2013 Baseball 78ers Roster

These are the team rosters for the Baseball 78ers League. If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. You can also download this document as a PDF or CSV (to open with Excel).

2013 Softball Juniors Schedule

• League Director: Courtney Moskal
  email: courtmosk "at" sbcglobal.net (replace "at" with @)
  
• Please remember to sign up for email updates. That way you won't miss any schedule changes or weather updates.
• We generally do NOT make weather announcements about away games. Please contact your coach for cancellation updates on away fields.
• Changes made after April 10 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Picture Day is May 11.
• Family Day is Sat-1-Jun.
• Team tournaments begin Sat-15-Jun.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2013 Baseball Big League Rosters

These are the team rosters for the Baseball Big League. If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. You can also download this document as a PDF or CSV (to open with Excel).

2013 Baseball Juniors Roster

These are the team rosters for the Baseball Juniors League. If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. You can also download this document as a PDF or CSV (to open with Excel).

2013 Baseball Majors Roster

These are the team rosters for the Baseball Majors League. If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. You can also download this document as a PDF or CSV (to open with Excel).

2013 Baseball Minors Roster

These are the team rosters for the Baseball Minors League. If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. You can also download this document as a PDF or CSV (to open with Excel).

2013 Softball Majors Schedule

• League Director: Courtney Moskal
  email: courtmosk "at" sbcglobal.net (replace "at" with @)
  
• Please remember to sign up for email updates. That way you won't miss any schedule changes or weather updates.
• We generally do NOT make weather announcements about away games. Please contact your coach for cancellation updates on away fields.
• Changes made after April 10 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Picture Day is May 11.
• Family Day is Sat-1-Jun.
• Team tournaments begin Sat-15-Jun.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

Parents: Before Purchasing a Bat

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Ten weeks following the Fundraiser is the start of the 2013 season. You only have ten days left to register for the 2013 Fundraiser. Look at the smiles on these faces! Follow this link and sign up now...

Thank You, Volunteers

Southern Little League would like to thank Jeanine Luciani and Bella Design for the logo and design work, Jeff Christians and Gilson Graphics for print, mail and email marketing, Tim Kolk, Steve Bender, Patty Malewitz and their committee and Mark Norton, Paul Vanderlei and Jeff Elble for compiling a comprehensive mailing list. The work being donated by all of these people has put Southern in a great spot for a very successful Lead Off Party.

Thank You All,
Bob Hams - President
Southern Little League

Matt Kutsche

On Friday January 11th, Southern Little League lost one of its very own special players. Matt Kutsche was with a team of people on a mission trip in Haiti when tragically their vehicle crashed. Matt did not survive. Matt was a player at Southern from the time his hat hung over his eyes in coach pitch until the most prestigious level of Big Leagues. He was also a dedicated umpire taking the time to teach the littlest players along the way. Matt was a valued team mate to every team he ever played for and leaves a huge hole in the hearts of those who knew him. He was a trusted friend, a loyal brother, and son and a man of impeccable character. My son Chris was lucky enough to call him his best friend, and we were so grateful with how much time we were able to enjoy Matt ourselves. Matt towered over most people and I’m not just speaking of his size. His great optimism in life, his faith in God, and his ability to make even a stranger feel like a friend are all virtues that came naturally to Matt. Simply put, Matt made a difference. Our families, our friends and our community are grief stricken but we will somehow move forward. Spring will come, new life will begin, and the first pitch will be thrown at baseball games all over the world. And this time, with no doubt, Matt will have the best seat in the house for each and every play.

- Terri Vulpetti

2013 Tryout Schedule

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE NOTE

First off, keep in mind that the term "tryout" here is a bit of a misnomer. It's actually more of an evaluation to help determine the appropriate league for each child. No one is omitted from participation based on this evaluation. We use the term "tryout" regardless, so bear with us.

To determine your child's official Little League Age, use their online age calculator here. Please use ONLY this official Little League age when considering which tryout session to attend.

All of the time slots listed below are for baseball only. There will not be a softball tryout session this year.

Please notice that only kids in certain situations need to come to tryouts. Read the conditions below carefully. If you find that your child does not fit into any of these situations, then there's no need to come to tryouts. Get it? If you're still not sure, you can contact the director.

Here is the schedule for tryouts:

• Date: Saturday, March 23rd
• Location: East Grand Rapids High School Gym.
• Please plan to arrive 30 minutes prior to your scheduled time slot.
• These times are subject to change. We will announce all changes on the website and email all subscribers. Sign up for email notification here.
• 9:00am-10:00am: all 9 yr olds (baseball). No 8 yr olds will be allowed to play in the minors.
  
• 10:30am-11:30am: all 10 yr olds (baseball) who were not in the majors last year and who wish to try out for majors this year. Also, any 10 yr olds (baseball) who are new to Southern this year must attend at this time. (For 10-yr-olds who were in minors last year and want to play in minors again this year, you do not need to attend the tryout.)
  
• 12:00pm-1:00pm: all 11 and 12 yr olds (baseball) who were not in the majors last year
• 1:30pm-2:30pm: all 13 and 14 yr olds (baseball) who were not in the juniors last year
• 2:30pm-3:00pm: umpire sign-up and meeting

If you have any questions or concerns, or if you know your child will not be able to attend, please contact the director.

Sign Up In Person for the 2013 Season

You can sign up in person for the 2013 season. This is for folks who do not want to use a credit card to register online. If you'd rather pay by cash or check, come to the in-person sign-up sessions where we'll be able to accept your payment and provide you with access to a laptop so you can fill out the rest of the registration information online. There are no paper sign-ups this year.

The in-person sign-ups will take place at Breton Village Mall. The sign-up table will be located near the fireplace inside the mall.

• Where: Breton Village Mall
• When:
• Monday, February 11th, 6-8pm
• Monday, February 18th, 6-8pm
• Saturday, February 23rd, 10am-1pm
• A parent or legal guardian must be present at sign-up.
• The child need not be present.
• We do not need to see birth certificates.
• Cost is $130, payable by check, cash, or credit card.
• You cannot sign up by mail.

Sign Up Online for the 2013 Season

• DEADLINE IS MARCH 15! (Deadline for Seniors is May 10.) Online sign-up will close after the deadline.
• The cost is $130. After the deadline, the cost increases to $150.
• You can sign up and pay online by clicking here.
• Please note: The online sign-up is hosted by a third party (active.com). There have been reports of high volume on their site. Please keep trying. There is nothing the Southern webmaster can do about this.
  
• There is no additional fee for online sign-up. The cost is the same as in-person sign-up.
  
• We no longer need to see birth certificates.
  

Save the Date: 2013 Southern Little League Annual Lead-off Party

Please add the date to your calendar:
Saturday, February 9, 2013

This will be our second annual winter fundraiser for Southern Little League at Cascade Hills Country Club.

Food, drinks, entertainment, silent and live auction. Join us for a great evening of fun,
Southern Little League style!

To make this event even more successful than last year please consider donating quality
items for the auctions.

Please contact Tim Kolk (timkolk@grar.com – 616.446.7186) with any questions.

Southern Little League to Celebrate 60 years of Baseball and Softball in 2013!

Hello Everyone,

2013 will bring Southern Little League’s 60th anniversary as a chartered member of the world’s largest youth sports program -- “Little League” -- Serving the youth of Grand Rapids and East Grand Rapids with quality baseball and softball and lasting memories for many generations. We will have a celebration next summer to commemorate this exciting time and will have much more information for you after the New Year.

In February we will be hosting our 2nd annual Leadoff Party. For those of you who did not attend last year it was a fantastic party and fundraiser. We had people attend who had kids playing that are 8 years old and we had people attend that had kids play 20 years ago and many in between. A great time was had by all and important funds were raised to help with the ever rising cost of running the league for the over 750 baseball and softball players who participated in 2012. We hope you will attend the Leadoff Party 2013 in February. For additional information please contact Tim Kolk at timkolk@grar.com Tim is our event coordinator for the 2013 Leadoff Party. A huge Thank You to all of the sponsors who donated items for the silent and live auctions.

The 2012 season was another great season for Southern Little League. Fall baseball and
softball closed the season and it was a great time with generally good weather except one Sunday that was rained out. There was a disparity in fall ball minor and major baseball because Western and Northeastern had all-star teams with league age players one year older than ours. We have already informed those leagues that if we are going to include them next year they must adhere to the same rules as Southern uses. Other than that fall ball was a very positive experience for all.

Please look for signup information around the first of the year for the upcoming season and pass along the website to any potential new participants. www.southernll.org

Sincerely,
Bob Hams
Southern Little League

All Games Canceled

All Fall Ball games are canceled for Sunday, October 14, due to poor field conditions and rainy weather.

Congratulations to the 2012 American League Central Division Champion

Detroit Tigers!

Fall Minors Baseball Realignment Finalized

We have added two more teams to the fall baseball minors division. This has resulted in a complete re-do of the schedule for that division also. We know it's inconvenient, but we're optimistic that players and families will understand that our motivation was to get more playing time for each player.

That said, please follow these steps to make sure you're at the right field at the right time on Sunday:

• Start by looking thru the official rosters to determine which team your player is on. Keep in mind that part of this realignment meant moving some players to a different team. If you don't see your player on any of the teams, please double-check using the search feature (ctrl-F or cmd-F) on your browser before contacting Bob Hams at bhams@roofmelt.com.
• Once you have determined which team your player is on, take a look at the revised schedule. Also bear in mind that we have had to move some games to Manhattan Park and JC fields. Click on those links if you're not sure where those fields are located.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Bob Hams at bhams@roofmelt.com. Thanks again for your cooperation and understanding.

Changes to Fall 78ers Baseball and Softball Schedules

Due to a change in availability of playing fields, we had to move the game times for 78ers baseball and softball for the next three weeks. The online schedules have been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On September 16, 23, and 30, 78ers Softball and Baseball games have been pushed back from 1:00pm to 5:00pm.

Fall Minors Baseball Realignment

Because of the enthusiastic response to Fall Ball registration, the four minors baseball teams now have 16 or 17 players on their rosters. We will be adding two additional teams so that the rosters will now be 10 or 11 players on each team. This will allow for added playing time for each player. We appreciate your patience as we improve the situation. We will need your understanding that not every request to play with classmates or friends will be achieved, though we will do our best to make sure we accommodate to the best of our ability. The new rosters will be posted Thursday.

Fall Ball Begins on Sunday!

Sunday, September 9, marks the beginning of another season of fall baseball and softball at Southern. We'll have the grills going all afternoon, so come out and have some fun on Sunday.

Fall Ball Schedule Change in 78ers Baseball and Softball

On Sun-9-Sep, the JC East and West fields at Southern are not available, so both the softball and baseball 78ers games have been moved for that one date only.

• The Sun-9-Sep game in 78ers softball has been relocated to Manhattan Park, field #2. The game time remains 1:00pm.
• The Sun-9-Sep game in 78ers baseball has been relocated to Manhattan Park, field #2. The game time is now 3:00pm.

Fall Ball Rosters and Schedules Now Available

You can now view the rosters and schedules for 2012 Fall Ball. Just click on the Rosters link or the Schedules link on the right sidebar of the website. (We will post the baseball and softball 78ers rosters as soon as they are available.)

2012 Fall Softball 78ers Schedule

• League Director: Bob Hams
  email: bhams "at" roofmelt.com (replace "at" with @)
  
• We do not keep standings for this league, so there's no need to phone in scores.
• Home team will occupy the 3rd base dugout.
• Changes made after September 7 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2012 Fall Baseball Juniors Schedule

• League Director: Bob Hams
  email: bhams "at" roofmelt.com (replace "at" with @)
  
• We do not keep standings for this league, so there's no need to phone in scores.
• Home team will occupy the 3rd base dugout in the first game.
• Team playing the double-header does not switch dugouts.
• Round robin batting in all fall ball games.
• No inning shall start after 20 minutes before the start of the next game.
• Changes made after September 7 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2012 Fall Baseball Majors Schedule

• League Director: Bob Hams
  email: bhams "at" roofmelt.com (replace "at" with @)
  
• We do not keep standings for this league, so there's no need to phone in scores.
• Home team will occupy the 3rd base dugout.
• Round robin batting in all fall ball games.
• No inning shall start after 20 minutes before the start of the next game.
• 5:00pm game shall have a 1 hour 45 minute time limit.
• Changes made after September 7 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2012 Fall Baseball Minors Schedule

• League Director: Bob Hams
  email: bhams "at" roofmelt.com (replace "at" with @)
  
• We do not keep standings for this league, so there's no need to phone in scores.
• Home team will occupy the 3rd base dugout.
• Round robin batting in all fall ball games.
• No inning shall start after 20 minutes before the start of the next game.
• 5:00pm game shall have a 1 hour 45 minute time limit.
• Changes made after September 7 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2012 Fall Baseball 78ers Schedule

• League Director: Bob Hams
  email: bhams "at" roofmelt.com (replace "at" with @)
  
• We do not keep standings for this league, so there's no need to phone in scores.
• Home team will occupy the 3rd base dugout.
• Changes made after September 7 to the original schedule will be announced via email and marked on the schedule with a C in the C column. Rescheduled rain-outs are denoted by an R in that column.
• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

2012 Fall Softball 78ers Rosters

If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

2012 Fall Baseball 78ers Rosters

If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

2012 Fall Baseball Juniors Rosters

If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

2012 Fall Baseball Majors Rosters

If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

2012 Fall Baseball Minors Rosters

If you see any misspellings or other discrepancies, please email the webmaster. Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Fall Ball Sign-up Reminder

Sunday, September 2, is the deadline for signing up for Fall Ball. Click here to see all the details and to sign up.

Register Now for Fall Ball

It's time to think about Fall Ball again!

• Fall baseball will be for ages 7-14.
• This is a fun and instructional season. There are no practices, and we don't keep standings.
• The 7-8 age group will play coach pitch. The 9-10 age group and the 11-12 age group will play on the East and West small fields. Ages 13-14 will play on the Henwood big field.
• Please note that if you played as an 8-year old in coach pitch this past Summer, you now move up and play in the 9-10 age group for the Fall. If you played as a 10-year-old in the minors this past Summer, you will move up and play as an 11-year-old for the Fall. If you played as a 12-year-old in the majors this Summer, you will play as a 13-year old on the Henwood big field for the Fall. If you played as a 14-year old in the Juniors this past Summer, you continue to play as a 14-year old on the big field for the Fall.
• The season will start on September 9 with the final games on October 28.
• All games will be played on Sunday afternoons at 1:00pm and 3:00pm, with some games at 5:00pm only if required by the number of teams.
• The cost is $70 and includes a jersey you can keep. This fee helps us cover the costs of umpires, baseballs, etc.
• Please note: You must live within Southern's official boundaries to be eligible to participate in Fall ball. The only exception is if you used to live within the boundaries while playing baseball at Southern, you continue to qualify. If this is too confusing or if you're hoping for an exception, please contact Bob.
• You can sign up online here. To help us organize teams, recruit coaches and order shirts, we ask that you please sign up online as soon as possible.
• The deadline for signing up is Sun-2-Sep.
• If you have any questions contact:
  Bob Hams, league director (bhams@roofmelt.com)
• We need coaches! Please contact Bob if you are interested in coaching. (No full teams will be allowed this year so we can achieve an even competitive balance.)

Southern's Big Leaguers Win Wooden Bat Tournament

Congratulations to the Southern Big League team who recently won the Wooden Bat Tournament in District 9. This is the second straight year that this team has won this event.

Juniors Baseball Championship at Southern Monday

Southern East All-Stars vs Western at 6:00pm tonight!

Western is undefeated and Southern has a loss so if Southern wins there will be a final game tomorrow night.
If Western wins they will be the champs.


Come out and cheer on your team!

Southern to Host Major and Senior Baseball Championship Games Sunday

Sunday, July 15:

1:00pm - Rockford National vs. Hudsonville - East Field - Major Baseball Championship Game

3:30pm - Western vs. Greenville - Henwood Field - Senior Baseball Championship Game

Southern will also host the Southern East all stars in the losers bracket final
at 1:00pm for the right to face Western in the final on Monday in Junior Baseball.

Also at Southern at 3:30pm is the 9/10 baseball losers bracket final.

Come out and enjoy baseball at Southern tomorrow. The grills will be fired up
so have some lunch and please volunteer to help wherever needed.

Big Games Tonight at Southern

Friday night at 5:30pm at Southern, the Southern East and Southern West Junior Baseball All-Stars play each other in the first round of the championship bracket. Should be fun. Bring out the family for some really good baseball between these two teams. Southern's Senior Baseball All-Stars follow at 7:30pm in their championship bracket.

Coaches: Equipment Return

Hello Southern Coaches,

We will be having equipment returns next week Mon-18-Jul and Wed-20-Jul from 6:00pm to 7:00pm. Please make sure you count your jerseys and also let us know about any equipment that may be bad or missing. This will help us prepare for next season. The jersey count and return is extremely important. If you have not collected all of your jerseys please do so. 78ers coaches do not need to return jerseys.

If you have already returned your equipment to someone please email jmoore@foxmotorsusa.com and be sure to mention to whom you turned it over. If you are a coach that is still playing please let Jerry know and he will handle your return at a later date. If you are a coach that is planning to coach fall ball you may keep your equipment, but we will still need to collect all jerseys.

Thanks and see you next week.

Jerry & Tim

A Huge Thank You To the Southern Grounds Crew

I would like you all to join me in thanking the grounds crew for doing a fantastic job, especially in these unprecented temperatures. Joe Malewitz is the director of the grounds and Zack Schwenneker, Phil Allen, Joe Malewitz, Brendan Brouwer, and Will Zawacki are the staff. They have worked countless hours over the last few weeks to maintain and improve playing conditions and to make our fields the best in the area. If you see any of them around the Little League please take a moment to say thank you.

Bob Hams
President, Southern Little League

Congratulations Baseball Seniors All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Big Game Day at Southern Thu-5-Jul

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!

Thursday evening at Southern, we have six all-star and team tournament baseball games going on:

• 9/10 West Baseball All Stars - 5:30pm West Field (Please note field change)
• 9/10 East Baseball All Stars - 7:30pm West Field(Please note field change)
• Majors East Baseball All Stars - 5:30pm East Diamond(Please note field change)
• Majors West Baseball All Stars - 7:30pm East Diamond(Please note field change)
• Seniors Class A Team Tournament - 5:30pm Henwood Field
• Seniors Class D Team Tournament - 7:30pm Henwood Field

All 5 Senior Baseball teams will be playing games around the area in the finals.

Come out and join the fun Thursday at Southern!!

Congratulations GRCHS Eagles!

Congratulations to the GRCHS baseball team as they won the Division 2 State Championship. Southern was well represented as seniors (Travis Kraai, Dave Pluymert, Brandon Pott, Brent Primus, Taylor Pruis), juniors (Tyler Boyd, Austin Huizenga, Joel Schipper) and sophomores (Austin Batka, John Vanvliet and Adam Warners) all contributed to a school record 36 wins and just 5 losses. They won the OK White with a 14-1 record and then won 8 straight games to cap off their first ever State Championship in baseball. Great job guys....Southern is proud of all of you!!!

Congratulations Juniors Baseball Team Old Orchard

Congratulations to Coach Jim Vandenberge's Old Orchard team in juniors baseball. They won the Class A District Championship 15-13 against Western.

Softball Juniors Team Tournament Game Canceled

The Softball Juniors team tournament game tonight has been canceled due to forfeit.

Breaking in the New Scoreboard

Last night in a Baseball Majors team tournament game, Southern's James Klein hit a line drive home run that hit the scoreboard with such force that it broke the "OUTS" display. In this photo, Southern groundskeeper Brendan Brouwer digs into the sign's inner workings with no concern for potential electrocution while Bob Hams watches and James beams with pride. Brendan is fine (more or less), but the sign is still broken. James' team, sponsored by Organicycle, won the game 14-9, so it was definitely worth it. Nice shot, James!

Juniors Baseball Team Tournament Placements

After Tuesday night's games, the current standings determine which pool each team plays in for team tournaments. Here are the official placements for Juniors Baseball:

A - Vandenberge (Old Orchard)
B - Hoppman (Buffalo Wild Wings)
C - Vulpetti (Jets Pizza)
D - Schwenneker (West Mich Group)
E - Grunewald (3form)
F - Rohen (River City Mech)
G - Gooch (Grand Rapids Label)
H - Southwell (Thousand Oaks)

Congratulations Baseball Juniors All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Congratulations Eagles (Schedule Change in Baseball Seniors TODAY)

Congratulations to the GRCHS Eagles varsity baseball team for their 4-0 win over Dearborn Divine Child in the state semi-finals on Friday! The Eagles play Bay City Glenn today at 3:30pm in Battle Creek.

As a result, the 2:45pm Huizenga vs Lewis game and the 5:00pm Horjus vs Huizenga game have both been CANCELED for TODAY, Sat-16-Jun.

Congratulations Baseball Majors All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Congratulations Baseball 9-10-Year-Old All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Congratulations Baseball 11-Year-Old All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Congratulations Softball Majors All-Stars

Click here to open this document on its own for downloading or printing.

Lost Glove

A player left a glove at the Henwood Field Tuesday night after the 4:30pm game. It hasn't turned up in the lost and found. Coaches and players on that field, please double-check your equipment bags. The missing glove is a two-tone, Rawlings 12" Gold Glove, Elite Series. Please contact jc.norton@yahoo.com if you know anything about the lost glove.

Crowdsourcing a Missing Score: Schneider/O'Connor

UPDATE: Thanks to Dan Tietema for letting us know the final score.
We are missing a score for the Sat-9-Jun Schneider vs O'Connor game in majors baseball. The game was played at 5pm. Anybody know the score? Please send email to webmaster@southernll.org

Decertification of 34-inch Marucci CAT5 Bat and 33- and 34-inch Marucci Black Bats

USA Baseball has advised us that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has provided official notice that the BBCOR decertification process has been implemented for the Marucci CAT5 34-inch model bat and the Marucci Black 33- and 34-inch bats. Effectively immediately and until notified otherwise, these bats (Marucci CAT5 34-inch length and the Marucci Black 33- and 34-inch lengths) should be considered non-compliant and subject to Junior, Senior, and Big League Baseball Rules 1.10 and 6.06(d).

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: Grunewald/Gooch

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• We have scheduled a Grunewald vs Gooch game on Sun-10-Jun at 1:00pm to make up a rained out game earlier int he season.

Softball Pitching Instruction

Southern alumna Brenna Parks is offering individual softball pitching instruction. Click here to see the brochure.

16th Annual Family Day is TODAY!

Saturday, June 2, is Family Day. Thirty ball games and lots of other activities will be going on all day long, so bring the whole family.

Volunteers:

• We still need volunteers of all kinds at various times on Saturday.
• Please sign up at the concession stand or contact Amy at 813-3512.

Enjoy our expanded menu:

• Mom's marinated steak-on-a-stick
• Hamburgers, jumbo hot dogs and Johnsonville stadium brats
• Meal deals
• Famous sauteed onions and all your favorite condiments
  
• Corn-on-the-cob

Activities for the kids: free!

• Water Run - a bouncy runway that leads to a shallow pool at the end
• Bounce Land - a place for kids to bounce around
  

New in the Concession Stand:

• Water bottles $5 filled the first time, $1 refills all season.
• New shipment of Southern apparel

Raffle:

• Reminder: Please sell your raffle tickets and turn in the money and stubs before the deadline at noon on Saturday. Look for the raffle table near the concession stand.
• The big raffle drawing will take place at 7:00pm.
  

All-Star Games:

• Plan on staying for the Minor and Major Baseball All-Star Games at 7:30pm.

We're all hoping for good weather! We'll see everyone out at Southern on Saturday!

Team Parents: Photos are Ready to be Picked Up

Coaches and team parents only (not parents of individual players):

The photo packets have been delivered to the concession stand. To minimize the chaos at the concession stand, we are asking that only the coach or team parent pick up the packets for the entire team, then distribute them to the players and their parents. Please, unless you are the coach or the team parent, do not go to the concession stand to pick up your child's individual photos.

Weather: All Games are ON (for now)

We know the weather is bad, but the fields are still playable. Please report to your regularly scheduled games until you hear otherwise.

Weather: All Games Canceled Tonight

All games are canceled for Thu-31-May.

Family Day Schedule

The game schedule for Family Day on Sat-2-Jun is now set. Here's a handy schedule of all the games at Southern on Family Day:

• Click here to view this schedule on its own page.
• Click here to download this schedule as a PDF you can print.

Majors Baseball Family Day Schedule

The majors baseball match-ups for family day are now posted on the online schedule. Every team has a game that day. The seedings are based on each team's place in the standings. The results do not count in the standings, but coaches should still call in their scores.

Congratulations 2012 Minors Baseball Family Day All-Stars

Congratulations to the following minors baseball players who were chosen by their teammates to play in the all-star game on Family Day. The game will take place on Sat-2-Jun at 7:30pm on the West field.

American League	National League
Robbie Stuursma	Jacob Passinault
Aiden O'Connor	Daniel Southernington
Foster Lyman	Myles Beale
Davis Jennings	Jordan Bergsma
Cole Hebert	Luke Hoekstra
Henry Wassink	Darian Selmon
Trent Elzinga	Henry Vanderzyden
Will Gelderloos	Kyle Kirk
Keegan Batka	Ryan Sullivan
Ben Whiteside	Mason Walker
Kelly Murray	Brenden Severson
Aiden McCahill	John Shelton
Jake Fouch	Alex Deboer
Alex Kolk	Joey Couvreur

Congratulations 2012 Majors Baseball Family Day All-Stars

Congratulations to the following majors baseball players who were chosen by their teammates to play in the all-star game on Family Day. The game will take place on Sat-2-Jun at 7:30pm on the East field.

Coach O’Connor: Jack Tietema, Reily O’Connor, Hayden Taylor
Coach Goulet: Henry Breems, Connor Goulet, Martin Ward
Coach Smith: Ben Biermacher, Elliot Bergsma, Micah Hoekstra
Coach Billo: Mike Malewitz, Peter Burns, Ben Forstner
Coach Schneider: Lance Hoezee, Colin Beggs, Tommy Pohlman
Coach Adams: Alex Adams, Joe Collins, Nolan Gardner
Coach Lundeen: Elliot Jung, Jacob Elzinga, Max Lundeen
Coach Combs: Andy McCulloch, Jack Combs, Andrew Combs
Coach Henkey: Jake Hoppman, Matt Henkey, Max Vicari
Coach Warners: Mathew Winkle, James Murray, Dane Addington

Final Umpire Sign-Up this Saturday

The fourth and final umpire sign-up is scheduled for this Sat-2-Jun at 7:00am. Line up at that time, sign in, and we will rearrange the line after a number draw. Please have your baseball/work schedules handy to avoid any conflicts.

Schedule Change in Majors Softball: Prince

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Fri-1-Jun Northview-3 vs Prince game has been rescheduled for Wed-20-Jun at 6:30pm at Northview.

Schedule Changes in Juniors Softball: Dougherty

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• The Fri-8-Jun Dougherty vs Rockford-1 game has been canceled.
• The Sat-9-Jun Dougherty vs Northeastern-2 game will now be a doubleheader with a start time of 1:00pm on the JC West field.

Seniors Baseball Rosters and Schedule Now Available

The team rosters and schedule for seniors baseball are now available online. Click the Rosters and Schedule links on the right sidebar. Coaches should be contacting their players soon.

Southern Fields Shut Down Until Tuesday

The Southern fields are shut down until Tuesday. We appreciate the cooperation as we work very hard to make repairs.

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: Vulpetti/Vandenberge/Gooch/Southwell

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• The Thu-7-Jun Vulpetti vs Vanderberge game will now take place at 4:30pm instead of 8:00pm.
• The Thu-7-Jun Gooch vs Southwell game will now take place at 8:00pm instead of 4:30pm.

Family Day Volunteers Needed

Saturday, June 2, is Family Day. We need volunteers of all kinds all day long from 8:00am to 7:00pm. Please contact Amy McCulloch at 813-3512 to sign up for your preferred time slot.

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: ALL TEAMS

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• All games on Sat-2-Jun, Sat-9-Jun, and Sat-16-Jun have been moved to earlier start times. Rather than list them all here, please view review the changes for those dates by visiting the online schedule here.

Schedule Change for Minors Baseball: Murray/Potteiger/O'Connor/Stadel

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• The Wed-13-Jun Murray vs Potteiger game has been rescheduled. It will now take place on Thu-14-Jun at 5:30pm on the East field.
• The Thu-14-Jun O'Connor vs Stadel game has been rescheduled. It will now take place on Wed-13-Jun at 7:30pm on the West field.

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: Rohen/Gooch

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Fri-8-Jun Rohen vs Gooch game has been rescheduled to start at 4:00pm instead of 5:30pm as originally scheduled.

Sign Up Now for Big League Baseball

Hey, big leaguers, it's time to sign up for the 2012 season.

• DEADLINE IS JUNE 4! Online sign-up will close after the deadline.
• Season starts June 11.
• You can sign up and pay online by clicking here.

Schedule Change in Majors Baseball: Schneider/Smith

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Wed-23-May Schneider vs Smith game has been postponed. That game will be rescheduled for a date to be announced later.

Schedule Change in Majors Softball: Crampton

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Thu-24-May Crampton vs Lowell-2 game at Manhattan has been changed. That game will now take place on Wed-23-May at 5:30pm at Lowell.

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: Rohen/Grunewald

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On Sat-19-May, Grunewald will now play against Southwell at 2:00pm (instead of against Vandenberge at 4:30pm), and Rohen will now play against Vandenberge at 4:30pm (instead of against Southwell at 2:00pm).

Correction in Softball Schedules: Dougherty/Crampton/Donnelly

Last night we mistakenly announced a change in the Juniors Softball schedule, but we announced it with teams that were not actually in Juniors Softball! Let's clear up the confusion.

• Coach Donnelly's team should not have been mentioned at all.
• The announcement below was for coach Dougherty's team, not coach Crampton's team.
• The announcement has been corrected to read as follows.....

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Wed-23-May Dougherty vs Northeastern-2 game will now be played as a SINGLE game at Manhattan Fields on Thu-24-May at 7:15pm.

Schedule Change in Juniors Softball: Dougherty

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Wed-23-May Dougherty vs Northeastern-2 game will now be played as a SINGLE game at Manhattan Fields on Thu-24-May at 7:15pm.

Schedule Change in Majors Softball: Crampton

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• The Fri-18-May Crampton vs Lowell-2 game has been rescheduled to take place on Thu-24-May at 5:30pm at Manhattan Fields.

Schedule Change in Majors Baseball: Adams/Lundeen/Warners/Combs

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• On Sat-9-Jun, the Adams vs Lundeen game will now be played at 11:00am, not 1:00pm as originally shown on the schedule. The Warners vs Combs game will take place at 1:00pm, not 11:00am as originally shown on the schedule.

Schedule Change in Minors Baseball: Tepper/Passinault/O'Connor/Kirchgessner

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following change:

• On Wed-23-May, the O'Connor vs Kirchgessner game will now be played at 6:15pm, not 8:00pm as originally shown on the schedule. The Tepper vs Passibault game will take place at 8:00pm, not 6:15pm as originally shown on the schedule.

Umpire Sign-up Session Sat-19-May

The third of four umpire sign-ups is this Saturday morning at 7:15am. Line up no earlier than 7:00am to get signed in, and remember to bring your baseball/work schedules to avoid any conflicts! Do not arrive any earlier than 7:00am and camp out as the line will be rearranged after a number draw similar to a "wrist band" method used for concert ticket sales. This will not only be the first time for this new policy, but a permanent one as well to make it fair and equitable for everyone.

Schedule Change in Minors Baseball: O'Connor/Gelderloos

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following correction:

• On Family Day, Sat-2-Jun, the O'Connor vs Gelderloos game will start at 10:15am, not 10:30am as originally shown on the schedule.

Schedule Change in Majors Softball: Crampton/Donnelly

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On Thu-7-Jun, Crampton will play Northview-3 at Northview at 6:30pm to make up the rained out game from Mon-7-May.
• On Fri-15-Jun, Donnelly will play Northview-3 at JC West at 6:30pm to make up the game from Fri-11-May.

Saturday is Picture Day

Sat-12-May is picture day.

• Each team has been given a specific time slot for pictures, and by now your coach or team parent should have contacted you about what time you need to be there. If not, please contact your team parent for details.
• There's also an opportunity for players to have individual pictures taken.
• Even if you're not planning on purchasing a team or individual photo, as a courtesy to others on the team, please make sure your child is present for the team picture anyhow.
• Pictures are taken over near the Mackay Jaycee soccer fields, under the pavilion in the woods, near the playground.
• They run a tight ship, so be on time for your team's scheduled slot.
• RAIN OR SHINE! Regardless of any possible weather-related game cancellations, picture day will go on as scheduled.

Schedule Change in Juniors Baseball: Vandenberge/Vulpetti/Rohen/Gooch

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On Thu-7-Jun, the 8:00pm Rohen vs Gooch game has been rescheduled. The game will now be played on Fri-8-Jun at 5:30pm.
• On Fri-8-Jun, the 5:30pm Vandenberge vs Vulpetti game has been rescheduled. The game will now be played on Thu-7-Jun at 8:00pm.

Announcing the 2012 Raffle

The Southern Little League Raffle is in full swing. The drawing takes place on Family Day, Saturday, June 2.

Grand Prize: $2,000 cash
Second Prize: $1,000 cash
Third Prize: Apple iPad (3rd generation)

• Tickets cost $20 each. They have been distributed to all coaches and/or team parents. It's important that we sell all these tickets to make the raffle a success. If you coach/team parent has not handed out the tickets yet, please ask them.
• The drawing takes place on Family Day, Sat-2-Jun, prior to the All-Star Game. (You need not be present to win.)
• The individual player who sells the most tickets will also win an Apple iPad (3rd generation). To track this, the player's name must be legibly written on the back of each ticket they sell and turned in by noon on Family Dat, Sat-2-Jun.
• If you have any questions or need extra tickets, please contact Brendan O'Driscoll at 460-8624 or brendano@treadstonemortgage.com.

Changes to Softball Schedules: Allen/Dougherty

The online schedules have been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On Sat-12-May, the 6:30pm Allen vs Belding-2 game on the JC East will now take place at 12:30pm on the JC East field.
• The Fri-18-May Dougherty vs Northeastern-2 game has been rescheduled for Sat-9-Jun at 1:00pm on the JC West field.

Weather

All games at Southern Little League all fields are cancelled for Monday, May 7, due to rain.

Schedule Change in 78ers Softball: Sprague

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• On Mon-7-May, the 6:30pm game on the JC West field incorrectly showed Koetje vs Sprague. The correct game is Koetje vs Northview on JC West. Sprague's team does not play on that date. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Schedule Change in Majors Baseball: Smith/Warners

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• The Mon-7-May Smith vs Warners game will now be played on Fri-1-Jun at 4:00pm on the East field.

EGR vs Catholic Central Friday Night at Southern

It's East versus Catholic Central in a varsity baseball doubleheader matchup Friday night at Southern. The first game starts at 5:00pm. We'll have the grills fired up, so come out for some great high school baseball action and a delicious dinner, too.

Schedule Change in Minors Baseball: Tepper/O'Connor

The online schedule has been updated to reflect the following changes:

• The Sat-5-May Tepper vs O'Connor game will now be played at 1:00pm on the West field.

Next Umpire Sign-Up is Sat-5-May 7:15am

The second of four umpire sign-ups is this Saturday morning, May 5, at 7:15am. Please start lining up no earlier than 7:00am and remember to have your baseball/work schedules handy to avoid any conflicts!