Wow with a lot of big schools baseball in Maryland should be pretty exciting.
Keeping it on the positive, let's hear a perspective from as many programs as possible. Remember baseball is an Individual Effort in a Team Concept. So some schools may not win their league, but could have a talented player or two.
Remember this thread is about players to watch on each respective team. It is not a comparison or a chance to berate. Stay Positive!
Urbana had a good year in 2007. I think they lost 8-10 players for 2008 so it is up in the air for now. They may surprise alot of teams this year. 4 players to watch on the team this year all So's
Ryan Mason Richard Cruz-Sanchez Justus Miller Daniel Oliver
Watch out for Urbana in 2009 and 2010!
Posts: 32 | Location: Maryland | Registered: August 27, 2007
uhs did have a good year in 07, look out for Kurtis Voytell in 08'. He's coming back from another dominating year, so look for him to be the best hitter in frederick county. As for the hawks this year they are young, but still very talented
Posts: 7 | Location: pittsburgh | Registered: October 25, 2007
I expect Urbana to be tough again this year. Their Soph's will form the backbone for a while to come. Voytell will be his always dangerous self, although I wouldn't hand the top hitter crown over to him as of yet. There are plenty of outstanding sticks in the rest of the county who will give him a run for his money.
I think Brunswick will be very tough this year. Coach Dawson always does an excellent job of getting the most out of his squad despite the fact that they're such a small school. I expect Keyser, Minch, and Darling will be the engine that'll drive the train.
In my opinion, this is Catoctin's year to go all the way in 1A. They have a VERY large, gifted senior class with TONS of varsity experience and excellent coaching. Danny Miller, Kyle Sanders, Zach Little, Kyle Beard, etc. will be the leaders. The starting lineup will be almost all seniors with the addition of underclassman Justin Albright.
Linganore will win their share of games this year behind the amazing arms of Dani Ashbaugh and Kyle Dietrich and bats of Andrew Hodgkins and Nick Rippeon. Coach Troy has them working hard in the weight room and in the gym preparing physically for the coming season.
Frederick is going to be dangerous this year. They have some strong underclassmen moving up into senior roles on the team. They do so many of the little things well, they're not going to beat themselves. Jimmy Lanning will have a break out year on the hill along with Andrew Zimnick. Brady Wilson will continue to wear out opposing pitching.
TJ stands to be very tough this year. They will finally have their three guns together on the hill for the first time. Pitchers Zier, Hahn, and Kline will ensure that their foes will have a very difficult time scoring runs. If TJ scores runs this year, they may go very deep in post season play.
Middletown will lose nearly all of their state runner-up varsity squad this year. Not to worry, they have an excellent group of younger players coming up to fill the ranks.
I'm not sure how much Tuscarora will lose from last year's squad. What I am certain of is that Nick Meekins will make a bid for player of the year. The talented lefty will be potent on the mound and will notch his share of wins for the Titans. He's also very difficult in the lead off spot and anything hit anywhere near centerfield is caught.
Posts: 140 | Location: Walkersville, Maryland, USA | Registered: March 17, 2004
Frank Zier, Ian Hahn (both of TJ) and Seth Keyser (Brunswick), have all committed to FCC. This was a great deal for FCC as they'll get three blue chip players from the area. I'm sure Coach Bennett is thrilled. These guys will definitely be impact players down the road.
Posts: 140 | Location: Walkersville, Maryland, USA | Registered: March 17, 2004
thats great. It seems like the past few years have really produced more and more college players out of the county. It will be interesting to see where meekins and jimmy lanning end up.
Posts: 7 | Location: pittsburgh | Registered: October 25, 2007
I've watched Nick play since he was around 13 and I've watched Jimmy Lanning play since he was around 11. I can still picture Jimmy - who has always been really tall for his age - pitching on the PONY 70' diamond just throwing smoke. He could flat out bring it. One of the great things about Jimmy is that he's a really great kid. Very easy going, great competitive nature on the field. It's just so hard to believe these guys are right around the corner from graduating. Argh, good thing I'm not getting old too.
I've gotten a couple of messages about leaving out Walkersville in my earlier post. That was on purpose since I'm a coach there. I tend to gush about my players and I don't think the website has enough bandwith for me to say all that I'd like to say about them. Suffice to say that I think we'll be competitive this year. I'm also very proud of our turn around this past season where we won something like 7 of our last 8 games after starting out 4-8. We put it all together at the right time and made a heck of a run eventually losing to state runner-up Middletown. The hardest thing was just getting the kids to believe that we could win and buy into the new system. Once they did, it was a really fun ride.
Posts: 140 | Location: Walkersville, Maryland, USA | Registered: March 17, 2004
Very understandable... The years in your high school program are very valuable. Not only is it a time where you can polish and build upon your skills, but a place where you can prepare yourself for college. Not to mention showcase your ablilty for the next level. Unfortunately the Frederick area really doesn't get as much exposure as it should. That being said, hopefully the recent years, with all of the players going off to college and this 2008 class will give the area the exposure it deserves. As for Walkersville, any of your players going off and playing in college? Great turnaround last season, similar to UHS starting 3-7 and turning it around to win the conference. However, Jimmy should do well at whatever program he choses, especially as this year he is just a junior.
Posts: 7 | Location: pittsburgh | Registered: October 25, 2007
Saint Johns College High School has five seniors already verbally committed to D-1 Schools: 1. Cory Beahm, Hartford 2. Huge Adams, Florida Atlantic 3. Matt Mack, Radford 4. Jerome Hoes, North Carolina (Rawlings All-American) 5, Scott Silverstein, Virginia (Aflac All-American)
And there are two additional players that will be verbally commiting to D-1 schools in the near future:
1. Jeff Flax 2. Nick Routt
Posts: 144 | Location: Maryland | Registered: November 12, 2006
Calvert Hall Michael Dillon - P - 08 Kevin Lingerman - 3B/P - 08 Nick Caddick - P - 08 Brooks Rothschild - P - 08 Greg Terry - P -08 Pat Blair - SS - 09 Luke Sawyer - C - 08
St. Pauls Jack Carey - 3B - 09 Austin Crabill - OF/C - 09 Colby Roane - C/2B/OF - 08
Archbishop Curley Sean Thompson - P - 08
St. Vincent Pallotti Kieran Flanerry - C/P - 08
Archbishop Spalding Kody Hines - IF - 08 Jeff Kemp - IF - 08 Steve Brinkley - OF - 08 Matt Hilsinger - OF - 08 Paul Devito - P - 08 Scott Ardnt - P - 08 Jason Patten - P - 08 Eddie Palmer - C - 09
Severna Park High School David Turner - OF - 09 Cory Jensen - SS - 08 Dylan Taylor - P - 09
Arundel High School Tyler Hibbs - P/IF - 08
Mt. St. Joseph Ryan Kemp - P - 08 Danny Druzgala - P - 08
North Hagerstown High School Cody Nelling - P/SS - 08
Posts: 4 | Location: Maryland | Registered: September 28, 2007
Isn't this thread supposed to be about teams? I was getting interested when I heard talk of Urbana and Catoctin, but then it moved to individual players.
Can we get this back on track? In this world of showcase baseball, pro-workouts and hitting instructors, can we drop all that for one minute and remember baseball is a team game. I never have seen a game where it was 1 vs 9 (except the King and His Court, and the Court sat out an inning).
What about the teams??? Howard County has some very good players, but I can't think of a dominant team that has a legitimate shot to go deep in the playoffs. Help me, please!
Posts: 745 | Location: Mt. Airy, MD, USA | Registered: December 28, 2003
Ironically Larry - Teams are made up of players and one measure of the talent of a team is how many of their players have been evaluated by college scouts (not High School Coaches/Parents) and determined objectively to be D-1, D-2, D-3 candidates.
Posts: 144 | Location: Maryland | Registered: November 12, 2006
true, but there are plenty of teams that have great indiviual players, but cannot preform as a team at all. The best teams do have D-1, D-2 players, but more importantly can function as one. You might have the best player in the area, but unless he can make everyone else around him better the team is not going to reach it's potential. Not until everyone understands that it is not all about them and eats a little "humble pie" will they succeed. If a player understands his role, as well as the rest of the team, they will be very competitive. Look at the cincinnati bengals. All the drama caused by the individuals has them playing terribly. Often it takes half the season for a talented team to realize they have to play like a team. Once that happens, the level of play goes up and suddenly they are the team to beat. Thus when you ask who the best teams are, look for the ones with the most heart to play like a team.
Posts: 7 | Location: pittsburgh | Registered: October 25, 2007
St. John’s Signing Day Commitments Player School Hugh Adams Florida Atlantic University Cory Beahm University of Hartford Jeff Flax LaSalle University LJ Hoes University of North Carolina Michael Loeb Davidson College Matt Mack Radford University Craig Miller LaSalle University Nick Routt Mississippi State University Scott Silverstein University of Virginia
Posts: 144 | Location: Maryland | Registered: November 12, 2006
Originally posted by catcher38: true, but there are plenty of teams that have great indiviual players, but cannot preform as a team at all. The best teams do have D-1, D-2 players, but more importantly can function as one. You might have the best player in the area, but unless he can make everyone else around him better the team is not going to reach it's potential. Not until everyone understands that it is not all about them and eats a little "humble pie" will they succeed. If a player understands his role, as well as the rest of the team, they will be very competitive.
Posts: 439 | Location: Virginia | Registered: June 10, 2007
Originally posted by larrythompson: Isn't this thread supposed to be about teams? I was getting interested when I heard talk of Urbana and Catoctin, but then it moved to individual players.
Larry, I really think this will be Catoctin's year to go all the way in 1A. They have an outstanding Senior class this year who have played together at the varsity level since their sophomore year. To make it more interesting, they've essentially played together coming up through youth ball, and they've enjoyed a lot of success. These guys all hang out together year-round, they're all best friends, and they love each other. Team chemistry is unbelievable. The varsity roster will be very senior-heavy this year. I believe they only lost one senior last year to graduation. Additionally, they have some outstanding underclassmen that will play key roles - Justin Albright comes to mind. They have plenty of solid pitching led by Danny Miller. You know they're going to hit the baseball from top to bottom of the lineup. The bunt is always something you have to defend, and they spend a LOT of time in the offseason working on their speed and agility. They're probably the fastest 1A team on the planet. They're going to run the bases. Combine that with an excellent coaching staff who have been to the dance many times in recent years; and a winning tradition, it all adds up to a team that is going to go deep in the post season.
Posts: 140 | Location: Walkersville, Maryland, USA | Registered: March 17, 2004
