BB: LEC: Little East Conference

Started by Ralph Turner, February 11, 2006, 03:09:17 PM

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ECSUalum

I think DGilblair deserves a Karma point or 2 on his last post!!!!!!!

One comment to that next to last at bat,( where the Trinity player fouled off about 6-7 pitches.

The ball four was REEL close to being a strike, if i remember , and if called a strike, the Blue Jays are the National Champs.  The Bantams owe one to the Umpire behide home plate!!

ECSUalum

ralph,

Your a gentleman and a scholar!!!

On that ball 4 pitch, just based on the fact that the batter recieved 6-7 strikes, (and were fouled off), I would have maybe rung him up!!  I was watching this at bat.  Boy oh boy was that pitch close!!! Could have been called either way. I have seen a hell of a lot of balls farther out of the strike zone called strikes.

Not taking anything away from Trinity, as DGilblair stated, WOW what a year, put the 2008 Trophy was won by maybe 1/4 of an inch!!!! ;)

Just my thoughts

Ralph Turner

Quote from: ECSUalum on May 28, 2008, 10:51:38 AM
Ralph,

You're a gentleman and a scholar!!!

On that ball 4 pitch, just based on the fact that the batter received 6-7 strikes, (and were fouled off), I would have maybe rung him up!!  I was watching this at bat.  Boy oh boy was that pitch close!!! Could have been called either way. I have seen a hell of a lot of balls farther out of the strike zone called strikes.

Not taking anything away from Trinity, as DGilblair stated, WOW what a year, put the 2008 Trophy was won by maybe 1/4 of an inch!!!! ;)

Just my thoughts
Thanks, and karma delivered!

Ralph Turner

Quote from: ECSUalum on May 28, 2008, 10:51:38 AM
ralph,

Your a gentleman and a scholar!!!

On that ball 4 pitch, just based on the fact that the batter recieved 6-7 strikes, (and were fouled off), I would have maybe rung him up!!  I was watching this at bat.  Boy oh boy was that pitch close!!! Could have been called either way. I have seen a hell of a lot of balls farther out of the strike zone called strikes.

Not taking anything away from Trinity, as DGilblair stated, WOW what a year, put the 2008 Trophy was won by maybe 1/4 of an inch!!!! ;)

Just my thoughts
I was trying to edit a post and hit the wrong button.  Sorry!

Back to that thought on the batter that fouled off the 7 pitches, that occurred while I was out of the room working my day-job!

That batter made contact on those 7 pitches that he saw were strikes and fought them off.  He sees that last pitch.  It is not in "his strike zone".  He works that pitch for a "called" ball. (Was the fourth ball on the previous batter as "borderline" as well?)

I hate to put that one on the ump.  When you are painting the corners, it is tough to get every call, unless you are an MLB-quality control pitcher!

Thanks for the thoughts!

I think that New England baseball is so strong, because you don't have the D-1 wannabes and the D-2's that are soaking up the "marginal" pitching talent.  Look at the names of the D-I World Series teams playing in the Regionals.  There are 5-7 more teams in their home conferences just like them.  Do any of you northern or northeastern fans even know where those schools are located?   ;) Think of how many pitchers that have on their rosters sitting on the deep bullpen bench that would be weekend starters in D-III!

Every marginal kid that wants to play college ball in the South and West Regions is playing in some scholarship program, whether it is one of the "player-development" JUCO's that we have, or some D-1, D-2 or NAIA program.

As for the NESCAC talent, (I may be wrong, but I'll bet that) Chandler Barnard must have turned down marginal D-I and good D-II programs and chose Trinity CT over a Trinity TX or a Southwestern (which does not have football) for the academics.

On the one hand, the NESCAC's gritch and moan about their scholarship standards and recruiting inside them.  On the other hand, they are getting some kid like Chandler from Lubbock TX, who did not want to sit on the bench at a Texas D-II with a scholarship.  That is a whole 'nother level of talent and character!

Only crocodile tears here for Trinity!   ;)

Old Spartan

Quote from: ECSUalum on May 28, 2008, 10:39:09 AM
I think DGilblair deserves a Karma point or 2 on his last post!!!!!!!

One comment to that next to last at bat,( where the Trinity player fouled off about 6-7 pitches.

The ball four was REEL close to being a strike, if i remember , and if called a strike, the Blue Jays are the National Champs.  The Bantams owe one to the Umpire behide home plate!!

For the record, the last statement is not necessarily true.  If the umpire had called that a strike, the score would have been tied and it would have gone to extra innings.  Trinity had plenty of pitching in the tank.

OS

YagsUMB

Barnard actually went back to Texas for the fall semester this past year. He was at an NAIA school in Lubbock but decided to come back cause it wasn't a good fit for him. Turned out alright, I guess.

Some of these D-1 schools in NE are shaky at best. UHart is one that comes to mind as a school that recruits so much out of state that it hasn't been able to build a great reputation with local coaches. High school coaches in our area realize that a player has a better chance to develop and succeed if they go to Trinity, ECSU or UConn-Avery Point for that matter. We have a strong high school baseball conference in CT that has schools surrounding UHart, the northwest conference. The conference sends about 6-8 kids to D-1 programs each year with another 12-15 playing at other levels. (Berlin, Plainville, Northwest Catholic, East Catholic, have strong programs each year) Since I started playing in that conference in 98, I think UHart has only grabbed about 7 players from us and have never gone out of their way to build great relationships with the conference's best teams. The top level players go to UConn, CCSU, other NEC schools or down south, and it seems the next level end up at the D3 powers in NE. Players who can shake the stigma of playing at a non-scholarship school and focus strictly on their development often have as good of a chance as any to develop into good players. That, coupled with the NECBL being one of the best summer leagues that reaches out to all levels of college ball and you have a recipe for good D3 ball in the Northeast.

ECSUalum

Quote from: Old Spartan on May 28, 2008, 01:16:10 PM
Quote from: ECSUalum on May 28, 2008, 10:39:09 AM
I think DGilblair deserves a Karma point or 2 on his last post!!!!!!!

One comment to that next to last at bat,( where the Trinity player fouled off about 6-7 pitches.

The ball four was REEL close to being a strike, if i remember , and if called a strike, the Blue Jays are the National Champs.  The Bantams owe one to the Umpire behide home plate!!

For the record, the last statement is not necessarily true.  If the umpire had called that a strike, the score would have been tied and it would have gone to extra innings.  Trinity had plenty of pitching in the tank.

OS

Yea , I quess my memory failed, I thought he was the guy who walked in the tying run!!

Exactly, I think JH pitching was running on "fumes", so as you say the Bantams had a tank full of pitching, so it was most likely inevitable that JH would be defeated

Ralph Turner

Quote from: YagsUMB on May 28, 2008, 01:25:07 PM
Barnard actually went back to Texas for the fall semester this past year. He was at an NAIA school in Lubbock but decided to come back cause it wasn't a good fit for him. Turned out alright, I guess. ...

I remember that.  Lubbock Christian University is NAIA-1, scholarship.  They won the very competitive Sooner AC but lost in the Region VI tourney to Oklahoma City which still alive in Lewiston ID.

See!  He went for the academics over the athletic scholarship.  I know that the ASC and SCAC schools would have taken him!

TRhit

yags


I do not see it as a stigma playing at non scholarship schools---the majority of players are not going pro anyway, not to say that a non scholarship players cannot be drafted because it does happen, so why not go to a school where they get academic money . grants etc play great baseball and get a great education.

With the new Division I rules I think we will see more and more good players going to the D-II and D-III levels

Incidently Pat Steffee  JHU RHP who started the title game had Division I opportunities but chose JHU

Kent Graham , Trinity, also had Division I situations but chose Trinity and I do not think he is sorry with his choice

Both of these fine young men played with us on our travel team

dgilblair

Quote from: ECSUalum on May 28, 2008, 10:39:09 AM
I think DGilblair deserves a Karma point or 2 on his last post!!!!!!!

One comment to that next to last at bat,( where the Trinity player fouled off about 6-7 pitches.

The ball four was REEL close to being a strike, if i remember , and if called a strike, the Blue Jays are the National Champs.  The Bantams owe one to the Umpire behide home plate!!

Thanks for the plug there ECSUalum. If messing up and saying stupid stuff is good for karma I should have a lot more than I do.  I did misremember there I guess but at least I had it partly correct, I think, didn't I.......

dgilblair

Quote from: TRhit on May 29, 2008, 05:24:43 PM
yags


I do not see it as a stigma playing at non scholarship schools---the majority of players are not going pro anyway, not to say that a non scholarship players cannot be drafted because it does happen, so why not go to a school where they get academic money . grants etc play great baseball and get a great education.

With the new Division I rules I think we will see more and more good players going to the D-II and D-III levels

Incidently Pat Steffee  JHU RHP who started the title game had Division I opportunities but chose JHU

Kent Graham , Trinity, also had Division I situations but chose Trinity and I do not think he is sorry with his choice

Both of these fine young men played with us on our travel team


Not that I'm sticking up for Yags but, correct me if I'm wrong, when he refers to stigma I thing he is suggesting ego of the young high school kid.  If you are a excellent high school player and the kids know who is who in the surrounding towns that stretch many miles.  There are write ups in the papers about this kid going this DI school with a ride and that kid going to that school.  So for one of those kids to turn down a DI DII school and playing at a DIII would take getting over that teenage ego/stigma.  Now thats just what I was thinking when I read Yags post.  I may be wrong.

There could be other reasons as well.  Playing time can figure into the process of DI, DII or DIII.  With the chance of making it to the big show so small you may as well play for four years in college if you can. A kid may turn down a free ride at a DI or DII school to be closer to home.  It could be that the kid wants to go to the DIII school because he knows he will have a good chance to play in Appleton for something that really matters.  Lots of things can figure into a kids choice of schools.  As in many cases it is academics when you choose a school like Trinity.

YagsUMB

You got me DGilblair.

I'm sure a there are a fair share of ball players who chose academics over a school like CCSU or Hartford, but those kids may also have the money to go to a school like Trinty or Johns Hopkins. Not all of them, but I think most would have to come from wealthy families in order to turn down money from a low D1, D2 in order to go with an academic point of view. Some players might recieve financial aid packages but I know for a fact that 85 percent or more of the Trinity players are paying full tuition. Baseball has become somewhat of an "upper class" sport anyhow.

The inner cities don't produce the same amount of players as they used to and it shows in the demographic that are playing in the majors, not counting latin american players. I think this is terrible for the game and there has to be more of an effort to revive baseball in the inner cities (RBI program tries but not enough people know about it). If you want to torture yourself go watch a high school baseball game in Hartford, New Haven or Bridgeport. Inner city Boston is horrendous as well. There are so many black athletes who don't even think about playing baseball, and they are leaving money on the table. It has to start earlier in little leagues and camps in these cities. Something has to give. I don't know how the hell I got off on that rant?
DGilblair got my original point.

cutter

ECSU, you are correct...the boarderline pitch was on the tying run...in fact, about half the hopkins bench was already out on the field thinking they had the K and the title!!  The winning run came on 4 pitches that really weren't all that close...

Old Spartan

Quote from: cutter on May 29, 2008, 11:21:42 PM
ECSU, you are correct...the boarderline pitch was on the tying run...in fact, about half the hopkins bench was already out on the field thinking they had the K and the title!!  The winning run came on 4 pitches that really weren't all that close...

I may be blind, but was at the game.  I believe that the facts are the reverse.  The at bat with all the foul balls was without question the one with the walk that resulted in the wining run.  There was one close ball/strike call there.  The previous at bat, the walk that resulted in the tying run, did not have close judgement calls and I am not sure there was even a strike thrown.

ECSUalum

Old Spartan you are correct!

I reviewed the box score and Trinity's Sullivan walked to force in the tie and Goglettino, who had that great at bat fouling off 6-7 piches was walked forcing in the winning run.  A strike out of Goglettino would have mearly forced the game into extra innings, as I believe there were two outs.

Sorry for the confusion, it was such an exciting game my memory fried.