WWBA | www.IndianaRBI.com

BY STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Team Indiana has been a regular participant in a premier annual youth baseball event.

Started by Dan Held, the fall team has had a sustained bid to the Perfect Game-sponsored World Wood Bat Asssocation World Championship in Jupiter, Fla., for years.

“It is the best tournament in the world for youth athletes,” says Held, who left the St. Louis Cardinals in 2006 and joined the Indiana Bulls travel organization as executive director in the fall of that year.

In the summer of 2018, Held left the Bulls to coach at Indiana University. In 2021 he left IU and returned to the Bulls as director of operations.

The Team Indiana Bulls went 2-1-1 at the 2023 WWBA Worlds held Oct. 4-9. There were 104 teams including 5 Star/Chicago Cubs Scout Team — a squad with many players from the Hoosier State.

“It’s nice to have so many opportunities for the Indiana kids,” says Held. “That’s what I wanted (when I started Team Indiana).”

Not only is it a tournament where it’s the best of the best available 18U baseball talent but it draws coaches from all over college baseball. Every Major League Baseball organization sends multiple people, including scouting directors and cross-checkers.

“It makes it extremely impressive for the kids to play in that kind of environment and atmosphere,” says Held. “(Evaluators) make sure they take their notes, cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s.”

About two-thirds of Team Indiana Bulls roster played at the WWBA Worlds in 2022.

“Having experience the previous year in Jupiter is a huge asset,” says Held. “It’s such a big atmosphere that you can get caught up in it.”

Held says returnees know what to expect. They’ve seen all the golf carts, college coaches and pro scouts and it doesn’t overwhelm them.

Who gets to play on Team Indiana?

“We have an idea within our organization who we want to target,” says Held. “A misconception going around now is that we’re just an Indiana Bulls team. That’s not the reality of it.

“We’re trying to find the best players we can in Indiana. This year it turned out that we had a really good squad with the Indiana Bulls that we didn’t need to go (outside of the organization) as much.

“We’re always trying to identify the best players that we can and take down the best that we can.”

Fifteen of 19 tournament roster players in the Class of 2024 with position, high school and commitment status according to Perfect Game website): catcher Sage Adams (McCutcheon/Uncommitted), right-handed pitcher Ty Adamson (Westfield/Uncommitted), right-handed pitcher Collin Cirks (Lake Central/Uncommitted), third baseman R.J. Cromartie (Penn/Notre Dame commit), shortstop Josh Girvan (Zionsville Community/Wabash Valley), right-handed pitcher Jack Grunkemeyer (Batesville/Uncommitted), third baseman Drew Helton (Whiteland Community/Purdue Fort Wayne commit), shortstop Brayden Hibler (Westfield/Uncommitted), right-handed pitcher Gavin Kuzniewski (Fishers/Ohio State commit) and outfielder Jayce Lee (South Bend St. Joseph/Notre Dame commit), catcher D.J. Scheuneman (Mt. Vernon of Fortville/Ball State commit), right-handed pitcher Aiden Schwartz (Lafayette Harrison/Uncommitted), right-handed pitcher Griffin Tobias (Lake Central/Indiana U. commit), right-handed pitcher Nash Wagner (Zionsville Community/Ball State commit) and right-handed pitcher Simon Wilkinson (Zionsville Community/Illinois).

The four in the Class of 2025: shortstop Trevor Corbett (Noblesville/Uncommitted), outfielder Andrew Krupa (Center Grove/Uncommitted), right-handed pitcher Parker Rhodes (Greenfield-Central/Xavier commit) and shortstop J.D. Stein (Carmel/Louisville).

The Indiana Bulls — and Team Indiana — were created as a platform of exposure for players to show their skills in front of college coaches and pro scouts. With that in mind, they let those folks know who’s pitching through social media etc.

At Jupiter, Held tends to put the starting pitchers out there and leaves flexibility on the back end.

“We want to put our pitchers in the best situation to succeed,” says Held.

Looking at the talent pool as a whole, many of the players in Jupiter have already announced or are considering college offers at the NCAA Division I level. Some stay eligible for the next MLB First-Year Player Draft by going to a junior college.

Regardless of commitment status, the athletes are being watched.

“As a college coach you’re always evaluating all the players on the field,” says Held. “You’re just not actively recruiting the kids that are committed already. You always want to have some notes on everybody.

“The Transfer Portal is a thing and it’s real so you’ve always got to be prepared.”

Through their diamond associations, the families of Held and Scott Rolen have become close.

When Rolen was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame this summer, the Helds were invited to stay at the Cooperstown resort where they were able to “hobnob” with Hall of Famers and attend the Cardinals party with owner Bill DeWitt and former St. Louis manager/Hall of Famer Tony LaRussa.

By STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Arsenal Indiana is expanding for the 2021-22 travel baseball season.
The affiliate of Arsenal USA Baseball is to go with 12U, 13U, 14U and 15U squads in its third season.
“Within two or three years I want to have teams from 12U through 17U,” says Arsenal Indiana director Jeff Cleckner. “I want to have one team at each age group and be very competitive.
“I don’t want to water down the brand with seven 15U teams.”
Cleckner, a graduate of Fremont (Ind.) High School (1989) and Purdue University living in Fishers, Ind., says the focus is on skill development at the younger levels and that the older ones grow their mental approach to the game as they prepare for college baseball.
But first the current campaign where Arsenal is fielding a 17U team with Cleckner as head coach and Arsenal Indiana director and a 14U squad guided by Steve Smitherman. In 2020, 16U and 13U teams took the field for the organization.
Playing six weekends of seven — starting with the first one in June — the 17U team has competed or will take part in events sponsored by Prep Baseball Report, Perfect Game and Bullpen Tournaments.
The team placed second during the holiday weekend at the PBR Indiana State Games at Championship Park in Kokomo. The 17U’s were 22-9-1 through 30 games.
The season wraps with the Perfect Game 17U BCS National Championship July 21-26 at Major League Baseball spring training fields in Fort Myers, Fla. All the other tournaments have been staged at Grand Park in Westfield.
“It’s nice with Grand Park,” says Cleckner of the large complex in central Indiana. “Everyone comes to us.”
High schools represented on the 17U roster include Avon, Fishers, Harrison (West Lafayette), Heritage Christian, Huntington North, Indianapolis Cathedral, Indianapolis North Central, Noblesville, Penn, Plainfield, South Adams, Wapahani, Wawasee, Westfield and Zionsville in Indiana and Edwardsburg in Michigan.
Since the older teams can play as many as seven games in five days, there are often a number of pitcher-only players (aka P.O.’s).
“It’s nice to have P.O.’s,” says Cleckner. “We can supplement as needed with position players.
“We’re mindful of arm care and arm health.”
The 14U Arsenal Indiana team began in early April and will play until mid-July and could easily get in 60 games in 3 1/2 months. The 14U team plays in same types of tournaments that the 17U teams plays at Grand Park in Westfield.
Arsenal Indiana tryouts are planned for late July or early August, likely at Grand Park.
A fall season of four or five weekends features a trip to the Perfect Game WWBA 2022/2023 National Championship Oct. 7-11 in Jupiter, Fla., for the upperclassmen.
“The goal of the fall season is getting a little more work going into the winter,” says Cleckner. “You have new kids who’ve joined your team and you’re creating some chemistry and camaraderie.”
The fall also provides more college looks for older players.
Arsenal Indiana trains in the off-season at Finch Creek Fieldhouse in Noblesville.
What is now Arsenal USA Baseball was began in 1995 by Joe Barth Jr. and son Bob Barth as the Tri-State Arsenal with players from southern New Jersey, Delaware and eastern Pennsylvania. Besides USA National in New Jersey, there are affiliate locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.
Many professionals and college players have come through the Arsenal program.