Eagles 14U - Burnett

Kenny Piper, of the AN Eagles 14U team, won 1st Place in the MLB Pitch, Hit & Run competition at Busch Stadium last Sunday.

Aquafina Major League Baseball Pitch, Hit & Run (PHR) is a FREE, 1-day event for boys and girls ages 7-14* that is simple to host. PHR is the official skills competition of Major League Baseball and can be hosted by any organization, league, civic group or set of volunteers in the community. An administrative kit is provided and the competition is free of charge for participants and hosts.

Boys and girls compete separately and participants have the opportunity to compete in four levels of competition including Locals, Sectionals, Team Championships and the National Finals at the MLB All-Star Game... read more

By Dennis Barnidge | STLhighschoolsports.com

The National Federation of State High School Associations didn’t need to be hit in the head with a bat -- or a 100 mph line drive -- to know it was time to do something.

That “something" arrived in the shape of a baseball bat and was clearly marked: Safer game.

Approximately six weeks into the spring season, no one is arguing the basics. A mandated move to bats with less firepower has taken some of the threat from a situation some argued was unacceptably dangerous. Power pitchers were zipping throws toward home at 80-plus mph, and batted balls were rocketing off revved-up aluminum bats at 100 mph and faster... read more

Letter from Mike Matheny.....

I always said that the only team that I would coach would be a team of orphans, and now here we are. The reason for me saying this is that I have found the biggest problem with youth sports has been the parents. I think that it is best to nip this in the bud right off the bat. I think the concept that I am asking all of you to grab is that this experience is ALL about the boys. If there is anything about it that includes you, we need to make a change of plans. My main goals are as follows:

(1) to teach these young men how to play the game of baseball the right way,

(2) to be a positive impact on them as young men, and

(3) do all of this with class... read more

by Jason Martin

Tenacious pitching and a dominating offense led the American National Eagles U14 baseball team to an impressive win in the United States Specialty Sports Association Spring Smackdown Game 7 Tournament on March 30. Led by coach Steve Burnett, 13 eighth grade boys from north St. Louis County outscored their opponents 43-9 over five games, never allowing more than four runs to be scored against them.

Burnett attributes much of their success to a high level of flexibility among his position players: nine of the 13 players are capable pitchers.

The American National Eagles 14U team opened up the 2012 season by winning the Game 7 tournament out in Chesterfield, MO.  The boys used dominating pitching, great hitting, and stellar defense to post a 5-0 record, outscoring their opponents by a combined 43-9.

The Eagles opened pool play by defeating the St. Louis Fury 5-2 in Game 1.  Dalton Niedringhaus threw 3 dominating no-hit innings (outside of a sac bunt, the other team did not put one ball in play in those 3 innings), Kyle Ver Mehren finished up with the save, and Anthony Green rocked one off the CF fence in top of the 1st... read more