Christian Walker All Star Baseball Academy Alumnus and National Champion!!

Christian Walker

Star Freshman

University of South Carolina

The staff at All Star Baseball Academy would like to congratulate Christian Walker and the University of South Carolina for winning the 2010 National Championship.  Christian is the 1^st All Star Baseball Academy  alumnus to win a National Championship.  He joins fellow alumni Phil Gosselin (UVA) and John Barr (UVA) as College World Series participants. Christian has been a part of All Star Baseball Academy since 1999. It has been an honor to watch him grow from a Little League Star to National Champion! Christian was named to the All College World Series Team on Tuesday and was also honored by being named to the 1^st Team All SEC Freshman.

He played first base for the champion Gamecocks , who defeated UCLA in the CWS best of three finals. Christian played for Kennedy Kenrick HS before taking his talents to South Carolina.  Way to go, Christian!

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ALL STAR BASEBALL PLAYER/TEAM OF THE WEEK

All Star Baseball Academy is pleased to announce our Player of the Week Award, and also recognize the players who have been nominated by their coaches:

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:


NICK SARGENT, BRANDYWINE LL TOURNAMENT TEAM

Nick Sargent has been named the Player of the Week for helping his Brandywine 10U tournament team win its first playoff game last week.  Nick threw 71 pitches in a 6 inning complete game shutout in the Delaware District 2 all star tournament for 10 year olds.

Also Nominated : 

Jared Morris—Springfield, 10 year old all star hitter and pitcher.  Jared is averaging over 3 hits per game, and won all star pitcher and hitter awards in his team’s last tournament.

Mike McKnight—Westtown Prep Legion shortstop and pitcher.  Mike pitched 6 effective innings last weekend, giving up only 1 run to a tough Downingtown Gold team in a 15-1 win.  The week before, Downingtown had defeated Westtown, 10-0.

 ALL STAR BASEBALL TEAM OF THE WEEK:

 

 WESTTOWN PREP LEGION TEAM (13 YEAR OLDS)

By winning 7 of its last 10 games and moving over the .500 mark for the first time all year, the Westtown Prep Legion team has won the Team of the Week award.  The team improved to 8-7 after two big wins last weekend.

“Our team’s surge back into the playoff hunt has been a total team effort,” said first-year coach Andrew Ellis of West Chester.   “The players all support each other and win with class.  The Westtown Legion program has a lot to look forward to in the coming years.”

Starring for the Prep Legion team have been Brendan Inglis, Charlie Concannon, Korey Leidheiser, Andrew Chobany, Joe Tomlin, David Rodgers, and Phil Vecchiolli.  Mike McKnight, Brendan Reichart, and Matt Coates have also been sparkplugs for the team this year.

Congratulations to all of our weekly winners!  Look for Player and Team of the Week updates every week on our ASBA Blog!!

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Pierce Greenleaf's ASBA 14U Team BLOG-- Week #3

Hey everyone, my name is Pierce Greenleaf. I play for the 14U All Star Baseball Academy team. I have been playing for ASBA, summer and fall, since I was 11, but we were called the Blue Claws then.  I was given the chance to write about our ASBA Downingtown summer team and report about both the serious and funny events of our season. 

Here is my third weekly report on our summer ASBA team:

On Saturday, June 26, our All Star team played the 16U Crawdads team.  I do not believe that anyone expected us to do well at all.  We ended up losing 6-2, which was amazing because they were very good.  I started the game on the mound and did pretty well except that I gave up a 350 ft home run.  After that, Costa and Tony came in to pitch and did really well.  We did not hit well, but their pitchers were throwing very hard.  

On Tuesday, June 29, we played the Carolina team in our EBYA League.  We finally started hitting and we won 11-6.  This game our pitching was really good, but we had some mental and physical errors.  Doesn’t matter though because we won, finally!  The funny thing is the last time we played that team, their pitcher gave up no runs, but this time around we got 7 runs off of him.  Although we didn’t hit really well, the other team just had fielding errors.  It was nice that the other team helped us out for once! Our hitting is starting to come around and this looks like a good sign for us.  Hopefully we continue hitting and win a few ball games in the future.

Baseball Tip of the Week:  

Focus on the positive, not the negative.
Focus on the present, not the past.
Focus on the process and execution, not the result or winning the approval of others.

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“THE HOT CORNER” with Ken Leidheiser

In the coming weeks, ASBA will highlight several of our popular instructors who are starring in the minor leagues or independent leagues across the country.  This second feature spotlights Scott Grimes, who has given instruction at the Downingtown facility over his off-seasons.

ASBA INSTRUCTOR SCOTT GRIMES STARRING

FOR YORK IN THE ATLANTIC LEAGUE

           

                           Scott Grimes, Leading Off                                    Scott Grimes, York

Now in his 6^th pro baseball season, Scott Grimes of Kennett Square is having one of his best years yet.  Playing centerfield and leading off for the York (PA) Revolution in the Atlantic League, Grimes is hitting for both average and power, with a .310 batting average and a .491 slugging percentage.

Grimes, a popular instructor at All Star Baseball’s Downingtown facility in the off-season, has worked hard on his game and it is paying nice dividends in 2010.

“This has been a very good year so far and I really enjoy playing in York in a competitive Independent League,” said Scott.  “York finished dead last in the Atlantic League last year, but changed the roster a lot.  Now the team is much better and we’re playing hard and sitting in first place.  This is my first year in York and it’s going great so far.”

Grimes played high school ball for Kennett HS before taking his skills to Keystone College in Scranton, where he starred as a middle infielder and an outfielder.  He was undrafted out of high school and college but wanted to continue to pursue his dream of playing pro baseball.

“I made the move to the outfield before my senior year in college and it has paid off,” noted Grimes.  “I’m now playing centerfield and leading off for York.  I’m getting a lot of at bats and I’m able to use my speed at the top of the order.”

In 2008, Grimes was named Player of the Year in the independent Can-Am League, as he hit .365 for Worcester with 21 HR’s and 17 steals.  He was then signed by the Mets organization and played for Brooklyn (Class A) and for the Mets’ rookie team in the Gulf Coast League before being released.  York was happy to sign him to a contract for 2010.

The York squad leads the Atlantic League’s Freedom Division with a 34-25 record and is 7-3 in its last 10 games.  Grimes, a 6-0, 200 pounder, has been a spark for the Revolution with 14 doubles, 2 triples, and 7 homers.  He also has scored 57 runs in just 57 games.

“I take pride in being a well-rounded player and I try to be a 5-tool player,” said Scott.  “That’s what everybody is looking for.  I work hard at all aspects of my game, offense, defense and base running, and try to make myself better in each of those areas.”

In a recent 20-2 romp over the Lancaster Barnstomers, Grimes went 6-7 with 2 homers, a double and 6 RBI’s.  He has been on a hot streak of late.  In Tuesday’s win over Somerset, he went 3-5 with a triple and another HR.

“I’m finding the holes,” chuckled Grimes.  “I’m working hard at improving my game and things are working out well right now.  There’s a long way to go in our season but we are enjoying a successful year so far and I’m excited about our team and how we’re doing.”

Grimes also hopes that the major league scouts are keeping on him with the type of year he is producing.  For now, his family is enjoying the trips to York, Lancaster, and Camden to watch him star in the Atlantic League, as he sparks the York Revolution night after night.

 To follow Scott Grimes this season, go to:  www.yorkrevolution.com

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ALL STAR BASEBALL PLAYER/TEAM OF THE WEEK

ALL STAR BASEBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

All Star Baseball Academy is pleased to announce our Player of the Week Award, and also recognize the players who have been nominated by their coaches:

PLAYER OF THE WEEK—PATRICK FAGAN, 13U ASBA TEAM, WEST CHESTER

Patrick Fagan has been named Player of the Week for helping his 13U ASBA team to a 2-1 record at the Ripken Complex in Aberdeen, MD last weekend.  Patrick pitched a complete game shutout in game #2 last Saturday, allowing only 2 hits while walking one and fanning two hitters.  He needed only 75 pitches to get the shutout win.

Also Nominated:  Top pitchers from the 14U Downingtown team, including Anthony Cacchione (4 IP, 3 K’s, 0 ER), Andrew Nichols (3 IP, 2 K’s, 0 ER), and Sean Deely (2 IP, 1 K, 0 ER).  Head Coach Keith Falcone praised all of his pitchers for great performances last weekend.

ALL STAR BASEBALL TEAM OF THE WEEK   

 ASBA WEST CHESTER 13U TEAM

By winning its last 2 games and coming back from a 7-1 deficit in the third game, the West Chester 13U team has been named the ASBA Team of the Week.

The team lost 10-4 on Saturday morning before winning 3-0 and 9-8 in the Fathers Day Tournament at the Ripken Complex in MD.  Patrick Fagan and Chris Salvey were strong on the mound, with Salvey protecting a lead in the final game against an undefeated Starz team.

Austin Klenotiz, Nick Cambria, Daniel (Shoop) Shupper, and Korey Leidheiser all had 3 hits over the weekend for the ASBA squad.

Head Coach Kirk Wunderlich said, “The kids played hard and never gave up.  They kept their heads high all weekend.  It’s easy to get down on yourself when you are losing 7-1 (to the Arena Starz), but these guys clawed their way back for a nice victory.”

Congratulations to all of our weekly winners!  Look for Player and Team of the Week updates every week on our ASBA Blog!!

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AREA YOUTH LEAGUE SPOTLIGHT!

Below are summaries and highlights from local Youth League games played over the past week:

ROCKHOUNDS RALLY TO WIN URA MINORS TITLE --

In the URA (Unionville) Minors last week, the Rockhounds rallied from the losers bracket to take the title over the Knights, 9-4 and 4-1.  The Rockhounds had lost to the Knights in the first round of the double elimination tourney, 9-3, but then got red-hot behind the play of Paul Malone, JT Hower, and Jason Moore to win the championship.

Manager Jay Moore was happy with his team’s effort.  “It was a strong defensive performance by our kids that made the difference today.  And everyone contributed at the plate too,” he noted.

Malone got the win on the mound in the 9-4 win and had a double with 2 RBI’s.  Foster Loyer was 2-3 with 2 runs scored and Hower was 2-3 with 3 RBI’s.  Jason Moore was 1-3 with a big double and Justin McLellen also contributed at the plate.  Robbie Schofield came on in relief and got the final outs for the Hounds.

For the Knights, Jack Adams and Theron Schilling had a great series, both at the plate and with their stellar defense and pitching.

FOR A SLIDE SHOW OF THE ROCKHOUNDS’ TITLE, SEE POST BELOW!!

EAST SIDE LL MAJORS ANNOUNCES TOURNAMENT TEAMS--

East Side LL announced its 12 year old tournament teams last week:

Vaughn Chambers, Braves

NATIONAL DIVISION:  A-Jon Construction-- Vaughn Chambers, Owen Hovick; GSA—TJ Booth, Kevin Singer; Hegarty Maintenance—Perry Cozzone, Jacob Rice, Patrick Durant;  WHW Construction—Chris Heilman, Ryan Loucks, Conor McGinnis; Carman Auto—Andrew Coleman; Goshen Optimist—Brian Boyle. 

Chris Heilman, A's

AMERICAN DIVISION:  A-Jon Construction—Tyler Johnson; AUI—Steven Dewitt; Hegarty Maintenance—Michael Sprague; John Smith Auto—Eddie Fordyce, Shane Metzger, Jimmy Muscarella, Tyler Ramierz; McDonalds—Luke McCartney; Moulton Davis—Chris Greim, Ryan Tench; Optimist—Kevin McKeighan; WHW Construction—Doug Costin.

1B Conor McGinnis and P Doug Costin, A's

EAST SIDE “BAT-A-THON” WINNERS—ESLL VP and Majors Director Perry Cozzone announced that the recent Bat-A-Thon raised nearly $20,000 for the league’s field acquisition fund.  Winning sluggers were Jimmy Muscarella (121 points, 8 HR), Perry Cozzone Jr. (120 pts, 6 HR), Shane Metzger (104 pts, 5 HR) and Vaughn Chambers (99 pts, 4 HR).

YANKEES TOP GIANTS IN NEWTOWN EDGMONT ROUND ROBIN PLAY—

In the 11-12 year old Newtown Edgmont Majors, the Yankees stormed past the Giants last week, 7-2.  Dan Duffy did a great job on the mound for the Yankees and got the win.  Big hitters were Bobby Halligan (double and RBI) and Sean Clinton (double and 2 runs scored) for the winners.

“I’m real happy to get the win, and we had great pitching performances, “ said winning manager Dan Duffy.  “We knew we had to bring our best game to beat the Giants, as they were at the top of our league standings next to the A’s.”

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Look for more Youth League game summaries and features in the coming weeks on the new ASBA Blog!!  To submit your league summaries or action photos of your games, please contact Ken Leidheiser at ken@allstarbaseballacademy.com.  We want to hear from you and your  league!

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2010 Rockhounds Champs Video

Free slideshow generated with Smilebox

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Pierce Greenleaf's ASBA 14U Team BLOG-- Week #2

Hey everyone, my name is Pierce Greenleaf. I play for the 14U All Star Baseball Academy team. I have been playing for ASBA, summer and fall, since I was 11, but we were called the Blue Claws then.  I was given the chance to write about our ASBA Downingtown summer team and report about both the serious and funny events of our season. 

Here is my second weekly report on our summer team: 

My ASBA 14U team traveled all the way to Virginia for our tournament last weekend.  The trip took around five hours one way and was a physically draining ride for everyone, especially the parents.  The tournament was called the Virginia Open State Champions, so that would explain why a lot of the kids were big.  Our first game, at 5 o’clock, was against the IYG Spiders and after the first two innings, thunderstorms came into the area. The game was delayed for about 45 minutes.  During those first two innings, we were hitting the ball and fielding the ball very well.  But the other team had added players from their 15U team for this tournament and one of them came into pitch in relief.  After that, our bats were silent and our fielding went out the door. We lost 8-2. 

Our next game was 30 minutes afterwards and we played under the lights against the Diamond Longhorns.  The first inning was a carry-over of the first game and we went up by four runs.  Just like the first game, we hit horribly.  I think we got 2 hits, maybe.  The umpires at that game were very picky.  I got called for a balk on a third to first move because my foot never came off the rubber. Our coach, Keith Falcone, was not happy at all about that call, but we didn’t hit at all so Keith was more upset about that than the balk.  We lost 10-1. 

On Sunday, we played at 10:15.  We had a shaky first inning, but got through it.  Our bats showed signs of waking up for a moment, but after the first three innings, we didn’t get one hit. This game, we didn't field the ball or  throw strikes, and we ended up losing 8-2.  This past weekend, we looked like the Phillies up to bat, couldn’t throw strikes, and could not field the ball.  I hope that this poor play is now out of our systems, so we can move on and win a few games.  Our team's attitude is still positive and I'm looking to do my part to pull us out of this little slump.  The Phillies can do it and so can we!

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ASBA Player/Team of the Week

   

ALL STAR BASEBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

All Star Baseball Academy is pleased to announce our Player of the Week Award, and also recognize the players who have been nominated by their coaches:

PLAYER OF THE WEEK—RYAN HISSEY, 16U ASBA Futures Team

Ryan went 4 for 7 with 3 RBI’s for his 16U team last weekend in the University of Delaware 18U Tournament.  He also threw out 3 base runners trying to steal from his catcher position.  A West Chester resident, Ryan attends Unionville HS.

“In the two games that he was behind the plate for us in the 18U tournament, Ryan was definitely the best catcher on the field,” said Coach Steve Van Note.  “When we were having a long inning and needed an out, Ryan picked us up by throwing out a base stealer and he also picked a runner off on the bases.  With his hitting, Ryan also had a super weekend for us.”

Also Nominated:  Aston’s Ron Scull of the 16U Futures Team (super pitching, 1 earned run over 6 innings in U of DE Tournament) and Jack O’Reilly, no-hitter and hot bat for the 9U Broomall team in the Sports At The Beach Tournament last weekend.

  

ALL STAR BASEBALL TEAM OF THE WEEK   

 

TEAM OF THE WEEK – ASBA BROOMALL 9U TEAM

The Broomall 9U team finished with a 4-1 record and the runner-up trophy in the “Road Trip Frenzy” Tournament at the Sports at the Beach complex in Rehobeth Beach, DE last weekend.

Jack O’Reilly pitched a no-hitter for the Broomall squad, which played great as a team all weekend long.

Congratulations to all of our weekly winners!  Look for Player and Team of the Week updates every week on our ASBA Blog!!

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Area LITTLE LEAGUE SPOTLIGHT!

Below are summaries and highlights from local Little League games played over the past several days:

NEWTOWN EDGMONT GIANTS TOPPLE REDS IN MAJORS ACTION--

In the Newtown Edgmont Little League last week, the Giants knocked off the Reds in the Majors Division (11 and 12 year olds) by a score of 7-4.

Tony Gallo was the winning pitcher for the Giants, while Jake Donnell pitched well for the Reds in the loss.  Big hitters for the Giants were Matt Mulligan (triple) and Jimmy Luke with a 2-run homer for the winners.  With the win, the Giants held onto the fourth place slot in the Majors standings, with the Tigers, Yankees, and Cubs leading the division.

    “Playing here is really fun because we have nice fields and we can play under the lights” said Matt Mulligan of the Giants.  “The announcer (at Newtown Edgmont’s nice field) makes the games more fun, too!”

CARDINALS REMAIN RED-HOT IN EAST SIDE LL MAJORS PLAY--

The Hegarty Maintenance Cardinals are still undefeated and red-hot in East Side LL action after 3 more wins this weekend.  The Cardinals are now 19-0 in the ESLL Majors and have clinched first place in the National Division.

The Cardinals started off their winning weekend with a big win over the Orioles on Friday night, 27-4.  Perry Cozzone Jr., Jake Rice and Pat Durant combined on the mound for the winners and had 11 K’s among them.  Pat Durant had a huge night at the plate with a 7-7 game including 3 doubles and a home run.

Also hitting well were Cozzone with 4 hits and 8 RBI, Michael Sprague (4-5), and Tommy Wolfe (2-3 with 5 runs scored).  Cozzone ripped 2 home runs in the game for the Cards.

Head Coach Mike Sprague said, “A willingness to work hard and an enthusiasm for the game are at the core of what these boys have done to this point.”

Assistant Coach Perry Cozzone was happy with the whole team afterward and repeated his team’s winning motto in 2010:  “Nothing good happens without positive energy and enthusiasm,” he said.

In the American Division the Moulton Davis White Sox are ahead of a tight pack at 13-7.

WHW, John Smith, and the Carman Yankees are all knotted together with records of 11-8 and 11-9.  Chris Heilman and Ryan Loucks have starred for the WHW A’s.  The top 3 teams from each division make the playoffs in the ESLL Majors, with the first place teams (White Sox and Cardinals) getting a first round bye.

RAYS STING DODGERS IN WEST SIDE LL JUNIOR PLAY, 5-3—

In the 8-9 year old “Kids Pitch” Division, the Rays slid past the Dodgers last week, 5-3, in West Side LL action. 

Mike McGee, with 2 innings pitched and 4 K’s, was the winning hurler for the Rays while Ryan Swanson was the top slugger for the winners, with a 2-3 day including a triple of 2 RBI.

For the Dodgers, Kevin Shleton was 2-2 with two singles.  The Rays stayed in third place in the standings with the win.  The Reds are at the top of the leader board in the West Side LL division.

     “Having our lefty Mike McGee come into the game strong was a great start for us,” noted winning Manager Chris McGee.  “He was able to shut the hitters down and that set the pace for the game and for the rest of the team to follow.”

     “I felt great and was throwing hard enough that the hitters couldn’t make good contact off me,” said Mike McGee after the game.  “I felt really good out on the mound.”

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  Look for more Little League game summaries and features in the coming weeks on the new ASBA Blog!!  To submit your league summaries or action photos of your games, please contact Ken Leidheiser at ken@allstarbaseballacademy.com.  We want to hear from you and your Little League.

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