BASEBALL BEAT : SWINGING SOME REAL LUMBER.Joey Hamer dreams of playing in the major leagues someday. He'll be a sophomore this fall at Newbury Park High School, but already he's looking ahead to the possibility of pro baseball. Hamer (pictured) is using a wooden bat this summer on the Newbury Park American Legion American Legion, national association of male and female war veterans, founded (1919) in Paris. Membership is open to veterans of World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. team. Despite the limitations of wooden bats compared to aluminum ones used in high school and college, Hamer is hitting .395 with four doubles, a home run and six RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in through 13 games. ``I'm doing pretty well,'' said Hamer, who started at catcher for the Panthers last season as a freshman. ``There isn't as much pop, but I seem to be finding the holes and getting hits.'' Hamer had to make some adjustments. He has noticed that with a wooden bat, quick hands are critical in order to get around on an inside fastball. With an aluminum bat Aluminum bat may refer to:
``In the long run this will make me an even better hitter.'' Hamer said. ``When I use an aluminum bat in high school next season I'll be that much better.'' Throwing a lot of O's What can Ryan Cowsill do for an encore? In his only two pitching starts this summer, the Notre Dame Notre Dame IPA: [nɔtʁ dam] is French for Our Lady, referring to the Virgin Mary. In the United States of America, Notre Dame High junior pitcher has thrown a shutout and a no-hitter. He has 13 strikeouts in 15 innings while walking four. ``He throws a lot of strikes and knows how to spot his pitches,'' said Cowsill's Van Nuys East Legion coach, Jody Breeden. Cowsill is the cousin of former Crescenta Valley The Crescenta Valley is a small inland valley in Los Angeles County, California. Its name derives from its crescent-like shape, with the convex portion facing roughly northeast and the concave portion southwest. star Brendon Cowsill, a pitcher for the Angels' Single-A team in Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids, city (1990 pop. 108,751), seat of Linn co., E central Iowa, on the Cedar River; inc. as a city 1856. The second largest city in Iowa, it is named for the surging rapids in the river. , Iowa. Cowsill was unbeaten on Notre Dame's JV team last season. After his no-hitter Sunday, Cowsill waited until he got into his father's car to celebrate. ``I was really excited,'' he said. ``I couldn't stop talking.'' Van Nuys East has so many quality pitchers that Breeden could be the envy of every Legion coach. ``I made sure we had plenty of arms,'' he said. The team's closer is ex-Notre Dame reliever Chris Cross
Chris Cross (born Christopher Allen, 14 July 1952, Tottenham, North London, England) was the bass guitarist in the band Ultravox, until their demise in , an All-Ivy League pick at Columbia this past season. Besides Cowsill, the starters are Kevin Jerkens and Ryan Stonerock, seniors at Notre Dame. There's also junior Phil Polanco and seniors Jason Hershfield and Sean Smith Sean Smith may refer to one of the following:
The area's No. 1 pitcher Because Jon Garland Jon Steven Garland (born September 27, 1979 in Valencia, California) is a right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox. Garland was selected by the Chicago Cubs with the 10th pick of the 1997 amateur draft. takes off this week to begin his pro career for the Chicago Cubs in Mesa, Ariz., the top pitcher around could be Cleveland graduate Mike Schultz Michael Alan Schultz (born on 28th November 1979 in Van Nuys, California) is a minor league baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks franchise. He attended Loyola Marymount University. On July 16, 2004, he struck out five batters in an inning. (see [1]. . He has been dominating outmanned hitters in Legion ball for Central Valley. He's 3-0 with an 0.52 ERA. Dreaming of Williamsport, Pa. The District 40 Little League playoffs begin Saturday at 5 p.m. with an opening game that should draw lots of fans: Woodland Hills vs. Northridge at Canyon Country Little League. These two teams made up of 11- and 12-year-olds have been rivals for years. Northridge has been the dominant team, but Woodland Hills is favored this season. Other opening games Saturday: Granada Hills vs. Sherman Oaks at Encino and Mission Hills vs. Central Mountain at Northridge. The double-elimination tournament A double-elimination tournament is a competition in which a participant ceases to be eligible to win the tournament's championship upon having lost two games or matches. continues through July 16. Etc. N.H. pitchers on a roll:North Hollywood's pitching staff for next season is 9-1 with a 2.37 ERA in Legion ball. Coach George Vranau couldn't be more pleased with Brandon Murphy (2-1, 2.04), Jose Figueroa (4-0, 1.90) and Edgar Pineda (3-0, 3.76). Murphy, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound junior transfer from Granada Hills, could be a varsity standout next spring. Hot hitter: Central Valley's Justin Savitt, a senior outfielder at Cleveland, is batting .549 with 12 stolen bases and 19 runs scored. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: no caption (Joey Hamer) Gene Blevins / Special to the Daily News |
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