Hermleigh's Baseball Field
(photo courtesy of Carter Construction Company)
Baseball is officially underway across the state, however
their remains a large number of 1A size schools that have postponed their
baseball season a few weeks due to Basketball playoffs, and even still many won’t
start their seasons until the first week of March.
I have sent out questionnaires to almost all 1A schools
across the state and have received a few back already. It is becoming apparent that the question
regarding the new UIL rules on pitch counts is the most important. The new rule limits use of the pitchers and
multiple quality pitchers are hard to come by in schools with less than 105
kids in the whole HS. Maybe the small
school coaches should petition the UIL asking for special consideration or an
amendment to the current rule…more thought needs to be done on this issue for
sure…
Point of Interest:
Announced in the fall of 2016…Ira’s baseball program was one
of only 10 organizations in Texas and Louisiana, and only 1A school, to receive
a donation from the Texas Rangers organization to use toward their baseball
program. They were awarded $3000!
Some scores from the
season thus far:
2/20
Rotan 5 Hamlin 1
Kress 13 Springlake-Earth 0
Trinity Christian 19 Lipan 6
2/21
Hico 14 Milford 1
Refugio 23 Bruni 0
2/23
Hamlin 13 Rotan 5
Howe JV 5 Tioga 4
Onalaska 12 Spurger 1
Ozen 11 Spurger 3
Charlotte 4 Medina 1
Medina 17 La Pyor 5
Medina 17 La Pyor 5
2/24
Hermleigh 16 O’Donnell 3
Coahoma 10 O’Donnell 1
Rotan 10 Haskell 7
WF Hirschi 16 Rotan 4
Coleman 10 Baird 4
Tioga 6 Poolville 5
Cumby 4 Savoy 2
Hubbard 10 Covington 1
Port Arthur 9 Burkeville 5
Port Arthur Memorial 10 Spurger 1
Kountze 16 Spurger 3
Natalia 23 Runge 4
2/25
Kress 11 Hale Center 0
Hale Center 14 Kress 4
Springlake-Earth 22 Seagraves 10
Lindsey 11 Savoy 5
Sam Rayburn 6 Savoy 4
Lipan 13 Santo 12
Avalon 11 Dallas Roosevelt 1
Avalon 17 Dallas Roosevelt 6
Big Sandy 13 Fruitvale 2
Big Sandy 13 Fruitvale 2
Brookeland 12 Kennard 2
Crane 19 Menard 6
2/27
West Rusk 5 Union Hill 1
Riesel 12 Bartlett 2
Bruni 17 La Villa 1*
Dodd City 20 Ector 4
Dodd City 20 Ector 4
Famous Small Town, TX
Baseball Players:
While Hubbard is technically a 2A baseball program (112
enrollment), they have the most famous baseball alum who was born, and attended
school in a small Texas town. I’m
talking about Baseball Hall of Famer Tris Speaker! There are many Ex-MLBers that were born in
small towns across Texas, but very few actually lived there, let alone went to
school there, for an extended period of time.
Speaker is the exception! Known as “Spoke” to his teammates and friends,
he played from 1907-28 mostly for the Red Sox and Indians. He retired with 3,514 hits, 1,882 runs
scored, 1,531 RBIs and a .345 BA. He was
a major part in 3 World Championships (1912, 1915 Boston Red Sox and 1920
Clevelnad Indians). He was elected to
the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937 (the 2nd class elected) and was
part of the very first Induction Ceremony in 1939.
Did You Know:
It is against the rules to catch a ball in your
cap, and to take off your glove and throw it at a live ball in order to try to
stop or alter its path