Annual
baseball showcase helpful to players, coaches, scouts
By OWEN SLOAN, For The Capital
By OWEN SLOAN, For The
Capital
Published 08/03/10
Shannon
Lee Zirkle — The Capital
High
school baseball players with aspirations of playing in college descended upon
Joe Cannon Stadium last Friday to showcase their talents to the college scouts
and head coaches on hand.
"Beautiful day, baseball, can't ask for anything better," said
Eric Barnes, the head coach of Liberty High School in Carroll County and one of
the organizers of the event. "There are a lot of talented athletes
here."
The showcase, put on by Lou Holcomb, an Old Mill graduate and University of
Maryland standout, pits a North team consisting of players from Maryland, New
Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware against a South team consisting of
players from D.C., Virginia and North Carolina.
The top players from the combine held Friday were chosen to play in last
Saturday's 8th annual Mid-Atlantic High School Baseball Classic, also known as
the "Crab Claw Classic."
"This is the event for me," Holcomb, a current scout for the
Baltimore Orioles, said.
The event, which has been held at such venues such as
"It gives me an opportunity to see the kids in the area and it has
grown tremendously," Holcomb said."The
first year we had about 40 kids, and now we have about 200 try out."
About 30 college coaches and pro scouts from the Baltimore Orioles, Detroit
Tigers and Cleveland Indians kept close watch on the players, checking their
radar guns and stop watches, all trying to find potential talent.
"There is a good representation of coaches here every year," said
Ross Natoli, head coach of
"You are looking for pitching, speed, defensive and hitting ability,"
Natoli said. "You are looking for someone who
has the talent right now, but who has the potential to get better."
The combine also boasted a few
"The event was good. ... Holcomb did a really good job," said
Freeman.
Players did have some nerves in front of the coaches and they were not
hesitant to admit that. Many players performed well, while others may have felt
that they could have done better.
"I was pretty nervous because I am one of the youngest players," Ridings, a rising junior, said. "I am just trying to show them talent and I don't want to do too much because you're stressing out, but this has been a fun process."