USSSA Veterans Day Salute

Last Saturday, the Finest played two games out at Rio Vista Park in Peoria.  The first game at 1 pm against the LP Tigers resulted in a loss of 9-1.  The second game was against the Stetson Hills Stealth and was a much closer game.  The temperature started dropping so it was much more enjoyable to watch and I'm sure play as well.  This one ended up a loss as well but only 2-3.  It seems like we lose a lot of these games by our errors and not the superiority of the other team.

On Sunday, we returned to Big League Dreams for hopefully 3 games but sadly the Finest only played against the AZ Wildfire before getting eliminated.  Final score Wildfire 5, Finest 4.  Seems like we should have had this one.  It was definitely in our reach.

AZ USSSA Halloween Scream

The weather is finally cooling off....now is a good time to play ball.  Saturday's games were against the Legends and AZ Aces.  The game against the Legends ended as a loss for the Finest, 1 to 9.  The Aces  game was much closer in score but also a win this time, 10 to 8.

Halloween Sunday the Finest played the North Valley Kings, Chandler Rangers, and finally the AZ Blaze.  The Finest won the first game against the Kings 7-2.  The Chandler Rangers lost to the Finest, 0-8. And finally the championship game against the AZ Blaze was a win for the Finest with 17, and the AZ Blaze with 5.  Hopefully the next time we play the AZ Blaze they will have matured a little.  At the end of the game when both teams line up for a handshake and "good game", the Blaze used it for "showoffs".  Maybe they should just stick to playing in their own age group.

Great job Finest!!!

USSSA Southwest Shootout

Last Saturday's game against the Tucson Cardinals was a hard fought win for the Finest.  The score was tied 5-5  going into the bottom of the 6th. Justin Jensen's great hit brought in the game winning RBI.  Final 6-5.

The second game of Saturday was against the Bulldogs. The Finest played hard and looked much better than previous weeks. Final Finest 10, Bulldogs, 1.

On Sunday, the Finest played the Ball Club at noon.  Winning this game was not required to get into the championship.  Seeding had already determined that.  This one ended a tie at 5-5.

Championship game at 2:00 on Sunday was against the Tucson Cardinals.  The Cardinals took an early lead and never looked back. Final Cardinals 10, Finest 0.

This was a good series for the team. The players and coaches seemed happy with the results.  The parents were happy seeing happy players and coaches. The weather was fantastic.  Thanks to all!

USSSA Fall State Championships

Last weekend's tournament played the Finest against the Gators, Dirtbags, and the Drillers.  We are still having the basics mistakes, like poor throws, catches, fielding mistakes that allow the other teams to score runs.  The Gators are never an easy victory because they really can hit hard and deep.  Saturday's loss of 13-2 Gators shows how simple mistakes in fielding really cost us.

The second game on Saturday, against the Dirtbags was a loss at 10-6 but could have been a win.  Twice the Finest had bases loaded with only one out.  A nice hit from our team could have easily tied this one.

Sunday's loss against the Drillers was much closer, 3-2.

USSSA Fall Classic I Tournament

The Red Mountain Finest's first tournament together went about as well as can be expected for a new group of players playing together for the first time.

Saturday's games against the Gators and Predator USA were both losses (9-6, and 5-3) but as the coaching staff has repeatedly stated, winning is not our primary goal here.  Learning baseball fundamentals, teamwork, having the players learn and play multiple positions are more important at this time.

Sunday's game against the Octane was a loss as well (5-1) but with more practice, the errors such as dropped balls, confusion, and over-throws should start to be minimized.

A little free advertising for parents with a business or a worthy cause

Red Mountain Parents:  if you have a business you would like to advertise or a cause you actively support, let me know the website link and I will put it in the link list at the bottom of the page. Send it to me here.

Coaches and Parents startup meeting

Yesterday the coaches, players, and parents attended the first meeting of the new season.  Topics discussed included:  introductions of coaches, parents, and players;  expectations of parents and players; potential tournament selections;  practice schedules; monthly fees; and uniforms, among other things.

We will be sizing the players for the new uniforms on the upcoming Saturday, August 7.  The roster and tournament schedule will be posted as soon as they are finalized.