13th Analyst

Well on the same field conditions earlier in the season, Middlesboro only gave up 6 to Leslie and Leslie gave up 20 to the Jackets. How is it that Leslie is the only one considered to have an "outstanding" defense.

What?? The two best teams played each other.

If it is dry conditions, I think Middlesboro wins big because of the all-around team speed. On a sloppy field like last time, I would say it will be a very similar game to the last one.

That is a pretty broad range. Usually the time varies by about .01-.05 in quality reps but his times a great deal more than that. As you can imagine, a 4.6 player is quite a bit different than a 4.4 player. I don't mean to attack your post or anything, just seems like some strange numbers coming from a camp like Notre Dame's.

Do you mean balogna?

Where do I begin on this statement? First of all, not a chance that Campbellsville, Union, or Cumberland were better than Eastern, Western, Murray State, or Louisville. No opinion to it. These teams just have better baseball players. While the smaller schools you mentioned might have a gem or two in the pen that could hold these bigger schools for a few innings, they would probably lose 8 out of 10 times. Cumberland University has never been considered better than Tennessee. Not ever. Even on a down year for UT, they would still be better. I would even argue that Austin Peay, Walter State CC, Memphis, and even Belmont are usually better than Cumberland Univ. I think that when comparing talent between divisions of play, if you are considering going to the next level, division 1 or JUCO are the major options. Despite what many people may think, there is a talent gap there and professional scouts acknowledge it by drafting more from these two divisions than any of the other divisions. With regards to the best pitchers in the 13th region this year: -Smith (SL) -Hoskins (Middlesboro) -Pittman (Middlesboro) -Nelson (Bell County) -Chamberlein (Cumberland)

There isn't a better back in the mountains than Earls. Just ask Ron Zook who has him coming up for an official visit at Illinois next weekend where they will host him for the Ohio State game. In the past four games, Earls has accounted for 504 yards on 43 carries as well as receiving for 307 yards. 6 rushing TDs and 3 receiving TDs.

Not close, Middlesboro 45 Leslie 18

First game starter Earls is also available in relief.

Smith can't pitch until Saturday. He pitched the first six yesterday and then came back in during the seventh. If a pitcher throws one pitch in another inning, then that counts as an inning as far as how many days he would have to sit out. Therefore, Smith technically pitched 7 innings and will need three days rest. That will be big if the game got rained out because although he couldn't pitch on Friday, Hoskins could go 5 innings if they needed him. Middlesboro has been hitting the fall extremely well and I look for that to continue. I am predicting a 7-3 victory for the Jackets with Pittman throwing a very strong game.

WoW!! What a game. Knox jumped out to an early 7-1 lead on the Jackets as Pittman more than struggled early. The Jackets were able to cut the lead to 7-3 following the bottom half of the second and decided to bring Hoskins into the game. He sat down the Panthers 1-2-3 in his first inning on the mound. In the bottom half the Jackets scored 2 more to cut the lead to 7-5. Both teams shared some blows and going into the bottom of the 5th, the Jackets were down 10-5. With two outs on them in the bottom of the 5th, the Jackets rallied for 3 runs to cut the lead to two. They held the Panthers scoreless in the top 6th and in the bottom half they rallied to take the lead 12-10. Hoskins came back out in the top of the 7th and sat down the first batter. Starting to fatigue, he began to struggle with his control. The Panthers loaded the bases with two outs and their number 3 batter stepped up and lined one into left center. One run scored but the second runner was gunned on a perfect rely to the catcher. The Panther however, had already tied it up at 12-12. The Jackets lead off the bottom half of the inning with a single by Tyler Hatmaker. He stole second base and came home on a clutch hit by Trevor Hoskins to win the game. Trevor Hoskins got the win, the game winning hit, and the MVP award for the game. The Jackets will play the winner of tonights game between South Laurel and Clay County on Thursday. Brett Pittman will be ready to go for the Jackets in the championship. I look for him to return to form and pitch a great ballgame no matter who the Jackets face. In Pittman's district outing, Pittman through a 1 hitter against the Cumberland Redskins to clinch the District Championship.:thumb: :ylsuper:

Trevor Hoskins pitched for the Jackets and did a great job. Chamberlein, who pitched when for Cumberland when they beat Middlesboro in the All "A" Classic, took the loss this time around. Was anyone at the game??

6-4, 6-0 is a far cry from 8-0??? You're right instead of 8-0 it was 12-4. Either way, it was an obliteration.

Mars beat Baker last year and is the favorite to beat her again.

It is that time of year when everyone is speculating about which teams in their district will be seeded what. I just wanted to remind everyone that only the first time that two district teams meet counts towards the seeding. Example:(Hypothetical) First Meeting Cumberland 13 Harlan 11 This game will count towards seeding Second Meeting Cumberland 5 Harlan 8 This game won't have any effect on district seeding.

Great win for the Jackets!!! I don't know any specifics of the game right now but I will later on tonight. This win was huge for Middlesboro. First of all, this is a big district game as this game goes towards the seeding of the district tournament. Middlesboro moved to 2-0 in district play, putting them on top as of now. The KHSAA website does have them losing to Cumberland earlier in the season but that game doesn't count towards district seeding because it was played as a part of the All "A" Classic. Middlesboro also played Harlan tonight. They will finish their game from earlier in the season that got postponed due to rain. Both teams are tied with only one inning left to play. They will then play Harlan again to make up for the game they missed last night. If Middlesboro wins both, they will move to 4-0 in the district.

Yes, Clay County isn't good at all right now.

Just two days after the Panthers took one from SL in a shutout 4-0 victory, they fall to the Redhounds. Corbin looks to be hitting their stride right now as they have won 9 of the past 10 games. I think they are the top team in the region right now. Any thoughts or comments concerning this game or either team?

These records don't mean much to me. Middlesboro has went out of their way to play above and beyond competition--3 of their losses are to top quality Florida teams. I sure that goes for some other teams on there as well.

1.Corbin 2.North Laurel 3.South Laurel 4.Cumberland 5.Middlesboro 6.Bell County 7.Whitley County 8.Barbourville 9.Knox Central 10.Cawood

This was a great win for Knox Central, don't get me wrong. But, they aren't that good. One run losses or not, they have lost 11 out of 18 games. Also, good teams find a way to win a few of those one-run games. Knox Central is 0-3 at home this season. I'm not sure if that is a factor.

Wow!! I think that this game more than proves that South doesn't have anything locked up. Knox Central was coming off of two losses in two days to Bell County and Cawood and traveled to South Laurel with a 7-11 record. Anyone have any thoughts or comments about this game?

Well it can be good and bad. At this time of the year, a break of about a week can serve as a rejuvination so to speak. Some players begin to get worn down mid-way through the season. Arms are starting to get soar, players are getting a little tired of the grind and daily bus trips. The break can even give hitters and pitchers time to work on a couple of things that they wouldn't want to try to work on during games. So these breaks can serve as a way to rebuild the spirits of the players. It could also affect the team negatively. Some teams may be in a bit of a groove and just want to keep playing. This break can potentially slow them down. So it depends on how you want to look at it I suppose.

Let's not get too excited about this win. I mean McCreary Central is 3-10 with 7 losses by 10 or more runs. They are pretty bad. Nevertheless, being able to hit the ball well and win any game makes you feel good.

I agree.