The Warriors closed up their season a few weeks ago at the year-end tourament and the team has voted on year-end awards. All 11 players had a vote, with Manager Colby receiving another vote and Team Chairman Ron Loven receiving the final vote. No player was allowed to vote for himself, so that left 12 available votes for each player, and 11 for Austin.
Without further ado...
Surprise Player of the Year:
A great category because you get votes for a variety of reasons. If a guy like Jason hit .400 on the year with no homers and 4 strikeouts, he might get a few votes. Or, if Jason hit .700 with 6 homers and 50 rbi, he'd probably get a few votes. Because of the strong year by the team, everyone who received votes this year was because of their successful campaign. Eight of the eleven players received votes with six people getting multiple votes. Three different people got first place votes and two of those had at least four first-place votes.
Adam Hey - Hard to argue with that logic. Adam received eight first-place votes, two second-place votes and 46 points. He hit .452 on the year a staggering 84% improvement over last year's .246 average. He also walloped a three-run homer, his first career homerun, scored 27 times and drove home 21. He learned a little patience too, drawing five walks. He also fielded all six outfield chances without an error. Great year from Adam.
Jamy Antoine runner-up, 38 points
Outfield Gold Glove:
This had been hotly contested the past couple of years with several players deserving. This year, all four regular outfielders received multiple votes with three of them receiving multiple first-place votes. The top two vote-getters each had ten or more total votes and four or more first-place votes.
Jason Merritt - Jason had another fine campaign in the outfield as he garnered seven first-place votes and 46 points. He only had 36 chances this season, but he made good on 34 of them. He played such a solid game all year, that I wondered if voters would forget about him just because he flew under the radar. This team gold glove will fit nicely on his mantle next to his league gold gloves from the past two seasons.
Jamy Antoine runner-up, 36 points
Infield Gold Glove:
Another great vote. Last year, Lee Valle ran away with the award, but this year it was tight. Two players were named on every available ballot, Austin Colby and Jeff Tenney. Each had at least four first-place votes. This vote came down to the final voter as the two players were separated by just three points. Five total players received multiple votes and all five had at least four votes.
Austin Colby - Austin had seven first-place votes and 45 overall points. He played a lot more shortstop this year than last year which probably helped his cause. He played his purest infield in years, making just two errors for the entire season. He also managed to lead the team with 35 assists and also had 25 putouts. Just a solid all-around defensive season for Austin.
Jeff Tenney runner-up, 42 points
MVP:
This award was nearly unanimous, as just three players received first-place votes, two receiving multiple votes. In a sort of oddity this year, one player received six third-place votes, but zero first or second-place votes.
Austin Colby - Austin had his best offensive year since 2003 and the team responded giving him 10 of the possible 11 first-place votes and 53 overall points. He led the team in nearly everything and hit a very legit .761 on the season with 70 rbi. This is Austin's fifth MVP since 2003.
Jeff Tenney runner-up 40 points
A great season for the team with some great individual performances. Great job everyone and I look forward to next year!!!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Warriors Struggle in Year-End Tournament
The Resurrection Life Warriors ran off 17 straight wins to start the 2009 campaign before dropping six of their final seven games to finish at 18-6 overall. The Bloomington Assembly of God tournament was a tough one for Rez, as the team stumbled to a 4th place finish in the A bracket, going just 1-5 on the day.
Things started badly in the morning when the Warriors played the first game with just nine players, as two regulars were unable to attend and the one sub showed up late. Rez played hard but its three-man outfield was exposed on the 300-foot fences as several flyballs ended up dropping in the grass. Real Life defeated Rez Life 22-12 in the game. Austin Colby provided much of the offensive punch, going 4-5 with two runs scored, six rbi and a three-run homer while earning Player of the Game honors. Eric Johnson, Jason Merritt and Jonathan Engbrecht all added three hits in the game. Jamy Antoine mashed a two-run homer in the sixth.
The game was never close as Real Life put up six runs in the first while the warriors were scoreless. Real Life added five in the second while Rez again went scoreless. Trailing 11-0, Rez had three runs in the third, using rbi-hits from Jason and Austin. The defense picked up the slack too, holding Real Life scoreless in both the third and fourth innings.
Rez chipped away a little more with two runs in the fourth on a two-out single from Austin, plating Jonathan and Jason. In the top of the fifth, Rez added one more using singles from Eric and Andy before a sacrifice fly from Jeff scored Eric. The run made it 11-6 but Real Life erupted for nine runs after two were out in the bottom to seal the game. Rez didn't give up, putting five runners home in the top of hte sixth. Jonathan doubled and moved to third on Jason's single. Austin mashed a three-run homer to make it 20-9. After an out, Eric singled and came home on Jamy's long homerun to deep center.
Real Life added two more in the bottom half and Rez didn't score in the seventh.
With a full ten players in the second game, Rez played much better defense but couldn't get the bats going consistently. The Warriors fell 15-12 against Life AG. In the top of the first, Rez scored seven runs using six hits and a walk. Austin, sub Ryan Norman, Eric, Jamy, Chris Burr, and Jeff Johnson all had hits. The team hit for the cycle as Jeff homered, Chris tripled, Jamy doubled and the rest of the hits were singles.
However, the big lead was short-lived as Life came back with five first inning runs and six second inning runs, while holding Rez scoreless to make it 11-7 Life.
Rez again went scoreless in the third, stranding singles from Chris and Jeff. Life put five more runs on the board to go up 15-7 after three innings. Rez did manage one run in the fourth as Adam Hey singled and later scored on an error. The team left runners on first and third with one out in that inning.
In the top of the fifth, Rez started with two singles, but the next three players flew out to end the inning. Trailing 15-8 going into the final inning, Rez made a game of it, pushing four runs across. With one out, Austin lasered his second homer of the day to right-center. Ryan singled and so did Eric. Jamy then launched his second homerun of the day, this one a three-run shot to center. That was all the fireworks the bats had though, as the game ended 15-12.
Jamy earned Player of the Game with two hits, two runs, four rbi, a double and a homerun. Austin and Chris each had three hits in the game.
Game three was more of the same, as Rez fell to 0-3 on the day as Waukesha won 20-13. The bats were solid, but not spectacular. Austin captured his second POG on the day with a 3-4 game with three runs, five rbi, a double, triple and homerun. Jonathan had his second three-hit game on the day too.
Waukesha scored three runs in the top of the first but Rez stormed back with four in the bottom half. Jason walked and scored on Austin's triple. Ryan singled home Austin and jogged home on Eric's two-run homer through the wind to left. Jamy singled to keept it going but the next three guys got out to end the inning.
Waukesha exploded for 11 runs in the second and took a 14-4 lead. However, Rez didn't roll over and came back with six of its own runs in the bottom half. Jonathan and Adam started things with singles. Jason drove home Jonathan with a single and Austin plated Adam and put runners at second and third with a double. Still no outs, Ryan knocked out a two-rbi single and moved to third on Eric's single. Eric advanced to second on the first baseman's error and again the Warriors had second and third with no outs. Jamy lofted a sac fly for the first out, making the score 14-9. Chris doubled home Eric to make it 14-10, but the next two batters flew out ending the threat.
Waukesha kept its foot on the gas, scoring four more to increase its lead back to eight, 18-10. Rez scored three runs in its half inning. Jonathan and Jason singled with one out and Austin crushed his third homer in three games to right field to make it 18-13.
Rez was unable to score anymore runs though and Waukesha tacked on a couple insurance runs to make the final score 20-13.
The 0-3 pool play showing put Rez in the six seed in the A bracket. The tournament was single elimination for the first round and then you played out your place if you made it to the second round. Rez had to face Life AG again in the first round but this time the Warriors came out victorious, 14-11. Austin again earned POG going a perfect 4-4 with a run scored and four rbi. He had two triples in the game and played a great shortstop with three assists and five putouts.
Rez started the game well again with nine first-inning runs. Austin, Jamy, Ryan, Chris, Eric, Jonathan, Jeff, Adam, Jason and Austin again ripped out the hits. Austin capped the scoring with a two-run two-out triple. Life scored three in the bottom half and held Rez scoreless in the second. Life put two more on the board to make it 9-5 after two innings.
Rez added to its lead with two runs in the third inning, using another two-run triple from Austin. Life was scoreless in the bottom half and Rez scored one run in the fourth on three singles from Ryan, Chris and Andy Briggs. Again, Life couldn't muster any offense and Rez pulled out to a 14-5 lead with two runs in the fifth. The team had four singles and one walk in the inning. Adam, Austin, Jamy and Chris had the singles and Ryan had the walk.
Life put another goose egg on the board and Rez entered the final inning with a nine-run lead. Unfortunately, the Warriors left two runners on base without scoring in the top half. That almost came back to bite them as Life put together a great inning, scoring six runs but a flyout to Chris in left-center ended the game with two runners on.
Adam had three hits in the game and Jonathan had three rbi and two hits.
Now in the semi-finals, Rez was back down to nine players as Ryan had to leave to make a prior engagement. Down a man in the field hurt the team again, but it was a close game until the last inning and Rez fell 18-12.
Real Life was Rez's opponent for the second time and Real came out wtih three in the first. Rez came right back and tied it after one as Jason led off with a single and moved to third on Austin's double. Jamy hit a sac fly and Eric hit an rbi-groundout. With no on, Chris singled and scored on Andy's double.
Real Life had a big second inning, plating five runs and taking advantage of two Rez Life errors. Rez pushed two across on a double from Austin and a single from Jamy. The Rez defense held strong in the top of the third and the offense responded wtih four runs to take the 9-8 lead. Andy singled and moved to second on Jeff's single. After a flyout moved the runners ahead, Andy scampered home on Adam's groundout. Jason kept the inning alive with an rbi-single to make it 8-7 and Austin hit the shot of the tournament, his fourth homerun on the day, a two-run bomb that cleared the 300-foot easily and landed well into the fescue on the hill.
Real Life didnt' score again and Rez added to its lead in the fourth, scoring two more runs. Chris reached on a one-out error and scored on Andy's rbi-triple. Jeff singled to score Andy and Jonathan singled to put two on with one out. That was all the offense the team could manage, as back-to-back hard-hit flyouts ended the inning.
Real Life woke up in the fifth and stormed back to take a 14-11 lead scoring six times on five hits and two errors. Rez responded with just one run on Jamy's high, solo homerun to left field. The sixth inning started with Rez down two. Real Life kept its offense going with four more runs and Rez left two on base in the sixth to end the game 18-12 Real Life.
Andy earned Player of the Game with a perfect 4-4 day including a double, triple and two runs and two rbi. Austin stayed hot with three more hits, two doubles and a homerun.
More bad news for the Warriors occurred going into the 3rd place game. Another team member had to leave for the day, leaving Rez with just eight, very tired players going into game six of the day. Thankfully, most of the 20+ fans left for that game as the Warriors had nothing for Riverdale and fell 29-9. The team managed just 11 hits, three from Austin and Andy, two from POG Adam, and one each from Jason, Eric and Chris.
Adam played catcher at the end of the long day and had extremely great chatter to go along with his two hits and four rbi en route to POG.
On the day, the Warriors hit below .500 as a team. Of the nine regulars who attended, seven hit below their season average with just Adam and Austin hitting above. Austin was the only Warrior to earn All-Tournament this year, hitting .800 with ten runs, 21 rbi, four doubles, three triples, and four homeruns. By default, his performance earned him Tournament MVP for the Warriors.
It was another fun, tiring day at the Bloomington tournament and I'm sure the Warriors will be back next year, looking to make a better impression.
Things started badly in the morning when the Warriors played the first game with just nine players, as two regulars were unable to attend and the one sub showed up late. Rez played hard but its three-man outfield was exposed on the 300-foot fences as several flyballs ended up dropping in the grass. Real Life defeated Rez Life 22-12 in the game. Austin Colby provided much of the offensive punch, going 4-5 with two runs scored, six rbi and a three-run homer while earning Player of the Game honors. Eric Johnson, Jason Merritt and Jonathan Engbrecht all added three hits in the game. Jamy Antoine mashed a two-run homer in the sixth.
The game was never close as Real Life put up six runs in the first while the warriors were scoreless. Real Life added five in the second while Rez again went scoreless. Trailing 11-0, Rez had three runs in the third, using rbi-hits from Jason and Austin. The defense picked up the slack too, holding Real Life scoreless in both the third and fourth innings.
Rez chipped away a little more with two runs in the fourth on a two-out single from Austin, plating Jonathan and Jason. In the top of the fifth, Rez added one more using singles from Eric and Andy before a sacrifice fly from Jeff scored Eric. The run made it 11-6 but Real Life erupted for nine runs after two were out in the bottom to seal the game. Rez didn't give up, putting five runners home in the top of hte sixth. Jonathan doubled and moved to third on Jason's single. Austin mashed a three-run homer to make it 20-9. After an out, Eric singled and came home on Jamy's long homerun to deep center.
Real Life added two more in the bottom half and Rez didn't score in the seventh.
With a full ten players in the second game, Rez played much better defense but couldn't get the bats going consistently. The Warriors fell 15-12 against Life AG. In the top of the first, Rez scored seven runs using six hits and a walk. Austin, sub Ryan Norman, Eric, Jamy, Chris Burr, and Jeff Johnson all had hits. The team hit for the cycle as Jeff homered, Chris tripled, Jamy doubled and the rest of the hits were singles.
However, the big lead was short-lived as Life came back with five first inning runs and six second inning runs, while holding Rez scoreless to make it 11-7 Life.
Rez again went scoreless in the third, stranding singles from Chris and Jeff. Life put five more runs on the board to go up 15-7 after three innings. Rez did manage one run in the fourth as Adam Hey singled and later scored on an error. The team left runners on first and third with one out in that inning.
In the top of the fifth, Rez started with two singles, but the next three players flew out to end the inning. Trailing 15-8 going into the final inning, Rez made a game of it, pushing four runs across. With one out, Austin lasered his second homer of the day to right-center. Ryan singled and so did Eric. Jamy then launched his second homerun of the day, this one a three-run shot to center. That was all the fireworks the bats had though, as the game ended 15-12.
Jamy earned Player of the Game with two hits, two runs, four rbi, a double and a homerun. Austin and Chris each had three hits in the game.
Game three was more of the same, as Rez fell to 0-3 on the day as Waukesha won 20-13. The bats were solid, but not spectacular. Austin captured his second POG on the day with a 3-4 game with three runs, five rbi, a double, triple and homerun. Jonathan had his second three-hit game on the day too.
Waukesha scored three runs in the top of the first but Rez stormed back with four in the bottom half. Jason walked and scored on Austin's triple. Ryan singled home Austin and jogged home on Eric's two-run homer through the wind to left. Jamy singled to keept it going but the next three guys got out to end the inning.
Waukesha exploded for 11 runs in the second and took a 14-4 lead. However, Rez didn't roll over and came back with six of its own runs in the bottom half. Jonathan and Adam started things with singles. Jason drove home Jonathan with a single and Austin plated Adam and put runners at second and third with a double. Still no outs, Ryan knocked out a two-rbi single and moved to third on Eric's single. Eric advanced to second on the first baseman's error and again the Warriors had second and third with no outs. Jamy lofted a sac fly for the first out, making the score 14-9. Chris doubled home Eric to make it 14-10, but the next two batters flew out ending the threat.
Waukesha kept its foot on the gas, scoring four more to increase its lead back to eight, 18-10. Rez scored three runs in its half inning. Jonathan and Jason singled with one out and Austin crushed his third homer in three games to right field to make it 18-13.
Rez was unable to score anymore runs though and Waukesha tacked on a couple insurance runs to make the final score 20-13.
The 0-3 pool play showing put Rez in the six seed in the A bracket. The tournament was single elimination for the first round and then you played out your place if you made it to the second round. Rez had to face Life AG again in the first round but this time the Warriors came out victorious, 14-11. Austin again earned POG going a perfect 4-4 with a run scored and four rbi. He had two triples in the game and played a great shortstop with three assists and five putouts.
Rez started the game well again with nine first-inning runs. Austin, Jamy, Ryan, Chris, Eric, Jonathan, Jeff, Adam, Jason and Austin again ripped out the hits. Austin capped the scoring with a two-run two-out triple. Life scored three in the bottom half and held Rez scoreless in the second. Life put two more on the board to make it 9-5 after two innings.
Rez added to its lead with two runs in the third inning, using another two-run triple from Austin. Life was scoreless in the bottom half and Rez scored one run in the fourth on three singles from Ryan, Chris and Andy Briggs. Again, Life couldn't muster any offense and Rez pulled out to a 14-5 lead with two runs in the fifth. The team had four singles and one walk in the inning. Adam, Austin, Jamy and Chris had the singles and Ryan had the walk.
Life put another goose egg on the board and Rez entered the final inning with a nine-run lead. Unfortunately, the Warriors left two runners on base without scoring in the top half. That almost came back to bite them as Life put together a great inning, scoring six runs but a flyout to Chris in left-center ended the game with two runners on.
Adam had three hits in the game and Jonathan had three rbi and two hits.
Now in the semi-finals, Rez was back down to nine players as Ryan had to leave to make a prior engagement. Down a man in the field hurt the team again, but it was a close game until the last inning and Rez fell 18-12.
Real Life was Rez's opponent for the second time and Real came out wtih three in the first. Rez came right back and tied it after one as Jason led off with a single and moved to third on Austin's double. Jamy hit a sac fly and Eric hit an rbi-groundout. With no on, Chris singled and scored on Andy's double.
Real Life had a big second inning, plating five runs and taking advantage of two Rez Life errors. Rez pushed two across on a double from Austin and a single from Jamy. The Rez defense held strong in the top of the third and the offense responded wtih four runs to take the 9-8 lead. Andy singled and moved to second on Jeff's single. After a flyout moved the runners ahead, Andy scampered home on Adam's groundout. Jason kept the inning alive with an rbi-single to make it 8-7 and Austin hit the shot of the tournament, his fourth homerun on the day, a two-run bomb that cleared the 300-foot easily and landed well into the fescue on the hill.
Real Life didnt' score again and Rez added to its lead in the fourth, scoring two more runs. Chris reached on a one-out error and scored on Andy's rbi-triple. Jeff singled to score Andy and Jonathan singled to put two on with one out. That was all the offense the team could manage, as back-to-back hard-hit flyouts ended the inning.
Real Life woke up in the fifth and stormed back to take a 14-11 lead scoring six times on five hits and two errors. Rez responded with just one run on Jamy's high, solo homerun to left field. The sixth inning started with Rez down two. Real Life kept its offense going with four more runs and Rez left two on base in the sixth to end the game 18-12 Real Life.
Andy earned Player of the Game with a perfect 4-4 day including a double, triple and two runs and two rbi. Austin stayed hot with three more hits, two doubles and a homerun.
More bad news for the Warriors occurred going into the 3rd place game. Another team member had to leave for the day, leaving Rez with just eight, very tired players going into game six of the day. Thankfully, most of the 20+ fans left for that game as the Warriors had nothing for Riverdale and fell 29-9. The team managed just 11 hits, three from Austin and Andy, two from POG Adam, and one each from Jason, Eric and Chris.
Adam played catcher at the end of the long day and had extremely great chatter to go along with his two hits and four rbi en route to POG.
On the day, the Warriors hit below .500 as a team. Of the nine regulars who attended, seven hit below their season average with just Adam and Austin hitting above. Austin was the only Warrior to earn All-Tournament this year, hitting .800 with ten runs, 21 rbi, four doubles, three triples, and four homeruns. By default, his performance earned him Tournament MVP for the Warriors.
It was another fun, tiring day at the Bloomington tournament and I'm sure the Warriors will be back next year, looking to make a better impression.
Final League Thoughts
The Resurrection Life Warriors have finished a dominating season in the Eden Prairie Round Lake leauge. The teamed stormed out of the gates and continued that momentum en route to a 17-1 final league record, easily claiming the league crown.
The team's dominance was noted by other league members, and thusly the Warriors landed eight members to the All-League teams. Rez landed five players on the 11-player first team with three more being named to the 11-player second team. The other three players all just missed being named to the second team, as all three were honorable mention winners at the season-end meetings.
Wooddale saw its all-league members increase from zero one year ago to four this year while Immanuel managed four members also. EPAG had one player each on the first and second teams while each St. Andrew team had one player represented. Pax Christi had two players honored, and likely would have had more if not for such a poor showing in the standings.
Below are the All-League players from Resurrection Life:
1st Team Shortstop: Austin Colby - Austin matched and surpassed his 2008 numbers in league-play pacing the circuit with a .746 average, .743 on base, and 1.582 slugging pecentage. He scored 40 runs and drove home 49 while cranking out 12 doubles, seven triples and ten homeruns. Austin cranked it up when it mattered most too, hitting .833 with runners in scoring position and .750 from the 5th inning and on. Austin handled 27 assists and 15 putouts with just two errors at short.
1st Team Third Base: Jeff Tenney - Tenney had a great first year in the league, running away with a unanimous third-base vote. He led the league with 15 homeruns and 44 runs scored, and tied for the league-lead with 49 rbi. He mashed his way to a 2.000+ OPS, good for second in the league. He had 28 assists with 19 putouts and just four errors at third base and displayed the best arm in the league. He hit seven three-run homers and hit a dinger in less than every five at bats.
1st Team Outfield: Jason Merritt - Jason captures his second consecutive 1st Team honor, (this one unanimous) by increasing his numbers from the plate. Jason hit .653, good for third in the league, while smacking out eight doubles, two triples and four homeruns. He scored 33 times and drove home 29, most of those from the lead-off spot. Jason hit .781 with runners in scoring position and snagged 25 outfield putouts to go along with his one assist and one double-play.
1st Team Outfield: Jamy Antoine - Jamy earned a 1st Team spot in the outfield this year because of his great play both at the plate and in the grass. He led the Warriors with 29 putouts in the outfield and added an assist and a double-play. Offensively, he hit a solid .547 but his extra-base-hit prowess was eye-opening. He walloped seven doubles, seven triples (tied for best in the league) and five homeruns. He scored 32 times and drove home 22.
1st Team Utility: Eric Johnson - Eric finds himself back on the 1st Team in 2009. Although he slowed down in the later games, he still hit an impressive .586 in the league with ten doubles and seven homeruns. He scored 35 runs and had 33 rbi. Eric's solid defense at second solidified him as one of the best all-around league players.
2nd Team Outfield: Chris Burr - Burr took a year off after his 2007 Team MVP season and earned himself an All-League honor right out of the gate. He hit over .600 at .607 and swatted nine extra-base-hits. He played another solid season in the outfield while scoring 26 and driving home 24.
2nd Team First Base: Jeff Johnson - Jeff was never able to find the batting average stroke, but he ceratinly found his power stroke in 2009. Jeff just missed a 1st Team nod because of his 16 league homeruns, only eight counted. Still, his eight homeruns and 35 rbi were more than enough to get him a 2nd Team showing. Jeff also had a 1.000+ slugging and he made just one error at first base all season.
2nd Team Infield: Andy Briggs - Another excellent campaign from Andy. This was a flip-flop year for Andy as he heated up as the year went along versus slowing down in 2008. Andy's defense was under-rated all year and he turned in another fine season at second, short and third. he also hit three homeruns and hit .569. His other-worldly .691 on base percentage was second in the league among qualifying players. Great year for Andy.
Honorable Mention: Chris Wold - Wold would certainly have been a 1st Team selection if he had qualified. He played in just half of the games and players need 2.5 plate appearances per team game played to qualify. Wold hit .686 with a .703 on base percentage in his time. He was clearly the most dominant pitcher and defensive-pitcher in the league as well.
Honorable Mention: Jonathan Engbrecht - With slightly more consistent glove-play, Jon would have landed on that second team. He hit just under .500 at .491 but offered some pop this season with two doubles, one triple and five homeruns. He scored 22 and drove home 21 while playing lots in right field and catcher and filling in at the corners too.
Honorable Mention: Adam Hey - Adam increased his batting average over 150 points from last year to this year and even smacked out a three-run homer. His chatter and enthusiasm behind the plate was legendary. Also, he became 100% reliable in the outfield by year-end and next year he should make a run at another All-League honor.
League Gold-Gloves:
Infield:
Austin Colby, SS
Jeff Tenney, 3B
Andy Briggs, Utility
Outfield:
Jason Merritt, OF
Jamy Antoine, OF
League Awards:
Newcomer of the Year:
Jeff Tenney won this unanimously. He led the league or tied for the lead in several offensive categories, including homers, runs, and rbi. Great first season for the Big Cat.
Most Valuable Player:
Unlike last year, Austin Colby won this one walking away. Without Living Word in the mix, Austin led the Warriors to a dominating season. He didn't win it unanimously, as two other teammates received votes as well as the shortstop for Wooddale.
Above and beyond league champions and All-League awards, the league handed out the following team honors this year:
Most impressive team: Resurrection Life - the Warriors ran off 23 straight league victories dating back to 2008 before falling in the finale on a walk-off hit. Rez dominated the league like no other team in the past.
Comeback team: Wooddale - Team Wooddale ran away with this award. Not only did the team increase its win total by nine games, but it also gave Rez some tough games along the way.
Most exciting game: Immanuel vs. Resurrection Life - the season-ending game was an instant classic with Immanuel knocking off then unbeaten Rez Life with ten runs in the bottom of the last inning. A great comeback and a great game.
Coolest uniforms: Resurrection Life - Rez spent the coin and looked impressive this year. Backing it up with excellent play helps too.
The team's dominance was noted by other league members, and thusly the Warriors landed eight members to the All-League teams. Rez landed five players on the 11-player first team with three more being named to the 11-player second team. The other three players all just missed being named to the second team, as all three were honorable mention winners at the season-end meetings.
Wooddale saw its all-league members increase from zero one year ago to four this year while Immanuel managed four members also. EPAG had one player each on the first and second teams while each St. Andrew team had one player represented. Pax Christi had two players honored, and likely would have had more if not for such a poor showing in the standings.
Below are the All-League players from Resurrection Life:
1st Team Shortstop: Austin Colby - Austin matched and surpassed his 2008 numbers in league-play pacing the circuit with a .746 average, .743 on base, and 1.582 slugging pecentage. He scored 40 runs and drove home 49 while cranking out 12 doubles, seven triples and ten homeruns. Austin cranked it up when it mattered most too, hitting .833 with runners in scoring position and .750 from the 5th inning and on. Austin handled 27 assists and 15 putouts with just two errors at short.
1st Team Third Base: Jeff Tenney - Tenney had a great first year in the league, running away with a unanimous third-base vote. He led the league with 15 homeruns and 44 runs scored, and tied for the league-lead with 49 rbi. He mashed his way to a 2.000+ OPS, good for second in the league. He had 28 assists with 19 putouts and just four errors at third base and displayed the best arm in the league. He hit seven three-run homers and hit a dinger in less than every five at bats.
1st Team Outfield: Jason Merritt - Jason captures his second consecutive 1st Team honor, (this one unanimous) by increasing his numbers from the plate. Jason hit .653, good for third in the league, while smacking out eight doubles, two triples and four homeruns. He scored 33 times and drove home 29, most of those from the lead-off spot. Jason hit .781 with runners in scoring position and snagged 25 outfield putouts to go along with his one assist and one double-play.
1st Team Outfield: Jamy Antoine - Jamy earned a 1st Team spot in the outfield this year because of his great play both at the plate and in the grass. He led the Warriors with 29 putouts in the outfield and added an assist and a double-play. Offensively, he hit a solid .547 but his extra-base-hit prowess was eye-opening. He walloped seven doubles, seven triples (tied for best in the league) and five homeruns. He scored 32 times and drove home 22.
1st Team Utility: Eric Johnson - Eric finds himself back on the 1st Team in 2009. Although he slowed down in the later games, he still hit an impressive .586 in the league with ten doubles and seven homeruns. He scored 35 runs and had 33 rbi. Eric's solid defense at second solidified him as one of the best all-around league players.
2nd Team Outfield: Chris Burr - Burr took a year off after his 2007 Team MVP season and earned himself an All-League honor right out of the gate. He hit over .600 at .607 and swatted nine extra-base-hits. He played another solid season in the outfield while scoring 26 and driving home 24.
2nd Team First Base: Jeff Johnson - Jeff was never able to find the batting average stroke, but he ceratinly found his power stroke in 2009. Jeff just missed a 1st Team nod because of his 16 league homeruns, only eight counted. Still, his eight homeruns and 35 rbi were more than enough to get him a 2nd Team showing. Jeff also had a 1.000+ slugging and he made just one error at first base all season.
2nd Team Infield: Andy Briggs - Another excellent campaign from Andy. This was a flip-flop year for Andy as he heated up as the year went along versus slowing down in 2008. Andy's defense was under-rated all year and he turned in another fine season at second, short and third. he also hit three homeruns and hit .569. His other-worldly .691 on base percentage was second in the league among qualifying players. Great year for Andy.
Honorable Mention: Chris Wold - Wold would certainly have been a 1st Team selection if he had qualified. He played in just half of the games and players need 2.5 plate appearances per team game played to qualify. Wold hit .686 with a .703 on base percentage in his time. He was clearly the most dominant pitcher and defensive-pitcher in the league as well.
Honorable Mention: Jonathan Engbrecht - With slightly more consistent glove-play, Jon would have landed on that second team. He hit just under .500 at .491 but offered some pop this season with two doubles, one triple and five homeruns. He scored 22 and drove home 21 while playing lots in right field and catcher and filling in at the corners too.
Honorable Mention: Adam Hey - Adam increased his batting average over 150 points from last year to this year and even smacked out a three-run homer. His chatter and enthusiasm behind the plate was legendary. Also, he became 100% reliable in the outfield by year-end and next year he should make a run at another All-League honor.
League Gold-Gloves:
Infield:
Austin Colby, SS
Jeff Tenney, 3B
Andy Briggs, Utility
Outfield:
Jason Merritt, OF
Jamy Antoine, OF
League Awards:
Newcomer of the Year:
Jeff Tenney won this unanimously. He led the league or tied for the lead in several offensive categories, including homers, runs, and rbi. Great first season for the Big Cat.
Most Valuable Player:
Unlike last year, Austin Colby won this one walking away. Without Living Word in the mix, Austin led the Warriors to a dominating season. He didn't win it unanimously, as two other teammates received votes as well as the shortstop for Wooddale.
Above and beyond league champions and All-League awards, the league handed out the following team honors this year:
Most impressive team: Resurrection Life - the Warriors ran off 23 straight league victories dating back to 2008 before falling in the finale on a walk-off hit. Rez dominated the league like no other team in the past.
Comeback team: Wooddale - Team Wooddale ran away with this award. Not only did the team increase its win total by nine games, but it also gave Rez some tough games along the way.
Most exciting game: Immanuel vs. Resurrection Life - the season-ending game was an instant classic with Immanuel knocking off then unbeaten Rez Life with ten runs in the bottom of the last inning. A great comeback and a great game.
Coolest uniforms: Resurrection Life - Rez spent the coin and looked impressive this year. Backing it up with excellent play helps too.
2009 turned out to be a great season for the Resurrection Life Warriors. 2010 should be a good test for the league champs, as every team will have Rez Life in its sights the whole year.
Congratulations again to the 2009 Eden Prairie Round Lake League Champions!!!!
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