Here's a link to a great article in the New York Post on local product Ike Davis and his father Ron. Good stuff.  Article

November 20, 2009

To the Desert Ridge Little League Organization, Desert Ridge High School Baseball Program and the Desert Ridge and Arizona Baseball Community:

My name is Scott Vaughan and I am a very close friend of Pat Raidy whose boys (Patrick, Brandon, Kyle, CJ and Ian) have been associated with the Little League, the High School baseball program and our community for many years.
 Pat was recently diagnosed with lymphoma cancer and is currently receiving treatment to combat this serious illness. At this time, his family is going to need all the support that we can all try to provide them.
With that being said, I have secured the location behind Fat Willy's (9937 E. Baseline Rd. Suite 101. Mesa, AZ 85209 - Crismon & Baseline) this Saturday, November 21, 2009 from 8:00am to 12:00pm (noon). If anyone is interested in helping out with the washing/drying of the cars, please send me an email ASAP with the names and times that they are available. We can all work together to make sure everyone that wants to help gets the opportunity.

Thanks,
Scott Vaughan
ssvaughan@cox.net

October 27, 2009

The Arizona Rays made it back to the valley last night after a successful yet somewhat disappointing performance at the World Wood Bat World Championships in Jupiter Florida. The Rays went 2-2 in pool play, but were in every game and while the end result was less than we hoped for, we the players made a strong showing overall and represented Arizona extremely well.

The tournament itself is an absolute circus, with college coaches and pro scouting personnel crawling all over the place. You've never seen as many golf carts in one place as you do at this event. The competition is extremely good and it can be a very healthy dose of reality for players who can get here.

We had a tough draw, facing a North Carolina Dirtbags team on the first night. This is a battle tested group that has played together all summer and fall. We saw two very good arms. The first guy was an 88-90 arm with run and sink who held us in check for 3 innings until Dillon Everett and Taylor Lindsey both singled, Jake Waldren drew a walk, and James McDonald followed with an RBI knock to score Everett. That was all the damage the Rays could do however after a fielders choice and a 1-2-3 double play ended the inning.

The 'bags brought in a reliever in the fourth who was 87-88 with a nasty left turn slider and gave everyone fits.

Taylor Erwin worked the first 3 innings and didn't allow a hit or run. Unfortunately, inopportune defensive mistakes resulted in 9 unearned runs and an opening night loss. Lindsey and McDonald were both 2-3 on the night.

On Saturday we faced the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy. A classic Florida deluge of rain blew through right at scheduled game time so we were delayed a bit, and then the Zonies had to deal with their first taste of Sunshine State humidity when the sun came out. We jumped out to an early lead in the first when Lindsey and McDonald walked with 2 outs and Adam Sonabend followed with an RBI single. Tyler Kamtz drove in a  run in the second with a fielders choice and a 5 run third gave the Rays a healthy lead.

Cameron Teich was on the hill and was real solid, working the first 3 innings and not allowing an earned run. He sat at 88-89 and impressed a number of coaches. Michael Howard and Jake Waldren finished up the 9-7 victory. Once again, 2 out errors led to 4 unearned runs. We pounded out 15 hits on the day with Sonabend and Nick Diamond both going 3-4. Lindsey was 2-4 with a walk and Kamtz added a pair of hits.

Later that evening we faced a strong St Louis Pirates team. Aaron Slegers started on the hill, and after a slow start began to really deal. The big righty K'ed 5 in his 3 innings of work. Trever Allen worked in relief with Nick Diamond getting the last out of the game. Again, the pitching was victimized by untimely miscues that resulted in 5 unearned runs. It was a brutally slow game with a ton pitches thrown and after leading 5-2 early, we fell 8-5 in four innings (time limit). James McDonald led the way with a 2-3 day at the plate.

On Sunday, the Rays played the South Florida Perfect Game team and came away with a  5-4 win. Sam Napp worked 3 scoreless innings on the hill with 4 Ks to get the win. Diamond worked two and Erwin worked an inning. Tyler Kamtz came in to get the save in the 7th. Trever Allen and Michael Howard each had 2 hits to lead the way offensively.

The tournament produced some good news bad news numbers. As a team we hit at a .314 clip (33-105), a huge improvement from last year when we couldn't buy a hit in clutch situations. I thought we pitched well overall, with several guys really helping themselves with potential opportunities

Unfortunately, it's impossible to ignore that we allowed 28 runs in 4 games....19 of which were unearned...an amazing stat. It wasn't the number of errors that did us in, it was the 2 out miscues that opened the proverbial floodgates.

Still, the players showed well, had a great time and we're working on next year already.

October 21, 2009

This weekend continues the fall showcase season  with the Arizona Junior Fall Classic taking place in Peoria. The event features top players from the 2011 class and younger and will consist of 56 teams. The schedule can be found  at http://azfallclassic.com/pdf/2009_Junior_Schedule.pdf

For the second consecutive year, I will be part of a group traveling to Jupiter, Florida for the Perfect Game World Wood Bat Association World Championships. The event is the largest amateur scouting attraction in the world and features top teams and players from the entire western hemisphere. Playing under the banner of the Rays Scout Team due to the integral help from Tampa Bay Scouting Director RJ Harrison in securing the bid, the team is in fact a  compilation of players from several of the  Arizona Scout Teams.

The coaches for the team are former major leaguers Dave Hilton and Ron Davis, and Notre Dame Coach Guy Gianni will be helping as well. Here's the roster:

I will be posting game updates on the message board.

Here's the web address for the tournament:

http://www.worldwoodbat.com/TournamentDetails.aspx?ID=383

http://www.perfectgame.org/

October 12, 2009

This Thursday marks the beginning of the Arizona Senior Fall Classic. Ted Heid's Fall Classic events have become the top scouting attraction west of the Mississippi, with literally hundreds of college coaches and professional baseball scouting personnel in attendance. The Senior Classic runs Oct 15-18, the Junior Classic follows Oct. 23-25 and the Sophomore Classic Oct. 30- Nov.1.

Schedules can be found here: www.azfallclassic.com

Arizona players are extremely fortunate to have these events in their back yard. Teams travel from all over the country to attend these tournaments, and the advantages afforded the local players are huge. Having said that, don't take these tournaments for granted. Appreciate the fact that this is available tor you, and don't assume that merely attending provides some validation of you as a player.

These tournaments can be a great opportunity for players to be evaluated by potential college coaches. As we have said numerous times on this site, however, doing your homework ahead of time is the key to making the event a success for you.

This year the Senior Classic consists of 56 team playing at the spacious Peoria Sports Complex. If we assume 25 players to a roster, that means there are 1400 other guys trying to do the same thing you are....namely to receive a legitimate look from coaches and scouts.

The reality is this: If a coach doesn't already know about you, and isn't going out of his way to see you, you are likely to blend in with the landscape. Therefore, it is important that you do all the little things the right way.

-Run out everything like your hair is on fire.

-Sprint on and off the field.

-No backwards caps.

-Keep your shirt tucked in at all times.

-Look and act like you are serious about being there.

-Project positive body language at all times

And finally, seek out Mr. Heid, he'll be the handsome guy in a golf cart...and shake his hand and tell him thank you for affording you this opportunity. He deserves it.