Lions in NBC World Series

Lions Jordan Wishmyer (Jr./RHP), Brett Halstead (Jr./OF) and former teammate Brett Siegmund (Grad/3B) just finished a productive summer as they represented VU Baseball this past summer with the So. Cal. Bombers fo the Southern California Collegiate League. The Bombers placed in the "Sweet Sixteen" of the 75th annual 2009 NBC World Series. Halstead hit for a .385 clip for the Bombers in four games collecting 5 hits in 13 at bats. The Bombers recorded wins over the: Game Time LA Rockies 6-0 and Colorado Sox 3-0 and finished the tournamnet 2-2.

Lions of Summer

Lions Across the Country
Reid and Carls with the Grizzlies
Brett Halstead at the plateSeveral members of the Vanguard Lions baseball team continue to play the game of baseball after the collegiate season has concluded. VU's Jordan Oseguera (RHP, Taylorsville, UT), Jordan Wishmyer (RHP, Newport Beach, CA), Brett Siegmund (RHP/IF, Diamond Bar, CA), Brett Halstead (OF/1B, Redondo Beach, CA), Brian Carmona (IF, Whittier, CA), Jake Wood (OF, Lancaster, CA), Chris Carls (RHP, Windsor, CO), and Bryce Reid (LHP, Lake Elsinore, CA) are among those extending the baseball season into the summer as they compete in various collegiate baseball leagues across the country, with many hoping to increase their opportunity of pursuing a professional baseball career.
Carls and Reid, pictured to the upper right, are competing in Wyoming together for the Cheyenne Grizzlies of the Mountain Collegiate League. Oseguera, Wishmyer, Siegmund, and Halstead are playing more locally for the So Cal Bombers in the Southern California Collegiate League. Carmona is also in the Southern California Collegiate League, playing for the East Los Angeles Dodgers, while Wood was hitting .365 with 5 RBIs for the for the LA Cardinals of the Stan Musial League.
Use the following links to follow these participating Lions with their respective teams in their summer baseball leagues.
Cheyenne Grizzlies: http://www.cheyennegrizzlies.com/Mountain Collegiate League: http://www.mcbl.net/welcome.html
So Cal Bombers: http://www.socalbombers.org/
East LA Dodgers: http://www.eastladodgers.org/SCC Baseball League: http://www.sccbaseball.com/index.html
Chris Carls Cheyenne Grizzlies
Bryce Reid Cheyenne Grizzlies
Brian Carmona East LA Dodgers
Jake Wood LA Cardinals
Jordan Oseguera So Cal Bombers
Jordan WishmyerSo Cal Bombers
Brett Siegmund So Cal Bombers
Brett Halstead So Cal Bombers

VU Baseball in Review 2009

Within the Numbers
Having roughly 40 days to recruit before the 2008/09 academic year started Coach Grajeda brought in 13 recruits, highlighted by the #2 prospect in the NAIA by Baseball America in Nick Akins. Akins, a transfer form Riverside Community College, was drafted in his only performance at Vanguard in the 19th round of the 2009 Major League Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Akins was the first position player in the GSAC after leading the Lions in: home runs 13, hits 53, at bats 169, rbi 35, and was third in stolen bases with 9 and hit for a .314 avg., on the year. Grajeda’s recruiting class also produced the sixth best hitter in the GSAC in 2009 with Josh Manzano’s .379 avg.

Offensively, the Lions saw several returners blossom under the first year head coach. Derek Craddock , who in 2008 hit .217 avg., resurrected himself to a .325 avg. with 38 hits, 2 homeruns and 25 rbi. Keegan Freeman upped his 2008 average of .160 to a career high of .321 avg., with 50 hits, 5 homeruns and 25 rbi. Mike Anderson, who strictly pitched last year, hit .370 avg., in 73 at bats with 27 hits, 3 homeruns and 20 rbi.

Overall the 2009 Lions hit for a .289 avg., with 49 homeruns and 63 stolen bases. The 2009 homerun and stolen base totals rank #1 in school history since Vanguard changed its name form Southern California College in 2000. The Lions offensively in the GSAC in 2009 were:
-7th in hitting (2008 .220 avg. last)
-Tied for 3rd in HR’s with 37
-Tied for 1st in Triples
-Nick Akins was 4th in HR’s with 11

On the mound, a lone Lion was able to further his career as RHP Richard Jessup signed a professional contract with the Amarillo Dillas of the United Baseball League. Currently, Jessup has a .279 era in 39 innings of work.

The Lions were 5 games better in the GSAC with a 13-23 conference mark and overall mark of 19-28. In 2008 the Lions were 8-28 within conference play and 17-31 overall. The 2009 Lions have plenty to be proud about as they continue to move forward:
-Won 7 of 13 one run games
-More than half of the Lions conference wins were against postseason opponents
-The Loins beat 6 ranked opponents: #3 Point Loma (NAIA CWS Runner-up), #4 Biola twice,#8 Azusa Pacific, #15 The Masters College twice (NAIA Regional Participant), and #24 Fresno Pacific (NAIA CWS Participant)
-Produced 3 Scholar Athletes in: Sonny Berhends, Chris Carls and Matt Curtis.

With a firm foundation in place the future looks bright for the Lions in 2010.

Jessup Deals for Dillas

Jessup Deals for the Dillas in Third Pro Start
Jessup moves on to the Amarillo Dillas Amarillo, Texas – Vanguard University’s Richard Jessup did not waste time after graduation before moving on with life and his professional career. Just over a month since walking across the stage to accept his diploma and six weeks since he wore his Vanguard baseball uniform for the final time, Jessup was signed as a free agent by the Amarillo Dillas Baseball Club of the United League. The Amarillo Dillas Baseball Club, who have gone 8-2 since Jessup made his first start, is a charter member of the ULB, a Professional Independent League with six teams playing in Texas.
Jessup, a right-handed pitcher from Paso Robles, California, was contacted by the Amarillo Dillas with an invitation to a free agent tryout in Amarillo. He not only won the job, but was inserted into the starting rotation even sooner than he could have expected. The Dillas, the Defending UBL Champions, opened the season with a four-game series at the San Angelo Colts, beginning on June 11th. Losing the first three games of the series, Jessup made his professional debut as the game-four starter for the Dillas on June 14th. VU’s former hurler rose to the occasion with a six-inning effort, earning the win with just three hits and one run allowed while striking out five batters, preventing a series sweep by the Colts and notching Amarillo’s first victory of the season.
Wearing number 17 with the Dillas, Jessup, Amarillo’s fourth pitcher in a five-man rotation, made his first home start of the season at the Amarillo National Bank Dilla Villa against the league-leading Edinburg Roadrunners on June 19th. Although he did not get the decision, Jessup pitched 6.1 innings and allowed six hits and two runs (one earned) while striking out four and walking three batters. His solid start helped keep Amarillo in the game long enough for the Dillas to claim a 3-2 win in the bottom of the ninth, lifting the team’s overall record to one game above .500 for the first time this season.
Currently, the Dillas are now in second place in the ULB with an 8-5 record and Jessup set to make his third start of the season tonight against the Laredo Broncos in Laredo, Texas. Jessup (1-0), sporting the third-lowest ERA (1.46) in the league, will be looking for his second win of the year. One of the youngest players on the Amarillo Dillas roster and in the ULB, he has worked 12 innings in two starts, allowing nine hits, striking out nine batters, and walking five.
“This is no surprise,” says Vanguard head coach Ralph Grajeda. “Rich is a very driven person and he deserves this opportunity. VU baseball is both proud and excited for him.”
Jessup led Vanguard with 19 appearances on the mound this season working as a starter and a reliever. He started seven times with one complete game and led the Lions with three saves out of the bullpen. Jessup had a team-high 36 strikeouts in 52.2 innings pitched, while registering a 4-6 record and a 5.81 earned run average.
“Rich got all of our tough assignments this year,” added Grajeda. “He battled every time he took the mound.”
Jessup had a strong four-year collegiate career for the Vanguard Lions. Making 58 appearances on the mound, including 24 starts, Jessup accumulated a 13-16 overall record with one shutout, five complete games, and three saves. He struck out 112 batters, allowed 125 earned runs, and faced 1020 total batters in 219.2 innings of work with a career ERA of 5.12. The veteran pitcher was one of five four-year seniors on the Vanguard baseball team.
Use the following links to keep track of former VU Lion Rich Jessup as he continues his dream of making it to the Major Leagues.
Amarillo Dillas website: http://www.myamarillodillas.com/Local Newspaper: http://www.amarillo.com/localprosports/

Akins Promoted to Pinoneer Leauge

Ogden, Utah – Vanguard University’s Nick Akins, drafted in the 19th round of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers, was promoted from the AZL Dodgers of the Arizona League and made his Pioneer League debut with the Odgen Raptors, the Dodgers’ Rookie Ball affiliate in Ogden, Utah. Akins blasted his way into the Pioneer League with a double and a grand slam in his first two at bats yesterday against the Helena Brewers.
According to the LA Dodgers Minor League Report on August 6th, Akins was impressing the Rookie-level Arizona League with 15 RBI in his last 10 games, ranking fourth in the league with 34 RBI overall He had totaled 12 doubles, three triples, and seven homers in 31 games. He ranked second in the league with a .669 slugging percentage, and was batting .339 on the year with a .457 average (16-for-35) with runners in scoring position.
Akins’ success in the Arizona League led to his promotion over the weekend to the Odgen Raptors. Playing on the road against the Helena Brewers in Helena, Montana, the 6’1” outfielder from Los Angeles High School literally had a blast in his third appearance with his new team. With the Raptors trailing 6-4 in the seventh inning, Akins turned the game around with a one-out, opposite-field grand slam to clear the bases and break the game open. Including a run-scoring double in his first at bat, Akins completed the day going 2-for-4 with five RBI as the Raptors won the game 16-6 over the Brewers. Use the following link to read the complete story of the Raptor's 16-6 victory over the Brewers.
Akins and the Raptors will continue the four-game series in Helena, Montana today. Use the following link to follow the progress of Akins and the Raptors in the Pioneer League.