent winning ways. Something is definitely Bruin' in LA. Closer Jim York is off the DL and back in the pen. Bill Bonham, Matt Young and Dave Schmidt have hit their stride (lefty Jim Parque should go however). The Bruin offense is getting quite, well, offensive. All-Stars Bob Hamelin and Troy Glaus are big time. Jackie Robinson and Chris Chambliss are getting it going. Yes, folks, mark my words, UCLA is G-O-O-D.

My other second-half surprise is that I'm going to take a hard look at San Diego State. Give Ole Max a few weeks and his keen eye may just be able to come up with a few suggestions to help Tony Gwynn's crew get at least a few more wins. Ole Max can't work too many miracles you know.

This is Max Mercy, Jr. signing off . . .

[pat]

I'm just wondering how are you going to handle the graduation of players? Have you changed their ages? That sounds a lot of work.

[batted balls]

Pat,

Good question. I see this as around a 10-year league. It's not being run as if players have only four years. It's just a league in which teams are based on the universities at which the players were collegiately. Thanks for your interest.

[batted balls]

July 12, 2006

Bristol, Conn.--Ivy right fielder Sam Mele captured Player of the Week honors as the Eagles continue to rule the All-American Baseball League East roost.

Mele, who has two hits in the recent AABL All-Star Game, batted .478 in the first week of the season's second half. The 6-foot-1 outfielder also drove home four runs to retake the East RBI lead from teammate Lou Gehrig (75-74).

"Sam is a worker," Ivy manager Bob Seddon said. "You know game in and game out Sam will give you his all. It's nice to see a hard worker like him get rewarded (with the Player of the Week)."

Mele (shown below) is fifth in the East with a .316 average. He has six home runs on the season.

The Eagles continue to lead the AABL East. Ivy, 60-29, holds an eight-game lead over second-place Florida State.

Diamond Notes: Miami's Pat Burrell has put together a 10-game hitting streak and raised his average to .248 . . . Miami also got pitcher Warren Bogle back from the disabled list. Bogle is 9-5 with 106 strikeouts, good for second in the East . . . Cap Anson of Notre Dame continues to lead the East with a .341 average, one point better than Ivy's Lou Gehrig . . . Lou Boudreau of Illinois took over the home run lead with his 13th longball . . . Carl Lundgren of Illinois and Pete Broberg of Ivy top the East with identical 12-5 records . . . Ed Pinnance of Michigan State temporarily derailed Ivy with a two-hit, 1-0 victory over the Eagles . . . Miami and Mississippi State are the East's hottest teams. Both clubs posted 7-3 records in the last 10 games.

Stat of the Week: Highly touted Miami prospect Mike Piazza is finding life in the AABL more difficult than expected. After tearing through three levels of the minors in just three months, Piazza made his AABL debut as the season's second half opened. It took Piazza seven games and 22 at-bats to get his first hit, a single off Clay Parker of LSU. Piazza is just 1-for-25 (.040) since being called up by the Hurricanes.

Standings
Ivy 60-29 --
Florida State 52-37 -8
Illinois 51-38 -9
Miami 50-39 -10
Michigan 47-42 -13
Mississippi State 46-43 -14
Notre Dame 38-51 -22
LSU 36-53 -24
Michigan State 36-53 -24
Minnesota 29-60 -31

[batted balls]

July 12, 2006

Berkley, Calif.--The Cal Golden Bears have lost closer Mike Cather for at least eight weeks with an injury.

Cather is sidelined with a pulled tricep muscle. He sustained the injury while pitching in a 3-2 loss at Cal State Fullerton. Cather, 2-1, had saved 14 games this season for the Golden Bears.

"Mike will be missed, that's for sure," said Cal manager Clint Evans. "We have to soldier on."

Evans indicated that left-hander Chuck Cary and right-hander Monte Pearson will likely share the closer role in Cather's absence.

Third baseman Earl Robinson was brought up from Triple-A to take Cather's roster spot.

"We need a bit more offense," said Evans. "Earl will help us in that department."


Diamond Notes: Arizona State infielder/designated hitter Hubie Brooks was named West Player of the Week. Brooks, who leads the West with 16 stolen bases, batted .516 for the week. In addition, Brooks (shown below) drove home 10 runs for the first-place Sun Devils and has an 11-game hitting string . . . Arizona State reliever Sean Lowe upped his record to 10-0 with a win against San Diego State . . . Fred Lynn of USC continues to lead the West in batting (.372) and runs scored (80) . . . Mark McGwire, second to Lynn in hitting with a .342 average, leads the West in OPS (1.203), home runs (37) and RBIs (93) . . . UCLA's Matt Young has won seven straight games to improve his record to 10-5. Young last lost a game on May 19 to Texas . . . Steve Chitren of Stanford recorded his 23rd save of the season July 11 against San Diego State . . . Arizona State has won six straight games . . . Oklahoma State is 7-3 in its last 10 games . . . Texas has lost six consecutive games.

Stat of the Week: Stanford teammates Mike Mussina (2.10) and Jim Lonborg (2.11) rank first and second respectively in ERA. Yet, due to poor run support Mussina is just 8-8 while Lonborg is 6-5.

Standings
Arizona State 63-26 --
Southern Cal 56-33 -7
Oklahoma State 51-38 -12
UCLA 51-43 -17
Stanford 44-45 -19
Texas 42-47 -21
Cal 41-48 -22
Cal State Fullerton 40-49 -23
Arizona 37-52 -26
San Diego State 25-64 -37

Stat of the Week:

[batted balls]

East Lansing, Mich.--Nobody's perfect but Illinois right-hander John Ericks should have been. Ericks threw 11 innings of perfect baseball against Michigan State, yet had to "settle" for a no-hitter.

"I feel terrible that we didn't score earlier in the game for him," said Illini teammate Lou Boudreau. "John should be in the record books with a perfect game."

Since neither team could score in nine innings, the game went into extra frames as the tension mounted on both sides.

"It was back-and-forth the whole way," said Michigan State catcher Bruce Look. "It was a terrific game to be part of, a terrible game to lose."

But lose the Spartans did as Ericks outdueled four Spartan pitchers--starter Mark Mulder and relievers Tim Crabtree, Dick Radatz and Don Gross to win 1-0. Radatz, 0-3, wound up as the game's loser when Scott Spiezio singled home pinch-runner Bob Burda with the game's only run in the top of the 12th.

"I've never throw the ball so well before," said Ericks following his 120-pitch, eight-strikeout performance. "I felt as if I could throw my fastball through a brick wall today. My off-speed pitches really had bite to them."

Ericks' bid for perfection ended when he walked Dick Billings on a 3-2 pitch to lead off the 12th inning. With the game still in doubt, Ericks next struck out Rob Ellis and got Nick Picciuto to ground into a game-ending double play.

"John was nearly flawless today," said Illinois manager Tom Dedin. "We may never see a performance like this again--ever."

Illini catcher Jake Stahl added, "In all years of playing ball, I've never seen anyone so dominant. The balls Michigan State put in play weren't hit hard at all."

The closest Michigan State came to a hit occured in the fifth inning when first baseman Steve Garvey drove a solid line drive into the right-center field gap. Illini right fielder George Halas was able to run down the ball and make the catch as he neared the warning track. Interestingly, Garvey broke up Neal Heaton of Miami's bid for a no-hitter in early June.

Ericks' masterpiece was the season's second no-hitter; the first came May 17 by Oklahoma State's Allie Reynolds against Cal State Fullerton.

Ericks has a 5-6 record on the season with a 2.84 ERA.

BOX SCORES Illinois @ Michigan State
Game #: 942, (GAME LOG) , Sunday, 7/18/2006


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 R H E
Illinois 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 8 0
Michigan State 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3



Illinois AB R H RBI BB K AVG HR RBI
B. Klaus 2B 6 0 1 0 0 1 .195 4 24
L. Boudreau SS 5 0 0 0 0 1 .275 13 51
D. Lenhardt 1B 5 0 1 0 0 1 .220 12 34
H. Evers CF 5 0 1 0 0 2 .288 11 52
J. Stahl C ,LF 4 0 1 0 0 0 .264 4 30
T. Fletcher PR 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0
B. Burda LF 0 1 0 0 1 0 .150 0 3
H. Plews DH 5 0 0 0 0 1 .282 6 49
M. Dalesandro LF 3 0 1 0 0 0 .252 4 21
F. Smykal PR 0 0 0 0 0 0 .171 0 3
G. Kolb RF 2 0 0 0 0 0 .283 0 5
S. Spiezio 3B 5 0 1 1 0 1 .236 5 19
G. Halas RF 2 0 1 0 0 0 .222 3 21
R. Novotney C 2 0 0 0 0 0 .270 6 32
D. Pall PR 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0
T. Haller C 1 0 1 0 0 0 .239 4 12
Totals 45 1 8 1 1 7

BATTING
Doubles: G. Halas (17, 3rd inning off Mulder, 0 on, 1 out.)
Runs Batted In: S. Spiezio (19)
Caught Stealing: H. Evers (1), F. Smykal (2)


Michigan State AB R H RBI BB K AVG HR RBI
D. Masteller 1B 4 0 0 0 0 1 .183 3 25
K. Gibson RF 4 0 0 0 0 1 .179 4 19
R. Miller DH 4 0 0 0 0 1 .278 6 33
B. Look C 4 0 0 0 0 0 .204 1 19
S. Garvey 3B 4 0 0 0 0 0 .233 2 29
I. Bartling SS 4 0 0 0 0 1 .175 5 26
D. Billings LF 3 0 0 0 1 1 .223 6 33
E. Pinnance PR 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0
R. Ellis CF 4 0 0 0 0 2 .181 4 22
N. Picciuto 2B 4 0 0 0 0 1 .141 0 7
Totals 35 0 0 0 1 8

BATTING

FIELDING
Errors: D. Masteller (9), S. Garvey (28), N. Picciuto (16)


Illinois IP H R ER BB K HR PI PS ERA RECORD
J. Ericks W 12 0 0 0 1 8 0 120 74 2.84 5-6

PITCHING
Batters Faced: J. Ericks 36
Ground Balls-Fly Balls: J. Ericks 12-15
Game Score: J. Ericks 109


Michigan State IP H R ER BB K HR PI PS ERA RECORD
M. Mulder 9 6 0 0 0 3 0 107 63 2.45
T. Crabtree 0.2 0 0 0 0 1 0 8 7 1.54
D. Radatz L 2 0 1 1 1 3 0 28 16 1.09 0-3
D. Gross 0.1 2 0 0 0 0 0 13 7 3.68

PITCHING
Batters Faced: M. Mulder 33, T. Crabtree 3, D. Radatz 7, D. Gross 3
Ground Balls-Fly Balls: M. Mulder 14-10, T. Crabtree 1-1, D. Radatz 3-0, D. Gross 1-0
Game Score: M. Mulder 78


GAME INFO
Time: 3:26
Attendance: 30105 (45000)
Weather: Clear skies (85 degrees), wind blowing right to left at 8 mph
PLAYER OF THE GAME: John Ericks (shown below)

[seth70liz76]

Hey, something to be proud of for the Illini as they slip into 4th!

[batted balls]

July 19, 2006

Bristol, Conn.--When All-American Baseball League founders decided to place the Ivy franchise in the same city as ESPN headquarters they figured it would be great for media exposure. Ivy first baseman Lou Gehrig is giving those media mavens quite a story to cover.

Gehrig (shown below) is vying to win the Triple Crown in the AABL East. To date, Gehrig leads the division in hitting with a .343 average, two points better than Cap Anson of Notre Dame. His 13 home runs tie him for the East lead with another Lou, Boudreau from Illinois. Gehrig's 80 RBIs are just two short of Ivy teammate Sam Mele's East-leading 82.

"I haven't thought about (winning the Triple Crown)," said Gehrig. "Right now our team is concerned with winning the East title."

Ivy has a stronghold on the East race. The Eagles' 62-33 record puts them seven games in front of Florida State and Illinois.

"Lou has been our rock all season long," said Ivy manager Bob Seddon. "It would be great if he could win the Triple Crown but Sam will have something to say about that."

Mele said, "There's so much season left to play. Things will take care of themselves."

Gehrig also leads the East in OPS (1.009) and stolen bases (11). His 69 runs scored ranks second only to teammate Hughie Jennings.

Diamond Notes: Illinois has pulled into a second-place tie with Florida State . . . Illini pitcher John Ericks is the East Player of the Week on the strength of his two victories, one of which was his 12-inning no-hitter at Michigan State . . . Pete Broberg of Ivy, Carl Lundgren of Illinois and Alex Fernandez of Miami share the East lead with 12 victories . . . Florida State's Craig Skok has reclaimed the save race with 25, three better than Dick Radatz of Michigan State . . . The news isn't all bad for Minnesota. Pitcher Bryan Hickerson has moved into third among East strikeout leaders with 104 Ks.

Stat 0f the Week: After going just 1-for-his-first-24, Miami's Mike Piazza has gotten hot. The catcher/designated hitter is 9-for-21 (.428) with two home runs and eight RBIs. Piazza hit his first homer off Mike Sirotka of LSU.

Standings
Ivy 62-33 --
Florida State 55-40 -7
Illinois 55-40 -7
Miami 54-41 -8
Michigan 50-45 -12
Mississippi State 47-48 -15
Notre Dame 43-52 -19
LSU 39-56 -23
Michigan State 38-57 -24
Minnesota 32-63 -30

[batted balls]

July 19, 2006

Tempe, Ariz.--Arizona State is intent on winning the All-American Baseball League West. The Sun Devils have lengthened thier lead on second-place Southern California to eight games.

"We're playing really well right now," said Sun Devil manager Bobby Winkles. "Our goal is to just keep winning series one at a time."

Arizona State has won four series in a row, including sweeps of San Diego State and Stanford. The Sun Devils are an AABL-best 67-28.

"This has been a fun year, but then again when you're winning it's always fun," said pitcher Craig Swan, who recently came off the disabled list.

While Hubie Brooks is the lone Arizona State player to lead any West category (with 16 stolen bases), the Sun Devils possess a balance often needed to win a title. Arizona State ranks no lower than fourth in any team offensive category while their pitching has been solid.

"On paper we may not have the glamour or appeal of other teams, but we know how to play the game and we execute," said Winkles.

Brooks said, "We just do what it takes to win."

Diamond Notes: Jason Bates of Arizona won his second Player of the Week award of the season by batting .500 with a home run and five RBIs in the past seven days . . . Bates' Wildcat teammate Trevor Hoffman (shown below) has tied Steve Chitren of Stanford by racking up his 24th save . . . Mark Prior of USC leads the AABL with 14 wins. Oval Overall of Cal and Barry Zito of USC have 11 victories . . . USC's Mark McGwire is closing in on the 100-RBI mark. McGwire leads the West with 96 runs driven in . . . USC placed starting pitcher Steve Busby (2-3, 6.38 ERA) on the disabled list with a sore back. Left-hander Bill "The Spaceman" Lee will take his spot in the Trojan rotation.

Stat of the Week: Only nine runners have attempted to steal with Stanford catcher Bob Boone behind the plate this season. Why? Boone has thrown out seven. That's an incredible 77.8%.

Standings
Arizona State 67-28 --
Southern California 59-36 -8
Oklahoma State 52-43 -15
UCLA 48-47 -19
Stanford 47-48 -20
Texas 46-49 -21
Cal 45-50 -22
Cal State Fullerton 43-52 -24
Arizona 41-54 -26
San Diego State 27-68 -40

[chilliputt]

GO CANES!!!! With Piazza coming on strong, I see a strong finish for the Canes. We are only 8 back and picking up steam.

Great work with the dynasty, keep it up.

[batted balls]

July 26, 2006

Miami, Fla.--With injuries felling three East players this week, the Miami Hurricanes moved into second place and are determined to make a race of the All-American Baseball League East.

While Minnesota lost outfielder Dave Winfield for two weeks and Michigan will be without outfielder Leon Roberts for the remainder of the season, the injury with perhaps the biggest impact on the pennant race involved Lou Boudreau of Illinois. Boudreau's injury, however, happened off the field. The Illini short stop hurt his right hand in an apparent fight at a Champaign bar and is listed as day-to-day by Illinois officials.

"We will confirm that Mr. Boudreau was injured in an altercation," said Champaign police offer William C. Lawler. "The nature of the incident will not be discussed at this time."

Eyewitnesses, however, indicate that Boudreau first got into a shoving match with another man around 11 p.m. Tuesday at a campus bar called Cam's. The shoving match quickly turned into a fistfight when the unidentified man threw a wild punch at Boudreau only to have the Illini player connect with a return punch.

"Lou clocked him good, one punch was all it took," said eyewitness and bar patron Timothy Ketchum.

That one punch may, however, be enough to either keep Boudreau (shown below) out of the Illinois lineup or certainly hinder his play. Neither Boudreau nor Illinois manager Tom Dedin was unavailable for comment at press time. Boudreau leads the East with 14 home runs. The Harvey, Illinois native is batting .271. His 58 RBIs rank third among AABL East leaders.

Miami, meanwhile, has overtaken Illinois and moved into second place in the East. The Hurricanes, 59-43, are six games behind first-place Ivy.

"We've played well and will be heard from in the second half," said Hurricane pitcher Alex Fernandez.

Diamond Notes: Alex Fernandez of Miami and Pete Broberg of Ivy top the East leaders with 13 wins apiece . . . Pitcher Steve Comer became the first Minnesota Golden Gopher to earn Player of the Week honors. Comer was 2-0 including a shutout of Michigan . . . Comer's teammate Dave Winfield suffered a pulled groin muscle and will likely miss two weeks . . . Michigan lost Leon Roberts for the season with a torn posterior cruciate ligament. Roberts was hitting just .219 with six homers and 41 RBIs. The Wolverines called up infielder Charlie Gehringer for the minors to take Roberts' roster spot . . . Cap Anson of Notre Dame has retaken the East batting race. Anson is batting .337 to Ivy's Lou Gehrig's .331 . . . Mississippi State's Will Clark has a 10-game hitting streak intact and has raised his average to .323 . . . Pitcher Ed Reulbach of Notre Dame is just 1-4 since returning from the disabled list earlier this month . . . Michigan's Steve Ontiveros tossed a one-hitter against arch-rival Michigan State.

Stat of the Week: Michigan State is batting an AABL-low .199 as a team. The Spartans have been no-hit once and one-hit twice this season.

Upcoming Key Series: Miami at Illinois, three games beginning July 31

Standings
Ivy 65-37 --
Miami 59-43 -6
Illinois 58-44 -7
Florida State 56-44 -9
Mississippi State 53-49 -12
Michigan 51-51 -14
Notre Dame 47-55 -18
LSU 43-59 -22
Michigan State 41-61 -24
Minnesota 37-65 -28