News & Notes: Tight race for the LCS byes; Longballs are flying!

After losing their first two games of the week, the Bethesda Big Train won five games in a row, including a marquee win against Youse's Maryland Orioles on Saturday night at sold-out Povich Field to creep within two games of the Orioles for first place in the league standings. The Big Train finished the week with a doubleheader sweep of the team directly in their rear-view mirror, the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts. Despite the sweep, the Thunderbolts won four of seven games last week and followed it up with a road victory over the Orioles to maintain a share of third place in the standings.

The top three teams in the league standings will receive automatic entries into the double elimination round of the 2007 League Championship Series (July 31 to August 3). The bottom four will fight for the fourth of those entries in a one-day single elimination bracket. Needless to say, over the next three weeks the scramble for the top three seeds will be fierce.

The Rockville Express entered the ring by winning six of their last nine games. In their last two games against the Herndon Braves, Express hitters went yard eight times and crossed the plate 28 times on 27 hits.

As is typical in summer college baseball, by the second half of the season the CRSCBL hitters have fully adjusted to the wood bat from the aluminum they use during their college season. In June, CRSCBL hitters launched 26 home runs in 122 combined games. July has already witnessed 23 home runs in just 56 games! The Rockville Express have led the power surge, blasting nine home runs in 10 games in July. The Herndon Braves have hit seven. And though the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts have left the yard just twice in nine games in July, the T'Bolts offense has hit to a tune of .301 with a league-leading 90 hits, 18 doubles, and seven triples this month.

Still, good pitching and defense wins championships, or so they say. The Orioles have kept their team ERA under two runs per game all season. They lead the league with four shutouts and 187 strikeouts in 194.2 innings-pitched. They've also walked just 69 batters, 21 fewer than the next lowest team. Defensively, the Orioles have committed a league-low 30 errors in 834 combined chances and have been the toughest team to run against: Orioles catchers have tossed out 11 of 18 would-be base stealers. The result? A two-game lead for first-place in the league standings.

Meet the 2007 CRSCBL Official Photographers!

Karcich (Big Train/Santa Clara), Minogue (Big Train/Northern Illinois), Amidei (Bombers/Mesa State) win weekly awards

Bethesda Big Train infielder Jon Karcich (Santa Clara University) and outfielder Pat Minogue (Northern Illinois University) have been named the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League Co-Hitters of the Week for the week of July 2 to July 8.

Karcich hit safely in all seven games for the Big Train last week. He collected 10 hits in 23 at-bats (.435), including two doubles and a home run. He knocked in three runs and scored seven. Karcich also walked five times to post an on-base percentage of .536 and was successful in his only steal attempt.

Minogue also hit safely in all seven games for the Big Train last week, and like Karcich collected 10 hits in 23 at-bats (.435). Minogue had two-hit efforts in three straight games from July 5 to July 7 and knocked in four runs over that stretch. On July 8 against the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts, Minogue doubled and knocked in three runs. He finished the week with two doubles and a home run, and scored three runs. Minogue was successful in two steal attempts.

Jack Amidei (Mesa State University) of the College Park Bombers has been named the Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League Pitcher of the Week for the week of July 2 to July 8. Amidei was the workhorse of the Bombers pitching staff last week, tossing a total of 15 innings in two starts. In his start against the Herndon Braves on July 2, Amidei went 9 innings, allowing just one earned run on seven hits and four walks before his bullpen succumbed to the Braves in the bottom of the eleventh. Amidei struck out 10 batters in that game. On Sunday, Amidei threw six shutout innings to get the win over the Rockville Express. Amidei scattered four hits and a pair of walks in that game, and struck out three. Amidei is now 2-1 on the season with a 2.72 ERA in eight appearances (five starts) over a team-best 36.1 innings pitched. He has a team-high 36 strikeouts.

2007 All-Star Game rosters announced; Tickets are FREE!

The 2007 Ripken, Sr. League All-Star Game promises to be the best in our three-year history! You've seen the promos on Nationals and Orioles telecasts... MASN will be televising all the action LIVE from Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen on Monday, July 23. The second annual Home Run Derby will begin at 5 pm, and the first pitch of the All-Star Game is set for 7:05 pm. Click for your FREE printable tickets. Print as many as you like (we recommend printing in black and white). For large group tickets (still FREE!), contact Alex at 410/588-9900. We will mail you as many tickets as you'd like.

The 2007 Ripken, Sr. League All-Stars have been announced! Come out to Ripken Stadium to support your favorite Ripken, Sr. League stars or catch all the action on MASN! Starters and Home Run Derby contestants will be named shortly... stay tuned!

2007 CRSCBL Standings

On tap this week...

Wednesday, July 11
Big Train at Express, 5 pm
Bombers at Orioles, 7 pm
Redbirds at T'Bolts, 7 pm

Thursday, July 12
Bombers at Orioles, 5:30 pm at Dundalk CC
Big Train at Braves, 7 pm

Friday, July 13
Bombers at Braves, 7 pm
Orioles at Redbirds, 7 pm at Bachman Park
T'Bolts at Big Train, 7:30 pm

Saturday, July 14
Orioles at Big Train, 5 pm (DH)
Braves at Redbirds, 7 pm at Joe Cannon Stadium
Express at T'Bolts, 7 pm

Sunday, July 15
Orioles at Redbirds, 11 am at Bachman Park
Bombers at Express, 1 pm (DH)
T'Bolts at Braves, 1 pm

Click here for directions to all CRSCBL fields