The Nation's Best Young Baseball Players Shine in Cary

Story by Lindsey Chester | July 1, 2010 | Tags: baseball, Sports, Thomas Brooks Park, USA Baseball

Photos: Chris Adamczyk. Story: USA Baseball

Cary, NC- This past week Thomas Brooks baseball park played host to the Tournament of Stars, a championship series showcasing the nation’s best 17 and 18 year old baseball players. The 2010 Tournament of Stars kicked off Wednesday and ran til Sunday June 27.

Babe Ruth Perfect Series

The Babe Ruth All Star Team won the finals on Saturday, a day that hit a hundred degrees out at the USA Baseball field in Cary. The final score was Babe Ruth 3, to American Legion’s 2 runs.

With a man on third in the bottom of the seventh inning Eric Snyder sent a long fly ball to center field to bring home the winning run. Babe Ruth came from behind to pull out the 3-2 win and keep its perfect record intact going 4-0 this week. In a defensive battle, the pitching staff of Babe Ruth kept its composure only giving up two hits in seven innings.

Kenny Matthews led the staff pitching for three innings allowing no hits, walking two and striking out four. Legion led the game going into the seventh inning but fell just short as they ended the week 3-1 with a silver medal. Final scoreboard

Chris Adamczyk’s Pictures

Chris braved the heat and brought back this amazing slide show of the tournament.

About the Tournament:

The Tournament of Stars (TOS) is made up of 128 of the nation’s best ballplayers that are international age-eligible (born in 1992 or 1993). They are invited by 8 youth baseball groups (AABC, American Legion, Babe Ruth, Dixie, PONY, NABF, RBI, and USA Baseball) and compete on 8 teams under the same names. The seven youth groups select their players first, then USA Baseball selects an “at-large” team from the players not selected by the seven youth groups. Generally speaking, official invites for the tournament are sent from the USA Baseball office in late April. These players form the pool of talent from which USA Baseball selects its 18U National Team to represent our country in international competition.

The National Team

The 18U National Team program has a storied history with alumni including superstar Major Leaguers Paul Konerko, Mike Mussina, Alex Rodriguez, and John Smoltz, and recent No. 1 overall picks in the Major League Draft — Joe Mauer (2001), Delmon Young (2003), Matt Bush (2004), Justin Upton (2005), and Luke Hochevar (2006).

Additionally, 2005 AL Rookie of the Year Huston Street played in the 2001 TOS. The typical TOS player is highly motivated to be the next person added to this esteemed list.

18U National Team Trials Invites:

Following the Tournament of Stars, USA Baseball has named 36 players to the 2010 18U National Team Trials, scheduled to be held (This week) June 28-July 3 in Cary, N.C. at the USA Baseball National Training Complex (NTC).

At the conclusion of trials, 20 players will be selected to the 2010 USA Baseball 18U National Team, which will compete in the 2010 IBAF “AAA” (18U) World Junior Championships in Thunder Bay, Canada, from July 23-Aug. 1. The team will be announced on www.USABaseball.com at the completion of the 18U Trials.

Following the trials and training period in Cary and prior to the World Championships, the 18U Team will travel to New York City for five exhibitions against the Greater N.Y. Alliance All-Stars. From there, the team will play nine exhibition games in Minnesota against area all-star teams and international opponents.

The USA Baseball 18U National Team Trials roster is as follows: (sadly, no Cary players have made the trials this year)

Name, Position(s), Hometown
Albert Almora, OF, Hialeah, Fla.
Tyler Beede, RHP, Auburn, Mass.
Dante Bichette, Jr., IF, Orlando, Fla.
Hudson Boyd, RHP, Ft. Myers, Fla.
Daniel Camarena, LHP/IF, Bonita, Calif.
Nicky Delmonico, IF, Knoxville, Tenn.
Adam Duke, RHP, Salem, Utah
Phillip Evans, IF, Carlsbad, Calif.
Parker French, RHP, Austin, Texas
Austin Hedges, C, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.
John Hochstatter, LHP, Danville, Calif.
Ricardo Jacquez, RHP/IF, El Paso, Texas
Kavin Keyes, IF/C, Sandy, Utah
Francisco Lindor, IF, Clermont, Fla.
Marcus Littlewood, IF, Saint George, Utah
Christian Lopes, IF, Canyon Country, Calif.
Michael Lorenzen, OF, Anaheim, Calif.
Dillon Maples, RHP, West End, N.C.
Kenny Mathews, LHP, Diamond Bar, Calif.
Lance McCullers, RHP/IF, Tampa, Fla.
Chris McFarland, OF/IF, Lufkin, Texas
Christian Montgomery, RHP, Indianapolis, Ind.
Henry Owens, LHP, Huntington Beach, Calif.
Phillip Pfeifer III, LHP, Knoxville, Tenn.
Brian Ragira, OF, Arlington, Texas
Joe Ross, RHP, Oakland, Calif.
John Simms, RHP, The Woodlands, Texas
Kyle Smith, RHP, Lake Worth, Fla.
Eric Snyder, OF, Huntington Beach, Calif.
Elvin Soto, C, New York, N.Y.
Bubba Starling, OF/RHP, Gardner, Kan.
Blake Swihart, C, Rio Rancho, N.M.
Wayne Taylor, C, Houston, Texas
A.J. Vanegas, RHP, Alameda, Calif.
Dan Vogelbach, IF, North Ft. Myers, Fla.
Tony Wolters, IF, Vista, Calif.

Alternates
Porter Clayton, LHP/INF, Idaho Falls, Idaho
Ladson Montgomery, C/INF, Jacksonville, Fla.
Matt Pirro, RHP/SS, Syracuse, N.Y.
Drake Roberts, INF/OF, Washington, Texas