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Hubs magical playoff run comes to an end
Walkersville claims region title with 6-5 tenth inning victory over North
May 15, 2009---By CHRISTIAN WORSTELL, Herald-Mail
WALKERSVILLE, Md. — The only thing stranger than North Hagerstown’s run in the regional tournament was the way it ended on Friday.
The Hubs failed to hold a seventh-inning lead and walked home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning to allow Walkersville to claim a 6-5 victory and the Maryland Class 2A West region title.
The loss put an end to the Hubs’ improbable postseason run. North entered the postseason at 4-10-1. The regular season included a pair of wins over Walkersville before the run of three straight regional wins to come within three outs of claiming the title.
“I don’t even know what to say. We were upset about the regular season when it seemed like things just wouldn’t go our way, said North first baseman Miles Trumpower, who belted a first-inning grand slam and drove in all five Hubs runs.
“We just put our heads down and went to work.”
“It was just perseverance and not giving up. We felt like we were close all year,” North coach Steve Myers said.
The Lions (12-8) scratched out a run in the bottom of the sixth to trim the Hubs’ lead to 5-3. With runners on second and third and one out, pinch-hitter Ricky Pardo’s slapped a two-run single up the middle to tie the game.
The Lions, who left runners in scoring position in the seventh and eighth, led off the 10th with No. 9 hitter Allan Essler singling to left off pitcher Greg Lynn. Collin Mummert followed with a single to center and Eric Walker was hit by a pitch -- the sixth hit batsmen of the game — to load the bases.
Conner Spessard relieved Lynn as the Hubs’ fifth pitcher of the game and walked Joey Zuniga on four pitches to force in the winning run.
“I thought we were in a good spot with three outs left,” Myers said. “We just didn’t get it done.”
Trumpower came up with the bases loaded in the first and sent the first pitch he saw over the 350-foot sign in left-center field for the first and only home run of his high school career.
“Coach told me to be patient and wait until I see a couple of strikes before I go at it,” said the senior. “But I liked the first-pitch fastball.”
After the Lions burned through two pitchers in the first inning, Zuniga took over in the second and was unhittable. The southpaw struck out 15 of the 23 batters he faced with a devastating curveball before being lifted in the ninth for eventual winner Greg Dayhoff.
“It shows the kind of character these guys have,” Walkersville coach Jeremy Long said. “We don’t ever quit. We were 0-2 against them (in the regular season). The third time’s a charm.”
Like Irish, former Hub, Hose tries to score points in South Bend
By BOB PARASILITI
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — It might seem like T.J. Hose is in the wrong place at the right time.
Living and playing in South Bend, Ind. — in the shadow of Notre Dame — Hose’s pitching efforts could get lost in an area steeped in football tradition.
But the North Hagerstown graduate is no different than the Fighting Irish. Every time he takes the field, he wants to score a touchdown. Figuratively speaking, of course.
Hose is a pitcher with many roles for the South Bend Silver Hawks, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Single-A affiliate in the Midwest League. That’s OK, though, because each time out is a way to score points.
“I had a chance to be a starter, but it fell through,” said Hose of his first year with a professional full-season team. “That’s not a problem. It just gives me a chance to go out and compete more often.”
Pitching and competing are the two most important things to Hose, who attended East Carolina before being selected by Arizona in the 36th round of the 2008 amateur draft.
“Nothing is set in stone,” he said, “as long as I get the ball and keep going.”
So far, that has been in a multitude of situations in his first nine appearances for the Silver Hawks. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound right-hander has been a setup man and a closer while South Bend manager Mark Haley and pitching coach Erik Sabel auditions each pitcher for roles. Hose is 1-0 with a 1.23 ERA, three walks, 13 strikeouts and three saves in 14 2/3 innings of work.
“Right now, they told me that I’m the seventh- and eighth-inning guy,” Hose said. “They like to put me in the tough situations with like a one- or two-run lead because they know I will go in and throw strikes.”
That’s to Hose’s liking because it allows him to pitch and compete every time he takes the field.
“I’m building a mentality that gets me so hyped up for those situations,” he said. “You don’t want to get too amped though because you don’t want to go out there and overthrow. You want to go out and get the job done. As a starter, you go out there and you work six or seven innings and try to put the team in a situation to win before handing it over to the relievers.”
Hose, 23, played the starter side of the game last season in Yakima (Wash.) in the Single-A half-season Northwest League. He went 4-5 with a 4.48 ERA in 15 starts. He pitched 78 1/3 innings, walking 20 and striking out 57.
Starting jobs were limited when he headed to South Bend, since the Silver Hawks are a combination of two rookie teams. The Silver Hawks decided to put Hose in the bullpen to take advantage of the experience he gained from pitching in college.
“There are a lot of guys who are Dominican or are 18-19 years old that are out there learning,” Hose said. “Experience-wise, what helped me was pitching four years in college against some good competition. It has helped me see how to pitch. We have six or seven guys who can start and things have been changing so far, so who knows.”
The Diamondbacks organization made sure Hose knew that his pitching situation was neither permanent nor his fault.
“They thought I was mad,” Hose said. “They told me that they never thought a 36th-round guy would become a prospect. They wanted me to go out and keep it going. I told them that I wasn’t down. This will just give me another opportunity to show what I can do.”
For Hose, every one of those opportunities allows him to defy the odds while getting closer to his goal.
“I want to go out each time like it is going to be my last time out there,” Hose said. “I know I wasn’t a high pick. I’m not a senior out of high school. I’m not 6-2 or 6-3. I have to go out there and give it my all.
“If I can keep doing that and then maybe some day I’ll get the chance to get my dream and I’ll be pitching in the major leagues.”
Lynn pitches Hubs into 2A West Title Game
North moves to regional final with 4-0 win over Middletown
By CHRISTIAN WORSTELL, Herald-Mail
MIDDLETOWN, Md.; May 13, 2009---— It’s amazing what a sudden jolt of confidence can do for a baseball team.
Still giddy after Friday’s 11-inning win over Francis Scott Key and Monday’s upset of Century, North Hagerstown rode the coattails of pitcher Greg Lynn to a 4-0 victory over Middletown in Wednesday’s Maryland Class 2A West semifinals.
North will travel to face the winner of the Liberty-Walkersville semifinal in the region final on Friday. The game was suspended with the score tied at 7-all in extra innings and will resume today.
Lynn tossed six scoreless innings and struck out eight as the Hubs won despite collecting five hits and striking out 13 times.
“Monday’s win did more for us than we probably know,” North coach Steve Myers said. “We’ll go as far as our pitching and defense will carry us.”
The Hubs defense played an error-free game and Lynn was nearly flawless. The Knights loaded the bases with only one out in the first, but Lynn escaped the threat when Miles Trumpower laid out to scoop a double-play throw at first base to end the inning.
From there, Lynn retired 15 of the final 16 batters he faced, including 11 in a row. After collecting a pair of singles and a walk in the first, Middletown did not reach base again until the fifth inning.
“That kid threw a great game,” Knights coach Andy Baker said. “He was sharp. He had good location and was close to the plate. After that first inning, we never threatened again.”
“He’s been the one consistent part of our pitching staff all year,” Myers said. “The only reason I took him out was because of (his inning) limitation.”
Aaron Stoner pitched a hitless seventh and the Hubs reached the finals for the first time since 2006.
“We were so confident after the Century win. We knew we had to come in here and do our job,” Lynn said. “(Monday) was a huge confidence boost for us.”
North collected RBI doubles from Jeremy Barron in the fourth and Brian Laferte in the seventh innings to score its final two runs. A catcher’s interference call with the bases loaded gave the Hubs a 1-0 lead in the first inning. North made it 2-0 when the Knights dropped a fly ball in the outfield with two outs in the third, allowing Allen Thomas to score.
Middletown (8-10) had defeated North (7-10-1) in both regular-season meetings.
Knights starting pitcher Collin May lasted just 1 2/3 innings after plunking Hubs leadoff hitter Ty Benson on the elbow on the first pitch of the game and issued four walks.
Evan Moser came on in relief for the Knights and recorded 10 strikeouts in just 4 1/3 innings.
“We knew right away (May) was in trouble,” Baker said. “When he hit the guy on the first pitch of the game, that was a pretty good indicator of how things were going to go.
“I told my guys at the beginning of the season that the 2A West is wide open.”
North Hagerstown 4, Middletown 0
North 101 100 1 — 4 5 0
Middletown 000 000 0 — 0 3 1
Lynn, Stoner (7) and Thomas. May, Moser (2) and Watkins. WP — Lynn. LP — May.
Hubs shock #1 Century, 4-3
Carpenter, Stoner lead North into 2A West Semis
SYKESVILLE, Md.; May 11, 2009---North Hagerstown pulled off the first upset in the Maryland 2A West Region playoffs on Monday with a 4-3 victory over No. 1-seed Century.
The Hubs (6-10-1) had only two hits, both by Aaron Stoner, including his double in the seventh inning and his subsequent run in what proved to be the winning margin.
Century (9-6) scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh before Jeremy Barron came on in relief and squelched the Knights rally.
Stoner also had a third-inning home run.
The Hubs will play at Middletown on Wednesday in the region semifinals.
North Hagerstown 4, Century 3
North 101 001 1 — 4 2 2
Century 000 000 3 — 3 3 3
Carpenter, Worthington (7), Barron (7) and Allen. Bordner and Maguire. WP — Carpenter. LP — Bordner. S — Barron. HR — N: Stoner (3rd, none on).
Laferte lifts Hubs to win in 11th
By BOB PARASILITI, HERALD-MAIL
May 8, 2009---Despite nearly a solid week of rain, Brian Laferte seemed to have the only moisture on North Hagerstown’s baseball field.
“My palms were starting to sweat, but I kept my cool,” Laferte said.
That’s because the outcome of Friday’s first-round Maryland Class 2A West playoff game against Francis Scott Key was in his hands. Laferte responded by ripping a bases-loaded single with two outs in the 11th inning to lift the Hubs to a 3-2 victory.
An odd chain of events put North’s center fielder in the position. He was the sixth batter to hit in the inning and figured he would never get a chance to end it.
Instead Jeremy Wood drew a walk off FSK reliever Casey Klein to lead off the inning and took second on Aaron Stoner’s one-out single. After a passed ball advanced the runners, Jeremy Barron was intentionally walked to load the bases.
The Hubs (5-10-1) turned to Tyler Ernde to end the game, but he missed contact on a suicide squeeze try that turned Wood into a dead duck at the plate. FSK then elected to intentionally walk Ernde to reload the bases.
Enter Laferte.
“I didn’t think it would get down to me,” Laferte said. “I had to pinch myself. But my first three at-bats were really crappy. I knew this was my chance to get a hit for the team. This is a good spark for the team.”
Stoner crossed the plate with his arms raised in celebration as the Hubs won the right to play top-seeded Century on Monday.
“I can’t live through too many more like that,” said North coach Steve Myers. “Brian is a senior and after his first three at-bats, it showed that he had enough composure to get that hit.”
Stoner won the game with four innings of strong relief to preserve a stellar starting performance by Greg Lynn. The game became an unlikely pitchers’ duel pitting Lynn’s finesse against FSK’s hard-throwing Collin Mills.
Lynn allowed one run on seven hits while striking out eight in seven innings. He was matched by Mills, who went eight innings, allowing an unearned run on three hits and four walks while striking out nine.
“(Lynn) is not a strikeout pitcher, but he mixed his pitches well and hit his spots,” Myers said. “If he does that, he’s tough. Stoner is very composed for a sophomore. He’s become our go-to guy.”
North took a 1-0 lead in the first as Barron led off with an infield single and Ernde reached when center fielder Nick Omelia dropped his fly ball. Laferte popped a bunt to Mills on the mound, but he threw away his attempt to double off Ernde at first, allowing Barron to score.
FSK tied the score in the sixth as Tyler Linkins doubled and scored on Bobby Wynkoop’s single.
The two teams traded runs in the 10th as Omelia scored when Mills was caught in a rundown at second to give FSK the lead. North kept the game alive on Thomas Allen’s RBI single that put the Hubs in position to pull out the win.
North Hagerstown 3, F.S. Key 2
Francis Scott Key 000 001 000 10 — 2 10 4
N. Hagerstown 100 000 000 11 — 3 7 1
Mills, Klein (9) and Woodrow; Lynn, Stoner (8) and Allen. WP — Stoner. LP — Klein.
Stoner HR ends Hubs six-game slide
April 17, 2009---Aaron Stoner hit a game-winning solo homer in the bottom of the sixth inning Thursday as North Hagerstown picked up its first MVAL Piedmont win of the season, defeating Walkersville 4-3.
Stoner also got the win in relief with two scoreless innings of work. Miles Trumpower had three hits and Stoner had two hits and two RBIs for the Hubs (2-6, 1-4), who snapped a six-game losing streak.
Joey Zuniga had three hits for Walkersville (4-5, 1-3).
North 4, Walkersville 3
Walkersville 110 100 0 — 3 7 1
North 111 001 x — 4 6 0
Dayhoff, Maymon (5) and Shelton. Carpenter, Stottlemyer (4), Stoner (6) and Allen. WP — Stoner (1-1). LP — Maymon. HR — Stoner (6th, none on).
Hubs fall short against Rebs, 6-5
By TIM KOELBLE, Herald-Mail
South Hagerstown’s first double play of the season could not have come at a better time.
With a precarious 6-5 lead, drizzle falling, darkness looming and North Hagerstown threatening with runners at first and second with one out in the seventh inning, the Rebels turned a crisp 6-4-3 twin kill to end the MVAL Piedmont rivalry baseball game.
“It was the first (double play) of the year,” said a smiling Tyler Presgraves, who started the double play on a hard grounder by North’s Jeremy Barron.
Presgraves flipped perfectly to second baseman Tim Hoover, and the win was preserved when first baseman Joey Miller stretched out, his foot barely attached to the bag, to take Hoover’s wide throw.
“That ball was hit hard to short, but we pulled it out,” said South coach Ralph Stottlemyer.
Cory Shank entered in the seventh and got the save. He preserved the win for reliever Jordan Miller, who retired all five batters he faced after replacing starter Dwight Boward in the fifth with one out after North tied the game at 5-all.
South (3-5, 2-2) broke the tie in the bottom of the sixth against North reliever Aaron Stoner.
Pinch-hitter Garrick Bower led off with a walk and was sacrificed to second by Nick Stubbs. After Timmy Hoover flied to center, Presgraves delivered a single that was wide of third baseman Jeremy Wood to score Stubbs.
“It was cold, slippery, hard for the pitchers to hold the baseball and a typical North-South game,” said Stottlemyer. “We’re happy to get the win.”
North (1-6, 0-4) contributed to the Rebels’ cause defensively, committing three errors that helped South to five unearned runs for a 5-2 lead through four innings.
In the fifth, North’s Brian Laferte ripped a two-run double and scored on Barron’s double off Boward, who was erratic at times, to forge a 5-5 tie.
The Hubs took a 2-1 lead in the third inning on back-to-back RBI singles by Laferte and Barron.
South answered in the bottom of the third with two runs as Hoover brought in Stubbs on a groundout, Presgraves doubled and Adrian Adams singled.
“That (double play) was a tough way to end,” said Hubs first-year coach Steve Myers. “We did a nice job coming back. Our defense has been spotty, and one or two errors ends up kicking us in the butt.”
Presgraves continued to emerge from an early slump, collecting two of South’s six hits. North’s six hits were divided equally in pairs among three players — Laferte, Barron and Ty Benson.
South 6, North 5
North 002 030 0 — 5 6 3
South 012 201 x — 6 6 0
Lynn, Stoner (4) and Allen. D. Boward, Jor. Miller (5), Shank (7) and Haupt. WP — Jor. Miller. LP — Stoner. S — Shank.
Frederick, Middletown defeat Hubs
Miles Trumpower’s RBI double tied the game at 5 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh for North Hagerstown, but the Hubs gave up three runs to Middletown in the top of the ninth in an MVAL Piedmont loss to the Knights (4-1, 3-0).
Jeremy Barron had two hits and Tyler Ernde added two RBIs for the Hubs (1-5, 0-3).
On Tuesday, North managed just a lone hit by Jeremy Wood in a 5-2 loss to Frederick.
Frederick 5, North Hagerstown 2
North 001 100 0 — 2 1 2
Frederick 000 230 x — 5 9 1
Lynn and Allen. Weddle, Hornstein (4) and Hayes. WP — Hornstein. LP — Lynn (1-1).
Hubs fall to Clear Spring, 11-2
By BOB PARASILITI, Herald-Mail
CLEAR SPRING —The North Hagerstown baseball team learned the unwritten philosophy when it comes to digging holes.
First, don’t fall in. Second, be sure the other guys don’t have a bigger shovel to fill them up.
The Hubs failed on both counts on Thursday. North’s walks and errors allowed No. 4 Clear Spring enough extra chances to score all 11 of its runs in the first four innings in the Blazers’ 11-2 victory.
The Hubs took a 1-0 lead in the first inning but stood by and watched as Clear Spring scored five in its half of the inning. In fact, North readily participated by committing two errors which led to three of the runs.
“We dug ourselves a big hole,” said North coach Steve Myers.
The Blazers buried the Hubs in that hole with minimal effort. Clear Spring had very few hits — and even fewer clutch hits — but all seemed to count.
“I’d like to think it’s all because of the pressure we apply on teams with our offense,” said Clear Spring coach Mark Shives. “I’d like to see us get more timely hits. I hate to go back there and keep complaining about it when we are winning, but we need to get those hits later on down the line.”
North took a 1-0 lead when Tyler Ernde and Jeremy Barron led off with singles off Clear Spring starter Josh Kehr. Ernde scored on Kehr’s errant pickoff throw on Barron.
Clear Spring (5-0) came back immediately against Chase Worthington. Brandon Glazer and Brad Banzoff led off with walks and Kyle Crist loaded the bases by reaching on a fielding error by first baseman Miles Trumpower.
Jordan Thurber put the Blazers on the board with a two-run single and Joel Rowe followed with a sacrifice fly to center for a 3-1 lead. After Corey Morgan drew a two-out walk, the final two runs scored when Ty Benson dropped Brad Jordan’s fly to center.
Clear Spring added two runs in the second on RBI singles by Crist and Rowe. A pair of North errors helped produce three Blazer runs in the third and ended the day for Worthington. He lasted 2 1/3 innings, allowing 10 runs (six earned) on six hits and four walks without a strikeout.
The Blazers added a run in the fourth on Brian Lesher’s sacrifice fly off Aaron Stottlemyer to put Clear Spring up 11-1 and on the brink of ending the game by the mercy rule.
North staved off the elimination with a run in the fifth on Barron’s RBI double. The Hubs survived to play the game out until the end of regulation.
“We’re going to make mistakes, but we have to find a way to bounce back strong,” Myers said. “We have to come back and work harder. I was happy with the way we didn’t quit. We are in a slump right now. It seems like we are down six runs before we get off the bus.”
Glazer had three hits and scored three times for Clear Spring, while Thurber and Rowe drove in two runs each. Kehr pitched five innings, allowing two runs on six hits while striking out four. Crist and Thurber each pitched an inning to close out the game for the Blazers.
Barron led North with two hits. Stottlemyer and Justin Breeden came on in relief of Worthington and shut down Clear Spring.
Clear Spring 11, North Hagerstown 2
North 100 010 0 — 2 6 5
Clear Spring 523 100 x — 11 7 1
Worthington, Stottlemyer (3), Breeden (5) and Allen; Kehr, Crist (6), Thurber (7) and Morgan. WP — Kehr. LP — Worthington.
Frederick batters Hubs, 14-1
March 27, 2009---Josh Jackson had two hits, including a home run, and six RBIs to lead Frederick to an MVAL Piedmont victory over North Hagerstown.
Brady Wilson had three hits and Brian Weddle added two for the Cadets (4-0, 1-0). Jimmy Lanning got the win, striking out eight in five innings.
Jeremy Wood went 2-for-3 with an RBI for the Hubs (1-1, 0-1).
Frederick 14, North Hagerstown 1
N. Hagerstown 010 00 — 1 7 2
Frederick 046 22 — 14 10 2
Worthington, Stotlemyer (4) and Allen. Lanning and Hayes. WP — Lanning (2-0). LP — Worthington. HR — F: Jackson (2nd, two on).
Hubs pull out last inning win over Cats, 8-7
March 25, 2009---North Hagerstown rallied with four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to knock off Williamsport in the season opener for both teams Wednesday.
The Hubs scored twice on passed balls before Jeremy Barron crossed the plate on a botched Williamsport rundown to win the game. Greg Lynn picked up the victory in relief while Miles Trumpower had two hits for the Hubs (1-0).
Jason Hammond hit a three-run double, while Jon Marx added two hits and an RBI for the Wildcats (0-1).
North Hagerstown 8, Williamsport 7
Williamsport 011 104 0 — 7 10 2
North 031 000 4 — 8 8 1
Dagenhart, Hammond (4) and Warrenfeltz. Stoner, Lynn (3) and Allen. WP — Lynn (1-0). LP — Hammond (0-1).
Myers named new Hubs head coach
January 5, 2009---The North Hagerstown Hubs Varsity baseball team will have a new skipper in 2009. Steve Myers, the Hubs JV coach in 2008, will lead the Hubs this season.
The Hubs new manager will take over for former coach Shawn Reynolds, who coached the Hubs from 1997-2008. The Smithsburg graduate and three-year varsity baseball starter also managed the Hagerstown Braves U-22 team in 2007. Myers has been on the Hubs football staff since 2006 and has coached wrestling at Smithsburg.
Myers said of his hiring, "I am very pleased to be named the coach of the North Hagerstown baseball team. I hope I can uphold the traditions and standards of winning set forth by the great coaches that came before me. I am extremely excited and I can't wait for the challenge of the season."
North is coming off a 6-15 campaign and opens the 2009 season on March 25 at home against Williamsport.
Former Hub T.J. Hose drafted by Arizona Diamondbacks
By BOB PARASILITI, HERALD MAIL
June 7, 2008----For a while, the world of technology wasn’t treating T.J. Hose very well.
He sat in front of his computer Friday, watching the pick-by-pick progress of the second day of the Major League Baseball draft, hoping to see his future.
Hose, a North Hagerstown graduate, just completed his four-year stay at East Carolina University in emphatic fashion and was hoping his name would show up for the chance to pitch professionally.
Thirty rounds went by and so did 1,000 selections. Hose was starting to feel as low as he would after allowing a home run.
“I sat there watching,” Hose said. “After the first 30 rounds, I turned to my family and said, ‘I guess I’m not getting drafted.’”
Then, in a five-minute span, Hose received a phone call and then his name popped up as a 36th-round choice of the Arizona Diamondbacks as the 1,098th player selected.
“I got real emotional and I started crying,” Hose said. “It was an emotional thing. I got up and went and hugged my family. Words can’t describe the feeling.”
The phone call from the Diamondbacks was a total surprise.
“I talked to seven teams before the draft,” Hose said. “None of them took me and then out of the blue came the call from the Diamondbacks. The man (Howard McCullough, the Diamondbacks’ Carolina-area scout) asked me if I was interested in playing professional baseball. I said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘OK, I’m going to try and sell it to the big dogs.’ Five minutes later, my name popped up on the computer.”
And the pressure release valve was opened. The good seasons at North Hagerstown along with a solid career at East Carolina had all paid off.
Hose could not have had a better final audition than his last game on May 31, when he fired a complete-game 9-0 shutout against Columbia in the Conway Regional of the NCAA Tournament. He struck out seven and walked one without a runner passing second base. He retired 17 straight batters from the fourth through ninth innings.
“I couldn’t ask for a better game to close my time at East Carolina,” Hose said.
He finished his career with a 23-17 record, including a 7-4 mark this season.
After his selection, McCullough called back and told Hose that he would be in touch with him in the next day to give him his instructions. Thirty minutes later, Hose was notified that we will be flying to Tucson to the Diamondbacks’ spring training site on Monday for a physical and training camp.
Then, he will be placed on one of Arizona’s Single-A short-season rosters to begin pitching.
And even though he was forced to wait longer than he hoped to, Hose wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I came into the draft knowing I wasn’t a top prospect,” Hose said. “I’m 5-foot-10 and I don’t have a pitcher’s body. I just wanted a shot. I just hope to get off to a good start and progress from there.”
