Pennsylvania

American Legion Baseball

A major shake-up in PA Legion Baseball has officially been announced.  The NorChester Bulldogs, long-time participants in Region 3's Chester County League, will make the move to the Berks County League this summer.  The move will solidify the Berks County League as one of the nation's top legion leagues with several state and national powers in NorChester, Boyertown, West Lawn, and Shillington.

The rivalry between Boyertown and NorChester should intensify, as the teams have played some hotly contested games throughout their histories.  Boyertown High School and Owen J. Roberts High School (where NorChester draws the bulk of their players from) are both members of the PIAA Pac-10 League.

The moves may not yet be complete for the Berks County League as they attempt to restore their standing as a twelve team league in order to regain a spot in the two regional berth rotation.  They now sit at eight total teams.

Be sure to give us your opinion in the comments section.  For more information, see Don Seeley's article in the Pottstown Mercury here.

We here at www.palegionball.com are hard at work getting ready for our third season of comprehensive legion baseball coverage this summer.  As we look to continue to expand our reach, we're looking for additional assistance with the site.

We're currently searching for individuals interested in doing freelance or full time writing/blogging for the site.  In addition, in order to provide the most up to date scheduling, results, and standings, we ask that a representative from your team or league contact us regularly with updated information.  If you submit your boxscores to other media outlets, please be sure to include us on your email and we'll take care of the rest.

Contact us at [email protected] if you're interested in helping in any capacity or have any questions, we'll get back to you quickly.

Thanks for your interest!

While players and coaches around the state have been unwinding after a long and successful season for Pennsylvania American Legion Baseball, the groups that oversee the state and national programs have been hard at work.  Over the next couple of summers, legion baseball in the state will phase in two rather drastic changes.  

The national legion program has announced that beginning in the summer of 2015, legion baseball will again become exclusively available to high school aged players.  This means that age-eligible players who have been able to play for their legion team after their first year of college will no longer be able to do so in a few years.  The hope and belief is that allowing teams to only field their squads from high school aged students will give more opportunity to younger players and create less turnover and turmoil for teams across the country.

Also of note, the national legion passed an agreement that all states must participate under the same national legion rules.  In the past, states or leagues within each state have taken liberty with such rules as courtesy runners, game re-entry, and the number of eligible players on each team.  The new rule reiterates that programs must all compete under the same guidelines.  States and leagues are still entitled to determine game length, which is at seven innings for most leagues but must be at nine innings for playoff games.

We had been alerted recently to a drastic rule change for PA Legion Baseball taking effect in 2013, and though the news has not yet been officially released by the state, several news outlets have posted information regarding it so we feel the need to confirm that information.  It has been highly publicized (and scrutinized) that the national legion's bat standards had become confusing and daunting over the past few years.  We heard many horror stories from across the state regarding what bats (BESR vs BBCOR and composite) were usable, and which weren't.  It has been known for a while now that in 2012, legion baseball will adopt BBCOR bat rules that the NCAA adopted last year.  This new change will bring continuity to the bat standards and also provide a great deal more safety to pitchers in harms way.

While that news is welcoming, PA Legion Baseball has decided to become one of the largest baseball organizations in the country to adopt even stricter bat rules.  In 2013, PA Legion Baseball will be switching solely to wooden bats for all of its baseball games.  The change will have many benefits to teams and players around the state.  Wooden bats currently retail for 15-20% of the cost of a BBCOR metal bat.  In addition, the new bats will provide a great deal of improvement in safety to the pitcher and surrounding players.  PA Legion Baseball players will have many years of wooden bat hitting practice which should greatly aid in increasing the number of players drafted into the professional baseball ranks.  Simply put, our state's players are being put in a situation where they will be ahead of the vast majority of high school hitters in the country.  It should also be noted that state officials intend to make bat purchase agreements solely with Pennsylvania based company which will add jobs at a time when they are desperately needed.  This is certainly not a decision that came easily, and is not one that will be without opposition.  But as it stands, PA Legion Baseball will serve as a national leader in wooden bat usage, and for that, we should all be proud.

For any questions or comments regarding the rule changes, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected] and we'll help in any way we can.  Thanks for stopping by, enjoy the snow!

Things couldn't have started out much worse for the defending national runner-up this week in Shelby, North Carolina.  Eden Prairie, Minnesota began the 2011 American Legion Baseball World Series with an eight inning mercy rule defeat at the hands of Midland, Michigan.

The team was able to reverse their fortune on Saturday morning when a seventeen hit outburst propelled them to an eight run victory over Waipahu, Hawai'i.  The Region 6 national regional champions then defeated the home town favorite Gaffney, South Carolina by a ten run margin.  Gaffney is located just half an hour or so from the Shelby.

Eden Prairie's next matchup was against the tournament's lone undefeated team, Tupelo, Mississippi.  The Minnesota champions used two six run innings to storm to a ten run mercy rule victory in just seven innings.  Eden Prairie started off Championship Tuesday by squeaking out a one run victory over Las Vegas, Nevada.  By virtue of the win, the team had played their way into the national championship game against Tupelo, Mississippi.  In a thirteen inning thriller, Eden Prairie continued their incredible run by winning for the fifth time in a row.

The 2011 American Legion Baseball World Series commences on Friday morning at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, North Carolina.  The first day's matchups are as follows:

Game 1 (10am)

Eden Prairie, MN vs. Midland, MI

Game 2 (doubleheader)

Las Vegas, NV vs. Tupelo, MS

Game 3 (5pm)

Waipahu, HI vs. Brooklawn, NJ

Game 4 (doubleheader)

Gaffney, SC vs. Bedford, NH

If you were unable to catch the action live or would like a keepsake to remember this year's postseason by, pick up a copy of our live tournament coverage!  We're proud to offer DVDs of each of the tournament games for which we provided live video coverage.  Games 9 through 14 of the 2011 Mid-Atlantic National Regional Tournament are available for a very reasonable price.  

Each DVD will feature high quality film and in-depth commentary.  For more information or to place an order, email us at [email protected].  Thanks!

Two elimination games and the winner's bracket final will take place today.  Don't forget, all action from here on out can be seen LIVE on www.palegionball.com! 

Game 9 (12 noon)

Chaney Enterprises (Waldorf), MD vs. South Charleston, WV

Game 10 (doubleheader)

Bristol, PA vs. Boyertown, PA

Game 11 (7pm)

Brooklawn, NJ vs. Middletown, DE

Beginning with game 9 on Saturday afternoon, PALegionBall.com and WZAR TV will provide the first ever live streaming video coverage of the Mid-Atlantic National Regional Tournament on www.palegionball.com.  The video can be accessed by scrolling over the 'postseason' heading at the top of the page, hovering over 'Mid-Atlantic Tournament' and then clicking on 'Live Video'.  The video will go live shortly before the first game.

A limited amount of advertising opportunities are available for this weekend's games.  If you would like to reach an audience from around the state and Mid-Atlantic region while also doing a great service to this site, please consider a game sponsorship.  For information and pricing, please email [email protected].  Your help is greatly appreciated!

Updated: 7:30am

Today will feature two morning session elimination games and two afternoon session winner's bracket games.  We'll post the final scores here, but be sure to follow along with our Twitter feed on the 'Live Updates' page which can be accessed by scrolling over the postseason heading then down to the Mid-Atlantic Tournament page and finally over to 'Live Updates'.

Don't forget, our live video coverage of the tournament commences tomorrow afternoon with Game 9 and goes straight through to the end of the tournament, tune in!

Game 5 (9:30am)

Bristol, PA 9, Bordentown, NJ 4 (Bordentown eliminated)

Game 6 (doubleheader)

South Charleston, WV 8, Blackhawk, PA 3 (Blackhawk eliminated)

Game 7 (4:30pm)

Middletown, DE 7, Chaney Enterprises (Waldorf), MD 5

Game 8 (doubleheader)

Brooklawn, NJ 9, Boyertown, PA 5

In a game that ended just moments ago, the Blackhawk Cougars, Pennsylvania's third place team, dropped a thrilling game to New Jersey state champion Brooklawn.  Blackhawk battled back from a four run deficit and was the beneficiary of several unearned runs after some shaky defensive plays by the Brookers.

Blackhawk trailed by two runs, 6-4, heading into the bottom of the ninth.  After the two leadoff runners got on and a wild pitch moved them up a base with nobody out, Brooklawn's pitcher got a strikeout.  Unfortunately for the the New Jersey champions, the pitch got away from the catcher.  A run scored and the hitter reached first base, again with nobody out.  After an intentional walk to load the bases, Brooklawn escaped the rally in the most heartbreaking fashion for the Cougars.  Blackhawk had a runner forced out at the plate and then had two batters strike out to end it.

Blackhawk will return to action in game 6 which is scheduled for approximately 12:30pm tomorrow.  They'll take on the loser of the Boyertown, PA vs. South Charleston, WV game tonight.  Check back for much more.

Updated 7:30am

We'll post the final scores here after the conclusion of each game.

Game 1 (9:30am)

Middletown, DE 5, Bordentown, NJ 1

Game 2 (doubleheader)

Brooklawn, NJ 6, Blackhawk, PA 5

Game 3 (4pm)

Chaney Enterprises (Waldorf), MD 5, Bristol, PA 2

Game 4 (doubleheader)

Boyertown, PA 12, South Charleston, WV 6

We've added a page solely dedicated to the live updates we'll be providing this week on our Twitter page.  To access it, simply go to postseason, then Mid-Atlantic Tournament, and then over to 'live updates'.  The page features a much larger, and easier to read, version of the Fan Feed from the front page of the site.  You'll be able to see the latest updates, plus go back and read earlier ones to catch up on the action.

Don't forget, if you're heading to the tournament or would like to chime in from wherever you are, be sure to use the hashtag #palegionball on your Twitter messages.  Doing so will allow them to pop up in our feed!

We'll begin our extensive coverage of the 2011 Mid-Atlantic National Regional Tournament from Bear Stadium in Boyertown tomorrow.  Eight teams will begin the five day tournament tomorrow vying for one spot in the ALB World Series next week.  Be sure to follow our twitter and blog posts for the most up to date information on the tournament available.  

Don't forget, we'll begin the tournament's first ever live video coverage on Saturday afternoon and have every game for you live through the conclusion of the tournament on Monday.  The live video page has been uploaded and can be found by going to postseason, scrolling down to Mid-Atlantic Tournament, and then over to the live video page.  Be sure to spread the word about the coverage and let those who can't make it out to the tournament know that they can cheer on their favorite team live on the site!

By virtue of its 6-4 win over Bloomsburg today in Homer City, Northampton has won the 2011 Pennsylvania American Legion Junior Baseball Championship.  Northampton completed a 45-4-1 season with an undefeated run through the tournament.  Along with this year's title, Northampton also captured the title in 2009, also in Homer City.  We congratulate Northampton on the championship!

The Junior Legion State Tournament field is down to four teams in Homer City.  All four of the eastern teams have survived the first three days.  Northampton remains the lone unbeaten team and will play in Wednesday's final regardless of the result of Game 13.  Tuesday's matchups are below.

Game 12

Bloomsburg 3, Nether Providence 2 (Nether Providence eliminated)

Game 13

Northampton 7, Concord 6 (Concord eliminated)

Game 14

Northampton 6, Bloomsburg 4 (Bloomsburg eliminated)

Northampton wins the 2011 PA Junior Legion Championship

As the games conclude, we'll post the scores from Day 3 of the Junior Legion State Tournament in Homer City.

Losers' Bracket

Concord 5, Blairsville (Kovacik Insurance) 4 (Blairsville eliminated)

Bloomsburg 13, Penn Township 3 (Penn Township eliminated)

Winners' Bracket Final

Northampton 11, Nether Providence 2

Round 1

Concord 8, Millcreek 2

Bloomsburg 4, Blairsville (Kovacik) 0

Nether Providence 15, Penn Township 1

Northampton 14, Homer City (Gorell) 1

Round 2

Penn Township 14, Millcreek 9 (Millcreek eliminated)

Blairsville (Kovacik) 12, Homer City (Gorell) 0 (Homer City eliminated)

Nether Providence 9, Concord 5

Northampton 10, Bloomsburg 1

Round 3

Penn Township vs. Bloomsburg

Blairsville (Kovacik) vs. Concord

Northampton vs. Nether Providence

The 2011 Mid-Atlantic National Regional Championship Tournament page has been updated to include the bracket and the six teams that have qualified thus far.  West Virginia and Maryland will crown their champions tomorrow, weather permitting.

Bristol claimed its first ever legion state championship on Saturday afternoon with a 11-3 win over Boyertown.  We'll have a lot more on the game and the national regional qualifiers coming soon.

Updated: 9:30am

At the beginning of the season, nearly 400 teams from across the state were vying for a position in today's final round in West Lawn.  Two teams, perennial power Boyertown and new-comer Bristol, have played their way into the state finals.  Bristol, by virtue of their undefeated standing in the tournament, must be defeated twice by Boyertown today.

There will be some additional baseball played this morning, as Blackhawk and West Lawn will return to Owls Field to play for the third and final spot in next week's Mid-Atlantic tournament since Boyertown is hosting.  Bristol has already claimed PA's number one seed in that tournament.

3rd Place Game (10am)

Blackhawk vs. West Lawn

Championship Round (1pm)

Bristol vs. Boyertown

Championship Game (4pm)

If necessary.