Thank You

A hearty B2R Thank You to the guys with the Bearcat Baseball team for the sweet tickets to the Kansas City Royals game versus the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, June 22, 2012, at Kauffman Stadium.  First Pitch was 7:05pm and it went downhill for the Royals from there.  Nevertheless, the B2R was decked out in his powder blue Royals jersey (#20, White, retro 80s patch on left sleeve, and black "SPLITT" patch on the other sleeve), Alex was sporting his Blue Crew jersey and hat, and Mrs. B2R was sporting a stylish Billy Butler #16 jersey.

I cannot describe how awesome the seats were.  The photo above was our view line of the game from the seats.  The team either knows the B2R family very well, or it is a remarkable coincidence, but our seats were perfectly placed closest to the Boulevard Wheat stand, the Miller Lite stand, the restrooms, and BBQ stand (Mmmm burnt-ends).

Just to confirm - there is no truth to the suspicion that Josh Parrish was sitting in front of us with his Cabella's cap.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Kyle Brady

Kyle Brady is playing for the Natural Baseball Academy of the KC-based Ban Johnson League.  The NBA is currently in 7th place with an overall record of 8-8.  No stats are available on-line at this moment.  The B2R will update as soon as its Scout Team can compile statistics and analysis.  Stay Tuned...

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Nathaniel Horton & Charlie Krueger

Charlie Krueger & Nathaniel Horton play on the BJ Raiders of the KC-based Ban Johnson League.  The Raiders are currently in 5th place and have a 9-7 overall record.  There are no stats available on the League's website but reports are that both Horton and Krueger are doing very well.  I will update when additional details are posted on-line or the B2R's scout team makes it to the games.

Way to go Charlie and Nate.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Patrick Brady

Patrick Brady is a pitcher for the Milgram Mustangs of the KC-based Ban Johnson League.  Milgram is in 6th place of the 13 teams in the Conference.  The Mustangs are 7-7, 7-6 Conference so far in the 2012 season.  Patrick is a starter for the Mustangs and has a 1-1 record so far in the 2012 season.  Despite the record, Patrick is throwing Cy Young caliber ball for the Mustangs which apparently do not have much of a supporting cast for the Bearcat.  In total, Patrick has appeared in 3 games, threw 16.0 innings, earned 1 win, earned 1 save in 1 opportunity, allowed only 5 hits & 4 walks (WHIP is outstanding at 0.56), 24 strike-outs, allowed only 1 earned run, and has an ERA of 0.44.

The B2R's scouting department was sent to one of Patrick's games and here was the concluding report:

Milgram Mustangs get eight strikeouts from Brady, win 4-0 over the MSBL Royals.

A superb effort by Patrick Brady hoisted Milgram Mustangs to a 4-0 win in seven innings over the MSBL Royals on Tuesday at MID AM FENWAY.

Milgram Mustangs' Brady kept the MSBL Royals off the scoreboard for all seven innings he was on the hill. He pitched a shutout, allowing no opposing players to cross the plate on three hits while ringing up eight.

Milgram Mustangs went up for good in the first, scoring two runs on two singles.

Milgram Mustangs matched its one-run fourth inning with one more in the sixth. In the fourth, Milgram Mustangs scored on a groundout by Andrew Blackwell, bringing home David Collins.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Ryan Abernathy

Ryan Abernathy is a starting outfielder for the Slippery Rock Sliders of the Prospect League.  The Prospect league is a summer college wood-bat league with teams as far west as Hannibal, Missouri, as far east as Butler, Pennsylvania, as far north as Lorain County, Ohio, and as far south as West Virginia.  Slippery Rock is currently in 5th place in the East Division and are 8 games back from first place.  Slippery Rock has had a tough 10-game stretch, slumping a bit, and are 2-8 in their last 10 games.

A tremendous bright spot for Slippery Rock is Northwest's own Ryan Abernathy.  Ryan is leading the team with a .309 batting average playing in all but 3 games so far.  With 68 recorded plate appearance, Ryan has safely hit 21 times, plus induced 11 additional walks, and of those 21 hits, 4 were doubles, 1 was a triple, and 1 was a home run.  Ryan has scored 11 times, earned 9 RBIs, got hit by a pitch 2 times, struck out 10 times, and has stolen 7 bases.

Way to go Rhino!!

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Eric Swain

Eric Swain plays for Team Vegas who is participating in the California Collegiate League as a non-member club.  Team Vegas is 9-9 overall, 6-9 Conference.  Eric has appeared in 8 games for Team Vegas with 9 plate appearances in a reserve role.  Eric has scored 2 runs, earned 3 hits, 1 double, 1 RBI, 1 walk, 1 strike-out, .400 on-base percentage, .444 slugging percentage.

Eric is certainly making the most of the opportunities given to him.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Chase Anderson

Chase Anderson is a member of the pitching staff for the Chillicothe Mudcats of the MINK League.  The Mudcats are 12-10, 10-10 Conference so far in 2012 and presently sit in 2nd place in the North Division behind St. Joseph.  Chase has been coming out of the bullpen in 2012 and appeared in 6 games for the Mudcats.  Chase has worked 15.2 innings, 3.13 ERA, struck-out 9, and walked 3.  Chase has not factored into a decision yet in 2012 for the Mudcats.

The B2R cannot find an action shot of Chase in a Mudcats uniform available on-line so I will go with my all-time favorite photograph of him:

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Matt Johnson, Ben Stedronsky, & Jayson Huett

Bearcats Matt Johnson, Jayson Huett, and Ben Stedronsky are coaching the St. Joseph Mustangs of the MINK league in 2012.  Matt is the Head Coach, Ben Stedronsky is the Pitching Coach, and Jayson Huett is the bullpen coach.  Under the navigation of both Johnson, Stedronsky, and Huett, the Mustangs are in 1st place of the MINK League North Division and 2 games ahead of 2nd place Chillicothe.  Huett, Ben, and Matt are coaching a young St. Joseph Mustangs team that has taken off in recent weeks.  Under Matt, Ben, and Huett, the pitching staff has excelled:

The 5 primary starters of the Mustangs have respective ERAs as follows:  2.08, 0.96, 3.36, 2.48, and 2.02.  As a team, the Mustangs are pitching at a 2.25 ERA level with 2-1 strike-out to walk ratio with 94 strike-outs and 44 walks.

Offensively, Coach Johnson has maximized a very young team to generate enough runs to win and has 4 players batting over .300 in Conference play.  This season may be Coach Johnson's best year coaching, arguably, considering the hit & runs and ways he has his ball club manufacturing runs.  As a team, the Mustangs are batting .253, have an on-base percentage of .353, and are slugging .352.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Chris Green

Chris Green has been the 8th or 9th inning reliever for the St. Joseph Mustangs.  The Mustangs are in the thick of another hot race to win the MINK North Division and presently stand at 15-6, 10-6 Conference, in 1st place and 2 games ahead of 2nd place Chillicothe.  Chris has appeared in 6 games, worked 3.2 innings pitched, 3.82 ERA, 0-2 record, 5 strike-outs, and 4 walks.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Carson Smith

Carson Smith has been a clutch reliever for the St. Joseph Mustangs in 2012.  The Mustangs are 15-6, 10-6 Conference and currently sit in first place of the North Division (2 games ahead of 2nd place Chillicothe Mudcats).  Carson has appeared in 8 games, has a 2-2 record, 3.13 ERA, 15.2 IP, struck-out 13, walked 4, all coming in high leverage situations (runners on, close game, outcome in doubt).  The St. Joe Mustangs are mostly Division 1 NCAA players playing at places like BCS conference schools (Nebraska, Mizzou, Oklahoma State, etc), yet Carson is getting the nod from Head Coach Matt Johnson when the game is on the line.  Way to go Carson.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Jake Kretzer

Jake Kretzer has been seeing regular playing time at Left Field and Center Field for the St. Joseph Mustangs of the MINK League.  The Mustangs are 15-6, 10-6 MINK so far in 2012 which is good for 1st place in the North Division (2 games ahead of 2nd place Chillicothe Mudcats).  Jake is batting .250 in 15 conference games for the Mustangs in 44 ABs, of the 11 hits, 3 were doubles and 1 home run.  Jake has scored 8 runs, 7 RBIs, 7 walks, 16 strike-outs, and 5 stolen bases.

Remarkably, Jake has not broken a bat in 2012.  The B2R is in hot pursuit of a broken Jake Kretzer bat for the home collection.  Even though the B2R has plenty of bats, the B2R is a big fan of Jake not because of how he plays the game (hard and all-out), but for the kind of person he is.  Go Jake.

Go Cats!!
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Summer Update - Jordan Bischel

Jordan Bischel is the Head Coach of the Green Bay Bullfrogs of the Northwoods League.  Bisch is doing an outstanding job as he has navigated his young Bullfrog squad to a 15-9 Conference record and currently sits in 2nd place, only 3 games back from veteran La Crosse Loggers.  The Bullfrogs are on a 8-2 tear in the last 10 games played and have won 6 in a row.  Bisch has recruited several draft worthy players to his Bullfrogs squad and currently has 7 players batting .300 or better, 8 players with a .400 on-base % or higher, 12 players with a .350 on-base % or better, and 6 players slugging .400 % or better.  Pitching - Bisch's two main starters have a 2.42 and a 3.22 ERA respectively.  The Bullfrogs' 5 main starters have respective ERAs as follows:  2.42, 3.22, 0.69, 1.80, and 0.52.  6 different relievers have earned a save on the 2012 Bullfrogs team.

The B2R has obtained some action photos of Bisch.  To those that know him, these photos are of no surprise:

Go Cats!!
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B2R's Coaching Debut a Success

The B2R apologizes for the delay in updating summer stats of our Bearcat Baseball players playing summer ball.  I made my head coaching debut for the 5-6 year old T-ballers of the Maryville Parks and Rec League.  It was a rigorous schedule as the Federal Mogul & Shelter Insurance teams proved stiff competition.  But according to the box scores and official scorers (none) I am happy to report we won every game.  The B2R has no comment about ice cream for the players following the game and as to whether that affects their amateur status.

Now, let's play name that Bearcat Baseball player fielding or batting stance.  Look at the little leaguer and try to guess the Bearcat player that most closely resembles the fielding or batting stance (hint - the answer will immediately follow):

Go Cats!!
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