Holiday Baseball League Draft Board

Kansas City Baseball League 2010

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Fogelberg
Falcons

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Merrimack Owls

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Westport Fleas

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McCall
Mudhens

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Boggstown Boilers

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Joplin Crawdads

Lifetime

C. Fisk

Lifetime

D. Murphy

Lifetime

M. Sweeney

Lifetime

J. Bench

Lifetime

G. Brett

Lifetime

K. Griffey Jr.

Single Season:

C. Delgado

Single Season:

J. Clark

Single Season:

W. Boggs

Single Season:

B. Larkin

Single Season:

F. Thomas

Single Season:

T. Helton

T. Williams
J. Joyce
M. Ott
E. Collins
F. Fain
L. Boudreau
H. Wilson
A. Vaughn
D. Snider
H. Heilmann

J. McGraw
T. Cobb
B. Bonds
E. Staky
R. Bresnahan
H. Wagner
E. Joost
C. Anson
E. delahany
J. Mize

L. Gehrig
R. Cullenbine
R. Kiner
T. Gwynn
J. Robinson
T. Phillips
J. Belle
C. Ripken
F. Robinson
E. Averell

B. Ruth
M. Mantle
J. Morgan
E. Yost
D. Brouthers
H. Aaron
H. Killebrew
J. DiMaggio
B. Bonilla
O. Cepeda

B. Hamilton
M. Bishop
S. Musial
J. Foxx
L. Appling
T. Speaker
c. Keller
g. Tennace
R. Ferrell
F. White

E. Martinez
R. Hornsby
R. Henderson
L. Walker
M. Cochrane
W. Mays
J. Sewell
R. Carew
J. Kruk
P. Reese

Posted in Boggstown Boilers, Fogelberg Falcons, Holiday Baseball League, Joplin Crawdads, McCall Mudhens, Merrimack Owls, Westport Fleas | Comments Off on Holiday Baseball League Draft Board

Falcons Parade Whips JubilantFogelberg into Frenzy

Falcons Parade

Fogelberg FalconsThe Falcons saw hundreds of thousands — if not more — fans pack the streets of Fogelberg for their championship parade.

“Number 8 is GREAT!!!” lifetimer Carlton Fisk was overheard yelling.

Indeed championship #8 was great for the Falcons as they bested the Merrimack Owls 3 games to 1 last Wednesday to take the Kansas City Baseball League Championship.

Mickey Mantle provided another one of the parade’s notable moments, unveiling a bottle of Boulevard Brewery’s Tank 7 beer that became part of the team’s celebration after wins in the second half of the season. “Tank 7 for #7!!!!,” Mantle yelled joyfully… The crowd repeating the chant.

The fans were understandably enthused for the team’s first championship since the Founders Cup earlier this year, some showing up before dawn, skipping work and school for the occasion.

Carlton FIsk Dogs“This is Christmas, New Year’s and your first-born all rolled into one,” a local resident who asked to be called ‘EJ’ said during the parade. “I’m on cloud nine.”

Due to the mass of people, the city has had to adjust. The public transportation system had to alter its routes in order to accommodate all the traveling bodies, and Department of Public Works has developed a unique strategy to dealing with the parade’s aftermath, especially considering the rioting that took place in the immediate aftermath of the Falcons’ win.

“There were a number of spontaneous block parties around the city throughout the night and we worked around the clock to clean those up,” city manager Nichole Skalla said. “This is a planned event with a specific clean-up plan to tidy up the route quickly and appropriately.”

Posted in Fogelberg Falcons, Kansas City Baseball League | Comments Off on Falcons Parade Whips JubilantFogelberg into Frenzy

Flacons, Owls Square Off For KCBL 2011 Title

KCBLFogelberg – Macintosh Stadium in Fogelberg has been cleaned, polished, primed and primped for what the media is calling the “Clash of The Titans.”

When the Falcons take the field tonight against the Yellow Division Champion Merrimack Owls for the Championship of the Kansas City Baseball League something very rare will happen; unfamiliarity. Having faced each other in one other series in ASB history, the two teams have a limited history of head-to-head play.

ted-williams-Owls

Ted Williams of the Merrimack Owls takes batting practice Tuesday.

“Obviously we have a history against the other teams in the league, so it’s going to be really different to see green and gold in the opposing dog-out,” Falcons lifetimer Carlton Fisk said during Tuesday’s scheduled practice session. “The bottom line is that we are not going to worry about how they have been playing, how little we know about their pitchers and who they are. We are going to play good, fundamental baseball and take care of business.”

The Falcons feature a balanced lineup that can strike, or fail, at any point. Featuring solid seasons from Joe Morgan, Mickey Mantle, Ralph Kiner, Mel Ott and Fisk, they rode the most consistent lineup in the league to a number one seed and the Championship Series.

Don Zimmer“We like to sprinkle the power throughout the lineup,” Manager Don Zimmer said. “We always seem to be a bloop-and-a-blast away from either knocking someone out or getting ourselves back into a game.”

The Owls, relying more heavily on super-star Ted Williams throughout the regular season, were excited to have found the rest of their lineup in the first round of the playoffs, setting records in nearly every offensive category.

“Ted had a lot to prove this season, and you have to hand it to him, he has been the quiet leader of this team since day one,” Owls manager Ryne Sandberg said. “Did we have a moment of inconsistency late in the season? Yes… We righted the ship at the right moment and walking into this series we are the best team… I believe that the best team should be called Champions.”

Who the best team is will be decided in the best of 5 series tonight.

Starting Lineups

FALCONS:
J. Morgan
J. Joyce
M. Mantle
L. Gehrig
R. Kiner
C. Fisk
M. Ott
H. Wagner
J. Podres

OWLS:
E. Stanky
T. Williams
T. Cobb
D. Murphy
M. Cochrine
E. Yost
T. Phillips
R. Cullenbine
C. Hunter

Posted in All-Star Baseball blog, Fogelberg Falcons, Kansas City Baseball League, Merrimack Owls | Comments Off on Flacons, Owls Square Off For KCBL 2011 Title

Owls Sweep, Move To Championship Series

Merrimack OwlsWestport – The Merrimack Owls have advanced to the Championship round of the Kansas City Baseball League by sweeping 4 games against the Westport Fleas. The Owls, who will now face the Fogelberg Falcons for the title, displayed dominate offensive firepower throughout the series.

“We came ready to play tonight,” Dale Murphy said. “Ryno met individually with every member of the team after the season ended and told us very specifically what he wanted from each of us and what our role would be heading into the playoffs.”

Posting a team .606 on-base percentage, .489 batting average and 55 walks in the 4 games, The Owls seamed to have an answer for every Fleas rally.

“Tonight, getting on base was important, but getting the KEY hit was paramount,” Sandberg said from the visitors clubhouse in Asbury Park.

A prime example of this was Murphy, who hit 3 grand slams in the series, a three run home-run and tallied 5 total homers and 21 RBI’s in the 4 games.

Ryne SandbergSandberg rumors flying
With the Chicago Cubs expected announcement of new GM Theo Epstein later today, ripples of gossip have begun to spread throughout the Cadaco All-Star Baseball league.

Rumored to covet current Owls Manager Ryne Sandberg to take the helm as the Cubs new manager, Epstein is expected to ask Owls management for permission to speak with Sandberg after the completion of the KCBL Championship next week.

“I have work to do HERE in Merrimack,” Sandberg said when questioned. “I love the Cubs and I had a great career in Chicago, but right now I have a team battling in the playoffs.”

Posted in Kansas City Baseball League, Merrimack Owls, Westport Fleas | Comments Off on Owls Sweep, Move To Championship Series

KCBL 2011 Schedule

Home vs. Away

Week 1 WF v. MO x4 8/25/2011 | FINAL – (WF 1, MO 3)

Week 2 FF v. BB x4 8/31/2011 | FINAL – (BB 2, FF 2)

Week 3 MO v. BB (toggle H/A) 9/7/2011 (MO 3, BB 1)

Week 4 FF v. WF (toggle H/A) 9/14/2011 (FF 4, WF 0)

Week 5 MO v. WF x4 9/21/2011 (MO 0, WF 4)

Week 6 BB v. FF x4 9/28/2011 (BB 2, FF 2)

Week 7 Playoffs best of 7 10/5/2011 (MO 4, WF 0)

Week 8 World Series best of 7 10/12/2011 (FF vs MO)

Posted in Boggstown Boilers, Fogelberg Falcons, Kansas City Baseball League, Merrimack Owls, Westport Fleas | Comments Off on KCBL 2011 Schedule

KCBL Regular Season Wraps Tonight

KCBLBoggstown – The regular season of the Kansas City Baseball League wraps up tonight as the Fogelberg Falcons visit the Boggstown Boilers to decide the Blue Division (AL). Standing at 6-2, the Falcons control their own destiny, trying not only to wrap up the division title, but a first round bye in the playoffs.

“We have a lot of work to do tonight,” Falcons lifetimer Carlton Fisk commented on the train ride to Boggstown. “We have done a lot of good work on the diamond this season, but things can turn on a dime and you can be left with a really bad taste in your mouth.”

“Well, a bad taste is what we have had all season long,” Boilers catcher Roger Bresnahan said. “I don’t know what the hell is wrong here. We have a great team 1-9. If we don’t pull ourselves up by the bootstraps and start hitting, this is going to go down in history as one of the most under performing teams in ASB history!”

Fleas surge with 4 game sweep of Owls
In a remarkable turn of events, The Westport Fleas dominated the NL champion Merrimack Owls last week, sweeping 4 games and putting themselves in prime position for playoff qualification. With a record of 5-7 and holding a number of tie-breakers, the Fleas will be watching the Boilers closely tonight as they root for at least one defeat to lock in a playoff slot.

Posted in All-Star Baseball blog, Boggstown Boilers, Fogelberg Falcons, Kansas City Baseball League, Merrimack Owls, Westport Fleas | Comments Off on KCBL Regular Season Wraps Tonight

Falcons soar to 4 wins

Fogelberg FalconsWestport – In a series of consecutive hard-fought games, the Fogelberg Falcons swept 4 games against the Westport Fleas Thursday night running their record to 6-2. The Falcons have positioned themselves in prime playoff position as the KCBL begins to wrap up in the next couple of weeks.

“There is a lot of ball to still be played, but yeah, I like how hard we fought tonight,” Manager Don Zimmer said after the game. “You have to give the Fleas credit, every time we thought we had them under wraps they fought back and our guys seemed to have the answer offensively.”

The theme of the evening happened in game two when the Fleas seemed to have a sure-fire victory, up by 7 in the 9th… After committing 3 errors and surrendering numerous hits, Falcons Mel Ott slams a walk-off home run for the victory.

An interesting side story for the Falcons was the on-field personnel, as Lifetimer Paul Molitor and pseudo-lifetimer Lou Boudreau were benched for the final 2 games of the series after failing offensively all season long. “Look, no one EVER has their position locked in around here. We have guys that have done amazing things for us through the years, and we will give them a chance when we can, but this was an opportunity to give some other guys a chance and they got the job done,” Zimmer said. “BJ hit pretty good in the 2 hole, Honus has been swinging it great all year… Teams need chemistry and I will play whoever needs to be played to get that chemistry.”

Fogelberg Falcons KCBL 2011 stats through 8 games:
KCBL 8 games Fogelberg Falcons

GAME RECAPS from gamechanger.io

Game 1:
Fogelberg Falcons cruises past Westport Fleas, 9-3

Fogelberg Falcons pounded Westport Fleas on Thursday 9-3 at Macintosh Stadium in eight innings.

Fogelberg Falcons came out swinging, scoring four runs in the first inning to jump ahead of Westport Fleas early.

R Kiner racked up three RBIs on one hit for Fogelberg Falcons. Kiner homered in the first inning.

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Game 2:
Fogelberg Falcons top Westport Fleas behind Morgan’s two hits, 17-15

Thursday was a great day for J Morgan, as he clubbed two home runs to carry Fogelberg Falcons to a 17-15 victory over Westport Fleas at Macintosh Stadium.

Fogelberg Falcons hit three home runs in the win. Home runs for Fogelberg Falcons came when Morgan homered in the second and ninth innings and M Ott homered in the ninth inning.

M Mantle, P Molitor, C Fisk, L Gehrig, L Boudreau, R Kiner, Ott, Morgan, and H Heilmann all collected hits for Fogelberg Falcons. Mantle led the team with three hits.

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Game 3:
Offenses dominate as Fogelberg Falcons outscores Westport Fleas 16-15

The bats were busy at Asbury Park on Thursday, and when the dust cleared Fogelberg Falcons had a 16-15 win over Westport Fleas.

Fogelberg Falcons got its bats going early, scoring five runs in the first inning to pull ahead of Westport Fleas.

J Morgan racked up three RBIs on four hits for Fogelberg Falcons. Morgan homered in the fourth inning and singled in the first, second, and fifth innings.

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Game 4:

Fogelberg Falcons top Westport Fleas behind Ott’s four hits, 18-17

A great effort by M Ott carried Fogelberg Falcons to an 18-17 win over Westport Fleas on Thursday at Asbury Park.

Ott racked up seven RBIs on four hits for Fogelberg Falcons. Ott singled in the fourth and seventh innings and homered in the first and eighth innings.

Posted in All-Star Baseball blog, Fogelberg Falcons, Kansas City Baseball League, Westport Fleas | Comments Off on Falcons soar to 4 wins

Boilers Flat Through 8 Games

Joe GordonEditorial by Joe Gordon
Boggstown – When the Boggstown Boilers mid season stats were released by manager Jack McKeon I expected to be underwhelmed with what the team has accomplished to this point of the season. From watching the games, it was clear that single season juggernaut Babe Ruth was not performing up to expectations, Wade Boggs was floundering in the top 4 of the lineup, Max Bishop was not walking and (shockingly enough) George Brett was way off his usual ASB season averages.

The team is obviously struggling. A KCBL paltry .393 team on-base percentage, a .311 batting average and only 6.8 runs per game have carried the Boilers to unfamiliar territory. Last place.

Widely considered the best player in the league, perennial MVP George Brett has posted a career low 11 hits to this point in the season putting him on pace for a 17 hit season. Compared to his average 30, Brett seems to be for the first time as a Boiler, struggling to find his stroke. This factor, combined with 0 home runs, 2 doubles and only 9 RBI from his lifetimer has McKeon shuffling the lineup faster than a Vegas Casino.

Babe Ruth’s return to Boggstown for the first time since the All-Star Baseball Classic victory in 2008 was marketed as Zeus returning to Mt Olympus. His .550 OBP, .474 BA and 2 walks have Ruth walking among ordinary men (granted, the high-end of ordinary men)… He does account for two statistical bright spots. His 6 home runs and 42 total bases give him a fighting chance at respectability with his power numbers.

The up side for McKeon’s squad is that things could not get any worse. With more steady performances form Bishop (.415 OBP), Boggs (.457 OBP), Brett and Ruth, the Boilers could return to contention. Looking for statistical improvements from 4 key players is a tough game to play… But if any team, and any combination of players can do it, THIS might be it.

Boggstown Boilers statistics through 8 games of the 2011 KCBL:

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Pitching Carries Owls to 3 wins

Merrimack OwlsMerrimack – The Merrimack Owls took command of the Kansas City Baseball League Wednesday night by defeating the Boggstown Boilers in three of four games during interleague play.

Taking games 1, 3 & 4, the Owls record now stands at 6-2 with three quarters of their season completed.

Dale Murphy“Tonight, we had some of the most incredible pitching I have ever seen,” resurgent Owls lifetimer Dale Murphy said from his locker Wednesday night. “From the first inning to the last, these guys sat together and concentrated on how to get the big outs when they needed them … We hit just enough to win some games.”

Interleague play wraps-up next week with the Fogelberg Falcons facing the Westport Fleas as the playoff picture will get more clear with each passing game.

Merrimack Owls Statistics through 8 games of the 2011 KCBL:

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Second To None

KCBLIn the history of the Kansas City Baseball League, the book of great rivalries between similar players playing the same position is long. It started with Podres vs Dean, continued with Bench vs Fisk, and was taken to a new level with Boggs vs McGraw.

Wednesday night another chapter will be added as two of the great ASB second basemen collide in inter-league play, Max Bishop of the Boggstown Boilers and Eddie Stanky of the Merrimack Owls. Owning a similar skill set, each hopes to prove that they are the best second baseman in the league.

“Honestly, we thought Eddie was a steal when we grabbed him in the third round,” Owls Manger Ryne Sandberg said. “I have always thought that he could be a premier player in this league if given the chance to be himself… Max has been fantastic for a long time, and we think Eddie has just as many tools.”

After several sub-par seasons, Stanky seems to be finally finding his potential under the tutelage of Sanderg through four games of the KCBL. Owning a blistering .720 on-base percentage and a through-the-roof .588 batting average, he is quickly making a name for himself on the list of premier table-setters in the league.

Bishop, who currently owns the league all-time record for most walks in a season (30) is not a new comer to attention.

“The Boilers have been great to me,” Bishop commented. “Being at the top of Cracker Jack McKeon’s lineup is amazing, they put a real emphasis on being patient at the plate and that’s what I do best.”

A staple at the top of the batting order and everyone’s draft list is something that Bishop has enjoyed for years and Stanky strives for.

“The top of our order is pretty Stanky,” Sandberg said with a grin after week one action. “And that’s alright with us.”

Posted in Boggstown Boilers, Kansas City Baseball League, Merrimack Owls | Comments Off on Second To None