Field Maintenance Director Ed Meau Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

Little League Field Maintenance Director Ed Meau recently underwent shoulder surgery. If you have had the opportunity to watch a game at any of the fields in Norfolk this year, you would know what a great job Ed does with our fields. As Ed recovers, everybody's help will be needed to keep the fields in their current playing condition. This includes raking the dirt after each game!

We wish Ed all the best as he recovers.

Williamsport Tournament Schedule Set; Team Begins Play Sunday, July 5th

Norfolk's 2009 Williamsport team begins Williamsport tournament play on Sunday, July 5, 2009 with a game against Norwood National.  All games will be played at the fields behind the Dr. Philip O. Coakley Middle School in Norwood, MA.  The school is located at 1315 Washington Street in Norwood.

To follow all the Little League tournament action, check out this web site dedicated to all the Little League tournaments throughout the United States.

Bakas Home Run Derby Win Highlights Closing Day Events

While the rain put somewhat of a damper of this spring's closing day ceremonies, this year's Majors League home run derby provided one more highlight to an eventful season. Eleven year-old Ted Bakas beat the Majors regular-season home run champion and KP Cup Home Run Derby champion, Joe Johnston, as well as Marlins big-bopper Alex Shapiro in the Home Run Derby's final round. Congratulations to all of this year's participants!

Closing Day also meant it was time for the Majors All-Stars to show their stuff.  Check out some of the photos from the game!

Marlins Close Out Championship Series with a 9-4 Defeat of the Orioles

The Marlins swept the Orioles out of the 2009 Championship Series, winning game two by a score of 9-4 and the series, 2-0. Despite a gutsy performance by the Orioles, it was just too much Marlins. In game two, there was timely hitting by Alex Shapiro and Joe Johnston as well as great pitching by Jeff Werlich and Joe Kellett. Congratulations to all the participants!

The Marlins were 23-4 the whole season, becoming the first Majors team to win the KP cup, finish in first place during the regular season, and win the Championship Series in the same year. A great season by the Marlins!

A recap of the past week's playoff games:

• 6/9 - #1 Marlins 6 #8 Dodgers 3
• 6/10 - #2 Mariners 5 #7 Athletics 6
• 6/11 - #3 Giants 2 #6 Cardinals 4
• 6/12 - #4 Orioles 9 #5 Red Sox 0
• 6/13 - #1 Marlins 11 #7 Athletics 0
• 6/13 - #4 Orioles 3 #6 Cardinals 3
• 6/15 - #1 Marlins 9 #4 Orioles 4
• 6/17 - #1 Marlins 9 #4 Orioles 4

Check out the slideshow of the Marlins winning the championship!

GreensboroGrasshoppers outlast Rochester Red Wings 10-6 to Capture AAA Championship

The Greensboro Grasshoppers capped an outstanding 13-1 regular season with a 10-6 win over a formidable Rochester Red Wings team that didn’t have an answer for the Grasshoppers in three tries this season. The two teams dueled on Saturday morning under unexpectedly sunny skies at the Majors field. Solid pitching, timely hitting, and great baserunning propelled the Grasshoppers to a 10-0 lead through three innings. The Red Wings battled back with six unanswered runs but couldn’t dig themselves out of the double-digit hole. In the end, there was too much Grasshopper fire power for the Red Wings to extinguish. Congratulations to both teams for representing an outstanding 2009 AAA League in the finals, exhibiting the steady play and great sportsmanship displayed throughout the AAA season by all teams in the AAA division.

Take a look at this week's playoff schedule:

• 6/13 - Greensboro Grasshoppers 5 Burlington Bees 4
• 6/13 - Portland Sea Dogs 11 Durham Bulls 8
• 6/13 - Rochester Red Wings 10 Savannah Sand Gnats 4
• 6/13 - Sacramento River Cats 16 Connecticut Defenders 8
• 6/16 - Greensboro Grasshoppers 14 Sacramento River Cats 3
• 6/17 - Portland Sea Dogs 15 Rochester Red Wings 5
• 6/20 - Greensboro Grasshoppers 10 Portland Sea Dogs 6

Norfolk Baseball Association Announces Rosters for 2009 Summer Teams

The Norfolk Baseball Association recently announced the rosters for it's 2009 summer teams. Some teams are still looking for players and coaches! Players should hear from their manager's shortly regarding practices and game schedules.

• Williamsport Tournament Team (Majors)
• Hockomock 9 Year-old Team
• Hockomock 10 Year-old Team
• Hockomock 11 Year-old Team
• Hockomock 12 Year-old Team
• Hockomock 13 Year-old Team 1
• Hockomock 13 Year-old Team 2
• Hockomock 14 Year-old Team
• Hockomock 15 Year-old Team 1
• Hockomock 15 Year-old Team 2
• Sizzler 9/10 Year-old Team
• Sizzler 11/12 Year-old Team
• Barnstormer 9/10 Year-old Team 1
• Barnstormer 9/10 Year-old Team 2
• Barnstormer 11/12 Year-old Team
• Friendship League Team
• In-Town Farm Baseball Team

Notable Performances Highlight 2009 Majors Season

There were some notable performances in the 2009 Majors League season that deserve some recognition:

• Giants - Jake Lannigan No Hitter May 9th vs Orioles
• Dodgers - Run to the KP Cup Semi Finals
• Joe Johnston 3 Home Runs - in 1 Game!
• Pat Holmes Powers Marlins in KP Cup
• A's Upset Mariners in playoffs
• Cardinals and Giants Play 9 Inning Playoff Thriller
• Matt Crafton 1 hits Giants

Marlins Keep King Philip Cup Trophy in Norfolk with Tournament Win

The Norfolk Marlins used a potent offense and some quality pitching to capture the 2009 King Philip Cup. The Marlins win keeps the King Philip Cup trophy in Norfolk, which has been it's home the previous two years.

The power display started when the Marlin's Joe Johnston won the Home Run Derby competition the Thursday prior to the tournament.  The Marlins then went 6-0 in the tournament, hitting fourteen home runs during the weekend!  Johnston and Pat Holmes had five home runs each.  In the tournament's final game, the Marlins defeated the Plainville Giants, 5-2.

Congratulations to the players and their coaching staff!

Check out picture 1 and picture 2 of our champions!

Registration for Summer Baseball Now Being Held

Norfolk Baseball is still accepting registration forms for some of it's summer baseball programs. Parents are asked to download the registration form, fill it out, and send it, along with a payment, to the following address:

Norfolk Baseball Association
PO Box 176
Norfolk, MA 02056

Although the registration deadline was Friday, June 5, 2009, some teams may still be seeking players.

Any inquiries regarding these programs should be forwarded to Summer Coordinator Barry Zimmerman.

Norfolk Recreation Dept to Host Summertime Clinic

The Norfolk Recreation Department will be sponsoring a baseball clinic in town this summer. The clinic will be taught by F.A.S.T. Athletics and the focus will be on providing instruction in all parts of the game to kids in grades four through six.

Click here for more information.

"Six Good Innings" a Good Baseball Read

Looking for a good book to read, something baseball-related until the spring 2009 season begins? Check out "Six Good Innings: How One Small Town Became a Little League Giant". It's Mark Kreidler's account of the Toms River, New Jersey Little League baseball program. Toms River, a town of 90,000 residents, has sent three teams to Williamsport in the past fifteen seasons. The book follows the 2007 team in it's quest to reach Williamsport, but also provides some good history on how the program was built.

To order the book from the Amazon.com web site, click here.

Have Baseball Equipment You Don't Need Any More? Donate it!

Do you have a garage full of old baseball equipment your kids don't need any more? Put it to good use and donate it! Little League baseball has partnered with "Pitch in for Baseball", a non-profit organization that collects "gently-used" baseball equipment and gives it to young people throughout the world.

Pitch In For Baseball™ helps bring baseball to underserved communities around the world. Pitch In For Baseball is the central organization for the collection and distribution of new and “gently used” youth baseball equipment. The organization’s tag line is “let your equipment play extra innings!” Pitch In For Baseball was created in 2005 and is based outside of Philadelphia, PA.

Pitch In For Baseball is a 501(c) 3 charitable organization. Donations of baseball equipment and money made to Pitch In For Baseball are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

Check out the article on the official Little League web site for more information.

Article Discusses Decline of Sandlot Baseball

A recent article on the Comcast sports web site provided some insight on whether sandlot baseball games have gone the way of wooden bats with today's young baseball players. The article discusses the lack of the unstructured baseball games of yesteryear and it's impact on players learning the game for themselves, without a parent or coach around.

http://www.comcast.net/articles/sports-mlb/20080719/20080719040101230000101/