Baseball

Playmakers 16u Griffin would like to welcome Charlie Macheca, Jared McKinney, Drew Vrska, Zach Chapman, Gavin Khoury, Alfonso Salinas to the 2020/2021 Playmakers FAMILY. If you are interested in joining a Playmakers team, please call 219-922-1107 to schedule a private tryout for teams in need of players.

Playmakers 11u Klaich would like to welcome Bradyn Britton, John Jillson, and Nick Spain to the 2020/2021 Playmakers FAMILY. If you are interested in joining a Playmakers team, please call 219-922-1107 to schedule a private tryout for teams in need of players.

Playmakers 13u Albers would like to welcome Kaleb Hacker, Carter Kobe, and Tyler Pirowski to the 2020/2021 Playmakers FAMILY. If you are interested in joining a Playmakers team, please call 219-922-1107 to schedule a private tryout for teams in need of players.

Dave Griffin Baseball has announced tryouts for the 2021 season. The tryouts will take place at Dowling Park, home of Purdue Northwest Baseball. Tryouts will be for ages 9 through 17.

YOU MUST PRE-REGISTER ONLINE TO TRYOUT – LINK

Tryout Information

Playmakers Tryouts for 2021, at Dowling Park.
Ages 9,10,11,12. Aug 3 from 5-8 pm.
Ages 13.14,15 Aug 4 from 5-8 pm.
Ages 16.17 August 5 from 5-8 pm.
$20.00 registration fee

This isn’t what Kody Hoese envisioned.

Right now, he should be hitting baseballs to the gaps and fielding grounders at third base in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization.

Not working out in his mom and dad’s basement in Griffith.

“It’s really tough right now because we just got back from (spring training) in Arizona, and I worked hard to get in shape and ready for the season,” said the MLB’s 25th overall pick of the 2019 draft. “It was bad timing leading right into the start of the season.”

Instead of seeing live pitching, Hoese is doing his best working out at home in his Griffith basement and staying in shape for when baseball is called back to action due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Hoese said he was going to start the season in high-A ball for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in California. Everything was looking up for the former Tulane star who exploded on the scene after an incredible junior campaign.

Hoese rolled the dice and returned to Tulane for his junior season after being drafted in the 35th round by the Royals. The decision paid dividends and then some as the former Griffith star went from five homers as a sophomore to 23 last spring when he set the American Athletic Conference records for homers, total bases (1,832), slugging percentage (.779) and runs (72), while hitting a robust .391. Those numbers pushed him into the first round, where the Dodgers swiped him up at No. 25.

“The Dodgers’ organization is one of the best out there,” Hoese said. “I have made some really good relationships with the coaches and players already.

“The organization is first class and does a great job with whatever we need as players.”

Hoese’s natural spot is third base, but he’s already been told he’ll be getting some action at shortstop once baseball is back in action. With shifts nowadays, he said, you have to be able to move and cover other areas.

Hoese, a 6-foot-4, 200-pounder, seems to have acclimated to pro ball. He hit .299 between rookie-level Arizona and the low-A Great Lakes Loons to wrap up last season.

“I’m extremely happy with my progression (so far),” Hoese said. “There’s still a lot to be learned and developed, but I’m happy with where I am at.

“I’m really just focused on this upcoming season whenever we start. I just want to get better each day and continue to develop.”

One benefit of being home is his favorite restaurant, Bridges’ Scoreboard, is about 2 miles away and still serving carryout dinners during the lockdown.

Still, Hoese is itching to get back to work.

“I’ve been playing video games, watching Netflix and hanging out with the family,” he said. “Baseball helps by letting me take my mind off the chaos that is going on in the world.”

A special look at the day Kody Hoese fulfilled a life long dream! He went from a Tulane Green Wave baseball player to a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers family!

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) – Former Notre Dame baseball player Nick Podkul is now in his second year in the minor leagues after getting selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the seventh round of the 2018 MLB Draft.

The Andrean high school product has had quite the year in A ball for the Lansing Lugnuts. Podkul is hitting .254 but has a .373 OBP,

Podkul says the professional life has certainly been an adjustment from his time at Notre Dame but he’s enjoying the ride.

“It’s a lot different from college but it’s a lot of fun,” Podkul said. “Great group of guys so it makes it a lot easier when you are playing every single day but overall, it’s a great experience. It’s what I wanted since I was a kid so having a lot of fun. Obviously, the goal is to get to the MLB but you have to break that down into smaller goals. Right now, I’m just trying to have a better year than last year. I struggled a little bit. Trying to limit the slumps and just have a routine every single day to help you get to that next level.”

Podkul will be back in South Bend on Tuesday for the 2019 Midwest All-Star Game.

Playmakers 15u  wins contest against Indiana Stix 16U on Sunday,  5-2

Indiana Stix 16U got things started in the second inning when Jarred Williams doubled on a 0-2 count, scoring one run.

Playmakers 15u  evened things up at one in the bottom of the second inning when Richard Redding drew a walk, scoring one run.

Playmakers 15u  pulled away for good with four runs in the fourth inning.  In the fourth an error scored one run for Playmakers 15u , Will Moell grounded out, scoring one run, and Ian Clark singled on the first pitch of the at bat, scoring two runs.

Eric Graham earned the win for Playmakers 15u . He went seven innings, allowing two runs on four hits and striking out four.

Trayjan Phifer took the loss for Indiana Stix 16U. He lasted four innings, allowing four hits and five runs while striking out three.

Playmakers 15u  tallied five hits on the day.  Dylan Modjeski and Ryan Bakaitis all collected multiple hits for Playmakers 15u .  Bakaitis and Modjeski each collected two hits to lead Playmakers 15u .

Carson Augustinovicz went 2-for-2 at the plate to lead Indiana Stix 16U in hits.

The 2020 Playmakers Baseball Tryouts will take place in July. All tryouts will take place July 22nd, July 23rd, July 24th, and July 25th at Highland High School. There will be a $20.00 Tryout Fee for Playmakers baseball that will include evaluations on exit velocity, Radar Gun Velocity, Running speed as well as other data.

Registration Form

July 22, 2019
5:00 to 7:30 pm
10 to 12 year olds

July 23rd
5:00 to 7:30 pm
13 to 14 year olds

July 24, 2019
5:00 to 7:30 pm
15 to 16 year olds

July 25, 2019
5:00 to 7:00 pm
All Call Backs

By: Ken Gurnick – @kengurnick

LOS ANGELES — With their two first-round picks in the 2019 MLB Draft on Monday, the Dodgers went all-in for power-hitting college infielders, selecting Tulane third baseman Kody Hoese No. 25 overall and North Carolina utility man Michael Busch, taken as a second baseman No. 31 overall.

“We liked that demographic, and it worked in our favor in this Draft,” said amateur scouting director Billy Gasparino. “We like college bats and always search for them first.”

• Draft Tracker: Complete pick-by-pick coverage

The Dodgers also drafted Jimmy Lewis, a right-handed Texas high school pitcher, 78th overall with a compensation pick for the free-agent departure of Yasmani Grandal.

Hoese, 21, is a right-handed hitter who was drafted by Kansas City in the 35th round last year. After two unspectacular years in college, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound slugger erupted this season, drawing comparisons to Josh Donaldson and becoming the first third baseman the Dodgers have ever taken with their first pick. He hit .391 with 23 homers and 61 RBIs in 58 games. He was scouted by Benny Latino.

“Kody is a guy we earmarked coming out of the fall that we really thought took a jump in both ability and performance. He’s an athletic 6-4, lean-bodied third baseman who we think is a plus defender,” said Gasparino, who saw Hoese play three games in two days.

“We thought the power was going to be there, and then he went out and almost hit .400 with over 20 home runs and really showed us that he was a dynamic hitter that can hit with power. His defense is plus.”

Here’s the MLB Pipeline scouting report on Hoese:

After going homerless as a freshman in 2017 and hitting just five homers as a sophomore, Hoese ranked fourth in NCAA Division I with 23 long balls during the 2019 regular season. Taken in the 35th round in 2018 by the Royals as a Draft-eligible sophomore, he began to realize his power potential by blasting seven homers with wood bats in the New England Collegiate Baseball League last summer. He tied a Tulane record with three homers in his fifth game of the 2019 season and has kept up the rampage, winning American Athletic Conference Player of the Year honors.

Tulane’s best offensive prospect since 2003 Indians first-rounder Michael Aubrey, Hoese is loaded with natural right-handed power. He’s always had a good swing and the ability to leverage the ball with his 6-foot-4 frame, and he has taken off since getting stronger. He drives the ball in the air from gap to gap with ease, maintaining a disciplined approach that has led to more walks than strikeouts in 2019.

Though he’s a below-average runner, Hoese moves well for his size and covers enough ground to remain at third base. His solid arm strength adds to his quality profile at the hot corner, a package that should land him in the top two rounds.