Pictures for T-Ball and Rookie

As part of you registration fees – Debbie Stout has been around and captured all the team and individual photos – I understand some of you may have missed that night – pretty impossible for her to get everyone.  She will make a second attempt to get there to grab the few she may have missed – then hopefully within the next two weeks we can start getting those back to you.

New Schedules for Rally Cap and Rainouts (does not include Bluenose leagues):

Barb has created new schedules to accommodate missed rally cap sessions and rained out games.  Please go to the website and search under downloads to find your new schedules just in case your coaches have not forwarded them on to you.  An amazing amount of work – Thanks Barb!!

Senior Men – Dartmouth Dry – Thursday July 23^rd at 7:30pm – Beazley Field in Dartmouth:

On the above listed game – Eastlink will be televising the game as tune up for the camera operators for the upcoming Senior Men Nationals in August. They are asking all minor baseball players to come to the game – wear your team uniform and even make signs for the cameras. Chris Head – one of our summer students plays center field for the Dry – I encourage anyone wanting to take their team to the game to do so – the kids will have a great time.

Coaching Clinic:

A reminder to those who are planning on attending the level one coaches clinic – this Sunday night at the Sackville Sports Std – you should have started or at least made plans to have your on-line portion of the course completed by Sunday – session starts at 5:30pm in the classroom – located overlooking the curling rink.

Girls Day in Baseball - Sunday, July 26th:

Baseball NS will be hosting our second Girls Day in Baseball at the Mainland Commons baseball field in Clayton Park. Building off the momentum we started last year – this year’s event will be awesome.  Returning will be Melanie Harwood –along with Samantha Magalas from our Senior Women’s National Team. I am pleased to announce that both of our local men’s teams – The Halifax Pelham Electric and the Dartmouth Dry will be assisting that day with the skills camp. Both our Girls Provincial Bantam team and Hammonds Plains own Midget Girl’s team will also be on hand to motivate and encourage our young female ball players.  This day will be open to all girls in the province ages 4 and up. If anyone has a daughter who is not currently playing – please bring her out that day – we love to have her join us. Brad at Baseball NS and I are currently developing an on-line registration that will be ready in the next day or so.  I will send an email at that time to ask that you please pre-register that day.  I will also include a Q & A about that day along with a schedule.

I have mentioned before the average enrollment of girls per association across the country is around the 8 to 10 percent.  Total enrollment of players in Hammonds Plains this year is 520 and of that, 138 are girls ages 4 right up to 17.  Amazing!!  The rest of the provinces continue to look at us and scratch their heads – great work to everyone who helps me make this possible.

Recyclables & Food Donations:

As always I would ask that you continue to drop off you recyclables and food donations to the canteen.  Suggested items are ring pops, chocolate bars, pop, water, Gatorade, hotdogs, etc. - that is what we generally sell at the canteen on a weekly basis.  But am grateful for any items donated to sell.

Finally, good luck to our Bantam AAA team in the National Elimination tournament this weekend in Dartmouth.  If they win, they will go on to represent Nova Scotia at the Bantam National Championships later this year.

That’s it for now,

Holly LaPierre

The following divisions are to submit game scores to HPBAScores@live.ca within 24 hours of the game:  

~ Senior Rookie ~
~ Mosquito House ~
~ PeeWee House ~
~ Girl's PeeWee House ~ 

Please specify the date of the game and your division (i.e. Mosquito, PeeWee, etc.)  along with the results.

The Nova Scotia Bantam Girls team will be holding their final Selection Training Camp Sunday June 14th from 10am-3pm. Positions are still available. The Nova Scotia Bantam Girls Selection Camp will be held at the Allen Heights Ballfield in Head of St Margaret’s Bay. The Allen Heights Ballfield is located at the end of the Hammonds Plains Rd, 2km West of the Super Store on the # 3 Hwy. (please check the Field Locations link in the main menu on your left for detailed directions).  In the event of rain, all selection camps will be rescheduled to the next available Sunday.

All players must have a Jill cup, glove, long pants or sweats (no shorts), cleats and hat, plenty of water and should also bring a lunch. Bug spray and sun screen would also be advised.

Please reserve your spot and/or to get directions by e-mailing Steve Benjamin, Head Coach of the Nova Scotia Bantam Girls team at sbenjaminj@hotmail.com.

All interested players are encouraged to attend all three sessions.

I just wanted to give you a heads-up to an upcoming event you will definitely want to have your daughter attend.

For many, their daughters would have attended the first Girl’s Day in Baseball last summer in Fall River.  I have attached the press release as well as a group photo taken at the end of that day.  It was a huge success and the spin-offs have been amazing.  This concept has been launched across the country this year.  Two weeks ago Manitoba held its first Girl's Day using the model we created and received coverage on the CBC National News. Next weekend, NB and PEI will be hosting their own as well.  All of the other provinces will be following suit too!!!

The date for this year’s celebration will be on Sunday, July 26th at Mainland Commons (please don’t confuse this field with the Commons in downtown Halifax).  The Mainland Commons field is located next the Subway Soccer facility in Clayton Park across from the Keshen Goodman Public Library on Lacewood Drive.  I will send out details with a schedule, time and directions as the date approaches.  All I wanted to do right now is ask you to book mark this event in your calendar.

Mel Harwood, our National Player from last year, and the author of the letter that many of our girls received in the mail, has requsted us and she will be back!!  Also joining Mel will be Samantha Magalas also from Team Canada.  It should be a great day!!

I would also ask our Midget girls to please come dressed in full uniform that day to help out.  You are our role models for the younger players and I would really really appreciate if your help.

I am also looking for some people to step forward and help to organize this event.  Please let me know if you can help out.  Holly.Lapierre@bellaliant.ca

T-Ball, Jr. Rookie, Sr. Rookie and PeeWee Schedules (more to follow) are now available for download - click on the HPBA Handouts & Schedules link in the menu on the left.

I am pleased to annouce that the 2009 Field Booking Schedule is now available here on the HPBA website.  Click on the HPBA Field Booking Schedule link on the left and then select 2009 Field Bookings to download the latest copy of our schedule.

ATTENTION ALL COACHES

Prior to the start of the upcoming baseball season as well as throughout the season, please check to make sure the HPBA-issued baseball equipment in your gear bags is in good working order and that all of the pieces are accounted for (i.e. catcher's gear from Sr. Rookie level and up, bats, balls, etc.)

If you have any problems with your baseball equipment, please contact our Equipment Manager, Kevin Borgel at 835-9818 or 981-4944 or email him at kevinborgel@eastlink.ca as soon as you discover a problem.

With the arrival of baseball (and rainy) season, there is also the big question:

"What do I do in the event of rain on game day??"

If you are scheduled to play a game or have a practice on a day it is raining (or has rained), it is your responsibility to call the HRM field line 490-7100 - we are in the Western Region. 

You can also check the HRM Field Conditions website - they usually update their site around 3pm on weekdays and 7am on weekends:

http://www.halifax.ca/rec/field_conditions.asp. 

If the fields are closed, there is NO baseball - period.

Any use of HRM facilities when fields are closed will result in fines and possible loss of future scheduling privileges.

Pitch Count - Will be enforced for the divisions of Mosquito, Peewee, Bantam and Midget.  I will not get into the entire grid as it will become available but the following is the maximum number of pitches a pitcher can before needing one day rest and total maximum.  I will not do the in between days though the entire grid will be available.  The pitch count will be used for all BNS play.  This does not mean house leagues have to use the grid however a system is encouraged such as reducing the innings for mosquito to 2 and for Pee-Wee to 3.

Please note that these rules will also include league play for example the maximum number of pitches in a week do include games played that week.  Tournament play does not mean you start fresh.  This is also a change from what we may be accustom to now.  Coaches must keep this in mind.  The pitch count is being introduced because it is designed to protect arms.  If we allow the games during a week before a tournament to not count once the tournament begins then we would be defeating the purpose of the pitch count rule.

PART A
Mosquito 1 to 30 pitches (no rest), Maximum 70 pitches
Pee-wee 1 to 40 pitches (no rest), Maximum 80
Bantam 1 to 50 pitches (no rest), Maximum 90
Midget 1 to 50 pitches (no rest), Maximum 100

PART B
A pitcher can not pitch in 3 consecutive days regardless of pitch count

PART C
A player can not pitch and catch or catch and pitch in the same game

PART D
When a pitcher reaches his daily pitch maximum, he must come out at that time and cannot finish the batter.

Yours in Baseball,

Brad Lawlor
Executive Director, Baseball Nova Scotia
(902) 425-5450 ext 355
baseball@sportnovascotia.ca
www.baseballnovascotia.com
5516 Spring Garden Rd., 4th floor
Halifax, Nova Scotia
B3J1G6

Hammonds Plains A's Wearables and Accessories are now available on-line!!

  Check out our site at

 http://hpba.fundytextile.com/Default.htm

or click on the image below to visit our store.

Many thanks to Holly, HPBA President, and Kim at Fundy Textiles for their tremendous efforts in putting this site together.