June 30, 2006
WEST POINT, N.Y. -
Army left-handed pitcher Nick Hill, who is attempting to become the first Army player in 13 years to qualify for the USA national baseball team, helped his cause this week by earning a win in the team's second intrasquad scrimmage.
A two-time All-American, Hill saw his first and only action (to date) in a competitive situation (scrimmage or game) at the USA trials on June 27 in Keene, N.H., where he led the Blue team to a 7-5 victory over the Red team. Hill picked up the win, striking out three batters over four innings of work. He allowed just three earned runs on five hits and one walk.
Hill is one of 35 players who were invited to compete for spots on the 22-player roster that will comprise the USA squad for a summer-long series of games and tournaments. Hill is looking to become Army's first player to play for Team USA since Steve Reich pitched for America in 1993.
The trials, which began June 24, will conclude Saturday, July 1, with an afternoon scrimmage followed by a game against the Newport Gulls. The 22-man roster will be announced July 2. After the 22-player Team USA roster is announced, the team will play seven exhibition games at the Durham (N.C.) Bulls Athletic Park before competing in the 35th annual USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star series (July 25-29; in the U.S.), in addition to playing a series versus Taiwan and then heading to Cuba in August for the World University Championship.
In 1993, Reich authored a 2-1 record with a 2.48 ERA in 17 appearances for Team USA, fanning 38 while walking only three.
JUNE 25 GAME VERSUS PITTSFIELD - The game with the Dukes at Wahconah Park was halted due to rain early in the 4th inning, with the USA holding a 6-0 lead ... Vanderbilt lefthander David Price struck out four while walking two in the first 3.0 innings for Team USA versus the Dukes ... one of the BIG EAST Conference's top players, Rutgers shortstop Todd Frazier, gave the USA an early 3-0 lead with his bases-clearing triple ... the top of the fourth saw Texas catcher Preston Clark stroke a two-run double before Cozart added a run-scoring single.
JUNE 27 GAME VERSUS KEENE - The home team took a 1-0 lead into the sixth but pinch-hitter Mike Bianucci ultimately gave Team USA a 2-1 lead on his solo home run in the seventh, helping lead his team to a 5-1 win with 2,758 fans looking on at Alumni Field ... TCU righthander Jake Arrieta drew the start for Team USA, surrendering the lone run while allowing one hit and walk to go along with a strikeout in 3.0 innings ... Missouri State LHP Ross Detwiler followed with 2.1 shutout innings (BB, 2 Ks) before Alabama RHP Tommy Hunter picked up the win with six strikeouts in his own shutout stint (2.2 IP) ... Clemson LHP Daniel Moskos closed out the game with a pair of Ks in the scoreless ninth ... Cheyne Hurst's run-scoring groundout gave Keene an early lead that held up until Frazier reached on a sixth-inning fielding error and moved around to third (on a HBP to Alvarez and a flyout) before swiping home base when pitcher George Brown tried to erase Alvarez on a pickoff throw to first base ... Bianucci ended Brown's no-hit bid (8.1 IP, 3 R/1 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 7 Ks) in the 7th, as the Auburn infielder cleared the fence in center field for the 2-1 lead ... a pair of errors helped the USA score three unearned runs in the ninth, with Weeks plating two on his home run versus reliever Matt Karl.
JUNE 29 GAME VERSUS TORRINGTON - The USA National Team dropped its first game of the trial schedule, falling to Torrington 7-2 Thursday night at Fuessenich Park ... the Twisters got on the board in the first when leadoff hitter Andres Perez hit a solo homer to left off of USA starter Nick Schmidt (Arkansas). Matt Arburr added another solo shot for the Twisters in the third, off of Bryan Augenstein (Florida) to make it 2-0 ... Tony Delmonico (Tennessee) put the USA on the board in the fifth with a solo homer to left off of Torrington starter Joe Serafin ... Perez got the run back for Torrington in the bottom half with a two-out RBI single to right off of reliever Christian Friedrich (Eastern Kentucky) ... Team USA came back with a run in the sixth to cut the lead to 3-2. Zack Cozart led off with a double and moved to third on an infield single by Todd Frazier (Rutgers) ... he then scored on a sacrifice fly RBI by J.P. Arencibia (Tennessee) ... the Twisters extended the lead to 5-2 in the bottom half via a RBI single by Derek Shunk and a wild pitch by Kyle Weiland (Notre Dame) that allowed a runner to score from third ... both runs in the inning were unearned ... Torrington added two more runs in the bottom of the eighth to make it 7-2 ... Perez had a RBI triple and Mitchell Moses brought him in with a RBI single to center off of Daniel Moskos (Clemson) ... Twister starting pitcher Joe Serafin held the USA to two runs on seven hits in seven innings of work with eight strikeouts and a walk ... USA starter Nick Schmidt gave up a run in two innings of work in the losing cause.
SCRIMMAGE #1 RECAP - The USA National Team held its first intrasquad game of the summer at Wahconah Park in Pittsfield, Mass., on June 25, with the Red holding on for the 4-3 win ... Tennessee CF Julio Borbon opened the scoring for the Blue team as he led off the game with a single, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and came home on Doolittle's sacrifice fly ... the Red's four-run fourth included Krum's leadoff triple versus Florida RHP Bryan Augenstein, RBI singles from Weeks (stolen base) and Arizona State 1B Ike Davis, Texas Tech RF Roger Kieschnick's run-scoring triple and a fielding error on Frazier (at third) ... the Blue's run in the fourth came vs. Arkansas LHP Nick Schmidt, with Doolittle and Arencibia drawing leadoff walks before Frazier singled through the right side and Bianucci was hit by a bases-loaded pitch ... the Blue added a run in the fifth, thanks to Borbon's single and stolen base, Cowgill's walk, a wild pitch, a walk by Doolittle and Arencibia's bases-loaded single (vs. California RHP Tyson Ross, who recovered with two Ks) ... Schmidt picked up the win (4 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 2 BB, 4 Ks) while Ross allowed one run in his 3.0 IP (3 H, 3 BB, 5 Ks) and Moskos notched the save (1.0 IP, 0 H) ... Augenstein was charged with the loss (4.0 IP, 4 R/3 ER, 4 H, 6 Ks) ... other Red pitchers included Eastern Kentucky LHP Christian Friedrich (2.1 IP, H, BB, 5 Ks) and Wichita State RHP Damon Sublett (1.2 IP, H) ... Borbon and Frazier led all hitters with three hits each for the Blue.
SCRIMMAGE #2 RECAP - The Blue came out on top in the second scrimmage, on June 27 in Keene, N.H. (7-5) ... Kieschnick's three hits, included two home runs that helped bring home five of the Blue's runs ... Davis opened the scoring for the Blue with a second-inning solo home run to left, but the Red tied the game in the third on a home run by Prince ... Kieschnick's two-run blast helped the Blue go ahead 4-1 in the third but the Red used RBI singles from Bianucci and Cozart to make it 4-3 in the fourth ... Kieschnick added an RBI single in the fifth, but Cozart's solo homer to left yieled another one-run score in the seventh (5-4) ... Kieschnick then closed out his day with a two-run blast to right (7-4) ... Army LHP Nick Hill picked up the win (4.0 IP, 3 R, 5 H) while Wichita State RHP Aaron Shafer suffered the loss (4.0 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 2 BB, 6 Ks) ... Satterwhite (3.0 IP, R, 2 H, BB, 3 Ks) preceded Weiland to the mound for the Blue ... Rice LHP Cole St. Clair closed the game for the Red (4.0 IP, 3 R, 7 H, 3 BB, 2 Ks).
SCRIMMAGE #3 RECAP - The USA National Team held its third intrasquad scrimmage of the trial schedule and played to a five inning 1-1 tie contest ... the Blue squad got on the board in the second when Pedro Alvarez (Vanderbilt) led off with a single to right ... he advanced to third via two straight groundouts and then scored on Preston Clark's (Texas) RBI single to right ... the Red team tied the game in the fourth when Ike Davis (Arizona State) led off with a walk and advanced to third on a base hit by Zack Cozart (Ole Miss). Davis then scored on a RBI single by Sean Doolittle (Virginia) to make it 1-1 ... the scrimmage was scheduled for five innings ... since neither team scored in the fifth, it ended in a tie ... David Price (Vanderbilt) started for the Blue and pitched two scoreless innings with four strikeouts and a walk while allowing just one hit ... Tyson Ross (California) started for the Red and gave up one run on three hits with two strikeouts and two walks ... Wes Roemer (Cal State Fullerton) made his first appearance of the trials and threw one inning of scoreless baseball ... he struck out two and walked one ... Jared Prince (Washington State) closed out the game on the mound for the Blue, allowing one run on two hits with two strikeouts and a walk ... Davis pitched an inning of scoreless relief for the Red and Damon Sublett (Wichita State) closed the game for them by striking out the side in an inning of action.
USA BASEBALL NATIONAL TEAM TRIALS PRACTICE AND GAME SCHEDULE
Date - Event ... Time ... Venue (City)
June 24 - Practice ... 1:00 p.m. ... Dan Duquette Sports Academy (Hinsdale, Mass.)
June 25 - Blue/Red scrimmage ... 12:15 p.m. ... Wahconah Park (Pittsfield, Mass.)
June 25 - vs. Pittsfield Dukes ... 5:00 p.m. ... Wahconah Park (Pittsfield, Mass.)
June 26 - Practice ... 12:00 p.m. ... Alumni Field (Keene, N.H.)
June 27 - Blue/Red scrimmage ... 1:00 p.m. ... Alumni Field (Keene, N.H.)
June 27 - vs. Keene Swamp Bats ... 7:00 p.m. ... Alumni Field (Keene, N.H.)
June 28 - Practice ... 11:00 a.m. ... Fuessenich Park (Torrington , Conn.)
June 29 - Blue/Red scrimmage ... 12:00 p.m. ... Fuessenich Park (Torrington, Conn.)
June 29 - vs. Torrington Twisters ... 7:00 p.m. ... Fuessenich Park (Torrington, Conn.)
June 30 - Practice ... 1:00 p.m. ... Salve Regina University (Newport, R.I.)
July 1 - Blue/Red scrimmage ... 2:00 p.m. ... Cardines Field (Newport, R.I.)
July 1 - vs. Newport Gulls ... 6:35 p.m. ... Cardines Field (Newport, R.I.)
