CANTON,
Ga. – Led by one offensive outburst and flawless defense, Chain
Baseball 16u (6-0) won 7-2 over the St. Louis Gamers 16u Blue (4-2)
in a Tuesday evening pool F matchup at the 2012 WWBA 16u National
Championship.
Zack
Bullard (2014, Tift County H.S., Ga.), Josh Day (2014, Lowndes H.S.,
Ga.) and Trevor Wood (2014, Dublin H.S., Ga.) each drove in runs for
the Chain. Day is a verbal commitment to University of Georgia.
Tyler
Brown (2013, Statesboro H.S., Ga.) led the Chain on the bump, going
six frames and striking out five.
Chain
Baseball, which Buddy Meyer founded in 1985, originally was based in
Savannah, Ga., but now operates with its headquarters in Warner
Robins, Ga. In addition to its presence there, Chain has a facility
in Columbus, Ga.
The
organization’s current president Andy Burress, who coached the 16u
team on Tuesday night, said the goal remains the same as when Meyer
ran it.
“Our
goal is to help gentlemen earn scholarships by playing baseball,” said
Burress after the team’s victory. Burress himself played for the
Chain in 1993.
Some
notable players to have come through the Chain include St. Louis
Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright and Kansas City Royals
reliever Jonathan Broxton.
One
player that did not pitch on Tuesday is right-hander Robert Tyler
(2013, Crisp County H.S., Ga.).
“He
throws hard,” laughed Burress when asked to describe the
six-foot-five, 210-pound righty. “He throws it hard and harder. His
changeup is his plus offspeed pitch.”
Tyler
participated in last month’s National Showcase in Minneapolis,
Minn., and enjoyed it.
“It’s
just crazy to think that the top players in the country were all at
that one place,” Tyler said. “It was good playing in the
Metrodome.”
Tyler
touched 92 mph with his fastball at that event while also mixing in a
74-mph curveball and 82-mph changeup. Later this summer, Tyler bumped
his fastball velocity up a notch to 94 mph at the 16u BCS Finals and
did it again this past Friday against the Dirtbags 16s Black.
For
some players, attending an event as big as the National Showcase
would be the highlight of their summer, but Tyler earned an even
bigger honor within a month: an invite to the Perfect Game
All-American Classic presented by Rawlings.
“I
was excited,” said Tyler of his reaction to that news. “Everybody
told me that this summer was going to be the biggest one, but it’s
worked out pretty well so far.”
Listed
as Perfect Game’s number 52 prospect in the high school class of
2013 as well as number five player in the state of Georgia, Tyler
said he is considering Florida State University, University of
Georgia, Georgia Tech and Middle Georgia College.
“I
want to be in a good academic school because if baseball doesn’t
work out I need a solid education,” said Tyler of what he is
seeking in his college of choice.
Before
the Perfect Game All-American Classic in August, Tyler will travel to Syracuse,
N.Y. for the East Coast Professional Showcase. As far as the future
goes, Tyler said he aims to be a high draft pick out of high school
next June.
“If
I hit 100 mph, that would be good,” joked Tyler about his other
goals.