Monday, Jun. 22, 2009

Area's top players to gather at GCS Ballpark for All-Star event

The sixth annual Metro-East Baseball Coaches Association Showcase and All-Star Game will be held today at GCS Ballpark in Sauget.

The area's top players will be on display at the event, which includes a pro-style workout for sophomores and juniors in front of college coaches and an all-star game featuring the area's top senior players.

The all-star game begins at 7 p.m. and tickets are $5 each. The sophomore-junior workout begins at 3 p.m.

"We've had 20 to 30 different schools show up usually, so that's good for the kids," said Althoff coach Brett Isaacs, one of the MEBCA All-Star Game organizers. "They don't get a good opportunity a lot of times to play in front of that many college coaches, so that works out really well."

It was another strong baseball year for the metro-east. Marissa finished second at the Class 1A state tournament, while Metro-East Lutheran was second in Class 2A. O'Fallon brought home the third-place trophy from the Class 4A state tournament.

In addition, O'Fallon catcher Nick Tindall and Edwardsville outfielder Dane Opel each were selected in the Major League draft. Tindall signed with the Minnesota Twins.

"It has been a good year and it shows what level of baseball is played around here," Isaacs said. "I've always said that and I think a lot of that's because there's a lot of good coaches in the area.

"They help produce a lot of good talent."

The MEBCA Players of the Year were Tindall (3A-4A) and Greenville outfielder Brian Doll (1A-2A). Pitchers of the Year were Civic Memorial standout Sam Johns (3A-4A) and Carlyle left-hander Tony Schaeffer (1A-2A).

Marissa's Jason Smith and Metro-East Lutheran's Scott Downing were the Class 1A-2A Coaches of the Year. Both of their teams finished second at the state tournament.

O'Fallon coach Jason Portz, who guided his team to a third-place finish at the 4A state tournament, was the Class 3A-4A coach of the year.

Senior All-Stars

Pitcher: Sam Johns, Civic Memorial; Gregg Culp, Edwardsville; Tony Schaeffer, Carlyle; Joseph Phelps, Marissa; Ray Blackwood, Southwestern; Jon Levin, O'Fallon; Kyle Robertson, Granite City; Chase Carroll, Edwardsville; Luke Matecki, Belleville West; Andrew Langendorf, Metro-East Lutheran; Andrew Tretter, Granite City; Stephen Siegel, Mascoutah.

Catcher: Nick Tindall, O'Fallon; Adam Wallace, Southwestern; Ian Sikes, Edwardsville; Jacob Gass, Freeburg.

First Base: Kyle Stanton, O'Fallon; Eric Fowler, Granite City; Evan Bailey, Alton; Rob Beatty, Belleville West.

Second Base: Josh Rosol, Carlyle; Adam Roberts, Granite City; Frankie Campbell, Belleville East; Rory Herrington, Althoff.

Shortstop: Zach Maggio, Edwardsville; Keith Wolf, O'Fallon; Aaron Arbuthnot, Roxana.

Third Base: Drew Standefer, Civic Memorial; Dusty Shimkus, Metro-East Lutheran; Lucas Day, Althoff.

Outfield: Dane Opel, Edwardsville; Nick Johnson, O'Fallon; Luke Matecki, Belleville West; Cole Lawson, Southwestern; Joe Bendick, Belleville West; Ryan Mathews, Alton; Ryan Schooley, Granite City; Brad Taake, O'Fallon; Kevin Hodge, Collinsville.

Prospect Showcase

(Sophomores-Juniors)

Pitcher: Sean Hulse, Belleville West; Miles Quintal, O'Fallon; Brady Nowak, Althoff; Jeremy Portwood, Granite City; Kenny May, Belleville East; Brandon Grizzle, Roxana; Devin Caldwell, Civic Memorial; David Parkinson, Marissa; Bill McFarland, Edwardsville; Seth Wild, O'Fallon; Kyle Heggemeier, Nashville.

Catcher: Alex Bridges, Mater Dei; Nick Krietemeyer, Althoff; Jake DePew, Granite City.

First Base: Andrew Maurer, Greenville; Derek Steiner, Belleville East; Tim Messer, Edwardsville.

Second Base: Brandon Gwinn, Freeburg; Tony Kossina, Belleville West; Greg Guest, Nashville.

Shortstop: Brad Dillenberger, Waterloo; Aaron Muendlein, Belleville West; Sam Wahlig, Althoff.

Third Base: Michael Failoni, Edwardsville; Cal Steirwalt, O'Fallon; Ryan Cox, Southwestern; Brett Dierkes, Mater Dei.

Outfield: Devin Caldwell, Civic Memorial; Tyler Adamson, Freeburg; Brian Doll, Greenville; Tyler Mikrut, Edwardsville; Matt Brynildsen, Metro-East Lutheran; Zach Tobin, Civic Memorial.