PHBR AAA Gold 2nd place winners in 2010 Oakland Tournament

Pictured Front Row: Bryson McDonald, Justin Oljace. Middle Row: Chase Olson, Clay Weiss, Davyd Kirkhart, Kyle Bowen, Hayden Kuhnhausen, William Downs. Back Row: Preston White, Lane Hardy, Charlie Updegrave, Zach VanLoon. Coaches Dustin White, Tim Bowen and Brian McDonald

Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth AAA Team Gold has had a busy and rewarding year playing Babe Ruth – Cal Ripken baseball as have the other PHBR teams.

June 19-20, 2010 Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth AAA  Team  Gold(+/- a few players from other PHBR teams) placed 2nd in the 12U division at the Oakland, Oregon Tournament.

The Oakland Tournament was a Majors Tournament with most of the baseball players age 11-12. The Pleasant Hill players were age 9-11. Great job boys!

Thanks to the dedication of the PHBR players and coaches we have seen the youth baseball program and players getting better and better each year.

There is no doubt that 1st place championships await our PHBR players. Pleasant Hill fans and families will be following our players the remainder of this year and next year.

Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth serves the areas of Oakridge, Creswell, Lowell, Cottage Grove, Dexter, Jasper, Pleasant Hill and surrounding areas. We have some very talented athletes in this area and some great coaches.

Congratulation players and coaches for the great job you have done and continue to do. We look forward to seeing you at the Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth – Cal Ripken Spring Baseball sign-ups in 2011 or before.

Happy AAA Gold players after 2nd place win in 2010 Oakland Tournament

Pictured: Coach Dustin White, with Pleasant Hill students Chase Olson, Bryson McDonald, Lane Hardy, Clay Weiss, Justin Oljace

photos by Denise Renee Olson
Martha Hardy, team reporter

A few games back when my own grandson Seth made a home run the lens cap was on my camera and I was so excited I could not get the cap off in time. It sure was great to have the cap off for Collin. Seth, now whenever you are at bat grandpa has his lens cap off hoping to recapture your moment too!  And to all Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth players, I look forward to capturing more exciting baseball moments for all of you for a long, long time.

Terry Weinheimer, PHBR webmaster

David is the Pleasant Hill AAA Navy baseball team. These are also a very talented and dedicated team of players though since the beginning of the regular season they had only won a single game.

Coach Forest Tomlinson and his assistants Coach Leigh Baker and Coach Jason White have been dedicated towards teaching the Pleasant Hill AAA Navy team strategy, technique and positive thinking.

Since before the beginning of the Spring season the  Pleasant Hill players have worked hard. These boys have been participating in a practice or playing in a game almost every day of the week rain or shine. In addition these players have also had homework assignments to better help them understand the techniques of winning in both baseball and life.

In the pre-season the AAA Navy team was winning on a regular basis. Once the regular season started it seemed as if they could no longer win regardless of the amount of practice they had or the dedication they showed. Then a couple of games back they had their first win when they played the Pleasant Hill Gold AAA team which is another team of excellent players. Unfortunately that win was  followed by a very big loss and the spirits were low.

On May 5, 2010 the match between David and Goliath finally came. The Pleasant Hill team arrived early, was in a very positive mood and understood the challenge they were to face. Before the Game Coach Tomlinson once again stressed the importance of strategy and staying in the game. Coach Baker and Coach White stressed the importance of both containing and directing their emotions and thinking positive even when behind.

From one inning to the next the fight was close as bats were swung, balls were pitched, errors and runs were made. Both teams practiced the strategies and techniques that they had learned and both teams maintained positive attitudes from inning to inning.

In the 6th inning the score was 6-7 and suddenly you heard the roar of the crowd as a Junction City player made a short bunt, the ball was thrown over the head of the first baseman and went far out in the field , this severe error on the part of Pleasant Hill resulted in the Junction City player making a home run off of a bunt. But wait!  It was not a home run for the Junction City player had also made an error and had not touched 3rd base on his way to home. Though the player was now home the pitcher threw the ball to third base and the runner was out. Two more outs and Goliath lost to David by a single run and a final score of 7-6.

Congratulations AAA Navy on a very good game against a very good team. As you play the game remember the words of Vince Lombardi: “Winning isn’t everything, but the will to win is everything.”

To see photographs of the game Click Here

Click to see more Pleasant Hill and Willamette Valley Babe Ruth League Player Photos by Deborah Mundorf of Deb’s Action Shots

Saturday afternoon’s game was a new experience for both the Pleasant Hill Billie’s and South Eugene Axemen.  The players on these Babe Ruth Rookie Major teams were to experience their first games this season where the players were to pitch instead of batting against a pitching machine. Each of the 9-year-old players that would be old enough to play AAA next season had an opportunity to pitch. As a result there were several changes among the pitchers adding to the excitement as we watched the game. As the boys batted they also found this to offer new challenges that they had not yet experienced this season. At the end of the game the Billie’s took home another win.

With the end of the game the excitement was far from over. Following the game players headed for a campout at the Pleasant Hill home of Coach Forest Tomlinson and his wife Miriam. A number of parents stayed around for a while to talk and watch the excitement. Assistant Coaches Eric Pruitt and Jason White along with Dodgeball Kevin Weinheimer pitching machine operator had the duties of helping Forest and Miriam chaperone the campout.

Mothers Heather White, Christina Hassler and Miriam Gage prepared dinner for the crew of hungry boys and adults. Sunday morning Kirk Miller arrived early to fix a pancake breakfast for the team. Yours truly Team Grandpa Terry enjoyed watching the young and old have a good time before I headed home to spend the night in my own bed instead of a tent.

During the campout all 12 boys and some of the parents had an opportunity to participated in activities from baseball to basketball, air hockey, water slide, water balloon wars, a walk in the Willamette river to much more before it was time to hit the tents for a bit of rest before Sundays game with the Junction City rookie majors team.

Sunday afternoon all 12 tired boys became quickly energized and ready to take on the Junction City Rookie Majors. This was to be their second day of pitching and the boys were really excited about the opportunity, as was Dodgeball Kevin still somewhat asleep and glad that he would not be required to dodge any balls.

Sunday’s game went well and up through the top of the fourth inning the Pleasant Hill Babe Ruth Rookie Majors held a win over the Junction City Babe Ruth Rookie Majors. At the bottom of the fourth inning Junction City took the lead and the umpire called the game on the basis of time. Unfortunately we will never know how who the true winner of the game would have been had the umpire allowed the game to be played out through the 5^th inning but this was his call to make.

As this fun and busy weekend ended we all headed home for an evening of rest. As one mother put it, “I bet my son will not argue with me tonight about bedtime.” How right she likely is along with some tired parents who will also be hitting the bed a bid earlier themselves.

L: Kyler Kessler, behind him is Justin Oljace. R: Trevin Hoyt, Justin Oljace

Kameron Eidenschink, Ian Larson, Trevin Hoyt, Kyler Kessler

Brett Ollivant and TJ Bellamy

TJ Bellamy, Chase Olson, Brett Ollivant