In "Semi Pro Ball" sometimes you get the bear, other nights it gets you. Thursday night the Cobalts clicked on all cylinders and clinched their second CRC league title of the 2008 season - becoming both Friday night and Thursday night League Champions! (Thursday night co-champs with Cincy Hawks...congrats to them)

Keith Becker returns to form with a solid 4 innings of work and got the win. Jacob Campbell continues to impress with 2 innings of shutout relief and Mikey Taylor closed it out for the 11-2 win.

Offensively, highlights were many against the Yorkville ace who had previously beaten the 'Balts. Stoecklein, Todd Taylor, Rocky, Frank Arnold, and Mike Hatfield(HR) all with multiple hit and RBI games.

Cobalts now stand 24-5.

The always exciting Cincinnati Amateur Baseball City Championship Tournament begins this Sunday afternoon!!!

As the league has done for the past 4 years, teams are seeded based on points (wins) accumulated in the CRC Leagues. For teams choosing to play outside the league, they accumulate fewer points, thus the lower seeding...obviously.

So the brackets are set with 17 teams strapping it on. And the seedings make for some interesting early match-ups. And as always, great baseball will be played for a solid week...the prize? - a nice plack, bragging rights, and a bid to the NABF Regionals!

Your Cobalts begin against the Blackhawks, Sunday at 2:15.

Todd Taylor, the good looking twin, has a perfect night going 4-4 with 3 RBI and 3 SBs leading a strong offensive night for the Cobalts. Brian Stoecklein also added 2 doubles with 3 RBIs (all to the warning track).

Shannon Morgan pitches 3 semi-perfect innings for the win and Admiral Heasley gets the hold.

Cobalts now stand 23-5 finishing up this last week of the regular season.

The Cobalts secured a bid to the NABF Regionals Friday night with a 9-1 victory over the Hawks.

Mike Wagner took the hill and threw a 2 hitter against a strong Hawks line-up. Mikey Taylor drove in 3 RBI and went 5-5 on the entire night.

In the second game, Mikey T took the hill and gets the win as Wags returns the first game favor with a home run and double. Enough for a 6-1 victory over Cubs.

Cobalts go into the final regular season week of games with a 22-5 record.

In a game that seemed like nobody wanted to win, the Cobalts hand the Chiefs a 7-6 win.

Chiefs exact some revenge on Rick Rosell by touching him for 5 quick ones. Then Cobalts come back with 6 runs in the 4th...that's the only good part of this story.

That one run lead held until a gut-wrenching throwing error allowed the Chiefs to tie it in the 6th. Then in the 7th, the 'Balts threaten but come up short and the Chiefs score their winning run on a walk-off wild pitch.

Good win for the Chiefs...not so pretty for Balts.

But back at it tonight against a surging Hawks squad. Cobalts are now 20-5 on the season.

Shannon Morgan gets the 13-3 win over the much improved Naturals on Wednesday night. But the victory was an expensive one as Jake Smith (an original Cobalt of 22 years) returned to action and amazingly broke 3 bats in 3 plate appearances...and not one of the bats were his own.

Deuce Hock was the first to lose one, then Timmy Kid Klanke about cried when his prized 3 year old thumper shattered. Third down was Nick Schmidt who wisely lent Jake a vintage 1988 Wayne Krenchiki model that splintered in fine fashion.

Other highlights: Stoecklein hit his 6th homer. Doug Michelsen and Richie Ayala went 3 for 3.

Cobalts now 20-4.

The Cobalts started the second half of the 2008 campaign with 3 big wins.

On Wednesday it was Mike Daddy Hatfield who threw the 'Balts on his back leading to a 9-8 titanic struggle win over a fiesty Reds squad. Daddy Hat hit his 3rd home run of the season and shot-down the tying run at home on a relay from Deuce Hock. Tom Taylor also added 3 RBIs on the night. Kevin Heasley saved it for Brian Akers.

Thursday Night League action saw the young, fresh, and strong Ohio Heat take on what they thought was a bunch of old guys....right up to the point of the 'Balts laying a 6 spot on them in first two innings. From there it was the Paully Krause who dazzled for 5 strong innings. Jacob Campbell gets a couple key outs for the hold and Wags shuts the door in the 7th for an 8-5 victory. Tom Taylor drives in 3 more and makes several web-gems at SS. Daddy Hat's 3 RBI double sealed the deal.

Friday night under the lights was Cobalts vs. Yorkville. Rick Rosell took the hill again and went 6 1/3 before giving up a hit in a 4-1 victory. Tom Taylor, Mike Wagner, and Brian Stoecklein fueled the offense. Rick's complete game 1 hitter re-established his dominance over CRC hitters so far this year.

Cobalts are now 19-4 in 2008

Say what you want about the Cobalts over the past 22 years, but most would not call us the smartest group of guys to wear a uniform...well, that's changed thanks to The Admiral!

Kevin Heasley graduated from the Naval Academy this Spring with honors, a 3.7 GPA, and a Mechanical Engineering Degree. See link to article: http://navysports.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/070908aaa.html

Cobalts are proud to have Kevin in our uniform this summer before he is assigned to a nuclear submarine in Charlotte and changes uniform to that of an Officer.

Hail to the Admiral!

Cobalts started of the week with an 11-0 win over the Blackhawks. Brian Akers pitched 2 hit baseball and Mikey Taylor went deep.

Then rain.....then Battle of the Banks at Florence Freedom Stadium:

Game 1 Cobalts Win: 4-3 versus Hawks

Paul Krause pitched 6 innings of scoreless baseball in relief and the Cobalts put a one inning rally together against the Hawk's Jeff Saunders to secure the Cobalt victory.

Game 2 Hawks Win: 3-1 versus Dayton Braves

Game 3 Louisville Stallions Win: 2-0 versus Dayton

Game 4 Cobalts Win: 7-1 versus Louisville

Keith Becker goes 5 2/3 to get the win. Jacob Campbell gets the save. Pitching duel until the 6th when the Cobalts bust out with a go ahead double from Stoecklein and a bomb by Jason Cohill.

Game 5 Hawks Win: 3-2 versus Louisville Stallions

Game 6 Exhibition (Braves short pitchers/catchers - borrow Jeff "Scrote" Dietz (win) and El Vicator Carreon (save).

Game 7 Championship: Hawks 4, Cobalts 0

Hawks Win the Trophy as their pitcher shuts down any attempts of Cobalt rallies with 4 double-plays. If any Cobalt highlights, I missed them.

Cobalts now stand 16-4 as we start the "Back 9" of the 2008 Season...hope the bats wake up soon.

Paul Krause improved his record to 4-0 on the season as the Cobalts win again. The Woodpushers, slang for chess players-we hope, kept it a close 1-1 game until the 5th inning when Stoecklein hit his 5th dong of the year and Timmy Kid Klanke went deep in his first game of the season... he still remembers how to pimp it!

THURSDAY NIGHT RAINOUT....

Friday night split with veterans winning first game 10-0 folllowed by a young-guy loss to Hawks 10-8.

Cobalts now stand 13-3

Your "International" Cobalts will once again take on the world's best Semi Pro Teams at the GFI Tournament in British Columbia, Canada.

It was 2004 when the Cobalts last used their passports and came within one out of the money round at the GFI. (Then almost brought down the bars of Spokane).

So once again, Cobalt Nation will be able to follow the Labor Day Tournament live on the World-Wide-Web from Aug 27-Aug 31st.

Here we go again!!!

In game #1, the Cobalt veterans behind Paully Krause beat the Hawks 8-5. Jason/Jacob Campbell gets his second Save in as many nights. Mike Daddy Hatfield hit his second triple of the year and Tom Taylor drove in a few more runs to lead the offense. Couple of web gems from Corey Fischer also of note.

In game #2, The New Kids stormed the field and beat down the Cubs 10-5. Mikey Taylor went 6 innings for the Win. Steve Adams, Jeff Case, and Ben Bryan all with big hits but the night belonged to first year man Rob Tingale who went 4-4 with two doubles and 3 RBI.

After the double-header victories, Tingale shotgunned two Buddy Lights, brushed up against Rocky and mumbled something about "light-weight" and then pointed to the sky and dedicated his 4-hit performance to The Giuste!

Cobalts improve to 11-2

It took 8 innings but the Cobalts beat the Cincinnati Flames 5-3 in exciting Thursday night action in front of a capacity crowd at Roselawn Park.

The speedy Flames were held in-check by starter Mike Wagner, then Admiral Heasley who gets the "W", with a Save by youngster Jason/Jacob Campbell.

Offensively, Stoecklein drops another BOMB that tied the game up in the 6th. Tom Taylor drives in 2 big runs. Then Brando Beyerlein erupts in extra innings with a game winning RBI double followed by an insurance run - straight steal of home...ohhh soo pretty!

Cobalts are now 9-2 and feelin' good about it all.

The Cobalt Pitching Staff had recorded 3 straight 1 Hitters (Paully, Heasley, Rossell)... Now make it 4 straight after Keith Becker returns from a male organ ailment and shuts out the Cincinnati Stingers 10-0 with another 1 hitter.

Web-Fan-Favorite Brian Stoecklein started the Hit Parade in the first and just about all 10 hitters contributed to the Wednesday night victory. Defensively, Jason Cohill gets MAJOR PROPS for walling up the dish on a tough night.

Your Cobalts are now sporting a rotation that includes 6 pitchers as tough as you can find in Semi Pro Baseball...and I'm not even counting The Lady's Man!

Cobalts stand at 8-2.

Cobalts get two nice wins in the third week of '08 action thanks to 2 great outings by the youngest Cobalt staffers...

In Wednesday night's 10-0 victory over Clubhouse AC (formerly Crosley's) it was Admiral Kevin Heasley who threw lights-out. He was helped by the entire Cobalt lineup who kept up their hot hitting.

Then in the top-tier Thursday Night League, it was Rick Rossell who took the hill and threw a 1 hit shutout against the tough Chiefs (whose own hurler threw a 3 hitter gem). But in the 5th, Richie Ayala scored the game winning run on Tom Taylor's base hit to give the Cobalts a 1-0 Victory.

'Balts now stand 7-2 on the season.

Cobalts were monsooned-out on Wednesday night so came into Thursday night's match-up against Yorkville with clean uniforms, fresh legs, and full coolers, but forgot to bring their bats. The Yorkville troops put a 9-0 butt-kicking on your Cobalts - all in just 90 minutes...But we quickly filed that game under "poop happens" while taking fustrations out on those poor 54 Natches that didn't stand a chance.

Boy's in Blue-and-Gold had to regroup because Friday is double-header night. In Game #1 vs. the Cubs, Brian Akers throws for the "w" and the bats were awoken with a 12 run outburst lead by Michelsen, Bitzer, and Curnayn. 12-2 was the final.

In Game #2, Coach gave the pearl to Ol' Paully who was absolutely "dealing!" Mr. Krause throws a 1 hitter in an 11-0 victory over the Hawks/Sting. Bats stayed awake late into the night with a bomb from Daddy Mike Hatfield and big hits from Stoecklein, Ayala, and newcomer Steve Adams.

So all good again at the bat rack. Cobalts stand 5-2 on the young season.

After a freakish rainout on opening night in Dayton, the Balts got going with a Wednesday night victory over the boys of ATO, 14-0. Paul Krause and Wags looked in mid-season form while newcomer lefty Kevin Heasley finished out. Bats were led by Nick "i didn't retire" Schmidt who went 4-5 with 4 RBI. And newcomer Brian Stoecklein hit his 1st Homer.

Game 2, Thursday night League action versus Cheviot was another Shannon Morgan Show who went 4 for the win followed by newcomer Rick Rossell who was equally impressive going final three innings for an 8-1 win. Offense was helped by Cheviot miscues but Todd Taylor and newcomer Fred Breitling had big 2Bs driving in 2 RBIs each.

Game 3 versus the Hawks was not a game to remember as the Balts played poor defense, ran themselves out of innings (thanks to Hawks nice little catcher), and let a 7th inning lead evaporate into an 8-7 loss. Brian Stoecklein continued to impress going 7-9 on the evening.

Game 4 was second of the night on Friday versus Cubs. Mikey Taylor goes the distance in a gutty 1st outing and Balts win 8-6 behind more Stoecklein and couple of hits from Shannon Morgan.

Sorry, no humorous pictures or cute inside jokes - we got work to do boys!

The Dayton Braves have invited the Cobalts to open the '08 Season at Nitswitch Stadium on the campus of Wright State University in a 9 inning affair under the lights on Friday May 23 (7pm start).

The Braves are a perrenial power in the Dayton Roy Hobbs league and will be a great first challenge for the Cobalts. And, the Braves enjoy post-game beverages almost as much as the 'Balts so this gig may go well into the night.

So kick off the Memorial Day weekend by rooting for the Cobalts up at Wright State...directions on the "Yards & Parks" section of this web site.

For 22 consecutive years, the Cincinnati Cobalts have offered top level baseball players a chance to continue playing this nations greatest game while pursuing professional careers and raising families.

Each year, we strive to provide our players an opportunity to experience a higher level of play in tournaments and stadiums that are reserved for only the elite. Past events have been: Boston Red Sox's City of Palms, Minnesota Twin's Miracle Stadium, Grand Forks International in British Columbia, and Dayton Dragon Stadium.

2008 will be no different!

Cobalts will be hosting a July 4th Tournament at the Professional Florence Freedom's Stadium. The "Battle of the Banks II" will showcase the best Semi Pro Teams from Cincinnati, Louisville, and the NABA World Series Champions: Myrtle Beach White Sox....The stadium concessions will be ready to handle the onslaught of fans looking for hot dogs and beer!

Just another GREAT GIG for the 'Balts and their Fans!

New Shiny Gloves from Santa!

New Fancy Lumber from Stiggy!

New Stud Players from Rocky!

New Uniforms from Coach!

And,

New Exotic Workout from Ricardo!

Just Great to Get the Boys Back Together!!!

Another favorite Cobalt Tradition is the annual Winter Meeting held at the local Hooters each year. This year a gagle of Cobalts came together to discuss the coming year's plans for CRC League Play, Tournaments, Rosters, and Rocky's inability to grow a real beard.

After several plates of wings, frosty mugs, and long stares at Amanda, the Cobalts set the direction for what might just be their BEST season in their 22 year history. Let's just say there is BIG doin's in Cobalt Nation this off-season.

So get ready. Coach and the Boys will be back playing with a little edge this year...Can't wait!

Continuing the Cobalt "Fall Tradition" of playing baseball in Florida, the Cobalts are close to signing an acceptance to play in the MABL (18+ year olds) World Series held in late October in Tampa/St. Pete, FLA !!!

The advantage of this National Tournament is that ALL Cobalts will be eligible to play, not just the "Old 'Balts." This means a full-strength squad of Cobalts can represent and hopefully bring home that elusive ring.

So....as we put together the 2008 squad, we'll be asking the hard questions for roster positions:

1) Do you like playing baseball in October?

2) Do you like frosty beverages on the Beach?

3) Do you like Gladiator Movies?

Submit all applications to cobalt41@msn.com 

Recently uncovered beach pictures have cleared the Cobalts from suspicion of HGH and Growth Hormone use.

"There's just no way these guys are juicing" said CRC Semi Pro Commissioner Tom Nerl, "Sure the girth is there but...."

Coach was unexpectedly disappointed. Recent uniform size gains had given the Cobalt Organization some hope that maybe a few guys were actually going to hit with some power. Turns out to just be Natural Lite body weight-gain. 

If there are any current steroid users looking for a team - we're interested! No pee tests - guaranteed. 

Embarrassed by the inability to translate his Yakkute Swallow success into CRC victories, Kwi Chang has been throwing with both arms in the Semi-Pro Mexican Winter League.

Only time will tell if Kwi can make it on the Cobalt's 40 man roster this Spring...stay tuned!