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5/15/09 OC 5 - CDO 6
Well like every good roller coaster ride, we had to come to a stop. Again I was real proud with our team tonight as for the first time in a while we had to play catchup. We came out and gave them 3 runs in the first 2 innings, but found a way to scratch one across in the 3rd. We didn't execute tonight the way we have been and time and time again could not capitalize but next thing you know with a big Devin Turner triple, and Cop RBI single, we are up 5-4. We had played with fire all day but found a way to be leading in the 7th. I think the big momentum change was being 2nd and 3rd no outs and not being able to get a run in in the 7th. They then come out and take the momentum for a W. With every taste of each round it made us hungrier for the next, but tonight it just wasn't in the cards. We could all go back with our woulda coulda shoulda but that is what makes us work harder in life, so hopefully the young bucks will use this as fire to improve. For the seniors I couldn't be prouder. They took the legacy started before them and carried it on in a big way this season.
Tough Stats: 4 Errors, 4 HBP, 2 walks, OC 13 hits, CDO 5 hits.
Rematch: The 2008 championship game rematch will be without both participants as Chap lost to Cactus tonight 5-1 as well.
Great Group: Seniors Taylor Bolton, Kyle Miyoshi, Ruben Torres, Brad King, Colton Avery, Aaron Copfer. Way to work yourselves into good ballplayers and better people.
Good season: 19-10 with a 3rd place finish in state, not too shabby.
Jeff Baumgartner
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5/13/09 OC 3 - CS 0
I would put this win right up there with our playoff victory over sunnyside in 06 and Foothills in the semis in 08. Our players played with so much heart and desire it was really a joy to be a part of. Aaron Copfer pitched one of the best games we have had here at the OC. He pounded the strikezone and worked the inner half real well. We had some spectacular momentum changing defensive plays in the game, but the biggest was probably Devin Turner gunning down a runner at the plate in the 4th to end the inning. Offensively we played pretty well. You could tell who the lower seed was because we plays so loose and with reckless abandon and I think it payed off. We are not going to be safe each time but we are going to put pressure on people. In the first we really set the tone with Bryce getting on by bb, stealing 2nd and 3rd, then scoring on a wild pitch. In the 3rd Devin stretched a single into a double, then as he was stealing 3rd Cop hit a ball right where the 3rd baseman would have been, to score our second run. I couldn't be more proud of a group of guys who have really come together at the right time. We had great effort all around defensively but Tyler Doolittle really stood out over there at 1st base. Keep in mind he is a catcher, but last night he played his tail off over at first and had a dramatic impact on the game. Now we are back in the final 4 again down at Tempe Diablo Friday at 4:00 against CDO.
Gameball: Aaron Copfer. His warrior effort this year puts him in a class with Moody and Lasker, which is good company to be in.
Feeling the love: pregame treats from Krislyn Erickson and postgame treats from the Sniders.
Alumni: Too many to give all of them a shoutout but my favorite moment of the night was turning around in the 3rd inning to find Gabbi back on the scorebook in the dugout.
Wrapup: Pool is warming up, Andre dry, beard itchy, Mohawk gross. I have never gotten into joining the players in their tradition because I respect their unity and my own ways, but for this group of guys I may have had my last haircut.
Jeff Baumgartner
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What a fine performance today in the first round. Our guys played solid all the way through the lineup and the bench was great today too. We played a really tough McClintock team who ran out an impressive lefty that I thought had some nasty stuff. Our guys worked their butts off and got a huge W. The tone was set by Aaron Copfer who cruised with a shutout thru 5. He only allowed the leadoff batter to reach base once during the whole game. It takes a team out of their game plan when they always have 1 or more outs with guys on. Offensively we really worked the counts well and in the 2nd got after it with 3 runs. Dexter started things off with a DRIVE to left that fell. A couple great walks on tough counts then COlton Avery came up with a big base hit down the righfield line to plate 2, and Keff drove in a run on a single. It was quiet again until the 5th when the Turner brothers did something pretty cool: Both Devin and Draye hit homeruns in the same inning. Devins was a moonshot solo to left while Draye hit a 2-run lazer to right. They got 2 runs to make it a game at 7-2 in the 6th but top of 7 we strung 5 singles together to put it away and win 9-2. I was really proud of our team to win this game and get a chance to play on the big stage at Surprise stadium on wednesday at 7:00.
Big Games: Avery 2 for 4, Keff 2 for 5, bethers 3 for 4, sutton 2 bb 1hbp.
Gameball: Aaron Copfer runs his record to 5-0-4 with a 1.54 era.
Senior love: Ruben Torres and Taylor Bolton both came of the bench with knocks.
Momentum: In the 4th we really won the game. We were up 3-0 with guy on first and they push bunt. Doo makes a great play to tag the guy but umpires wanted it to be more of a challenge so they called him safe. We coulda caved right there but 2 pitches later we get a 5-4-3 dp. Really proud of our guys to battle thru the adversity.
Ethics: IF you are going to be tough and hit a guy, you get 1 pitch to do it. Hit him in the back and move on. IF you can't hit him with that first one it is on you and get over it. Don't hit him in the leg with the next one.
Wrapup: Great playoff beard sported by coach Renning, Coach McLain has vowed to go black mohawk, B^3 had first post game pool dive, Andre Dry, Feather River won their first regional, Happy mothers day!
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/30/09 OC 9 - Copper Canyon 0
Good game to finish the week on. After the blow up on tuesday it was nice to see our guys settle back in and go play well. Brad King was a one man recking crew today with 2 - 2run blasts on the day. He scored 4 runs and had 4 RBI's. Defensively we played solid ball and offensively we found a way to get 9 runs across. Big pickups for us from Taylor Bolton with 2 hits and Doolittle driving the ball for us in the 3 hole.
GameBall= Bryce Keffeler. After he battled out of jams in the first 2 innings, he settled in to throw the last 5 to the standard at which he had been working toward all year. If he throws like that he is tough to beat. 8 k's on the day but more importantly only 2 hits.
Homerun Derby: Come and and support Brad King as he represents the OC at Greenway friday night at 7:00.
Replay: We will be making up the end of the Flowing wells game on monday at 4:00. Game will resume from where we left off in the top of the 8th with score tied.
Quote of the Day: "Tell the hitters to just keep swingin. Swing where they want it and maybe the pitcher will throw it there." - Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew's advice to the O'Connor hitters.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/28/09 OC 3 - Apollo ...13
A tale of two games today. For 5 innings we played solid baseball. We were playing in a playoff atmosphere. I felt so good about our team at the beginning of the game because without a speech, the guys were into it. They had that look in their eyes like they were focused and hungry for a W. I will take that kind of energy. We came out early and took advantage of some wildness to get in a run and had bases juiced 1 out. A big hit to our momentum when we lined out and got doubled off. But that is baseball you hit a lazer and get doubled up, get fisted and get a double. Funny game. They got the momentum back with a leadoff 1st pitch bomb by Samora to tie the thing. Then cop settle down to hold them scoreless for 3 more innings. We got 2 more in the 2nd and had them on the ropes in the 3rd and 4th but couldn't get it done. We didn't seperate ourselves and would later pay. They brought in a freshman lefty who kept us off balance and was really the player of the game for them. In the 5th I wouldn't say we made bad plays, we just coulda made some good plays to keep our distance and change the outcome of the game. But we did make pitches and got a huge scoop from Doo to get out of the inning tied at 3-3. About at that time you could feel the wheels fall off the bus. Without going into specifics, every play we have been making the past 2-3 weeks, we didn't make today. Yada yada yada next thing you know we lose by a blowout 13-3.
6th Inning: If you look back and scratch your head at that last 2/3rds of an inning some stats pop out at you: 4 walks, 2 HBP, 4 errors and only 3 hits. 10 runs! Man this game is humbling. In my prior years I might have blown a gasket or at least kicked a bucket or something. Maybe I am getting soft with B3 or maybe I just have a better perspective this year. Debatable.
Postgame Speech: Bottom line we had good energy for the first 5 innings. As a coach that has been the biggest struggle over the last couple years and tonight we had the fire. Obviously we need to execute and make those plays at the end of the game but I will take the effort. In my mind the answer always seems to be go work harder at practice. If there was a big negative to me it was the manerisms as the wheels were falling off. I think we went into pout mentality rather than fight mentality. That will need to change for the bus to keep rollin.
Outlook: Us and Apollo both have 2 region loses, and obviously split so now we wait and see how they do in their last 2 games. We turn into the biggest Independence and Thunderbird fans around!
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/24/09 OC 11 - Prescott 8
Senior day today! Great to see all the kids and parents together at the ceremony before the game. As I told the players this wasn't a throw away senior game... this was a big time playoff clinching game. We expected the seniors to step up and win us a big ballgame, and they did just that. It helped getting 4 in the 1st. Big RBI's from seniors Copfer and King. In the 3rd inning we went out and gave up 3 in the top half to cut the lead, but gained the mo' back with a 5 spot in the bottom half. RBI's by Doo, Torres, Cop and 2 from Keffeler gave us some good separation. Next thing you know we are up 11 - 4 in the top of the 7th. A couple bloops and a blast, and there is a guy on first with an 11-8 lead and their best hitter on deck. Yosh works the guy to a full count then he drives the ball to the left field corner. Taylor Bolton comes out of nowhere to fully extend himself making the game-ending diving catch.
Gameball: Taylor Bolton. What a catch! Also mixed in an RBI double and reached base safely 3 times. That catch wasn't by accident. Taylor stayed a half hour later than everyone else last night taking fly balls in left and the hard work paid off.
Seniors Shine: Ruben Torres had 2 knocks, Yosh kept his average at 1.000 with another hit, King went 2 for 3, Cop 3 for 4 and avery got a hit. Great job seniors way to keep the senior day streak alive.
Alumni: Coogs, Wit, Gay and R. Byler showed up at the yard today. Good to see the maturity that goes into a freshman year in college. My little boys all grow up! Except injury prone Wit who was nursing a sprained ankle for sympathy from the chicks.
Playoffs: There was a time in the beggining of the season when i thought this day wouldn't come but... today we clinched a position in the state playoffs!
One more to go: Big game tuesday @ Apollo for the Region Title.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/23/09 OC 10 - Slope 0
Great game today. I really don't know if we could have asked for a better scenario. Defensively we pitched and played a great game holding them to 2 hits on the day. We fielded bunts well and caught balls so today it seemed easy. Offensively we did a great job of getting guys in. The tone was set in the first as we got some great reads on steals and pulled off the double steal of home. Then Brad King picked us up with a big RBI single. 2nd inning Do hits a blast off the wall to score a guy and then was driven in by great push bunt of Colton Avery. 3rd inning Brad hit a 2 run triple and later scored on a great sac fly by Dexter Bethers. In the 4th Colton got a big hit to score a run and read the throw to get to 2nd, then scored on a Devin RBI double. Brad picked up his 4th RBI of the day with a sac fly to give us the 10 run cushion.
Gameball: Aaron Copfer pitched well only throwing 4 changeups and 1 curveball out of 55 pitches on the day. Solid command.
Getting Hot: Brad King had another solid day with 4 RBI's. Good time of the year for him to be staying back and seeing the ball well.
In the stands: An old coaching colleague, Kelly Phipps, brought out his lawn chair to take in some baseball. Always love chatting baseball with that guy as he is a very knowledgeable individual.
Getting Better: Days like today remind me of this. Consider the fact that 7 region games ago we lost at sunnyslope to the same pitcher 8-7 in 8 innings.
Senior Day: Tomorrow vs. Prescott. We have 6 seniors who we expect to get in there and battle in possibly their last home game ever...
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/21/09 OC 13 - Shadow MT. 11
The score is not indicative of how flat we came out and played. We really struggled through the first couple innings. But in the process we decided to get the roller coaster started up and stayed in the game. We stole a couple runs early, sending a guy from 2nd on a ball to short. Seemed like nothin but every little run counts in baseball. Of course we gave up a few as well. This was a good game in reminding us that we can't just show up and think we are better than other teams. I thought their team played really well. There is a fine line as a coach between unloading your bench and battling back. In the 5th we were down 8-3 and the thought of us coming back was dwindling. We got some clutch hits from Draye and Colton, sac fly from Sutton, and eventually Brad cleared things with a shot to the rightcenter gap that scored everyone. The throw was off and he scored as well, but we will score it a triple with an error on the throw, in the book. So we are up 10-8 in bottom of 6th, but nothing is ever easy so next thing you know we give up a 3 spot. Entering the 7th we get a big walk out of Doo. 9 times out of 10 in my career at the OC we are sac bunting in this situation... but I noticed in practice yesterday that Draye really had good rounds of H & R so what the heck we roll the dice. The ball is a base hit to center that the outfielder doesn't come up clean with so next thing you know we are tied with guy on 2nd. Eventually we get them to 1st and 3rd with 1 out when Devin picks us up with a big single and Cop drives a ball to the 1st baseman that we find a way to score on with a good "contact down" read. Cop throws a 1,2, 3 7th and its in the books.
Stop the bleeding: Willm came in and got a big out in the 3rd to get us out of there, as did Keffeler in the 6th. It seems like a small thing sometimes, but just to stop the momentum and get us in the dugout is big.
Play of game: With 1st and 3rd in the 7th score 11-11 with 0 outs we go with a steal of second. Bolton swing and the catcher throws to 2nd who relays to home for the out at the plate... but wait, umpire calls interference on Bolton and sends everyone back. So rather than 1 guy on 2nd 1 out, we are 1st and 3rd 1 out which is much cooler and we get a big hit to go up.
Gameball: Brad King. Reached base 4 times with a single, double, triple and swinging K to the backstop.
Adversity: We had plenty today and didn't respond great. Heat was an issue as the temp was 100, the sun came up in arizona which is a sporatic problem and the umpire had a big zone. I have never seen it effect a team so much. We swung ugly in positive counts as a result. We have to have more discipline and energy.
Gamer: Tyler Doolittle was sick and hot but battle his butt off to get us in a position to win.
Shoutouts: Dan Weber has the lava bears on a 12 game win streak. Terry Baumgartner helped feather river to the Golden Valley Conference Championship. Good job brothers!
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/16/09 OC 12 - Independence 1
Really good ballgame for us today. The first time we have jumped out and seperated ourselves in a game all year. Bryce threw the ball extremely well today. He carried a perfect game into the 5th with 1 out but an infield chopper over his head broke it up. The results were less important to me today than the fact that he just had good command and that good movement back on his fastball. We really got a best case scenario out of today. We wanted Bryce to get a flow, some hitters to get on track with the barrel and some bench guys to get a start with plenty of at-bats under their belt to stay fresh. We jumped out with 5 right off the bat that helped to settle us in. They weren't making errors we just came out and squared up a few balls. Such a good day that we even got the PO's to battle it out at the dish today. Good to get 2 W's on the week. We are really looking at this thing 1 week at a time and next week is now the biggest one of the year with 3 games including 2 region games at home.
Gameball: Bryce Keffeler. Threw 5 solid innings and had 3 quality at-bats.
1st Varsity Hits: Rueben Torres- has really been hitting the ball better in practice and showed it today with a line drive base hit in his first at bat. Kyle Miyoshi- dropped the barrel on a line drive to left. Ryan Silva- battled his backside off to drive a ball oppo thru the infield, 2RBI'S.
Barrel: Taylor Bolton stayed hot with 2 hits.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/14/09 OC 14 - Prescott 7
I hate playing games in the wind. I just don't like the elements and just hope each time that our team can battle through the adversity. They hit a few shots up in the air that just took off in the wind. I am still a little numb and cold from the elements. All being said it was a great trip. We really needed to go up to a place where the adversity would be mighty (umpires, wind, cold) and still pull things out. I could tell from the first moments of the game that it was going to be a shootout. We took a page out of coach Jonez book and just tried to outscore our opponent. If they got 1 we tried to get 2, they get 2 we wanted 4. We put up 7 in the first two innings and most of the time would coast but up there it is always a wild one, so we gave up 3 more in the 2nd to make it 7-4. We got 3 in the 3rd and a couple late to finally pull away 14-7. We did a good job of taking extra bases today. We set a school record with 14 stolen bases! Just great jumps and relentless aggression. I was so proud of our guys. It also seemed like today we finally got the big hits we needed to pick up the stranded runners, as proven by our 8- 2out RBI's in the game.
Pitching: Miyoshi was in a tough spot to start the game. This is the 2nd wind aided game he has pitched and I remembered back to when I toed the rubber with the wind blowing in from right. As a sidearmer it really plays with the ball and makes it hard to control, while minimizing the slider as well. We decided to make a change in the 3rd for this reason. Doo came in and threw 4 solid innings to get us through the game and Cop tossed a perfect 7th striking out the last 2 guys. Considering the elements I was happy with our pitching today.
Defense: I thought by the end of the game we really adjusted to and played some balls well. They were a big play away from really getting over on us, but we didn't let it happen. Also good to see us pick up 2 more pickoffs and throwing a guy out trying to steal.
Offense: Some guys got real fat tonight: Bryce 4 for 5, Cop 3 for 4 with 5 RBI's, Doo 3 for 5 with solid barrel and draye 2 for 2 reaching base safely 5 times in the 9 spot.
Game ball: Brad King. Really threw the barrel around tonight and played a great 3rd base.
OC Record: Cody Kimes had 5 stolen bases tonight. This kid can really impact the game...even when he isn't in the lineup.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/9/09 OC 8 - Tbird 1
Great played game today. We really put together all aspects of the game. Our pitching was very strong. Copfer and Miyoshi combined to not have any free passes in 7 innings. Defense was very good today with only 1 minor error late. Offensively we really picked some things up today. Sutton ran into his usually 2 for 4 with Devin having an impressive 3 for 3 day. I think Copfer with a big RBI double in the first really help to set the tone for us. Dexter did a good job of getting in a big 2 out RBI as well as Keffeler in the 3rd to create some distance between us. Once we got a couple more late in the game we could minimize our burden on Cop and get Miyoshi a good tuneup for next week. That is a game we are capable of... and the roller coaster goes round and round.
GameBall: Aaron Copfer. Quickly establishing himself as the ace of the staff. When pitchers come out and keep us clean for the first couple innings it allows our offense to settle in. He really worked efficiently tonight going 6 strong innings in only 58 pitches.
Big Game: This was a big game to help in our goal of winning region. I think T-bird is a solid team that will win some games in the next couple weeks. Now every game is just as big as the previous one and it doesn't get any easier going up to Prescott on tuesday.
Bowling: Big day of bowling planned for Saturday at 2:30. For all of you that can make it, our current or former players/fans/parents, it would be great to see ya'll.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/7/09 OC 4 - Cactus Shadows 7
I sit here looking at the book reflecting on the game trying to figure how we could give up 7 runs tonight while holding one of the best offensive teams in the state to 6 hits (3 of which we got out off of). It seemed like we really pitched well against all their good hitters and never even gave up an extra base hit. Baseball is a funny game and the little "nickel and dime" things build up and next thing you know you lose 7 -4 thinking you played pretty good. The 4 walks and 3 hit batsmen don't help the cause but it is even the littler things that can cost you against good teams. How about the difference between a 3-1 count to a hitter or a 2-2 count. That is only one pitch but think about the significance it has on the outcome of the at-bat mentally for a hitter. So we could look back at this game and pick out a lot of little "what if" situations that could have turned the tide for us, but it is about time we just start making those plays go our way. As is, we competed against a team that many think is the best in the state tonight. Have to find a way to get more done offensively. We had that kid on the ropes in the 3rd as he worked to 3-0 on the 1st 2 hitters but we just couldn't capitalize.
Roles: We are starting to fit into our roles a little better late in the season. I think like Doo showed tonight, he can be a real strength for us coming out of the pen. 4 K's in 2 1/3 innings is pretty dominant against a team of this caliber.
Football: Twice now that I have seen the football pass to attempt to get out a runner trying to advance to 2nd. Luckily/Ironically our football looked better tonight as Cody caught the 10 yard button hook from Doo to get the runner at 2nd.
Relays: Had 2 big relay plays to negate runners trying to advance tonight. Good job of knowing where the ball needed to go.
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/3/09 OC 8 - Chap 20
The score wouldn't indicate it but it was actually a competitive game until the last inning. Our guys really stuck with it for 4 innings and competed against the blistering winds. The tough thing about the wind wasn't that the balls were launched over our heads, rather that the usual infield popups would drop in front of the outfield. Kind of the "Coors Field" effect when you worry so much about balls taking off that balls seem to die in front a lot. That being said keffeler took advantage of the windstream and flipped a ball off the top of the batters eye. So both teams were dealing with the elements. We really scratched back in the 4th inning when we were down 7-3 then strung some things together to go up 8-7. Then the wheels fell off and as we have learned on this roller coaster when the wheels fall off, they really fall off. Next thing you know we can't get them to hit a ball at us and they hit every gap. We started losing some mental capacity and next thing you know we are down 20-8 in 1+ innings.
Big Picture: It was good to get 2 wins in this tough week. We have 9 more games and for the first time are really having to think about power points and winning games. We have to take it 1 game at a time because each one really does matter now.
Chap vs. OC : Not the kind of game we appreciated in the past but it has become a pretty fun little competition. We know each time out that each team is going to have their ups and downs, they just seem to have the last ups so far.
Practice: Contrary to Allen Iverson practice is going to be very important for us. We really need to put some time in on fundamentals and improving our baseball IQ. Maybe with MLB starting this week we can learn by watching more baseball. I would wonder how many of our guys can keep a scorebook accurately, and that can teach us a lot of situations before they happen.
2/3rds thru: At the 2/3rds mark it is much of what we have expected. Some guys are really starting to assert themselves for us. Aaron Copfer on the mound has been really solid. Dexter and Bryce have really started to be emotional leaders of this team that I hope the guys will follow. Brad King has been a very selfless contributor. Considering the guy will be a solid college catcher, I have been real impressed with his willingness to fill our hole in the infield. "Things are getting better, things are getting better all the time." - kevin Costner The Postman (very underrated movie)
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/2/09 OC 6 - Apollo 0
Big region win for us tonight. We are now back in the thick of the hunt for region. Aaron Copfer was pretty good tonight. He moved his fastball around the zone and scattered 2 hits. Pitched himself out of some big jams tonight. We faced a tough pitcher in Gutierrez from Apollo. Kid can really bring it but we worked our plan all game and did a great job of working deep in counts and hitting fastballs under our hands. Doolittle really started us off with a big 2b to rightcenter scoring Dexter who again had multiple hits. We looked like we were going to let some opportunities slip after stranding some runners in the 3rd, but broke out for a 5 run fifth. The highlights included a Draye triple to right along with a Sutton double off the wall (weightroom), then a big blast into the parking lot by Devin. All in all this might have been our best played game of the year. When we play good D and get solid pitching we can be real competitive.
GameBall: Aaron Copfer. There was some thought to not run him out for the 7th but the kid wanted the ball and that kind of guts is what we need a little more of this season.
Lucky Penny: Kept it in my pocket again today. In the words of Michael Scott, " I am not superstitious, but I am a little stitious"
Jeff Baumgartner
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4/2/09 OC 6 - Apollo 0
Big region win for us tonight. We are now back in the thick of the hunt for region. Aaron Copfer was pretty good tonight. He moved his fastball around the zone and scattered 2 hits. Pitched himself out of some big jams tonight. We faced a tough pitcher in Gutierrez from Apollo. Kid can really bring it but we worked our plan all game and did a great job of working deep in counts and hitting fastballs under our hands. Doolittle really started us off with a big 2b to rightcenter scoring Dexter who again had multiple hits. We looked like we were going to let some opportunities slip after stranding some runners in the 3rd, but broke out for a 5 run fifth. The highlights included a Draye triple to right along with a Sutton double off the wall (weightroom), then a big blast into the parking lot by Devin. All in all this might have been our best played game of the year. When we play good D and get solid pitching we can be real competitive.
GameBall: Aaron Copfer. There was some thought to not run him out for the 7th but the kid wanted the ball and that kind of guts is what we need a little more of this season.
Lucky Penny: Kept it in my pocket again today. In the words of Michael Scott, " I am not superstitious, but I am a little stitious"
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/31/09 OC 6 - T-Bird 5
What a game. It seemed like we were down and out for the count but our boys never gave up. We were down 5-2 and just hadn't been putting it together offensively. We couldn't bunt or hit then something happened... the camera guy for T-bird picked up and offered me a lucky penny he found on the field. I gladly accepted then next thing you know... So Sutton starts off with a hard shot to 1st base that gets him on to start the inning. Keffeler wears one then more breaks for us. A tailor made ball to short skips off the umpire, dead ball everyone advances 1 base. King gets a hit to drive 2 in, Draye gets a hit to load the bases down 4-5. Colton Avery puts down a great drag bunt to get in the tying run sacrificing himself for the team. Then Taylor Bolton comes up with a huge basehit to right to score the go ahead run. An Aaron Copfer perfect 7th and we shocked the world.
Pitching: Doo threw really well tonight. It won't show up in the stats or on ESPN but he really kept us in the game by pitching out of some huge jams in the 1st 2 innings. He really had to pitch to get us through 4. Again Willm is living life the right way. This kid throws 2 more shutout innings to keep us in the game. Copfer was on in the 7th.
Gameball: Taylor Bolton. I am a guy who rarely tears up (minus everytime I watch "Armageddon") but it really choked me up to see this kid come up with the game winning hit. Here is a kid who played sparingly as a freshman, got CUT as a sophomore, and played little on JV as a junior. But he has put in his time to do everything he can to make the himself and the team better. Never asking for more innings or complaining about not getting enough at-bats, just ready to do whatever is asked of him to help out the team. Tonight was very special for him and I couldn't be prouder of a young man.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/30/09 OC 7 - Slope 8 8 innings
Tough way to start off a 4 game week, by going 8 innings, not to mention finishing in 2nd place. We really made this a tough game for us. We were cruising along with 2 outs none on in the 3rd and the wheels fell off. 4 runs later we are scramblin down 4-1. We battled back in the 5th getting some quality at-bats from the top of our order to load the bases. On a 1-2 count Devin again came up big with a bases clearing triple. Next thing you know we are up 5-4 going into the bottom half. But it wasn't meant to be. They hit a couple were we weren't and again we are down 5-7 going into the bottom of the 7th with 2 outs guys on 2nd and 3rd. 2 quality wild pitches later and we are all tied up going into the bottom half. We stopped them but just couldn't get it done in the bottom of the 8th we gave up a run.
Compete- It is a much more level playing field this year. We need to make plays and clutch up with hits to win these games. Every region game is going to be a dogfight and we need to expect this everytime out. Hopefully the results will start going our way.
Baseball- The great thing about baseball is that we get to go right back out there and do it again tomorrow. Flush this one and prepare for tomorrow.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/27/09 OC 7 - Peoria 1
A well played game for us today. I thought our pitching and defense were fantastic. Copfer threw 4 strong innings, Willm continued his dominance, and Doo closed it out with a 1-2-3 inning. That is retiring 3 up 3 down in the last 3 innings, which really helps to close the door. We had a strong 1st inning again which helped to get us going and get the energy level up. Wes Sutton continued his strong hitting leading off with a strong single then driven in by a Keffeler triple. We scored 3 more in the 3rd to give ourselves a cushion, but it seems like we are still a big hit away from breaking the game open. We had multiple opportunities tonight to do so and couldn't get it done. Taylor Bolton came up clutch in the top of the 7th to drive in a big run and showing guys how to step up. All in all a very good week for us and hopefully it has prepared us for the stretch run. We have known that next week would be a big one since the schedule came out. With 4 games in 5 days that are against some real tough competition it is vital that we start to peak a bit. I think we have done well this week to limit our guys innings while also getting their work in for next week. We will really need some guys to step up, but I feel like our pitching has really made improvements in the last couple weeks.
GameBall: Wes Sutton. With 2 outs, a 1-2 count, guys on 2nd and 3rd, and us clinging to a 3-1 lead... Wes comes up with the big double to get us some seperation. Clutch performance today.
Improvement: Dexter Bethers has really started to show some excitment and enthusiasm. He is finally getting his baseball legs back and really does a good job of raising our energy when he wants to. His versatility as an infielder or outfielder really helps out our lineup.
Irony: Not one putout was made by the outfield today and only about 4 balls even got out there. This shows our pitchers did a great job of getting groundballs.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/24/09 OC 9 - Independence 4
We played a much improved Independence team today who had a lefty pitcher who I thought was real effective. It seemed like we were in control the whole game but every time I looked at the scoreboard we weren't up by much. We are in one of those funks where it is hard to pull away from anyone offensively. The good news is we got some good pitching from Kyle Miyoshi and got Ryan Silva back on the mound to get some work in. Defensively I thought we played real well.
Gameball: Cody Kimes. This kid ran the bases well all night. When he got a drag bunt down for a hit he noticed noone covering 2nd and just beat the football pass to 2nd. Also got a big double on the day. He is playing with good fire right now.
1st Varsity Hit: Taylor Bolton. Great job hitting a ball into the hole between 3rd and short for his first hit.
Alumni Watch: Travis Lane was in attendance as well as his dad "Chief". Our little boy grows up to be a man. I remember 5 years ago when he was just a twig trying to put together quality at bats as a freshman.
Hamburglar Award: Coach Doerfler was in town for the game today and made it through the whole game without falling asleep in the dugout, which is a new record for him.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/18/09 OC 6 - Tulsa Memorial 3
Today was a good game to end on for the tourney. It was another roller coaster ride but competitive the whole way through. Aaron Copfer got his first start on the bump and was solid thru 3. He ran into so tiredness in the 4th as it was the longest he had thrown this year. The 4th inning was really the momentum sway of the day and it all happened with Anthony Willm. With guys on 2nd and 3rd and already a 2-1 deficit, Willm came in and pitched his rear off. He got a strikeout and popup to get us out of the jam. That earned him his first at bat and he drove a ball to right for a solid flyout that would spark a big 2 out rally. Seeing a pitcher hit with the barrel inspired the rest of the hitters to do so tying it up. 1 batter later in the same inning Draye Turner got his first hit of his varsity career, a 3-run homer to left center to put us up 5-2. Willm would again throw a solid 5th, then Miyoshi got his bullpen in in the 6th and Doo shut it down in the 7th. Good win against a solid club.
Gameball/1st varsity hit: Draye Turner. Turns out he gets two since it was his first varsity hit.
Alumni Watch: Garrett Bridgewater joined us for most of the game. The Arizona Wildcat came without any gear for the coaching staff but we appreciated having him around none the less.
National Anthem: Kiersten Simmonetta sang the national anthem today. What an irony that one of her goals in health class was to sing the Anthem at a school sporting event and I just happen to have a venue for her. I thought she did a great job.
Big Picture: We are still trying to find our way. We are getting some competitive innings on the bump from a lot of guys. I was hoping that some guys would really seperate themselves and rise to the top but we are still mixing and matching innings and starts to try to find the right mojo. I feel like we are getting better which is tough to see on a daily basis. I liken it to Billy Bob taking his first 3 steps on friday the 13th of march. This doesn't mean that each day he walks farther and better, but over the course of a week or two he should be running around. Lets hope we catch our stride in the coming weeks.
Vacation: Time for the boys to take their 4 day vacation to get their minds right for the 2nd half of the season, and the coaches to get out of the sun and enjoy some march madness!
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/17/09 OC 4 - Broken Arrow 7
1st 4 innings were played very clean and competitive. Again the wheels fell off and we didn't make the play to keep it going. In this case the baseball Gods also took their toll on us and prevented a good pickoff move from being an out, instead a balk and double after putting the game out of reach. Too many crooked numbers being chased for us to come back and get it done. We did scrap though and had the tying run at the dish with 2 outs but couldn't get over.
1st outings: Tommy Lay and Justin Amerson both did a very noble job and this experience will hopefully pay off down the road for them if they continue to work.
Big picture: Broken Arrows picture was very good. We competed against him and did some damage. In these cases we really need to shore up the defense and not give up any unforced runs.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/14/09 OC 3 - MBA 1
Great pitching performance today from Kyle Miyoshi. When you start a tournament and have 4 games in 6 days it is good to get a CG out of a kid to start things off. He really did a good job of battling out of the jams and the defense at times of disaster really picked things up and made plays for him. We had a little excitement with some steals of home today. Bryce Keffeler got in on the action stealing in our 2nd run of the game. Of course we can't be safe all the time but 1 for 2, and what should have been a balk call, showed that we were aggressive by nature at 3rd base.
Gameball: Kyle Miyoshi. 7 innings scattering 5 hits and doing a great job of pitching to contact.
Getting barrell: Aaron Copfer really put a couple swings together and drove the ball while also making a great running catch down the right field fence.
3/14/09 OC 4 - BC 7
Not the best outcome but our effort I felt was there. We just really put ourselves up against it with some defensive miscues that allowed 4 of 7 runs to be unearned. We are an emotional rollercoaster so when things go bad the wheels do tend to fall off unless someone steps up to make sure they don't. You can feel the vacuum suck the breath out of us at times when a miscue leads to loss of momentum. We have to get better at dealing with failure because life has plenty of it and we must respond better. I thought offensively we took advantage of what the BC gave us and really had some moments of enlightenment.
Getting better: 2 pickoffs today and a couple backpicks/throwouts on pitchouts. Our pitchers did a much better job of managing the game and getting some cheap outs.
Alumni watch: Matt Broderick made his way out in full uniform today. Taking a break from his very impressive freshman season at GCC.
Schedule: Tuesday 12:00 vs. Broken Arrow, Wednesday 12:00 vs. Tulsa Memorial
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/10/09 OC 4 - Mingus 14
Well just about everything that could go wrong did in the first inning and we could never get the wheels back on. After going down 7-0 against a solid pitcher it is really tough to fight back and we didn't have enough fight in us today. We need to get better in practice. Too many times we have that "Oh shoot" look when we look up and the runner is already safe, or we don't execute a pick, or we don't run hard on a groundball. We need to have the mental discipline to practice with the game speed on our minds. To imagine the speed of a runner when we take groundballs, or runners on in a bullpen, or a play at the plate when a ball is caught. Until that happens games like this will sneak up on us.
Eagle Festival= I hope everyone can come out and enjoy the Eagle tourney this year as we host 9 schools from around the country. It is a great opportunity for our guys to measure up against competition from other states and make some improvements.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/7/09 OC 6 - Seton Catholic 5
Going into todays game I was reminded of Bob Knights book in which he describes his theory that it is really tough to win the game after a huge victory for your program. Today we looked to prove his theory. We had a couple miscues along the way and found ourselves scramblin down 5-3 going into the 7th. With 1 out keffeler got a big walk. Remember on this field at corona all you need is a baserunner and anything can happen. With 2 outs and Keff on 2nd Draye Turner had a great at bat. Here is a kid who as a freshman has had to deal with a little bit of frustration but he went to the plate in that last inning with great determination, and worked the count 3-2 before drawing a walk. That gave the stage to his big brother who hit the first pitch he saw over the left field fence for a go ahead 3 run bomb. Copfer then shut them down in the 7th with 2 K's to end the game.
Getting better: Kyle Miyoshi pitched 4 quality innings and made some great improvements from last game. He threw 16 first pitch strikes to the 20 batters he faced. Anthony Willm got himself the W with a 1,2,3 6th inning to show that hard work in practice does pay off.
Gameball: Devin Turner= 3 for 3 with the 3 run bomb, not to mention some stellar beats on the ball in the OF.
Impression: Probably going to have to get used to these kinds of games, but we have to learn from them and make improvements. What a weird mix of guys we have. To shed some light for those that aren't around to see us, we have won 3 games with socks high and apparently make road trips to a blarring Taylor Swift CD. I am getting old or the players are getting younger!
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/6/09 OC 2 - DV 0
What a great game for our program. Goes to show how competitive of a team we can be when we get after it on the hill. Kyle Slattery made pitches from the get go, having the ability to throw all 3 pitches for strikes in any count made him really tough to beat today. Aaron Copfer then came in to lock things down working out of jams in the final 2 frames to seal the deal. It wasn't the cleanest game defensively but we made pitches when we had to, and got out of some tough jams. As we look back the plays of the game may have been with 1st and 2nd no outs a wild pitch bounced perfectly off the backstop to King who threw a strike to get the runner out at third. Next play a groundball to sutton at short and the ability to get the out at 3rd really nullified any harm they were looking to do that inning. Devin Turner continues to live life the right way and get rewarded with a 2 run BLAST in the first inning to rightfield.
Impressions: I really like the way Wes Sutton carries himself out on the field. Here is a kid with a hat trick of errors who doesn't let it get to him in the least and makes the final play across the diamond. We have put him in some tough spots with starts in 4 different positions in 5 games, but as a freshman this kid really has the maturity to handle success and failure with the same grit and determination.
Tip the cap: There pitcher competed for 6 innings tonight garnering 11 K's against us. He pitched well but hopefully the next time we face someone with his stuff we adjust a little quicker.
Gameball: Kyle Slattery. Great performance on the bump to get us 5 solid innings. Hopefully we can feed off that as a pitching staff and compete with 3 pitches in the zone for success.
Jeff Baumgartner
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3/5/09 OC 6 - Greenway 2
Well we finally got in the win column. Really glad to see our kids get rewarded playing our style of baseball. We got back to the roots of O'Connor baseball and it really paid off tonight. We ended up with 4 different guys getting bunt base hits, 2 RBI's on bunts and 3 sac bunts. In the 4th it really made the difference to keep getting guys on and over on bunts, then Kimes picks us up with a big double down the line to plate two. A Colton Avery push bunt later and we get 2 runs across and a guy on 2nd as we force them to rush a tough play. Really good job on bunts tonight.
Negative Nelly- I still think we really should have put some distance between us in this game. We need to take advantage of the flow of the game and when we have the chance to put in the dagger we have to take advantage. The thing we need to improve on the most this year is our baserunning reads. In the past I was so used to guys standing on third when they read that ball in the dirt, now I find myself trying to manipulate the runners which minimizes their speed of the game. Instincts and aggression will play much faster.
Alumni Watch- The slow pitch softball circuit must have had a night off as Jake Conroy and Trevor "biggest guy in the yard" Allred where in attendance tonight.
1st varsity hit(s) = Cody Kimes and Kyle Slattery.
Gameball= Tyler Doolittle. He really competed on the bump tonight and finished the game off retiring the last 8 hitters he faced. We were going to go to the closer but I wanted our guys to really take notice of what we mean about rythym and competing on the mound.
Jeff Baumgartner
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2/28/09 OC 3 - CDS 12
Better day today. We play these tourney games to measure up to the best competition in the state and this team might be one of the best. Probably the best hitting club we will see all year. We competed much better as a team today. We had some individual step and it may not show up on the scoreboard but it was a much better played baseball game today. Our guys are starting to see the effort that we expect. When we ask the guys who went out and competed that could really give us a pretty good indication. I only hope that they understand that we need to be hearing more names when we nominate guys who left it all out on the field. This is a game that will help us get better towards our goals later in the season. Baby steps.
1st varsity hit: Dexter Bethers. I really liked the way he played today. Good compeititor.
Still hot: Devin Turner. In the midst of these 1st 3 games it is easy to see that this kid has really matured at the dish and in his tempo of the game.
Alumni watch: Gabbi Wheeler. What a special lady to come to the game today and make brownies and cookies even though she probably has never met half the team. I didn't even know they had ovens in college.
Gaylen Bartlett Award: Great job of Wes Sutton getting his mouth in front of the ball. He is in for a painful morning as his lips got stuck in his braces. Tough kid, I like that.
Jeff Baumgartner
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2/27/09 OC 3 - Ridge 13
Tough day at the yard today. When you are playing a talented team you have to go in with a "We are going to shock the world" mentality. Instead we went in with a fairly passive non-confident mentallity. I really think we need to switch the mindset to start improving. We will get better it is just a matter of individuals stepping up and leading us not just verbally but in their grit and determination. Pitchers need to start making adjustments. We can't throw a ball up in that yard or it will get out as was proven 4-5 times.
Bright spot: Devin Turner and Brad King brought the sticks out today and really found some barrel. Brad proved when you find barrel it leads to good karma, case in point his swinging bunt.
Flashback: The centerfielder for Ridge was a bat boy for my 1 year over there. How great to see him grow into a fine young man and enjoy some success at our expense out there on the field.
Alumni Watch: Just because you CAN grow facial hair... doesn't mean you SHOULD. But it was still good to see Wit and Gay come out and check out there legacy.
Jeff Baumgartner
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2/25/09 Flowing Wells 6-6
As coach Weber would say, "Tying is like kissing your sister." We jumped out 5-2 after the 2nd and I was waiting just open the game up and create some distance, but it didn't get done. As I told the team sports are just waves of momentum and when they got us out 1,2,3 in the 4th you could sense a lift on their side. We helped the cause with a couple misplays on the night and next thing you know we are down 5-6. We answered the call and tied the thing but just couldn't get over the hump. We seemed to be a big hit (or push bunt) away from breaking that thing open. 3 times we had a runner on 3rd less than 2 outs and couldn't get the job done. That will need to improve for us to win games. Tough way to start the year but I have seen a tie 3 times in our career now, so starting to become numb to it as if I am a "kick and chase" coach.
1st pitch= Maverick Lasker threw out the first pitch tonight so we could congratulate him on being drafted in the 4th round last year. Since the draft was after the season we never got to really acknowledge the young man, but took care of that tonight, only wish he would have redshirted.
Big picture= Developing some young men who will get better every game. In all the 1st game madness I even forgot an important tradition that I will make up for tomorrow... 1st varsity hit ball: Colton Avery, Devin Turner, Aaron Copfer, Brendon Erickson.
Alumni watch:
Got a text tonight from Cliff Shepard (06) who hit 2 doubles tonight to help Centenary shock #1 ranked Texas A & M.
Zack MacPhee lead ASU last night against mizzou winning 3-1, what a change in maturity I have seen in that kid in 3 years.
Brian Carr in town with Mizzou, talk about a kid who has matured over the years.
I am so proud of all our young men over the years those still playing ball and those playing the game of life.
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Desert Ridge Scrimmage 2/21/09
A new chapter began in OC baseball today as we welcomed a new generation into the program. We had 13 guys getting their first taste of varsity action. There were some bright spots, some lowlights and definitely some learning experiences. Coach Renning mentioned that today should be thought of as a pre-test in academics, and no teacher wants the students to do really well on the pre-test, because then it wouldn't look like they learned anything. Today was a great place to start. Playing a very solid Desert Ridge team it helped our player to see a different speed of the game. This will definitely help us down the road and I expect that we will see some big improvement by the end of the season. Lets take a look at a few areas that stood out today:
Highlights=
1. Got all our bunts down and did a great job of getting guys to 2nd base with less than 2 outs. That is half the battle... the other half of getting them in, needs to be improved upon.
2. Weight room improvements: Bryce Keffeler. I wasn't sure we would get a ball out all year let alone from our power hitting pitcher.
3. Sonic youth: We thru some 15/16 yr olds right into the fire today, starting 3 freshman and having a sophomore make his debut. Andrew Snider (soph) was a 2nd base/outfielder last year who I had never seen throw until this spring. He pitched 2 solid innings. The other young bucks will only get better as they get a feel of the speed of the game at this level.
Improvements=
1. Respond to adversity. We need to grit our teeth and battle when things start to go bad. Everyone is looking for someone to step up and compete when things aren't going our way.
2. Pitching to contact. We have to have more command of the zone. 11 walks today was painful in the beating down sun. Our mindset of being a "pitcher" needs to improve. It is not a some of the time experience, it needs to be in everything we do, including playing catch.
We will get better and make improvements as we get a little more experience at that level. The biggest thing for us is to remember that at the end of the day no one feels sorry for us and no excuses are acceptable. We want to play at the highest level than we have to compete. This is not unlike the teams we have had in the past who just needed a little hard work and perseverance to achieve our goals.
*** Good luck to all our alumni across the country as they begin their seasons. We wish them the best and give them a standing invitation to swing out to the yard and check out the legacy they have left.
Jeff Baumgartner
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