jpa2825

Wasn't there, but here is the report I got: #7 Miller pitched for BW -Birds strand 2 on 2 hits T1. -Tigers get a hit but erased on a 6-4-3 DP B1. -Birds stand 2 on a walk, sac & hit T2. -Tigers strand 1 on an E (SB & advanced to 3B on an error w/ 1 out). -SR Allen led off T3 w/ a triple (probably could / should have been a single but OF let it get by). JR Ramey doubled. Whitford to 3B. Whitford scores on sac fly by SR Vermeil. JR Ball lays down suicide squeeze & reaches 1B. Ramey scores. 3-0 Birds. -Tigers score 2 B3 on BB, FC, HBP, HBP & single by Combs. -After an out, JR Murray is HBP and then scores on single by Allen. Whitford reaches on OF error. Ramey walks to load bases. Bankamper relieves Miller. Backwards K & ground out end the inning. Lost opportunity. 4-2 Birds. -Tigers go 123 B4. -Birds go 123 T5 -Murray makes great catch in LF to get 1st out. Suchanek singles. Ground out for 2nd out. Combs, Slusher & Schmidt walk to bring in a run. JR Martin relievess SR Cochran. Booth singles in 2. Another run scores on 4-3 force out. Rundle singles home Booth. 7-4 Tigers B5. -Murray walks to lead of T6. Allen is HBP. K, pop out, fly out. 2 more runner LOB. -Tigers go 123 B6 -Nussbaum relieves Bankamper T7. Ball walks. Pop out. Martin singles. JR Veneman singles. Bases loaded w/ 1 out. Line drive & ground out end the game. 3 more runners LOB.

Glad to see this recognition. Kid does things that are hard and makes them look easy. Congrats.

Birds were down 4-1 after 3 (I think). Rallied to down 4-3. JR Veneman with a 2 run triple to put the Birds on top. JR Whitford launched a solo HR in the Top of the 7th to continue his torrid hitting. JR Martin pitched great in relief. JR Noe started and I did not get a report of how he pitched. Birds started without JR Whitford, JR Hennigan, JR Murray and perhaps others in the lineup. As indicated, they were worked in during the game. State Champion Central Hardin next up on SAT in Louisville.

Runners on 1B & 3B. 1 out. Batter hits deep ball to LF that is caught in foul territory. Runner on 3B tags & scores. Runner on 1B thinks it is going to be fair and is trying to score from 1st. He is well past 2B by the time he realizes the ball has been caught. LF throws to SS who throws to 1B who runs over and touches the bag before the runner on 1B can get back to the bag. Runner from 3B clearly crosses home plate before 1B touches the bag to record the 3rd out. Does the run count?

Good environment and a competitive game (if not crisply played). Birds squandered some early chances to blow the game wide open in the 1st few innings and NewCath made them pay for letting them hang around. Birds responded immediately and continued to add on. Nice response by both teams to adversity. SR Cochran pitched better than his line. A few errors behind him and failing to close out some batters when 0-2 or otherwise ahead in the count didn't help. JR Bunning was outstanding in a pressure situation in the 5th. All of the momentum was on NewCath's side after scoring 4 runs and having the bases loaded. Bunning kept pounding the zone to make sure Bartels did not get the free pass and go-ahead RBI. Great AB by Bartels to extend it to 10 pitches. A perfect example of an individual battle within the overall game that HHS won. Great OF plays by JR Murray in LF and JR Veneman in CF. Veneman not only has great speed, but seems to have good instincts on the ball off the bat. Remember what Harry Kalas used to say about Gary Maddox (born in Cincinnati)? ("Two-thirds of the Earth is covered by water, the other one-third is covered by Garry Maddox.") Same applies to Veneman. Assuming Bellevue and HHS take care of their business against Newport and Dayton, sets up a huge game for the #1 seed in the District Tourney. Game will be played at Highland Park on May 9th at 5:00 PM. It will be Senior Day & Fan Appreciation Day. Get there early or park at the swim club and walk up!!!

District seeding game on WED at 5:00 PM at Morscher Field No idea who will pitch for NewCath. SR Vermeil is unavailable for HHS. JR Bunning pitched last THU and SR Cochran & JR Martin both pitched a bit on WED, 4.16 against Dixie and on SAT against Tates Creek. All should be available, if needed.

If you want to see Highlands play, follow @HHSDirtyBirds on Twitter. It will keep you updated. That said, scheduling, particularly this spring, is a nightmare.

Birds scratch 2 runs off LaCorte and make it stand up. SR Vermeil started for the Birds and was solid for 6+ innings, giving up only 1 hit and 0 runs. St. Henry's only hit through 6 was an attempted sac bunt in the 1st inning (after HBP to the leadoff guy) that landed between 3B and P. I think St. Henry had bases loaded in the 1st w/ 0 out. I know the inning ended on a nice 6-3 DP where JR Whitford ranged to his left, reached back to tag 2B and threw onto 1B. In fact, game ended on a 6 unassisted DP with runners at 2B and 3B on a hard line drive to Whitford's left that he stabbed and touched 2B. Whitford (2-3) figured in the HHS scoring as well. After a single and SB, Whitford was running on a hard grounder to SS by JR Ball. Ball was thrown out at 1B but Whitford barely broke stride to score. Birds scored their other run on a 2 out, 2 strike single over 1B by SR Allen (2-3) to score JR Veneman who singled and stole 2B. Birds played solid defense behind Vermeil who kept St. Henry off balance with a good mix of fastballs and off speed pitches. Several fly ball outs. Birds next face what will be a hungry NCC team on WED at Morscher in a district seeding game.

Birds drop another close one 5-4 in the nightcap of the opening night of the Harrison Co. Tournament. JR Bunning pitched for HHS and went 4 2/3. Strong through the 1st 3, some bumps to give up 1 in the 4th and then gave up 3 in the 5th. Key hit was a 2 out single to plate the last 2 runs. Control is a key for Bunning. When pitching ahead in the 1st 3 innings, he kept his pitch count down and EJ off the board. Some wildness in the 4th and 5th opened up some doors. Credit to EJ for knocking the door down. JR Noe pitched 1 1/3 scoreless. SR Vermeil gave up 1 in the top of the 7th. Birds got 1 in the bottom of the 4th to answer EJ. 5th - 7th were the deciders. 5th - JR Murray and SR Allen 1st & 3rd w/ nobody out. (Can't remember how Murray got on, but Allen singled.) JR Whitford (who was 2-4 w/ several very strong ABs) bounced into a tailor made 6-4-3. Birds only get 1 run. 4-2 EJ. 6th - JR Mills got to 2B (not sure how -- nature calls ). Went to 3B on a K WP. Next 2 batters also struck out. Runner on 3B w/ less than 2 out. Must plate that run to get within 1. 7th - JR Ball pinch hit for JR Veneman and drew a walk. JR Veneman re-entered to run for Ball. JR Murray walked. SR Allen (2-4) singled. Bases loaded. 0 out. JR Whitford singled. Runners had to hold to make sure ball would drop. 5-3 EJ. Bases still loaded. 0 out. JR Ramey hits SF deep enough to score Murray and for all other runners to advance . 5-4 EJ. 1 out. EJ gives IBB to JR Mills to load the bases. With an 0-1 count, suicide squeeze goes wrong. JR Martin has little chance on a high and outside pitch (may have been a pitchout if the P saw runner breaking from 3B, but didn't seem like it and no reaction from EJ to that effect. Likely just fortunately wild for EJ) and SR Allen is hung out. 5-4 EJ. 2 out. Runners on 2B & 3B. Strikeout to end the game. Birds are doing some tough learning, but getting better. 2 out hits were critical in this game -- not unusual. Date with Tates Creek on SAT at 12:45 in Harrison Co. Should be a doozy.

Surprised there is no thread on this. I had to leave after 7, so can't comment on the 8th. I think the Birds scored 2 in the top of the 1st off of hits by SR Allen, JR Whitford and JR Ramey (along with some wild pitches). I got there as Ramey was picked off 2B. JR Cochran started for HHS and allowed 3R through 3 inn. I am guessing only 1 of those runs was earned. Birds struggled in the IF all game with a total of, I think, 5 or 6 errors. Cochran pitched well and was lucky to give up only 3 (left bases loaded 1x for sure and maybe 2). While Dixie hit the ball hard, they also mixed in a couple of bloops that found ground and seeing eye grounders. Given the defense HHS played - they were lucky to be down only 3-2. In the 5th (I think), the Birds scored 2 to go up 4-3. JR Murray with a single, Allen with a walk, Whitford with an IF single (yes -- Birds got some of those as well ). Murray scored on a WP and Allen scored on a Sac Fly by Ramey. JR Jones pitched scoreless 4th & 5th innings. Looked sharp and worked out of a bit of a jam in the 5th. JR Martin pitched the 6th without incident. In the bottom of the 7th, Martin got the 1st 2 batters (5 & 7 (Capel) for Dixie -- sorry for not remembering 5's name, but he is a stud and they were hitting 3rd & 4th in the lineup) on a backwards K and F8. The next batter walked (walks will haunt) followed by a single to put runners on 2nd & 3rd (Birds threw to the wrong base and did not keep runner at 1B). IBB loads the bases. Ground ball to the 3B for an E allows in the tying run. (I could not see the play from where I was standing, so I have no idea how tough of a chance it was.) Martin induces a F7 to end the 7th. I was told another couple of errors in the 8th allowed Dixie to score the winner. Not sure if there were hits mixed in with that. Someone else will have to inform. Interested to see who pitched for Dixie and where they sit in the rotation / pecking order. I think 1st pitcher was #10 and he went 4 or 5 innings. He had good velocity and a nice breaking ball. He was followed by #15, I think. Given the long layoff due to weather (and the cold conditions), I assume JB used 3 pitchers to keep them sharp and avoid long stretches between live game action. May have been other factors. Not sure, just speculating. Tourney in Harrison Co. starting tonight with East Jessamine and Tates Creek in HHS's pool. Should be a good challenge. Tough game to lose, but the beauty of baseball is you get to go out again today and play.

Not really. Better comparison would be Holmes OR Harrison Co. (Ashland was in the "paired" district facing HHS / CCH in the playoffs. Grant Co. is in the actual district.)

JOAT -- thanks for the update. Tough to come off such a long layoff with Elder, but nice to get 3 games played in 2 days. Let us know who is hitting, pitching and fielding well so far this season. After the 2014 Spring Break, I am sure many of the JV boys are even more motivated to make the "Ripken Roster" for 2015.

JR Martin started, SR Vermeil relieved and JR Noe finished. Overall, too many free passes leading to too many runs. Key error by HHS 2B w/ 2 outs allowed in 3 or so runs prior to the 6 run 7th by Jags.

Only saw the 1st 3 innings, but JR Bunning was on his game with the best outing of the year. Control was sharp and velocity was strong. He went right after the hitters and forced them to earn 1st base with no free passes. Lots of good things to build on here. SR Allen, JR Hennigan, SR Hergott and JR Ramey did not play. Depth of the Birds is certainly a strength. #18strong

Nice effort and a well played game by the Birds. JR Jones pitched 4 strong innings. After the Birds started a little slow in the field, they finished strong. SR Vermeil cleaned it up and finished strong. JR Whitford started to dial it in with some drives to the gap hitting the ball on a line. JR Veneman showed good bat skills early getting a runner from 2B to 3B with a grounder to 1B with 2 strikes.

Ton of KY teams at Ripken this year. Spring Breaks must have lined up well. As to why? Did you check the weather and facilities in both locations this week. Varsity Birds got to play 6 games in 5 days. JV Birds played 1 game (maybe 2) and went bowling for a team building activity. As for the game, JR Martin did not have his typical stuff or control. Lots of walks and working behind in counts. Credit Ashland for taking advantage and making it count. Birds defense and fundamentals were underwhelming as well. Good news was the offensive production and the ability to get work in with different combinations early in the season.

Not sure there are any "starters" yet (in the sense of Sparky Anderson and the Big Red Machine). That said, SR Allen, JR Hennigan, JR Whitford and JR Veneman did not start. Mid-week game here in Myrtle, so mixing folks in makes sense. I think JB is still tinkering with who can play and where. SR Cochran pitched well without much defensive support. Glenbard scored 3 in the 6th and at least 1 of those runs was unearned. Of the 1st 3 runs he allowed in the 1st 5 innings, at least 2 of them were unearned. Good velocity. Nice location. Good breaking ball. Birds started the game by manufacturing a run via HBP, SB, SAC bunt & infield grounder. If they don't get the bats going, they will need to pitch, play defense and plate runs this way. Pitching has been very good so far. Defense has been lacking, but will get better. Hitting is the key question. Back at it today against Ashland at Noon. (Feels like the football playoffs down here!!!)

Not the prettiest game to watch, but need to win those games. JR Jones was sharp and got way more than the 18 outs he was credited with over his 6 innings. He was also pretty efficient with his pitches to get those outs. Worked ahead and forced them to put it in play. Birds started strong with 2 in the bottom of the 1st, but struggled from there. Opposing pitcher was a soft-tossing lefty that seemed to keep them off balance most of the night. Eventually scratched one across in the bottom of the 7th to get the "Ripken Experience" underway. Shout out to the "traveling O-Zone" of students making the trip to Myrtle Beach with family & friends. They have been rewarded with beautiful weather so far. Oh - the blue "camo" uniforms are pretty sweet. H in a baseball with crossed bats logo on the front. Will make for a nice alternate jersey for special occasions and 2nd games of DHs.

Nice outing by JR Bunning. Control was better and off-speed pitches were effective at keeping the hitters off balance. Did a very nice job of finishing the 5th when he was clearly on a short leash. Bulldog attitude allowed him to finish the inning rather than being replaced mid-inning. Always feels better. There's a reason they call the DP a "pitcher's best friend" and Bunning was helped by 2 of them -- the 1st on a sparkling play by JR Whitford on a slow roller that he picked up on the 2B side of the bag, tagged the runner on the helmet, spun 360 and fired to 1st to end the inning; the 2nd on a bases loaded bouncer to 3B that JR Ramey fielded calmly, stepped on the bag and threw to 1st to end the inning. Ramey also had a gem to start the game ranging to the line with a backhand stab and a strong throw. If he continues to play 3B like that, it will open up some options for the Birds at other locations. JR Heck pitched a scoreless 6th which keeps the Birds' staff intact after 2 days and with 3 games to go. Batting is well summarized above. JR Hennigan and JR Whitford hit the hardest balls of the day for doubles.

Nice tune-up to defend their title in the Oldham JV Tournament during Spring Break!!! Good luck!!!

Nice work JV Birds. Good luck against the Pioneers today. (Game moved to SK.)

With the Varsity Birds in Myrtle Beach and the JV Birds in the Oldham Co. Tourney for the 2nd year (won it last year), the Baby Birds have lots of time at Highland Park - which is a reward by itself.

Birds got 2 in the 1st and 3 in the 5th. JR Ramey with an RBI double in the 1st along with JR Martin's RBI single. In the 5th, singles by SR Allen and JR Ramey got 'em started. JR Mills had a very solid AB. With 2 strikes, he went the other way with a short, compact swing to bring Allen home. Ramey scored on a botched throw on a 1st & 3rd steal. JR Noe brought in the final run with a sac fly. Martin started and went 4 good innings. Worked out of some trouble with a double play line drive to CF with runners on 1st & 3rd running. Could have been a triple play with just a bit of luck. Noe pitched 2 good innings. Nice velocity, good breaking ball and solid change of speed. JR Jones pitched a 1-2-3 7th and looked sharp against the bottom of the Cru batting order. Just getting some work in to keep sharp with 15 pitches, my guess given the forecast for the weekend. 5 R, 8 H for the Birds. A little sloppy on defense for the 1st time this year with 2 errors in the IF. JR Murray really scalded the ball in each AB today. Birds scheduled play in the "Little 5" at Lloyd this weekend. "Play-in" game against Dayton tomorrow at 5:00. If they win, they face Dayton at 10:00 AM on SAT. Winner of that game plays the winner of Lloyd v. Bellevue at 3:00 PM.. Then off to Myrtle Beach!!! If you want to follow the Birds, @HHSDirtyBirds on Twitter

SR Cochran started and gave up a 3 run homer in the 1st. Settled down and pitched OK from there. JR Ball pitched the remainder for the Birds and was effective. Bats were fairly silent overall for the Birds. SR Vermeil had a ground rule double and is really hitting the ball well this spring.

Nice article. Highlands baseball brings back a veteran team aiming for the 9th Region championship