2010 NCAA TOURNAMENT FUNDRAISER UNDERWAY

Hello everyone, if you haven't found the updated TCBC website at www.threecitiesbaseball.com yet -- please reset your bookmarks to there.

Here's all the information for TCBC 2010 NCAA Tournament fundraiser:

Click the NCAA BRACKET POOL link to the left to see the updated, complete bracket for the TCBC NCAA TOURNAMENT fundraiser. This year, like last, Three Cities will be offering a $1,000 prize to the winning bracket, follow the link for complete rules and details! Thank you again for supporting amateur baseball in North-Eastern Ohio!

You can also enter via poolhost.com -- contact a team representative for pool information and password, OR just use the "Make a Donation" button to the left to pay your $20 donation to enter and you will receive the pool and password information emailed to you instantly!

Here's the completed bracket:
Here's the Rules:

RULES: Enter by submitting a signed form to you Team Representative, one entry per entry fee, OR online, one entry per email address, per entry fee.

SCORING: Rounds are weighted as follows:

First Round -- 1 point (32 total points possible)
Second Round -- 2 points (32 total points possible)
Third Round -- 4 points (32 total points possible)
Fourth Round -- 8 points (32 total points possible)
Semifinals -- 16 points (32 total points possible)
Finals -- 32 points (32 total points possible)
Maximum Possible Points: 192 points.

TIE BREAKER: Final game scoring (total score, then individual scores).

PRIZES: One (1) Grand Prize of $1000 USD, winning entry must be signed (or electronically submitted) and have been submitted on time.

ODDS OF WINNING: Dependent upon total number entries.

DISCLAIMER: Entry and participation does not guarantee a prize. Tournament fee is considered a donation to THREE CITIES BASEBALL CLUB and is non-refundable. Signing a form or submitting online releases THREE CITIES BASEBALL CLUB from liabilities in the case of a lost or incorrectly submitted form. Please contact info@threecitiesbaseball.com for more information.

Thank you for your continued support of Amateur Baseball in the Three Cities!

For Entertainment Purposes Only!

Coming Soon

An all new TCBC website is now under construction
Check Back Soon!

2010 NEORH

The Northeast Ohio Roy Hobbs league has updated their web presence. Please adjust your bookmarks to direct to http://www.royhobbs.com/neorh as this new site is now "live."

All-Star Game

A bit delayed, dismayed and somewhat poorly played, the 2009 NEORH 28's and 38's "All-Stars" took on the 2009 OPEN Division Champion Akron A's on Sunday afternoon at Old Forge Field. By the prescribed noon start, there were 8 players in attendance, so coaches Scott Koenig (Orioles 38's) and John Millin (TCBC) were forced into the lineup:

1. John Stewart (TCBC) -- LF
2. Joe Cisar (Cardinals) -- C
3. Scott Koenig (Orioles 38's) -- RF
4. Patrick Jones (Cardinals) -- CF
5. John Toth (TCBC) -- 2B
6. Bob Koren (Cubs 38's) -- SS
7. Josh Taylor (TCBC) -- 1B
8. Tony Martin (Dodgers) -- 3B
9. John Millin (TCBC) -- DH

The first few innings were promising, with the All-Stars not only showing up, but actually putting up a fight against the undefeated A's. The A's made some uncharacteristic guffaws in the field, while the all-stars flashed leather: turning 3 double plays in 3 innings behind starting pitcher John Hardesty (Colts). Unfortunately, the All-Stars stranded runners in the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd -- keeping the score tied at zero entering the 4th. The next 2 innings though allowed for the A's to do their diligence, lighting up Hardesty to the tune of 7 runs, while the defense behind him faltered.

TCBC Lefty Josh Taylor took the mound in the 6th, and after quickly retiring the first 2 batters, watched the defense squander an additional unearned run before escaping. Despite a 1-2-3 7th by Taylor and a scoreless 8th (pitched by Tony Martin), the damage had been done, and the All-Stars couldn't scrape together enough to even plate a single run.

Here's the Box score and Stats (plus pitching stats).

Game 16: Ultimate Sack 17, TCBC 1

There's not really a lot of good things to say about this one. But it was under the lights. So there's that. Plus it didn't rain. So we had that going for us, too. Other than that, no one really got hurt that bad, plus we saw Chris Elliott make it back onto the mound pain-free for the first time in almost 3 months -- which bodes really well for the 2010 TCBC rotation.

It goes without saying that the story of the game was pitching -- or lack thereof. Starter Josh Taylor gave up 5 walks and hit a batter in a little over 2 innings work, and Elliott and John Toth combined for an equal number of free passes in relief (Toth added 2 more HBP in his 3 innings of work), as the Three Cities nine struggled through 7 innings.

On offense, hits were contributed by spots 5-9, most notably a single by John Millin followed up by a Matt Willbond double leading to the Three Cities' only run. Hits were added by Nate Kievmann, Jeff Hess, plus 2 singles each by Dan Taylor and Elliott. Despite that production, with only 1 hit (a lead-off infield single in the 1st) from the 1 through 4 hitters combined, TCBC wasn't able to show the offensive prowess they've exhibited in the two previous meetings with Ultimate Sack this season, and the TCBC faithful watched as the inaugural season ended early -- and on a sour note. But, it was under the lights.

Here's the boxscore from the game.

Here's the season's overall stats.

PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

2009 NEORH PLAYOFFS
OPEN DIVISION

SEEDINGS
1. WOOD ELECTRIC A’S
2. COLTS
3. ULTIMATE SACK
4. HIT AND RUN BASEBALL ACADEMY INDIANS
5. AKRON CARDINALS
6. THREE CITIES BASEBALL CLUB
7. RIVERSIDE DODGERS

• HIGHER SEEDED TEAM IS HOME UNTIL BEST OF 3 FINAL PLAYOFF WHEN HIGHER SEEDED TEAM WILL BE HOME IN FIRST GAME, THE LOWER SEEDED TEAM WILL BE HOME IN SECOND GAME. IN THIRD GAME, IF NECESSARY, THE TEAM ALLOWING THE FEWEST RUNS IN THE FIRST TWO GAMES WILL BE HOME TEAM (IF TIED, HOME TEAM IS HIGHER SEED)
• ALL GAMES NINE INNINGS. TIME LIMIT IN EFFECT UNTIL SEMI-FINAL ROUND. SEMIFINAL ROUND AND ABOVE NO TIME LIMIT BUT THE 10 RUN MERCY RULE IS IN EFFECT.
• CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND: FIRST TWO GAMES ARE 7 INNINGS SINCE THEY ARE PLAYED AS A DOUBLE HEADER. IF THERE IS A THIRD AND DECIDING GAME IT WILL BE 9 INNINGS.

SATURDAY AUGUST 22
GAME #1 : #5 AKRON CARDINALS @ #4 HIT AND RUN BASEBALL ACADEMY INDIANS @ PATTERSON 1, 4 P.M.
GAME #2: #6 THREE CITIES BASEBALL CLUB @ #3 ULTIMATE SACK @ PATTERSON 1, 7 PM
GAME #3: #7 RIVERSIDE DODGERS @ #2 COLTS @ PRENTISS PARK, 4 P.M.

SUNDAY AUGUST 23
GAME #4: GAME 2 WINNER @ GAME 3 WINNER @ PATTERSON #1, 4 P.M.
GAME #5: GAME 1 WINNER @. #1 WOOD ELECTRIC @ HUDSON HS, 1 P.M.


SUNDAY AUGUST 30 CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
GAME #6: GAME #4 WINNER VS GAME #5 WINNER HUDSON HS, 1 P.M. (7)
GAME #7: GAME #4 WINNER VS GAME #5 WINNER HUDSON HS, 4 P.M. (7)

MONDAY AUGUST 31
GAME #8: (IF NECESSARY). GAME #6 WINNER VS GAME #7 WINNER AT
PATTERSON #1 @ 7:00 P.M

Games 14 & 15 (A Long Strange Trip)

Another set of back to back games this past weekend, as the Three Cities took on the Akron Cardinals and the Riverside Dodgers in what would be all three teams' last regular season game(s).

In the Saturday game, with a game time temperature nearing 90 degrees, TCBC marched out another minimum numbered squad of 9 (an alarming trend) against the Akron Cardinals in the third meeting of the year between the two teams. The Cardinals struck early in the first on a 2-run home run for catcher Youngblood off of TCBC starter Josh Taylor, after starting the game with a strike-out and a walk. The Cardinals added another run in the 2nd, capitalizing on a lead-off HBP with a 2-out error and single. Taylor would escape unscathed though in the 3rd and 4th innings, giving Three Cities an opportunity to mount a comeback.

In the home half of the 3rd, John Stewart started a 2-out surge with a single and successive stolen bases of 2nd and 3rd (scoring on an overthrow to 3rd base). After a single by Lou Gerig, a Nate Kievman bomb was caught just steps before the fence in center, momentarily pausing the TCBC attack.

The 4th opened with a single by Jimmy Swearingen, who was chased (literally) to score by Dan Taylor on his triple to the power ally in left. Taylor scored on a sacrifice fly by John Millin, who was awarded safe passage on the error when the Cardinal center fielder mis-judged the ball. Matt Willbond kept the inning moving with a single, but after responding with back-to-back strikeouts and running the count full on lead-off hitter Stewart, the Cardinal pitcher daftly picked off the slumbering Millin at second -- avoiding a potential bases-loaded opportunity for TCBC and Gerig.

The 5th inning saw Taylor lose the lead once again -- albeit on an unearned run -- but he bounced back with a solid 6th inning, invoking a double play after allowing the first 2 Cardinal runners to reach. It was opening the 7th inning with 3 consecutive walks (one being of the intentional variety to Youngblood to set up a force at home), resulted in his exit from the game. John Toth entered with the bases loaded and no outs, and after a bases clearing single to the wall, TCBC was presented with a deficit more than they could match, despite Toth pitching 2 more scoreless frames to keep them close, and knocking in D. Taylor with a run in the 7th.

The box score from game 14 is here.

Sunday's 1pm start proved to be hotter than Saturday's -- if you can believe it. In their fourth meeting of the year, TCBC and the Dodgers had their most lopsided contest to date, and the late additions to the Dodgers (including pitchers Smith and Lastoria), have really helped them become a tough opponent for TCBC. Brian Plona, in his first game back after straining his arm and still hampered by an aching back, started on the hill for TCBC, and managed to work fairly comfortably through the first 3 innings -- only giving up 3 runs (2 earned) and one extra base hit. TCBC did give Plona a bit of support in the top of the 3rd, with 2 runs scoring on a 2-out single by Lou Gerig. But the 4th brought the end of the road for Plona, who was replaced by Gerig to induce the final out in an inning where 5 Dodger batters reached (and 3 scored).

Gerig came back out to work the 5th, but the Dodgers were able extend their lead to 7 runs by the end of the inning on an error and 4 hits.

The 6th inning saw the top of the TCBC order produce 2 runs on a single by John Stewart and a triple by Gerig (his 3rd RBI on the day), followed by a John Toth single to score Gerig and bring TCBC within 5. Toth then pitched the bottom half of the 6th, but after a walk and a double play, a 2-out error by defensive replacement John Millin brought up the top of the Dodger order -- and 3 more unearned runs were quickly produced by the surging Dodgers.

Although TCBC would score 3 more times in the 2 innings that followed, the hits contributed by Charles Miller, Millin, Dan Taylor and Plona and walks by Gerig, Rob Ortenzi and Josh Taylor were not enough -- as the final out was recorded with the bases loaded in both frames.

Here's the boxscore from game 15.

Here's the updated stats on the season.