2010: Play Ball!

Braves Parents and Players,
I’d like to welcome the returning to 11 Braves back from last year and introduce our newest Brave … Will Koch. Will was chosen in the draft that was held Thursday, March 25th. Will played for the Hooks (Minor league team) during the 2009 season. His parents are Kellett and Jodi … I’m sure we’ll see you soon … Welcome to the Braves!!
As a reminder, WFB LL will supply team baseball hats and jerseys. Parents and players are responsible for baseball pants (White), bats, gloves, shoes, etc.
Now that the teams have been drafted and baseball equipment distributed, it’s time to start preparing for the season opening weekend which April 24th. Rick Rojahn and I are planning to distribute a practice schedule so that parents and players can plan themselves. As you know, April is busy month between school, other activities (i.e. soccer), and vacations. With that said, please let Rick or I know if you will be out-of-town and unable to make practice.
Lastly, the weather forecast looks good for the upcoming week so we are going to try to schedule our first practice this week. So look for an email from Rick or I.
Stay tuned for more update!
Ross

A cup full of safety

Everyone,
Chris' post-season team played in a tournament in Brookfield this weekend. In the final game this afternoon Chris was batting against a pitcher who was throwing the ball pretty hard. Chris tried to hop out of the way of a blazing inside fastball, but he wasn't quick enough. It plunked him right in the ... well, I guess the safe thing to say is that he got hit right in the place guys REALLY don't like to get hit.
Fortunately, he was wearing his protective cup and trotted down to first base with a big grin on his face.
After the game I was shocked to learn that several of the guys on the team didn't wear their cups in the tournament games.
Please -- for your son's future, to say nothing of your future grandchildren -- make sure that your Brave always wears his cup to games and practices. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred he won't need it, but that hundredth time he will be very happy it's with him.
Dave

U11 All Stars: Caravan leaves at 4ish

You guys are in luck!!! The U-11 All Star game vs. Germantown was rained out Monday evening, so you all have another chance to join us in West Bend! The game is rescheduled for Tuesday at 6 PM. A group will leave from Water Tower Park around 4:15 P tomorrow and convoy to the game. Come demonstrate your Bay pride, have some fun and watch some good baseball. Hope to see you there...
Karen
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Earlier reports on the U11 team (featuring Connor and Alec):
Everyone,
Great news from the U-11 team! Led by Connor Kimple's two home runs, they smashed Elmbrook 12-5 today to move into the championship game of the West Bend regional.
They will play Germantown in West Bend. Contact Connor's or Alec's parents for details about specific time and field. Germantown is undefeated in U-11 post-season play, and Whitefish Bay has only one loss -- a one-run defeat to Germantown.
The U-11 team has done a great job, and is very deserving of everyone's support.
I have heard (but I do not have first-hand info on this) that whichever team wins earns a spot in the U-11 state championship tournament in Madison.
Best of luck to the boys!
Dave

U11 Update and Game Tonight

the team won their 2nd.. 12-2 v. menonomee falls.
tonight is v. West Bend. send telepathy with your winning thoughts!
Connor and Alec are looking good and having fun..
Georgia

U10 All-Star Update

Unfortunately, the season is over for the U10 all stars. After a great first game against Northwest LL, WFB fell to Germantown on Monday night with a score of 12-5 (if I remember correctly). Germantown is a very good team both at the plate and in the field. Our team had a tough time hitting in the first four innings but rallied in the late innings. Germantown was very aggressive with their base running, picking up many runs on passed balls and single & double steals. We had too few hits and too many errors to pull it out. It was a great learning experience for the kids and coaches.
Tonight we lost a nail biter to Elmbrook LL. If we had won, we would have advanced to play Wednesday night. The teams traded runs until the mid point of the game when WFB held a four-run lead. Elmbrook stormed back in the 5th to take a one-run lead. The Dukes tied the game in the top of the 6th but in the bottom of the last inning they allowed the winning run to score on a passed ball with two outs. It was a very, very exciting game for all involved (especially the fans who turned out), and a great experience for the kids. Even though they were a little sad, all the kids could be proud of the way they played and are better for the experience.
We will continue to cheer on the U11 team and hope to make it to one of their games.
This has truly been a great season!
Rick

U10 Update

Scott and the U10 team played their first game of the tourney yesterday and won at the end of 4 innings via the slaughter rule. The final score was 16 to 5. We will keep you posted.
Thanks,
Rick

U12 All-Star Update

Braves,
I promised an update of the fate of the U12 team Chris is on, so here it is -- even though the news is not as good as I would have liked it to be.
The Whitefish Bay team played in a seven-team pool at Beckum Field in Milwaukee (a very cool place, by the way). Each team played four games, with the highest-ranking four teams advancing to additional games.
We won our first game (I sent out a report about that one), got creamed in our next two, and had to beat undefeated Germantown Friday evening to have any chance of advancing. It was nice to see the Bay team play its best game of the tournament, winning 10-5. Joe Kaszubowski started on the mound and pitched very effectively into the fifth inning. Then Chris came on and struck out the last batter of the fifth inning before mowing down the top of the Germantown lineup in the sixth, fanning the final hitter to seal the victory. Offensive highlights for Whitefish Bay included a bases-loaded blast to the center-field wall by Kyle Rogers and an opposite-field bomb over the left-fielder's head by Chris for an RBI double.
After Friday's victory, our fate depended on the outcome of a game Saturday between Beckum, with a 1-2 record, and Menomonee Falls, with an 0-3 record (and having scored only one run in its first three games). If Beckum won that game, they would have the same 2-2 record as we had, but would advance instead of us because they had allowed fewer runs. Unfortunately for us, Beckum won that game.
Despite the Bay team's failure to advance, the players enjoyed the experience and benefitted from excellent coaching (Bob Leckie, Doug James, Jeff Clark). They also learned the importance of defense -- the Whitefish Bay team committed at least 15 errors in the four games, leading to countless unearned runs.
So the U12 season is over, but the U10 (Scott) team and the U11 team (Connor and Alec) are just beginning their post-season play. They would appreciate your support!
Dave

Karen at Bat

Little League Moms' Game

Saturday party, Home Run Derby

Braves,
Party time at Water Tower! See the appended message from Majors commissioner Darren Miller.
Unfortunately, only the players who hit homers during the regular season or the WFB little league tournament are eligible for the home-run derby this year so the only guys who can represent the Braves are Nick and Chris. Come and cheer them on at 2 p.m. Saturday, and then watch the moms' game at 3 p.m.
Dave
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Coaches,
Just a few reminders:
Don't forget about the weekend party at Water Tower this weekend. The championship games for both the Minors and Majors begin at 10:00a, followed by the party until about 4:00p. Please make sure your teams are aware of the schedule:

All-Star Updates: Connor, Alec, Scott

From Dave Pritchard:
Braves,
Here's the schedule of the WFB U11 all-star team, which features our own Connor Kimple and Alec Lindfors. Good luck, guys!
Dave
----- Forwarded Message -----
Coaches,
The U11 All Star team received their schedule last night. They'll be playing in West Bend next week:

Tuesday, July 21 Whitefish Bay vs. North Central 8pm West Bend Field 2

Wednesday, July 22 Whitefish Bay vs. Menomonee Falls Nat 8pm West Bend Field 2

Thursday, July 23 Whitefish Bay vs. West Bend 6pm West Bend Field 2

Friday, July 24 Whitefish Bay vs. Germantown 8pm West Bend Field 2

If they finish in the top 4 of 8 after Friday we will play on Saturday, July 26th at 1pm or 3pm at West Bend Field 1.

If they make the championship we play on Sunday, July 27th at 6pm at West Bend Field 1.
The fields are in Riverside Park, West Bend. Looks like it is about a 40-45 min drive.
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U10 All-Star Update from Rick Rojahn:
Good evening. Here is the game schedule for our team:
Sunday, July 19th Northwest vs. WFB 12:30pm
Monday, July 20th WFB vs. Germantown 5:30pm
Tuesday, July 21st Elmbrook Nat. vs. WFB 5:30pm
All games at at Northwest Little League, which is about 92nd and Silver Spring. I will get you exact directions, but I believe you will exit Appleton avenue, go south over Silver Spring, and take the first right down the street and into the parking lot.
If we advance out of our pool, we then play single elimination on July 22, July 23, and July 24th.

U12 All-Star Update

Hey Braves,
Although the Braves’ season is over, I know that several of our guys are on other teams that are still playing. Please send updates to everyone so that we can keep track – and so that we can attend their games!
Here’s a first update::
Chris is on the WFB U-12 all-star team. Tuesday evening the boys defeated Grafton, 10-5, at Beckum Field in Milwaukee. The Bay team fell behind early in the game, 4-0. Bay inched back to be only one run behind, and then scored seven runs in the fifth inning (most of them with two outs) to take a 10-4 lead. Grafton scored a harmless run in the sixth inning, but that was all.
Highlights included great pitching by Joe Kaszubowski (who plays for the Dodgers in WFB Little League). Joe pitched five and a third innings, striking out 13. Andrew James (Phillies) blasted a two-run homer over the center-field fence. In the final inning Henry Davies (Phillies) caught a fly ball in deep center field and pegged a strike to home to nail a runner who had tagged up at third. It was a game-ending double play.
Chris started the game in right field. He had two singles in two trips to the plate, the second of which drove in the game-tying run in the fateful fifth inning. He took over on the mound with one down in the sixth inning and closed out the game.
The U-12 all-star team continues its post-season play at Beckum with games at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week. Lots of WFB little leaguers and their families were in the stands Tuesday evening to root for the local team. It would be great to see some of the Braves there for the rest of the games.
Beckum Field is at 9th and Brown in Milwaukee, and the concession stand is really good! If you’d like to attend one of the games this week and need directions to the field, let me know. If anyone would like a ride, I can fit two or three guys in my Honda.
It would be great to learn about the schedules of other Braves who are in post-season competition.
Dave

Braves People

Season Wrap-up: Tyler

From Coach Dave:
Tyler: Did a very nice job playing first base, and really thought about the game. In our first playoff game, for example, the Rays had runners on first and third. It was pretty obvious that they were going to have the runner on first steal second. We have a play for that situation that involves a hard throw to the shortstop in hopes of catching the runner leaning off third, but I told our catcher to simply throw the ball back to the pitcher. Tyler was standing next to me, and asked why I hadn’t put on the play. I explained that the guy at shortstop for us hadn’t played much shortstop and hadn’t practiced the play. I had visions of the shortstop dashing over to cover second while our catcher fired a hard throw into left-center field. Tyler likes to know the whys and wherefores of things, and in he’ll be a good coach when he has kids of his own.

My favorite Tyler moment came after our win over the Yankees, in which Tyler’s leg was hit by a blazing fastball. It hurt! When I gathered the team together for the post-game chat I asked Tyler how his leg felt. I loved his answer: “Great!” Winning can make everything feel better.

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Season Wrap-up: Scott

From Coach Dave:
Scott: One of our many gutsy players, and a guy who always seemed to have a smile on his face. Well, maybe not always – he was pretty sad, and probably mad at me, when I pulled him out of our first game against the Rays because he couldn’t walk (soccer injury). But no one had a bigger smile as he limped out to congratulate Nick and AP for the winning run. Scott did a lot of catching for us, and he has a rifle arm.
He amazed me with a huge play in our first game against the Phillies. He threw out one of the Phillies’ fastest runners on an attempted steal of second to end an inning, which was crucial to our win. But my favorite memory of Scott’s season comes from a practice at Atwater School, when he ran into the girls’ bathroom to chase down a line drive that had rolled through the bathroom door. (He never did tell us what he saw in there!)

All posts that mention Scott