Homerun

I know that some districts do not seed at all and different districts do things different ways. I do find the way the 25th district does a tie breaker a little odd. I would think that a couple of more things would be tried before resorting to a coin flip, such as looking at runs allowed or run differential in district games.

It look as though on the KHSAA website that every district in baseball decides on their own seeding plan? The 25th District, with Male, Manual, and St. X, has agreed to the following plan: "Ties broken by head-to-head results. If tie remains, the seeding is determined by coin toss." KHSAA website: District Baseball Seeding plans http://www.khsaa.org/baseball/districtseedingplans/

I agree. The wind is much different than just cool weather.

I would agree that it was not overall one of the best played games, but the Tigers showed they could rebound after being down in a hole. They also showed they could win a game with their bats and not just with pitching.

Cincy St. X 6-- Moeller 3 http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20110414/SPT0301/399990326/

When St. X went to Alabama to play some games on spring break, the people in Huntsville, AL, said that the playoffs there were best 2 out of 3, not one and done.

I think stating that X lost 2 without giving any details would not be justice. I would offer that the Tigers did themselves in, rather than “running into a buzz saw.” I offer this perspective of the game. In the first game, Moeller played solid, quality baseball. They won 5-3. Their catcher repeated blocked balls in the dirt that good catchers should do. Their outfielders ran down fly balls and caught them. All of the runs Moeller got came in the second inning. The Tigers had a lot of chances to get out of the inning with minimal damage. It was a windy day, but both teams played on the same field. I am not for sure why 4 players started for X in the field that have not been regularly starting. The right fielder for X misjudged a relatively routine fly ball and let in drop for a hit. Two other balls hit to the outfield might have been caught as well. An outfielder that made plays against Lexington Catholic was not playing. Spalding played in the outfield against Lexington Catholic and now was on the mound. There were balls that were repeatedly going off the mitt of the X catcher. With a runner on first base and a passed ball by the catcher, the runner advanced all the way to third. I do not know how the catcher did not get to the ball more quickly. With runners on second and third, a bunt by the Moeller batter went only five feet or so from the plate. The runner on second was moving on the pitch. The catcher threw the ball to third and the runner was safe. No out was obtained. On another play with a full count, the batter swung and missed. The runner ran to an open first base. The catcher held the ball. The runner was safe on first after being struck out. X gave Moeller at least 6 outs that inning, maybe more. For X to beat quality opponents, these mistakes cannot be made. They seem to be able to make plays when they beat Lexington Catholic just 2 days before, but it did not happen on Saturday. Hopefully, the Tigers will learn from the experience. I do not know of any high school team in Kentucky that is not going through a learning period early in the season. Noblesville was preseason number four in Indiana. They came to play baseball. The score was tied 1-1 after 4 innings after Clooney left the game.

I heard Dan McDonald, the coach at U of L, on the radio in an interview. He was complimented about his pitching staff. He said that pitching is very important to win games, but it also takes producing runs and making plays. I believe that the St. X pitchers combined for 14 strikeouts in the LCA game. They were up 3-1 late in the game. Making plays in that first game had a role in giving up 3 runs. Yet it seems in high school baseball, consistency can be difficult for any team. But I think the “one game and you’re out” of the high school playoff format makes for a lot of interesting games. St. X might be even harder to beat in a best 3 out of 5 format. Look at the NCAA basketball tournament. Who would have thought VCU or Butler would be in the final four?

Any details?

Lexington Catholic has 3 quality pitchers in Arthur, Carroll, and Martin. They have a catcher with experience in receiving the ball from high level pitchers. They play solid, good defense. They make plays in the field. Hurt has speed on the bases and has really improved getting his lead from the base and his jump. Their hitters have faced quality pitching. Even getting out of their district is tough and the “one game and you’re out” of playoff baseball is hard, but Lexington Catholic to me is the team to beat in the state.

Arthur threw very well in the fall. He is tall and should gain strength. Carroll is also very good. A tall right hander.

Thanks for the info. I couldn't find anything in the Louisville paper.

Any info about the game?

I hate to hear this. I hate to see any young player get injured. I wish him and his family the very best. I will keep him in my prayers.

I think that it is worth noting that if a pitcher growing up is throwing about 7 or 8 mph faster than other players around him and can throw strikes, that player can often have very successful outcomes without learning a lot about pitching. Our society supports this, too, to some degree. Look at the celebration of a Little League World Series Championship when the mound is about 46 feet from home plate. If the pitcher is throwing 76 mph from 46 feet, it translates to about 100 mph related to reaction times. That player that is throwing harder would have to play up in age group to face more mature batters or play on a national level to face batters that hit that velocity to really to have to learn how to have complimentary pitches. At the same time, the high school pitcher that tops out in the low 80’s, especially a right hander, is going to have a rough time playing Division I baseball. That pitcher, if he is throwing more "average" velocities, would have to learn other pitches, how to locate, how to make the ball move, etc., to be successful. By the way, another point worth mentioning is that if a team has pitchers that are throwing at velocities quite above the norm, it can be hard to find a catcher to catch them as well. The catcher would not have the experience if he has been catching pitchers that are throwing “average” velocities. A 93-95 mph fastball comes to the plate pretty quickly.

Some comments about this post, and the thread in general: - 85 mph is a very good velocity for a high school pitcher. 90 mph is exceptional. 95 is elite/extremely rare. - I agree that velocities are extremely overstated by family/dads/friends. That’s why I have tried to quote third party sources for the velocities that I have listed. Colleges, too, would rather have a velocity by an objective third party than a velocity quoted by a Dad alone. - I would also advise trying to look at the bigger baseball world and to be objective about where Kentucky, and also Northern Kentucky, fits in in the bigger baseball world. The posts that I made in the 9th region thread were trying to help bring objective information to the discussion. - Just because someone throws 90 doesn’t meant they can’t pitch.

The reason for my post was not to highjack this thread to another topic, but to bring facts and reality into the discussion. I like discussing baseball, but I also like being objective and trying to make sure I have a grasp of the situation. I think that if you feel my posts were the same as "rearranging your sock drawer" you've really missed the point.

“The Kentucky Baseball Club sent a couple interesting arms to the mound in their game against the Texas Scout Team Yankees, with more than 50 scouts behind home plate to see Yankees righthander Dylan Davis. Righthander Tyler Arthur from Lexington Catholic High started the game and was 88-89 with his fastball. He mixed in a 75-77 mph curveball and a 78-80 mph changeup with good movement. The 6-foot-3, 190 pounder showed a good delivery and threw a lot of strikes. His teammate, righthander Matt Spalding from St. Xavier High in Louisville isn't as tall at 6-feet, 190 pounds, but opened some eyes with his fastball that was 91-94 mph and a curveball anywhere from 73-77 mph.” From “World Wood Bat Final Thoughts” by Conor Glassey, Baseball America. http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/draft/?p=3012

Impact Players from the WWBA World Championship Friday, October 29, 2010 David Rawnsley "RHP Matt Spalding (Kentucky Baseball Club): We’d heard rumblings that the 6-0, 190 lb Spalding had been as high as 96 mph this fall. He didn’t disappoint, throwing 91-94 mph from a loose over-the-top release point that makes him appear much taller to hitters than his listed height." See link: http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=5086

The Ohio Valley Showcase did not publish a cumulative public report that I am aware of for all the pitchers. Champions did send each participant a report individually. The pitchers threw in groups of about 5. The second to last group included Clinton Hollon (was at Lafayette, I believe, but now at Woodford County), Spencer Drake from Eastern, Tyler Arthur from Lexington Catholic, Matt Spalding from St. X, and Logan Shaftner from Lexington Lafayette. There were multiple radar guns there, including the guns that representatives from Champions used as well as about 20 major league scouts that were there. I saw numbers from a gun with Hollon that were 90-93. I saw numbers from Spalding that were 92-95. I had heard that Drake was 90 or above. I heard that Arthur and Shaftner were consistently upper 80’s and may have touched 90.

Yes, Ballard, Eastern, and J-town. Then throw in Trinity. Then add Male and Manual. Moore, Seneca, and Waggener have beaten the big boys before.

bump

Prayers and sympathy to his family and friends. I thank him for all the time and effort that he put forth. Often teachers and coaches put in hours of time that often go and unrecognized and without gratitude for their service. May he be in heaven and watch over the season this year.

I apologize for my lack of knowledge, but what did Miles Simpson do this year?

I thought that students that lived outside of Jefferson County could attend a public school in Jefferson County. I knew of someone living in Oldham County that went to school at an east end public school. I believe, though, that they had to pay some sort of tuition?