Kettering Royals

After a line of terrible storms rolled through the Miami Valley Friday night the only thing that saved the Championship series from being cancelled was a turf field and 1 tarp.  After the rains passed and clouds began to breakup Saturday, the Royals and Rangers were able to play their 2013 MVABL Championship series at Athletes in Action.  The Royals were able to reclaim the title, their 4th in Franchise history, and were named MVABL Champions as they were able to sweep the Rangers 10-6 and 6-2 on what turned out to be a beautiful day for baseball.

Full Recap will be posted later, but a BIG Congratulations to all the Boys in Blue as this was the hardest road to win the title in as long as anyone can remember.  In their Playoff run they had overcome matchups with the top 3 seeded teams in the 2013 tournament, and they were able to stay focused on the goal and come out on top.  Congratulations!

And also, a BIG Thank You to all our Family and Friends that made it out to the field today, and throughout the season, your support doesn't go unnoticed.  Thanks for all ways being behind us along this journey.

The Boys in Blue laced ‘em up for the 3rd round of the MVABL Playoffs on a crisp sunny Saturday afternoon against the tough #1 seed Slammers. The Slammers have had the Royals number as of late, sweeping the season series rather easily, and defeating them in every game since 2010. Come playoff time though, HISTORY MEANS NOTHING TO THE BOYS IN BLUE!!! As they proved last week in defeating the A’s, whom they had NEVER beaten since the A’s joined the MVABL.

Taking the Howell Field mound, on this beautiful day, was Shaun Delozier, who was looking to atone for his brief 2 inning stint against the A’s last weekend. He would not disappoint the frenzied Royals fans in attendance.

The Boys in Blue were looking to stay hot at the plate, after their 54 hit, 38 run outburst from a week ago. Chris Jergens got things started with a 2 run shot to dead center that kept on carrying over the CF fence. Shaun made quick work of the top of the Slammers order, with the help of Brad Koopman throwing out the leadoff runner trying to swipe 2nd. Then a tailor made DP by Jake Wilson and Brain Duffy ended the first. Kevin Reynolds scored a run in the 2nd by reaching on a single, followed by consecutive single from Shawn Rudigeair and Matt Koopman. Staked to a 3 run lead, Shaun again made quick work of the Slammers in the bottom of the 2nd forcing 2 ground outs and a K with a single between them. The Boys in Blue tacked on 2 more in the 3rd as Paul Wilson walked and Jergens kept it in the park this time, with a single. Jason Holmberg stepped to the plate a belted a double to deep right center scoring both Wilson and Jergens. Staked to a 5 run lead, Shaun zeroed in on the Slammers batters and shut them down over the next 5 innings. The Slammers pitcher also locked it down and held the Royals to 2 base runners over the last 4 innings. For the game, Shaun allowed only 6 men to reach base (4 singles, 1 BB, & 1 reached on error), and only 1 of those runners ever touched second base. The Slammers never threatened to score, a nice turnaround from last weekend’s marathon baseball games.

Jason Holmberg took the hill in game 2 with the mindset of anything you can do, I can do better Shaun. The first 3 innings were relatively quiet, as the Slammers only managed 1 base runner in the 1st inning from a walk and the Royals only managed to get 2 runners aboard through 3 innings. Neither team looked like they wanted to hit the ball or score after 3 innings. In the 4th, things began to change as Holmberg continued his run of 1-2-3 innings. In the bottom of the 4th, Duffy led off with a double bringing Jergens to the plate, sore hammy and all, and he decided he didn’t want to have to run the bases so he launched his second 2 – run homer of the series well over the Right Center fence, as neither outfielder moved as the ball rocketed off his bat. Holmberg then followed this up with a single and later scored after 2 consecutive singles from Kevin Reynolds and Matt Koopman drove him in. Those 3 runs was more than enough for Holmberg on the hill as he set aside the Slammers 1-2-3 in the 5th. The Royals would add 3 more runs to the cause in the 5th. Duffy, Jergens, and Holmberg led off with consecutive singles, with Duffy scoring from Holmberg’s single. Then Jake Wilson walked and Kevin Reynolds knocked in Jergens and Holmberg with a single of his own. Holmberg was coming off his 5th consecutive clean inning, and 17 consecutive batters set down, since walking the 2nd batter of the game. Heading into the top of the 7th, unbeknownst to the fielders and the fans, Holmberg was working on the coveted no hitter. The bench suddenly realized this, but kept it quiet. The 1st batter flied out weakly to CF. The next batter stepped to the plate and slapped a ball to LF that was easily corralled, as the shift was on. As Holmberg toed up the rubber he stared in at the plate to see team captain, and manager Rick Anderson coming to the plate with Holmberg 1 out from the no – no. Rick swung at the first pitch he saw from Holmberg and was able to squeak the ball just past the diving Jake Wilson at SS to record the only hit for the Slammers in game 2. Holmberg forced a ground out by the Slammers next batter to complete the 1 hitter, and 2nd consecutive shutout of the day to advance the Royals back to their first MVABL Championship series since they last won it in 2010.

This was a dominating performance by pitchers Royals Rookie Shaun Delozier and Veteran Jason Holmberg. They combined for 2 complete game shutouts, and only allowed 8 total base runners (5 hits, 2 walks, 1 reached on error) in the 2 games. More impressive was that only 1 of those base runners ever reached 2nd base. They contributed 9 K’s on the day as well.

Next up for the Boys in Blue are the #2 seeded Dayton Rangers. The Royals are playing baseball unphased by seeding, as the Royals have already knocked off the #1 & #3 seeds in this years’ tournament. These 2 teams always play highly competitive games against each other so IT should be a fun filled Championship series, as ALL 3 games go 9 innings. We’ll see whose pitching staff can hold up to the longer than usual games. Come out and enjoy some great baseball.

Offensive Leaders:
Chris Jergens 4-6 (4 runs // 2 HR // 4 RBIs)
Brian Duffy 3-5 (3 runs)
Jason Holmberg 4-6, 2 runs // 3 RBIs)
Kevin Reynolds 4-5 (1 run // 2 RBIs)

Defensive Leaders:
Shaun Delozier 7 IP CG Win (7 K’s // 1 BB // 3 Hits // 0 ER)
Jason Holmberg 7 IP CG Win (2 K’s // 1 BB // 1 Hit // 0 ER)

The Royals have advanced through the 2013 MVABL Playoffs with one of the hardest roads in their history.  After a quick sweep of the new Brick City Braves in the first round, the Royals have had to face the #3 Fairborn Athletics in the second round, and then this past weeked against the #1 seeded South Dayton Slammers in the Semifinals.  However, facing those odds the Boys in Blue have rallied together to succeed and advance to the 2013 MVABL Championships for the first time since 2010.  After 2 dismal exits the last 2 years following opening round bye's, the team has stayed sharp playing in every round this year, and it has paid off.

The Royals advance to the finals this year to face yet another tough opponent, the #2 seeded Dayton Rangers.  The Royals and Rangers are two of the leagues oldest teams still competing as the Rangers have been around since 1997, and the Royals in 2000, and as a result they have had some VERY memorable matchups for those that were lucky enough to play in those games.  The teams have had a very see-saw type rivalry that results in either a high scoring Barn Burner that has one team pulling ahead in the final inning of the game, or intense low-scoring pitching duels.

This season the Royals have had the Rangers number though, winning both matchups they've had this season.  The Royals have sent Rookie Matt Koopman to the hill in both games against the Rangers and he has done exceptionately well.  He has thrown 2, 9 inning Complete Game victories against them.  Holding their powerful lineup in check only allowing 8 hits and 3 runs while notching 14 K's.  Will the Royals mix up their pitching rotation that has worked well so far and send Matt to the mound, or stay with the rotation that has been working?  Come out this Saturday to see who will take the mound as the Royals try to prevent the Rangers from repeating as MVABL Champions and look to claim their 4th title.  When the dust settles though the fans should be treated to an exciting series as these veteran clubs square off.

The Royals and Atletics faced off this past weekend in the 2013 MVABL Playoff Quarterfinals. It was a steep battle for the #6 seeded Royals as they faced off against the Athetics, a team they were 0-7 against in the 3 years the Athletics have been in the league. The Royals were the visiting team in game 1 and jumped out to an early 3-0 highlighted by a 2-run HR off the bat of Jason Holmberg. However, the Athletic's lineup is filled with many deadly batters and they didn't let the Royals lead hamper things. They jumped out on Royals rookie starter Shaun Delozier for 4 runs of their own with the help of a 3-run HR from Joey Watson, who also hit the game winning homerun off Delozier in the Royals/A's last matchup. In the top of the 2nd the Royals tied the game at 4 with a solo HR from Shawn Rudigeair, but again the A's offensive lineup was unphased as they continued to jump on Delozier scoring 6 in the bottom of the second highlighted by a Grand Slam off the bat of Nic Watkins. After 2 the Royals went to the bullpen and called upon Sinclair graduate, and baseball closer, Paul Wilson to try and slow the A's offense. Down 10-4 the Royals added 2 more in the 4th as Matt and Brad Koopman were the first Royals Brothers to hit back to back HR's to continue and chip away at the A's lead, but again the A's responded as Nic Watkins scored off a single by AJ Jiles. Down 6-11 now in the 5th the Royals plated 4 more runs highlighted by Jason Holmberg's 2nd 2 run homerun and back-to-back singles from Paul Wilson and Matt Koopman to bring the Royals within 1, but the A's were able to add an insurance run capitalizing on a few Royals errors that allowed Kyle Combs to scamper home. Down 10-12 Paul Wilson held the A's off the board in the 6th, but unfortunately the Boys in Blue would get the tying runs at 2nd and 3rd in the top of the 7th, but the A's staff picked up a swinging K to end the game, Royals 10, Athletic's 12. In the game Paul Wilson went a perfect 4-4 at the plate as well as throwing 4 solid innings in relief recording 6 K's, and Jason Holmberg was 3-4 with 2 HR's and 4 RBI's.

In game 2 the Royals needed to win to stay alive and they sent their all-time leading pitcher in career wins, Jason Holmberg, to the mound in the do-or-die game. However the team that has continued to have the Royals number jumped out to an early 3-0 lead with the help of a few costly errors. But the Royals hoped the same would hold true in game 2 as game 1, that the team that jumped out early would fall at the end! In the bottom half of the 1st the Royals almost cut the A's lead down to 1, but a tough call on a ball hit by Chris Jergens held the runners up at 2nd and 3rd. Holmberg would help his own cause and hit a sacrifice fly to right that would score Brian Duffy from 3rd, but that would be all the Royals would get. Holmberg worked efficiently in the 2nd to blank the A's offense getting his team back at the plate. Paul Wilson lead off the inning with a double, his 5th hit of the day, and score on a close play at the play on a single by Matt Koopman. Brad followed up his brother with a single of his own, but the A's would get 2 quick outs. Looking to keep the inning alive with 2 outs Kevin Reynolds hit his own single for the 4th hit of inning to score M. Koopman. Jergens then hit yet another single to plate Jake Wilson who was running for B. Koopman. As the dust settled the Royals had rebounded and took the lead 5-3. Holmberg again kept the A's offbalance in the 3rd and blanked the A's offense bringing the Royals back up to the plate. Jake Wilson led off the bottom of the 3rd with a bang hitting his own solo homerun for the Royals only run in the inning to extend the lead to 3. In the top of the 4th the A's offense would come to life and score 3 as Kyle Combs belted a 2 RBI double, and he would later score off a single from Nic Watkins to tie the game at 6 after 3.5 innings. All tied back up at 6, the Royals offense responded and belted 7 hits and batted around enroute to scoring 7 runs. With a cushy 13-6 lead Holmberg needed only 5 pitches to close out the top of the 5th. The Royals were also blanked in the bottom of 5th as the A's came back to the plate in the top of the 6th. The top of the A's order responded to the quick 5th leading the top of the 6th off with 3 straight hits to score 2. With no outs and a runner at 2nd the Royals went to bullpen and again called upon P. Wilson to close it out. A wildpitch allowed the A's to score a 3rd run in the 6th, but that would be all they would get as Paul closed out the top of the 6th. In the bottom of the 6th the Royals added 2 more as Paul Wilson hit a triple to score his brother Jake from 2nd, and would later score on an errant throw. In the 7th the Royals could sense their first victory against the A's who had their number as Paul went back out to the mound to close it out. Wilson picked up a quick K, and then a tough ground out to Duffy at 2nd. Josh Copeland kept the A's alive with a sharp single, but it wasn't enough for the A's offense as Paul picked up his 3rd K fanning Shawn Haffner to secure the Royals 1st win against the A's in the do-or-die game forcing game 3. In game 2 Chris Jergnes was a perfect 4-4 with 3 doubles and 3 RBI's, Paul Wilson was 3-4 with 3 runs, a double & triple, and his brother Jake was 2-4 with 2 runs and a double and HR. On the mound Holmberg went 5 innings for the win. The bats were alive on both sides of the plate as the Royals combined for 35 hits in the 2 games and the Athletic's belted 25 setting up an exciting game 3.

After a short night of rest the Royals and A's were back at Fairborn Legion for the early morning game. The Royals sent rookie Matt Koopman to the hill for the start in the 9 inning affair. The Royals were the visitors in the game and it took them awhile to get the bats warm as they couldn't plate any runs over the first 4 innings, but on the other side the A's didn't have that problem as they jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead after 4. A bit discouraged, but not willing to give up the Royals went to bat in the 5th and that attitude paid off as they batted around reeling off 9 hits to score 7 runs to take the lead! Riding the momentum Matt Koopman needed just 9 pitches to record the 2nd 1-2-3 inning versus the A's offense in the 3 games series. However the A's pitching buckled down and silenced the Royals offense bring the A's back to the plate where they capitalized on a leadoff walk by Josh Copeland who managed to use his speed to steal 2nd and move to 3rd on a sharp hit groundout to 2nd base. Shawn Haffner plated Copeland from 3rd with a single up the middle to tie the game at 7. In the top of the 7th all tied at 7 the Royals couldn't plate any runs again getting the A's back to the plate. In the bottom of the 7th Joey Watson led off for the A's with his 3rd double in the game, 4th straight hit, to quickly get into scoring position. Nic Watkins hit a high bouncer over Shaun Delozier's head at 3rd to score Waton's pinch runner from 2nd to give the A's the 8-7 lead and they weren't done. AJ Jiles hit another single to put runners at 1st and 2nd when Andrew Madlinger laid down a perfect sac bunt to move the runners around. With 2 outs and 1st base open the Royals elected to try and pitch gingerly around Josh Copeland who had struggled a bit at the plate on Saturday, but in this at bat he found his pitch and deposited a 3 run homerun over the left-field fence to put the A's up 7-11. The Royal's again called Paul Wilson in from centerfield to try and contain the A's lineup as he had done on Saturday. Paul gave up a walk and a single before getting Kyle Combs to hit into the 5-3 groundout to close out the 7th. Despite being down so late in the game the Royals kept hope that anything can happen, and kept focusing on the goal as they went to bat in the 8th. Again that desire paid off as they again batted around and belted 7 hits to score 6 runs and take the 13-11 lead. Heading back to the mound in the 8th now up 13-11 Paul worked another 1-2-3 innings inducing two 5-3 groundouts and a big strikeout to close out the 8th. The Royals held a SLIM 13-11 lead into the top of the 9th they looked to try and add a few more insurance runs as the A's offense can easily score as well, but all they could work was a walk before back to back strikeouts closed out the top of the 9th. The Royals went back to the field holding onto that slim 2 run lead in the deciding game with the bottom half of the A's order due up. Andrew Madlinger reached base on a hard hit ball that shorthopped the Royals shortstop, and then Nolan O'Meara followed up with 4 pitch walk to put the tying run on 1st for the A's. Josh Copeland then stepped to the plate and was able to reach 1st as the pitch got away from Paul to load the bases. After a brief meeting at the mound to calm the team and regroup Paul stepped back onto the rubber now facing the leadoff batter for the A's. Paul picked up a cruicial strikeout, bringing Haffner to the plate who was 3-5 on the day. Haffner deep fly to rightfield that Eric Jameson reeled in and went to 3rd to concede the run and hold the runners at 1st and 2nd with the Royals now up 13-12 with 2 outs. Kyle Combs stepped up to the plate in the pivotal at bat for the A's as Joey Watson (4-5, 3 doubles) waited on deck, which the Royals didn't want to face. Paul got up early 0-2 as Combs on a called 1st pitch strike and then 2 fouls straight back, but he was patient working the count to 2-2. Paul Wilson took the sign and delivered and won the battle against Combs getting him to flyout to Jergens waiting in center to secure the 13-12 victory to move on in the 2013 playoffs. The offense was alive for both teams as they combined for 39 total hits in the deciding game (22-Royals//17-A's). For the Royals, Paul Wilson continued to hit going 3-5 in the game (10-13 in the series), brother Jake was 4-5 (7-12 in the series), and Neil Stafford was 4-5 with 3 RBI's. On the mound Paul Wilson picked up the deciding game Win throwing the final 2 1/3 allowing only 1 hit and notching 2 K's.

The Royals advance to the Semi-Finals where they will face the top seed South Dayton Slammers.  The Slammers have had the Royals number as well as they've been 0-3 against the Slammers over the last 2 seasons.  The Royals last victory came against them in 2010 when they won their one and only matchup against them 13-12 as former Royal Brenden Regan threw out the final runner at the plate from centerfield.  Both teams have lots of talent, which should provide for a great series to see who will advance to the 2013 MVABL Championshiops.  Be sure to come out and support your Boys in Blue.

The Boys in Blue look forward to their Round 2 Playoff Matchup this weekend versus the Fairborn Athletics.  In Round 1 the Royals swept the 1st year Brick City Braves behind 2 great pitching performances.  In game 1 veteran Jason Holmberg had 10 K's enroute to the victory, and in Game 2 Rookie Shaun Delozier took the hill and was throwing a perfect game until it was ended due to factors outside either teams control.

In Round 2 the Royals will face off against the Fairborn Athletics.  In the A's 3 years in the league their offense has been one of the most potent in league history since the days of the Ohio Woodpeckers.  In the Royals only 2 games with the A's this summer they unfortunately didn't play against them with their complete roster as the games were unfortunately on weeknights.  The games were close despite the shorthanded roster, the A's still came out on-top, but this weekend the Royals will finally have a full lineup as the look to accomplish this tough feat.  In the 3 years the A's have been in the league the Boys in Blue have not been able to find that 1st victory against them.  They are hoping this weekend, under the pressure of the playoffs that this weekend is their time!  Either way it should be a great series.

Saturdays doubleheader will be played at Fairborn Legion Field and will start at 1:00 PM.  Please come out to the field and support your Boys in Blue as they look to take on the A's in their quest to win a 4th title!