The Dallas Tigers 15U & 16U Vanlandingham teams travelled to Lubbock to play at Texas Tech University this weekend. The Tigers competed against the Varsity Teams from Lubbock Monterey, Lubbock Coronado and Edmond Santa Fe High Schools. Our Freshmen and Sophomore’s competed very well against the older competition and went 3-2 combined at Dan Law Field.

The 15’s defeated Lubbock Monterey 4-1, beat Edmond Santa Fe 11-7 and then lost 6-2 to Monterey in the night cap.

The 16’s defeated Edmond Santa Fe 7-6 before falling to Lubbock Coronado in the finale.

It was a great opportunity for the Tigers to play on a Division 1 field and play against great competition. Thank you to Texas Tech University for the opportunity.

These 2 teams will travel to Austin to play at the University of Texas on November 14.

Dallas Tigers and Centerfield Academy would like to thank all the instructors from ASU and MLB who helped make this camp a great success!

Tim Spehr (Royals, Expos, Braves, Mets)

Arizona State Assistant Coach Mike Benjamin (Giants, Phillies, Red Sox, Pirates)

Arizona State Head Coach Tim Esmay

Dallas Tigers Vice President Linty Ingram (Tigers, Padres)

Seattle Mariners Manager Don Wakamatsu (Angels, Rangers, Athletics).

By now, our older guys are gearing up to start their high school season while our younger guys should be getting started with pratices.  Scrimmages and first tournaments are just around the corner.  Good luck to everyone.

Our college guys are kicking off their seasons too, and I wanted to share this photo that a dad sent me today from Sunday’s UT Alumni game.  Below are former Dallas Tigers Curtis Thigpen (currently with the Oakland As) catching while Jonathan Walsh is hitting.  Walsh is the third Tiger catcher that has played for UT in recent years (Thigpen-’01 Tigers, Preston Clark-’04 Tigers and Walsh-’09 Tigers).  For me, it is awesome to watch Tigers of all ages still playing together.

Other big news came from Tusla with Dennis Bigley (Tigers ‘01) was inducted into the Oral Roberts Hall of Fame this last weekend.  Dennis was drafted by the Blue Jays and played pro ball for several years.  His younger brother Evan is currently playing in the Twins organization.

That’s news from our older guys, and now to our youngest guys. I want to welcome our newest Dallas Tigers team – our eight year olds!  Think back to when each of you older guys were 8, playing coach pitch and just starting your baseball careers.  Remember, these guys not only look up to you, but you set the standard for them to follow in your footsteps.  Tigers, keep making us proud!

And what about the girls?  I am also proud to announce that for the second year, we are welcoming the Dallas Tigers Softball Club-yes, girls! My neice, Sara Hernandez, is heading up the Tigers Softball Club.  Sara is a graduate of UT-El Paso and is a four year letterman in softball and a two-year soccer letterman.  We are excited and proud to have the girls join us.

But it’s not all about baseball.  We are fortunate to be able to play select baseball and I expect every member of the Club to give back to our community.  Along those lines, we are participating in a new service project with the softball club. See the details below about the service project and please make an effort to participate.  Let’s turn out to help our servicemen and women!

Sincerely,
Tommy Hernandez, President
Dallas Tigers Baseball Club

This camp will feature the head coach from Arizona State University, Tim Esmay, and assistant coach Mike Benjamin.  It is exceedingly rare for head coaches to do remote camps.  ASU recruits heavily in the Dallas select baseball area and it is a chance for you to get on their recruiting radar!

Space is limited and spots are filling up. Register Here Today!

Featured Coaches:
Tim Esmay (ASU Head Coach)
Mike Benjamin (ASU Assistant Coach)

Where:
Centerfield Baseball Academy
1805 E. Spring Creek Parkway
Plano, TX 75074
972-424-0723

When:
January 15, 2010 6:00pm – 9:00pm
January 16, 2010 9:00am – 12:00pm (ages 7-13)
January 16, 2010 1:00pm – 4:00pm (ages 14-18)
January 17, 2010 10:00am – 1:00pm (all ages)

Information:
3 day camp with 3 sessions for each age group
See Details Click Here

Costs:
$140 Register Here

The Dallas Tigers have been named one of the top five college development programs in the nation by Rounding Third.  Highlighting the article are praise for Tommy Hernandez and Linty Ingram’s ability to keep strong players in the club year after year, stating, “That kind of longevity is a mark of a good program.  It seems the Tigers are known for loyalty and that helps produce consistency with players and their development.”

Read the article here.

Class of 2009 committments to play baseball:

• Jonathan Walsh – University of Texas
• Colton Cain – University of Texas
• Drew VerHagen – Oklahoma
• Drew Harrison – Oklahoma
• Chad Kettler – Oklahoma
• Jacob Morris – Arizona State
• Austin Elkins – Dallas Baptist University
• David Walsh – University of Texas Arlington
• Tyler Carter – Northwestern State (La.)
• Charlie Martin – Texas Tech
• Bo Altobelli – Texas Tech
• Jamen Parten – North Central Texas College
• Garrett Autrey – Navarro Junior College
• Crayton Bare – Baylor University
• Brett Scott – Stephen F. Austin
• Brad Picha – Paris Junior College
• Raphael Pineda – Texas A&M
• Chase Durham – Howard Junior College
• Mason Levitt – Texas A&M

Class of 2010 committments to play baseball:

• Brian Ragira – Stanford University