Welcome to the A. Green Baseball Program Web Site!! This site has been developed to allow baseball fans everywhere to track one of Southeastern Michigan's, and the country's, most successful summer baseball programs. Check back often as we continue to add more to the site each day. Please sign our guestbook at the bottom of this page and tell us what you think.
The A. Green Baseball Program was started in 1996. The goal of the program was, and still is, to provide an organization that teaches good sportsmanship and works to improve the fundamentals of players seeking to compete at a higher level. The A. Green Baseball Program recruits players primarily from throughout Southeastern Michigan, the Midwest and Ontario. However, we may also go anywhere else throughout the country in an effort to find talented players, who also possess the additional qualities off the field that we look for in A. Green Baseball players. Currently positions are extended by invitation only, most often generated by the recommendation of a high school coach, collegiate coach or professional scout. In addition to this, prospective players must maintain not only proper conduct on and off the field, but also a grade point average that is acceptable for collegiate enrollment.
Currently, the A. Green Baseball Program is one of the largest and most respected in the country and continues to grow each year, playing its home games at Oestrike Stadium on the campus of Eastern Michigan University, at Fisher Stadium on the campus of the University of Michigan and also at Burbridge Stadium on the campus of Spring Arbor University.
At the conclusion of the 2009 season, 87% of the past players received varying levels of scholarship money to attend the college or university of their choice. Overall, slightly more than 97% of the players participating in the program, and who have completed their high school requirements, have gone onto continue their education. Our current alumni list totals 232 players from 94 different high schools, and who have gone onto play at 70 different universities or colleges while 4 went immediately into the professional ranks.
In addition, the program remains very competitive on the field with a current overall record of 474-130-7 for a winning percentage of .785%. This goes along with the 18 League Titles, 1 National Championship, 18 Tournament and District Championships, 3 World Series appearances and 25 players drafted into Professional Baseball, including 1 young man who played in Europe. This is truly a success story on and off of the field of play! While many programs over the years have attempted to duplicate the A. Green way, none have been able to match the prolonged success, long standing tradition and the respect that has been earned.
The A. Green Baseball Program are registered members of the American Baseball Coaches Association and maintain current affiliations in several programs; including the AABC, USSSA, NABF, AAU, CABA, ABA, TPX Top 96, Perfect Game USA, World Wood Bat Association (WWBA), Gameday Prospects, Pastime Championships, Team One, Area Code Games, Aflac, East Coast Professional Showcase, Ripken Baseball and Triple Crown Baseball.
In addition, the A. Green Baseball Program has developed partnerships with several national companies in an effort to maintain agreements on shoe use, uniform wear, glove and bat use along with many more items for our players and staff. Look for further information on these issues throughout the coming fall and winter seasons.
For further information on the A. Green Baseball Program, contact Head Coach Stan Eldridge at 734-485-7100 or by email at MIPANTHERS@AOL.COM
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Tuesday, August 18
A. GREEN PLAYERS SIGN PRO CONTRACTS !!!
The A. Green Summer Baseball Program is proud to announce that 3 of our former players have chosen to continue their careers at the professional level.
Earlier this summer, Devan Kline (CMU & Battle Creek Lakeview) chose to sign as a Free Agent with the San Franciso Giants. Kline who played with A. Green in 2005 & 2006 has reported to the Giants minor league complex where he will workout until being assigned to another club within the organization.
Earlier this month, DJ LeMahieu (LSU & Birmingham Brother Rice) signed a professional contract with the Chicago Cubs after having been chosen in the 2nd round of the most recent MLB Entry Level Draft in June of this year. LeMahieu who played with A. Green in 2005, 2006 & 2007 also was a member of the NCAA Champion LSU Tigers this past June in Omaha. LeMahieu reported to Arizona and eventually was placed in Peoria to complete the season.
Most recently on Monday, August 17, Daniel Fields (U of D Jesuit & U of M Signee) signed his professional contract with the Detroit Tigers after having been a 6th round pick in the MLB Entry Level Draft this past June. Fields who played with A. Green in 2008 & 2009 was also Mr. Baseball in Michigan High School baseball this past season. Fields will soon be reporting to Tigertown to begin his pro career.
We congratulate each of these young men on their accomplishments and wish them the very best as they continue forward in their professional careers!
Sunday, July 19
A. GREEN WINS DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP!!!
The A. Green Baseball Program has captured yet another AABC District Championship, their 7th overall, and will now advance to Battle Creek, Michigan to compete with 11 other teams in the AABC North Central Regional Championship play.
A. Green began their trek to the title on Thursday morning at Jackson Community College with a solid 5-2 win over a tough Detroit Eagles team. Kyle Clark (Portage Central / University of Michigan) took to the mound for A. Green and threw 5 solid innings and allowed only 1 earned run. Mark Heard (Novi / Northwood University) came on to close out the win with 2 perfect innings of relief on the mound.
In the 2nd game of the day on Thursday, also at Jackson Community College, A. Green took on the Michigan Buzz and battled their way to a 6-4 victory. The Buzz held a 4-2 lead into the bottom of the 6th before the bats of A. Green exploed for 4 runs to move ahead for good in the contest. Tyler Higgins (Mt. Pleasant / Wayne State University) started on the mound for A. Green and provided 5 good innings before giving way to Sam Ott (Plymouth Salem / Eastern Michigan) who closed out the mound duties and secured the win.
On Friday, A. Green moved to Siena Heights University and the winner's bracket game where they took on a determined Diamonds Black 18u team out of Grand Rapids. Mark Heard (Novi / Northwood University) went back to the mound for A. Green and was nearly perfect through the 7-inning contest. Heard allowed only 2 walks in the contest as A. Green won 4-0. Daniel Fields (U of D Jesuit / University of Michigan) and Stephen Claypool (Divine Child / Ball State University) provided triples to lead the offense.
On Saturday morning, A. Green one again returned to Siena Heights University to take on the Michigan Red Sox in a game that would provide an automatic spot into regional play with a victory. A. Green came out swinging early as they scored single runs in each of the first 2 innings enroute to a 5-1 win. Brad Zambron (Brother Rice / Grand Valley State University) threw a complete game and Patrick Biondi (Divine Child / University of Michigan) provided the spark on offense with a triple and a single on the day.
With the win, A. Green captured the AABC District Championship and will now move to Battle Creek to begin play in the AABC North Central Regional. The opening game for A. Green will be at 2:30 PM on Friday, July 24, at Nichols Field. The opponent will be determined earlier that morning based on the results of a game that will involve the North Oakland Yankee's from the AABC Flint District and a team from Illinois, which is unknown at this time.
See you at the park!
Friday, July 17
A. GREEN WINS THE ULTIMATE STRIKE ZONE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!
The A. Green Baseball Program became the first team to be a 2-time winner of the Ultimate Strike Zone Tournament with their 12-7 win over the Diamond-Maroons ball club on Sunday afternoon. The final game was played on a windy afternoon that wreaked havoc with fielders trying to make plays, however in the end the two teams played very hard and displayed great sportsmanship towards one another in an exciting game that entertained the large throng of fans and supporters who were on hand at CMU.
The tournament began for A. Green at Demski Field with a 10-2 win over the Bulldogs from Brighton. Tyler Higgins took the mound for A. Green and pitched 4 strong innings before giving way to his staff mates.
In the 2nd game of the day, which was played at CMU, A. Green took on a very talented Diamonds team from Grand Rapids. A. Green fell behind early, however the bats came alive late and Blake Higgins was strong on the mound as A. Green battled back to take a 8-3 win.
In the 3rd gameof the tournament, A. Green took on the Lakes Area Doders in an afternoon contest that was once again played in windy conditions at the Mt. Pleasant Varsity Field. A. Green fell behind early, however with a 4 run outburtst in the top of the 7th inning they were able to tie the game at 7 heading to the botton half. In the bottom of the inning, the LAD were able to mount their own offense and came away winning the game 10-7 off of a 3-run walk off Home Run. Based on the standings within the bracket entering this game, the loss did not affect A. Green's march to the championship round, as the game later in the afternoon would determine that fate.
In the final game of pool play, A. Green squared off against a tough Oakland Elite team at the CMU Stadium. The winner of this game would be the pool bracket winner and advance onto the championship round. A. Green struggled early against the knuckle ball pitcher on the mound for the Elite, however in the middle innings of the game A. Green was able to mount some offense and eventually came away with the victory 9-0. Mark Heard pitched another solid game for A. Green in the win,
In the first semi-final game on Sunday, A. Green took on the Michigan Bulls in a highly anticpated match up. Cam Walker took the mound for A. Green and despite falling behind 1-0 in the 3rd he continued to compete hard until the offense awoke. A. Green rebounded for 3 runs to go up and take a lead that they would never relinquish in marching to a final victory of 6-3.
In the Championship Game, A. Green sent Tyler Higgins to the mound and he provided 4 1/3 innings of solid pitching in a game that swayed back and forth for each team. Although A. Green never trailed in the game, the final outcome was always in doubt until late, as both teams fought hard throughout and never allowed the opponent to rest or relax. Blake Higgins pitched 2 2/3 innings of solid relief to claim the save. In the end, A. Green was able to hold on and become the first team in the history of the tournament to claim 2 titles.
Sunday, July 5
A. GREEN WINS USSSA FIRECRACKER CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP !!!
The A. Green Summer Baseball Program rolled to the Championship of the USSSA Firecracker Classic held at Eastern Michigan.
In game #1 of the tournament on Thursday morning, A. Green moved past the Devil Rays of St. Clair by a score of 8-5 in a game that was played at Oestrike Stadium on the campus of Eastern Michigan University.
In the 2nd & 3rd games of the tournament for A. Green, the play moved to Riverview Gabriel Richard High School. The ooponents for the day were Lakes Athletic and the Michigan Knights. The offense was in high gear as A. Green won the games by the respective scores of 7-0 and 12-0.
On day three of the event, A. Green played their 4th game at Plymouth High School against the Macomb Inferno and took home a 15-0 win.
The perfect record in pool play led A. Green into the Sunday championship round as the overall #1 seed. The final day for A. Green began with a semi-final game against the Vipers from Columbus, Ohio. The Vipers jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead before A. Green got into gear and rebounded to take home a 10-2 that allowed them to move into the championship game.
In the finale, it was all A. Green as they hit, pitched and played defense in a 9-0 victory over the solid Blue Stars of Lexington, Kentucky.
A special note of interest from the game came in the form of a perfect pitching perfromance from Cam Walker (DeLaSalle / Wayne State) over the course of the run-rule shortened game. Walker did not allow a Blue Star to reach base in his 4-inning stint.
With the victory in front of a large and vocal crowd, A. Green captured the overall Championship of the annual USSSA Firecracker Classic.
A. Green will now head back to their weekday schedule before heading to Mt. Pleasant to take part in the Ultimate Strike Zone Challenge, which begins on Thursday afternoon.
See you at the park!
Wednesday, July 1
A. GREEN PLAYERS SELECTED IN THE 2009 MLB DRAFT!
The A. Green Baseball Program is pleased to announce that several players, both past and present, were recently selected in the 2009 MLB Entry Draft. Listed below are the players selected, the high school that they attended, the MLB that they were drafted by and the roundin which they were selected.
Congratulations to each and every player!
DJ LeMahieu Birmingham Brother Rice / LSU Chicago Cubs 2nd Round
Daniel Fields Univ. of Detroit Jesuit / U of M Detroit Tigers 6th Round
Patrick Biondi Dearborn Divine Child / U of M Detroit Tigers 35th Round
Tyler Higgins Mt. Pleasant HS / Wayne State Texas Rangers 47th Round
In addition, former A. Green pitcher Devan Klein (CMU / Battle Creek Lakeview) has signed a Free Agent contract with the San Francisco Giants and has been sent out to begin his professional career. Congratulations to Devan for working hard to realize his dream of playing professional baseball.
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