By Andrew Drennen, ESPNRISE.com Baseball

The University of Texas got verbal commits, recently, from three of the top players in the state. Dex Kjerstad, Jacob Felts and Alex Silver all said yes to the Longhorns, who finished second to LSU in last year's NCAA College World Series. 

	Scott Kurtz/ESPN RISE
	Jacob Felts is one of three Texas preps off to Texas

 
"As a little kid I had always dreamed of going to Texas. I watched every Longhorn game I possibly could whether it be baseball, football or basketball,” remarked Bellaire (Houston, Texas) High School infielder Alex Sliver. 
 
Last year, Silver's Bellaire team was ranked No.1 in the ESPN RISE FAB 50 National Baseball Rankings.  That came to an end when they lost to Brazoswood (Clute, Texas) in the Class 5A state playoffs. Bellaire would end up No. 19 in the final rankings. 
 
When Silver heads to Austin, he is following in the footsteps of his family.  Silver's parents and sister all went to Texas, plus he added that it will only be a two and a half hour drive for his family to watch him play. 
 
Jacob Felts, a catcher out of Orangefield (Orange, Texas) High School, shared the same dream of playing at Texas as Silver did.  And like Silver, Felts has always been a fan of the Longhorns.  Felts, Silver and Kjerstad all played on the Texas Rangers Area Code Team this past summer, so they will be a little more relaxed when they head off to Austin next fall.
 
"I have gotten to know both Alex and Dex over the last couple of months and have become good friends so it's good to have some familiar faces to look at when I arrive at Texas,” said Felts. 
 
Silver was too thrilled that Kjerstad and Felts said yes to Texas.  "After playing with
Dex on the Rangers Area Code Team, I am very excited for him to be a part of our class as well.”
 
Both players said they felt the pressure of making this choice and why not?
 
This is a big decision to make, for anyone, not just these two. 
 
"There has honestly never been a bigger pressure and I was so happy to have that pressure lifted,” Felts said. 
 
Silver agreed that some of the pressure was removed, but noted that the pressure to perform is still there. "In some ways I feel more relaxed but in others I don't. I feel better now because the whole recruiting process is over, but I know I have to work hard everyday to get better.”
 
Both players are looking to improve and get better for 2010. 
 
"The outlook is looking very good because with the end of last year we only lost one senior so we have the entire team basically coming back and looking to make another run at the playoffs,” said Felts of his outlook for 2010.  Orangefield finished last year with a 23-11 record. Felts had a great year at the plate hitting a reported .471 with six home runs and 38 RBIs. 
 
Silver is looking for big things this year from Bellaire.  They finished with a 33-4-1 record they have 15 guys returning with varsity experience. "I hope this year we will have a stronger team since we are returning seven starters.”
 
The Longhorns should be excited about these three players who said yes to Texas. 

By Hilary May; Special to ESPNRISE.com

Kurt Jahnke is a pitcher/infielder out of Saguaro (Scottsdale, Ariz.) High School.  In 2009 he hit .308 at the plate and on the mound posted a 6-2 record with a 2.51 ERA.  His Sabercats' team went 19-13 on the year and made it to the first round of the playoffs, where they fell to Cienega.  

	Courtesy of Jahnke Family
	If Jahnke could go anywhere it would be to Australia.

ESPNRISE.com: If you could pick another sport to play, which would it be and why?

Kurt Jahnke: Hockey, because it's really run to play and the action never stops.

ESPNRISE.com: What do your pre-game rituals consist of?

Kurt Jahnke: I don't have any.

ESPNRISE.com: If you could face one hitter/pitcher of any era, who would it be and why?

Kurt Jahnke: Bob Gibson, because he was one of the most intimidating pitchers ever.

ESPNRISE.com: Why do you play the game of baseball?

Kurt Jahnke: I love going out to the field and not worrying about anything except baseball.

ESPNRISE.com: Who are the key influences to your success in the game of baseball?

Kurt Jahnke: The great players I've observed in the past as well as my teammates.

ESPNRISE.com: Where do you see yourself in baseball in the future and what are you doing to get there?

Kurt Jahnke: Play college and professional baseball. By working hard everyday on hitting, running, pitching, and on being a teammate.

ESPNRISE.com: What are your plans for the summer?

Kurt Jahnke: Play summer club ball, take a summer class and get ahead in school.

ESPNRISE.com: If you could hang out with one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Kurt Jahnke: Chris Farley. He was hilarious.

ESPNRISE.com: What do you do when you are not playing baseball?

Kurt Jahnke: Relax and hang out with friends.

ESPNRISE.com: Who is your favorite music artist?

Kurt Jahnke: Chronic Future.

ESPNRISE.com: If you had a free round trip ticket to anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

Kurt Jahnke: Australia, seems like a cool place to go.

ESPNRISE.com: What is something interesting about yourself that most people woudn't know?

Kurt Jahnke: I really like history, particularly Word War II.

Andrew Knepper; ESPNRISE.com

ARIZONA -- The Cincinnati Reds Area Code Tryouts continued on Saturday at Chandler-Gilbert community college in Arizona and with the temperatures steaming at a hundred degrees, the hotbed for the four corners was ready to work.  Last year the Reds team consisted of Arizona draft picks Tommy Joseph, Jake Barrett, Trent Stevenson, Matt Helm, and Thomas Lemke and today we are in search for next year's crop.
 
With the usual professional workout, the 60 yard dash kicked off the tryout and it consists of all eighty scouts at the end with their stop watches and all position players running their tails off to get that sub-seven number.  The player who ran their way to the under the "Line” speed number were:

Drew McKeever – Sahuaro High School, Arizona (6.90)
Michael Benjamin – Basha High School, Arizona (6.94)
Jake MacWilliam – Arcadia High School, Arizona (6.97)
DW Warner – Desert Ridge High School, Arizona (6.98)
Chaz Contreras – McClintock High School, Arizona (6.87)
Christian Muscarello – Catalina Foothills High School, Arizona(6.97)
Hunter Zwart – Mingus High School, Arizona (6.84)
Michael Howard – Prescott High School, Arizona (6.74)
Joey Rocha – Mountain Point High School, Arizona (6.81)
Sam Wilson – El Dorado High School, New Mexico (6.82)
Trever Allen (6.84)
CJ Rodriguez (6.77)

Next it was the outfielders chance to display their prized arms:  below are the top arms at the tryout.

Michael Howard – Prescott High School, Arizona
Sam Wilson – El Dorado High School, New Mexico
Jacob Doyle – Deer Valley High School, Arizona

The infielders were next: Below are the top fielders in this crop:

James Farris – 1B, Highland High School, Arizona
Jake MacWilliams – 2B/SS, Arcadia High School, Arizona
Darian Ramage – SS, Deer Valley High School, Arizona (2011 Graduate)
Alex Real – SS, Pinnacle High School, Arizona, (2011 Graduate)
Jackie Samora – SS, Apollo High School, Arizona

The next drill was the Catchers Pop Times (the duration from when the pitch hits the catcher's glove to when the middle infielder catches it at the second base bag).  Below are the recorded best pop times of the day:

Jason Parks (2.00)
Tanner Murphy (2.06)
Nathaniel Causey (2.00)
Kevin Cron (2.12)
TC Mack (2.02)
Shaun Chase (2.00)

More to come on this tryout this week.
 

Posted by Andrew Drennen; ESPNRISE.com

So what do you do if you are an umpire with an unruly crowd?

Most of the time you would try and tune them out.  But, what happens if they cross the line, then what do you do?

Well if you umpire, Don Briggs you eject the crowd.  Yes, he ejected the crowd.

Posted by Andrew Drennen

Standing in at 6-3, 185 pounds, Oakmont (Calif.) first baseman Tyler Kuresa is looking forward his junior year.  Last summer and this fall was a busy one for Kuresa, who played in the Rawlings World Series, Hard 90 Showcase, attended an Area Code Baseball Tryout and played in the Junior Olympics (Peoria, Ariz.). 

	Andrew Drennen/ESPN RISE
	Tyler Kuresa worked out with the first basemen at the camp.

Being a tall left-handed player, Kuresa said is was a natural fit to play first base. "From a very young age I was put at first base by my coaches,” he said.  "My older brother, (Trevor), signed with Brigham Young University as a first-baseman and I learned a lot of my skills from him.”

A good first baseman has soft hands and good footwork, something that he showed at an Area Code Baseball Camp earlier this month.  "I think in order to be a successful first baseman, you must train very hard on position-specific skills, such as ground balls, fielding dirty balls, pick-off tags, throws to second or third, and flips to the pitcher.”

He added, "I believe that all too often, first base is mistaken for a position where you can stick someone with no experience in the position and expect him to be successful at a high level of play.”

This year is important for Kuresa, as the recruiting process now becomes part of his an additional focal point in his high school season.  A process that has already began for the Oakmont standout.

"The recruiting process has already started for me, and I am looking forward to an exciting year,” he commented, "I am excited to get the opportunity to tour some very nice university campuses, and I am enjoying learning more about the schools that are recruiting me.”

Not only does he have to consider where he can play and contribute, but there are other factors that he is looking at as well.  Academics, the coaching staff, athletic facilities and other features that a school offers is important to him and his decision. 

If there is one part of the entire process that he is not looking forward to is calling a coach, who was interested, and telling him that he is not going to play for him. 

"I'm least looking forward to calling a coach, someone who has shown interest in me and tried to help me, to tell him I won't be attending his school.”

As for schools, he has interest in the Pac 10 and staying on the West Coast, but he added there are some other schools he would like to play at. 

"The first thing I look for in a college is a coaching staff that shares my general philosophies about the game. I would also like to play somewhere that will allow me to play as a freshman.  The next most important things I look at are the academic programs and location.”

Sounds like he has a plan.
 

Posted by Andrew Drennen

BaseballNorthwest.com released their top player lists from the great state of Washington.  Kyrell Hudson, an OF from Evergreen High School is the top 2009 player.  Hudson played on Washington Nationls Area Code Team this past summer and back in October was ranked No. 59 by Baseball America.

Last summer, in addition to the Area Code Games, Hudson played in the AFLAC All-American Game (Dodger Stadium) and the Under Armour Game in Chicago (Wrigley Field).

He signed with Oregon State this past fall.  "Oregon State really believes in the family atmosphere and family comes first. Family is real important to me and being able to be in that type of environment will make me a better stronger man. I also think I can come in and help make an impact right away," Husdon said in an interview with BaseballNorthwes.com.

Like many top high school players, the possibility of being drafted is there for Hudson.  He said,on BaseballNorthwest.com, that he is going to college and when it gets closer to that time.

2009     2010     2011     2012

Posted by Andrew Drennen

A new record has been set of 7.4 million high school athletes participating in high school sports, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.  The number of athletes playing baseball sits at just over 475,000 players.  Football was No. 1 with almost 1.2 million players. Baseball ranked No. 4 behind football, basketball and track.   Check the article out here.