Thomas Stone today...

I was there. The North team was the best by far in my opinion. The Wilson kid from Frederick and the Blair kid from Calvert Hall were the best overall. Overall I would say it was a down year. There were some kids there I would think would have trouble making it past the first round of tryouts in the past. Some stand out juniors as well. I liked the Clark kid from Hammond, turned a nice double play from 3B and hit one off the fence for a 2B. I was not overly impressed by either the South or West squads - a few notable people missing as well. No Ramsey from Severna Park - I guess he chose not to tryout, he is a true talent.

Isn't Thomas Stone a nice place to see a baseball game? Coach G. has done a terrific job over the years of bringing that field (and playing surface) along.

My forward deployed sources gave me a similar report to you. In fact, my source said unequivocally that this was the most down year he has seen in a decade. No matter...I guess the kids who wanted to be there were, and I'm sure they had a great time competing.

Thomas Stone is a fantastic facility. It is amazing to see other counties and how they put money into athletics and facilities. I saw a game at North Point this year - what a palace, not just for baseball either. The entire complex puts some colleges to shame. If you look in Howard County, it is depressing, especially with all the money there. Very few coaches take the extra time to raise money and really build up their facilities. The coach at Thomas Stone should be commended.

Many years ago, Atholton was the showplace venue in Howard County for baseball...thanks to Don VanDeusen. When he left, my summer baseball club took over the year round maintenance of the field. As years went by, and changes to county policy took hold, my summer program was given less access to the field in the off-season. Then we were told we couldn't mow the lawn, drag the infield dirt, groom the warning track or nothing...during the summer season. And if we did, we would lose the field permit. It is horrible to see how the field and dugouts at AHS have deteriorated the last 5 or 6 years. Alot of fundraising and my booster money went into building those dugouts...**** shame IMO.

Why doesn't the MSABC list the rosters of the teams from each region on their web site so people can see who were chosen to play in the MSABC Classic. I was kind of curious who the pitchers were.

Banditsbb