June 20, 2006

Weekly Round-up...

  • News & Notes: standings condense as teams close the gap
  • Dishmey-Perez (Redbirds/Morris CC) and Gross (Express/WVU) earn weekly awards
  • Harris (Orioles/Navy) featured in Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd
  • 2006 MLB Draft Recap
  • League Standings
  • On tap this week...

    News & Notes: standings condense as teams close the gap

    The Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts and Maryland Redbirds made strong statements to the rest of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League this week. After dropping their first four contests, the Thunderbolts won four of five from Tuesday to Sunday, including 19-2 and 13-1 routs of the College Park Bombers and Redbirds, respectively, and a decisive 4-1 win over Youse's Maryland Orioles on Sunday.

    The Maryland Redbirds scored victories over the first-place Bethesda Big Train, Rockville Express and Bombers after losing their first three games of 2006, and sit just two games out of the lead after a week of play.

    The standings condensed near the top, with four teams sharing first place after one week. The Big Train won four of their first four games before dropping three of their last five. The Express have alternated between a three-game win streak, a four game losing streak, and another two-game win streak. The Orioles won four in a row from Sunday to Saturday but have lost their last two, and the Bombers have both played the most games (11) and won the most (6).

    After a league-wide offensive explosion during a week which saw a league record 19 runs scored in one game by one team---twice!---the pitchers responded by dominating the weekend. In seven games over the weekend, no team scored more than four runs and two teams were shut-out. Mitch Harris (Orioles/Navy) derailed the Express in a seven-inning two-hit shut-out on Saturday and Billy Gross (Express/WVU) allowed just one hit in seven innings of scoreless ball against the Big Train in Sunday's night-cap. The relievers have also been strong, posting 14 saves across the league, including four by Express pitchers alone.

    Despite the strong pitching over the weekend, the league continues to see a boost in the offensive production in 2006 from 2005. In the 2005 Inaugural Season, CRSCBL hitters combined to hit 31 home runs in a total of 234 games played. This season, 12 home runs have already been hit in just 56 combined games. At this rate, the league will best itself by almost 20 home runs in 2006. Thunderbolts new arrival Charlie Lenhard was responsible for two of the league's twelve homers in one game against the Bombers on June 13. Lenhard went 4-for-6 with 4 RBI and 3 runs scored in that game.

  • Complete CRSCBL Statistics

    Dishmey-Perez (Redbirds/Morris CC) and Gross (Express/WVU) earn weekly awards

    First baseman Jimmy Dishmey-Perez (County College of Morris (NJ)) of the Maryland Redbirds has been named the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League Hitter of the Week for the week of June 9 to June 18. Dishmey-Perez hit .438 (14-for-32) in nine games as he helped the Redbirds climb back into the race after the team dropped their first three contests of 2006. Dishmey-Perez hit in all nine games, including a 4-for-5 night against Youse's Maryland Orioles on June 14. Dishmey-Perez had a double and two triples in that game, knocked in three runs and scored three of his own. He led the league with four doubles, three triples, 24 total bases, and a .750 slugging percentage on the week. He also posted seven RBI, two shy of the league-high. Honorable mentions for Hitter of the Week include: Justin Bour (Orioles/George Mason), Preston Pehrson (Big Train/Texas), Matt Bodenchuk (Bombers/Mesa State), and Allan Smaltz (Orioles/Undecided).

    Righthander Billy Gross (West Virginia) of the Rockville Express has been named the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League Pitcher of the Week for the week of June 9 to June 18. Gross picked up two victories for the Express, one in relief and one as a starter. He posted a 2.70 ERA in 10 innings pitched, allowing just three runs on four hits with four walks and seven strikeouts. Batters hit just .118 off him during the week. Gross allowed just one hit in seven innings of shut-out ball against the first-place Bethesda Big Train in the final game of the week on June 18. Honorable mentions for Pitcher of the Week include: Mitch Harris (Orioles/Navy), Jimmy Saris (Big Train/Georgetown), Billy Butler (Express/Pepperdine), and Adam Redd (Big Train/Virginia Tech).

    Harris (Orioles/Navy) featured in Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd

    For his strong performance in 2006 for the Navy Midshipmen, Mitch Harris (Orioles/Navy) was recognized by Sports Illustrated in the magazine's Faces in the Crowd feature. Harris tossed a complete-game no-hitter, the fifth in the Academy's 111-year history, on May 10 against Coppin State. He faced just one batter over the minimum and struck out twelve hitters in that game.

    The next day, Harris was named the 2006 Patriot League Pitcher of the Year. He tied the conference's single-season record with 10 wins and set a new Patriot League record with 113 strikeouts. He also ranked second in conference history with a 1.74 ERA.

    Thus far in the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League, Harris is 1-1 with a 2.45 ERA. On Saturday, June 17, Harris shut-out the Rockville Express in a seven-inning game, allowing just two hits in the contest.

    Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd

    Draft Re-cap: Four CRSCBL alumni selected

    Four Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League alumni were selected in the 2006 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on June 6-7. Joe Smith (Wright State/Rockville Express 2005) was the highest alum taken in the draft going in the third round and 94th overall to the New York Mets. Steve Clevenger (Chipola College/Youse's Maryland Orioles 2005) was selected in the seventh round and 209th overall by the Chicago Cubs. Seth Overbey (Maryland/College Park Bombers 2005) went 450th overall in the 15th round to the Toronto Blue Jays. Neal Davis (Catonsville HS/Youse's Maryland Orioles), who is pitching for Youse's Maryland Orioles this season, was taken by the Baltimore Orioles in the 39th round as the 1165th selection.

    In addition to the four draft selections, CRSCBL alumni Zach Clark (UMBC/Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts 2005) and RJ Brown (Cal State - LA/Rockville Express 2005) signed free-agent contracts with professional ballclubs. Clark signed with the Baltimore Orioles as a fifth-year senior before the draft, and Brown signed with the Cincinnati Reds as a free-agent.

    League Standings


    Team W/L GB
    Orioles 5-4 ---
    Big Train 5-4 ---
    Express 5-4 ---
    Bombers 6-5 ---
    T'Bolts 4-5 1
    Redbirds 3-6 2


    What's on tap for this week...

  • Complete 2006 Schedule

    Tuesday June 20
    Big Train at Bombers, 5:30 pm (DH)

    Wednesday, June 21
    Express at Redbirds, 5 pm (at Knights Field)
    Big Train at Orioles, 7 pm
    Bombers at T'Bolts, 7 pm

    Thursday, June 22
    T'Bolts at Redbirds, 7 pm (at Blair Stadium)
    Express at Big Train, 7:30 pm

    Friday, June 23
    Express at Bombers, 5 pm (DH)
    Redbirds at Orioles, 7 pm
    Big Train at T'Bolts, 7 pm

    Saturday, June 24
    Orioles at Redbirds, 1 pm (at US Naval Academy, doubleheader)
    T'Bolts at Express, 4 pm
    Bombers at Big Train, 7:30 pm

    Sunday, June 25
    Orioles at T'Bolts, 6 pm
    Big Train at Redbirds, 7:30 pm (at Shirley Povich Field)

    Click here for directions to the CRSCBL fields


    •  
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    Tyrone Wethers (New Orleans) and the Thunderbolts are back in the race. Photo by Lisa Kammerman. Copyright 2006.  
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    Photo courtesy of NavySports.com  
     
     
     
     
     

    Photo courtesy of umterps.com

    The Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League has a license agreement with the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation for the use of the name Cal Ripken, Sr. and is not affiliated with nor sponsored by the Foundation or Ripken Baseball.

    P.O. Box 22471 Baltimore, MD 21203-4471 410/588-9900 info@ripkensrcollegebaseball.org