Left: Fireball pitcher Tristen Bockovich gets ready to send some “heat” the batter’s way. Top: In his best “cat crouch,” Skyler Wilson gets ready to catch for his team, the Twins. Above: Ian Kurschner, a player on the Dodger team, slides safely into third base at a recent game.
Bryan Carpenter
Summer is here and so is the start of youth baseball. This year like in past years we have three leagues playing during the summer months: T-ball, Parent Pitch, and Little League.
T-ball fun on Mondays
T-ball is for kids ages 4 through 6 years old and there are six different teams. They are called the Blue Jays, Turtles, Moose, Hornets, Tigers, and Thunderbirds. Their first games were on Monday, June 10 and everyone had a great time. We don’t keep score at this age so every team went home a winner. They play every Monday so stop by and cheer them on.
Yankees start season with lead in Parent Pitch
Parent Pitch is for kids ages 7 to 9. In case you were wondering, at the parent pitch level a coach pitches to his own team and every player gets to bat once in every inning. This is the age where we start keeping score.
We have had three weeks of games and so far the Yankees are leading the way. They have won all three of the games they have played. They look very strong this season.
In second place are the Lions with one loss by two runs to the Yankees. They also look very strong this year.
The Lumberjacks and the Thunderbirds are in third and fourth places for now. Both teams, however, are getting better with every game. We have six more games to play and any one of these teams could rise to the top.
Last year’s Little League champs face tough competition
Now let’s talk about our three Little League teams. The Dodgers are last year’s champions, but they will have to defend against two tough opponents, the Cubs and the Twins.
All three teams are very evenly matched and have excellent coaching. Every team has tasted victory and the agony of defeat. The Twins have a slight edge in the standings and just came back from Silver Bay where they won both their games in a double header 11-3 and 3-2.
The Cubs have been playing great baseball with strong pitching and some very timely hitting. They have one loss this season and have beaten both the Twins and the Dodgers.
The Dodgers currently sit in third place and have struggled a little at the plate. However, they are not far behind and have been in every game this season.
Each team has a great pitching staff and the games are very fun to watch. But there is one 12-yearold ace on each team. Ethan Sporn (Dodgers), Tristen Bockovich (Twins), and Andrew Miller (Cubs) have been almost unhittable this season.
If you are looking for something fun to do on Tuesday and Sunday nights, try a Little League game. These games are fun and exciting so please stop by and cheer these boy and girls on.
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