Colleges, showcases influence pitchers to skip American Legion

Senior Cyrus Baird of Hermitage is one of many players called on to pitch for Glen Allen Post 244, which struggles to find enough pitchers to throw nine innings in as many as five games a week.

Summer is associated with baseball, and for the area's best high school players, it means American Legion baseball, a decades-old institution. But during the past few years, what has previously been the most competitive game in town has lost some of its edge.

The best pitchers are skipping the Legion season in increasing numbers.

Some prefer showcase teams that promise exposure to college recruiters. Others are advised by college coaches not to throw, to prevent injury to their arms.

"Legion ball is down this year, for sure," Glen Allen Post 244 coach Rossie Dodson said.

With that decline comes increasing pressure on coaches, who must find enough pitchers to throw nine innings in as many as five games a week.

That pressure in turn affects college coaches, who prefer to coach players with fully-functioning arms.

"It's getting worse and worse," Virginia Tech coach Pete Hughes said. "We see ridiculous pitch counts, and kids throwing on short rest. Knowing his best years are still ahead of him, it's dangerous."

It can even lead to major surgery -- as it did four years ago for a Midlothian pitcher.

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Douglas Freeman High pitcher Patrick Scoggin got a booklet from the Virginia Tech training staff, detailing what he should do during the summer to keep his body in shape.

The list includes running, conditioning work and the occasional round of long-toss. It does not include competitive baseball.

"I always want to play baseball, and of course I miss it, but this is what I worked towards," Scoggin said. "I'm excited to start playing college baseball."

He won't have to wait long. Like most programs, the Hokies play fall ball -- getting a jump start on practice before the cold weather of winter sets in.

"There's no offseason anymore," Hughes said. "We build in downtime during the summer because we try to get rolling when they come back."

Once players are recruited to a college, the team's staff starts to keep an eye on their pitch counts -- the number of pitches that are thrown during an appearance.

Glen Allen pitcher Ryan West plays college ball at Louisburg (N.C.). His coaches allowed him to play Legion ball but put him on a pitch count of 40-45 pitches during his appearances, a number Dodson and his staff track.

That number allows him to throw for two or three innings, just a fraction of a nine-inning game.

"Even if you're throwing a full 90 pitches, you're only getting 6 or 7 innings, tops," Lakeside coach Ted Paul said. "You've still got to fill the other three."

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For underclassmen trying to get noticed by colleges, the path increasingly takes them to summer "showcase" games, where the best players travel to multiday tournaments around the country.

Benedictine's Kevin Buran, after considering the options, chose to play Legion baseball for Lakeside.

"I was going to play for another team, but it was a lot of money -- and this is easier. I don't have to travel," he said.

Buran committed to Maryland after his junior season. The coaches there encouraged him to play summer baseball but to keep his pitch counts in check. He plays as an outfielder most nights at Lakeside.

"If you're good, they'll find you," Paul said of the college scouts. "If they found you in 1940, they'll find you today."

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The American Legion season tries to cram a summer's worth of baseball into a few weeks. The result is four or five nights of baseball each week, and possibly more if a team reaches the postseason.

South Richmond's team made the American Legion World Series last year, resulting in a frantic three weeks of games at the state, regional and national level. Virginia Tech pitcher Ronnie Shaban contributed only sparingly on the mound, as he was recovering from an arm injury. He said that coach Byron Ballard did a great job of juggling pitchers to ensure that everybody's arm was kept fresh.

By the end of the tournament, players who hadn't pitched all season were being called on to help out in a pinch.

It wasn't the best competitive strategy, but it kept the players healthy. The most prominent area injury happened to Midlothian pitcher Matt Edwards, who left a game in agony during the 2006 Legion World Series.

He needed Tommy John surgery -- ligament replacement in the elbow -- and is just recovering to the point where he can throw multiple innings.

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Coaches and players interviewed for this article were unanimous in their support of shortening the games to seven innings -- the standard high school length. That decision, however, would have to be made at a national level.

Tech's Hughes urges coaches to keep the games in perspective and not jeopardize a kid's future.

"We've all got a little competitiveness in this game, but to throw excess pitches in a short time to win a title is dangerous," he said. "It really hurts a kid if you get a coach that doesn't know what he's doing."

It's a dilemma that is unlikely to be solved anytime soon, but the trend toward year-round play at colleges, and the rise of showcase games, could have unfortunate effects for the quality of Legion ball in the area.

Perhaps the best position to be in is a player. They'll take the field this afternoon, put the debate aside for a few hours, and just play baseball.

Contact Michael Phillips at (804) 649-6546 or .