This week marks the beginning of the South Dakota Legion state baseball tournament and it’s in our own backyard. The tournament will be held at Post 22’s Fitzgerald Stadium starting Wednesday. There are some very intriguing first round matchups- Spearfish vs. Watertown, Rapid City Post 320 vs. Brookings, and Rapid City Post 22 vs. Sioux Falls West.
The games start at 10 a.m. on Wednesday and I plan to be there for as many as possible, partly because it is my job, but mostly because it is going to be a great tournament. As opposed to many sports I cover throughout the year, I really enjoy legion baseball because West River teams are just as good, if not better, than East River teams. Unlike, football and basketball, Rapid City owns the majority of the state titles and this year not only does Post 22 have a good chance to win it, but so does Post 320 and Spearfish.
See you out there,
-Jake-

If you talk to coaches that come into Rapid City from throughout the country they often talk about how many good hitters have come out of Rapid City. From college coaches looking for talent to those who come here and play, they consistently remark that something must be in the water that produces good hitters. I agree, and Rapid City will continue to produce good hitters.
But something I’ve noticed this year is how many solid pitchers are in Rapid City. For both legion programs I would argue their biggest strength this summer is the pitching.
For Post 22 they of course have Kolton Emery, who despite throwing against the best teams on their schedule still has an ERA just over 2.00. The Hardhats have a number of other arms as well. Tanner Chleborad is only 16-years old, and in his last 22 innings has only allowed one earned run. Jarrett Jensen and Jon Hass are both 3-1 with ERA’s under 3.00.
For Post 320, their ace Brandon Rainford, who just returned this season from Tommy John surgery, is 4-0 this season and in 21 innings pitched has allowed only one earned run with an ERA of 0.42. Brad Winkelman leads the team in wins with a 7-2 record and an ERA of 1.76. Spencer Braun is 4-2 with an ERA of 1.43, and Aaron Anderson is 3-1 with an ERA of 2.25.
If pitching and defense win championships both of these programs have at least one part of the equation and don’t be surprised if their arms take them deep into the state tournament.
-Jake-

With the state tournament only two weeks away the Hardhats are getting hot at exactly the right time. Post 22 had an eight game winning streak early this season, but I think this latest stretch is the best they’ve played all season long.
The pitching has been relatively consistent all season, and has no doubt been the strength of the team. But what has been most impressive as of late is their offense. Rapid City is averaging 12 runs per game during their winning streak and is getting production up and down the lineup.
There was a point in the season where one just had to wonder where the offense was going to come from with this team. The bottom of the order was really struggling and the hitting with runners in scoring position or with two outs was sketchy to say the least. But suddenly the bats have come alive.
Parker Sullivan, who has been hitting all year, and just had his 17-game hitting streak come to an end, is leading the team with a .437 batting average. However, others are really starting to step up. Dana Hill has raised his average about 50 points in the last few weeks, and is now hitting .403. Kolton Emery is hitting rockets all over the yard as of late and is hitting .395 and leading the team in RBI with 40. Jordan Carlson has been the biggest surprise at .386 with 11 doubles and five triples.
But production has to come from others as well if Post 22 is going to continue this success. Donte Bledsoe, Brock Thomas, and Jarrett Jensen will also be key contributors in the coming weeks.
-Jake-

It seems like a different season that Post 320 started with a 4-8 record. A few of those early losses came to regional opponents and it seemed very much up in the air whether the Stars would go back to the state tournament.
But that has all changed. Post 320 has gone 25-5 since, and this week swept all three of their regional opponents. I still believe the regional tournament is wide open, only I think it is wide open for the second spot. I believe Post 320 is the best of the four teams, and I feel very confident that they’ll make their fourth state tournament appearance in five years. I would even go as far as to say this year’s team is a better all-around team than last year’s team which went 46-16.
As good as last year’s team was with players like Kyle Starkey, Chris Lindemann, and Nate Jacobson, they were mainly an offensive power. This year’s team can still hit, has way more pitching, and plays better defense.
The Stars are so good defensively because they’re solid up the middle. Zach Cimburek in centerfield can run down fly balls with the best of them, and their trio of catchers all play solid defense. But the main reason Post 320 is so solid defensively is the play of Brandon Kiewel at shortstop. Kiewel is without a doubt the best defensive middle infielder in the region, and we’ll see how he measures up against the rest of the state come tournament time.
As far as the other teams in the region go, having seen all of them play a number of times, it is going to be an absolute dogfight between Pierre, Sturgis, and Spearfish for the final spot.
-Jake-

Last night I watched Spearfish and Sturgis split a double-header. Both teams played good baseball and most impressive was the pitching for both clubs. The split again proved to me that the race for state is going to be wide open. The four teams in the region continue to beat each other.
Post 320 is the one team that has been beating the other three as of late. Though the Stars dropped games earlier this year to regional teams, they swept Spearfish and Pierre this week, and have a chance to make it a clean sweep today against Sturgis.
The regional tournament is just over a week away and I don’t know about everyone else, but I think it is going to be a great tournament, and any two of the four teams could be going to state.
-Jake-

First of all I must say that I’m happy to see people are actually visiting this blog. In Tuesday’s online edition of the Rapid City Journal there were a number of comments posted about the Post 320 versus Dickinson game. Several comments referred to something I wrote about Dickinson on this blog early this season when I called them, “fundamentally sound.” Some fans used my statement to say Dickinson was a quality opponent. Others said I wasn’t the ‘ultimate judge of young baseball talent.’ I say, thanks for reading. Ultimately, I believe, it is just another opportunity people take to debate which team is better- Post 320 or Post 22.

I have never weighed in on this debate. Not because I’m on the fence when it comes to this issue, but because as a journalist it is my job to remain balanced. I have to deal with people in both programs on a daily basis, and ultimately my opinion on which team is better is subjective and irrelevant.
I will say this, I know a lot of people want to see the two teams play during the regular season, and I very seriously doubt this will happen anytime in the near future. Who is the better team this season will be decided at only one place- Fitzgerald Stadium during the state tournament, assuming the two teams actually meet. I’ve always believed that talk is cheap, and all that matters is what happens between the lines.

I must also say that one of the perks of this job is interacting with players in both programs. I would say to people in Rapid City, these are kids, great kids, on both sides, who just want to play baseball, and yes, want to beat each other badly. But they also respect each other. I have witnessed numerous times players from the two programs interact and they have been nothing but respectful of each other. Often times they go to school together or play other sports together. The only people that undermine these efforts are a few parents and fans. I would urge these people to avoid singling out individual players, as I have often seen on Rapid Reply. If you want to criticize the coaches, so be it, they get paid, and they’re adults. (Though I don’t agree with personal attacks) It is great to see passion about baseball in Rapid City, but these aren’t professionals making millions of dollars, so don’t criticize kids who just want to play the game.

-Jake-

The Black Hills Community Bank Firecracker tournament has come to an end and it was full of quality baseball.
Merced, Calif. won the tournament by topping defending champion Rocky Mountain, Colo. in a great championship game. Both teams were as fundamentally solid as they come on defense, they attacked the ball as hitters, and had enough depth in their pitching staffs to push them through seven games.
For Post 22 it was a mixed bag of both inconsistency and success. The Hardhats started the tournament 1-4, but battled back winning their final three games to finish 4-4. At 21-15 it is still very much in the air what kind of team this will be. Post 22’s biggest strength is no doubt their pitching staff, but they will be looking to solidify the defense behind them.
Amazingly, the state tournament is just three weeks away. It seems like the summer has just flown by.
-Jake-

Had a chance to see Spearfish Post 164 for the first time tonight as they swept a doubleheader from a Chadron team that came in at 10-7. Spearfish is a very young team this year and coach Matt Kemp only has 19 kids out for his program from which to field two teams. 

Tough assignment finding enough arms to remain competitive. Interesting team nonetheless. Have one of the best shortstops in Matt’s younger brother Justin who simply gobbbles up everything his in his direction, and does it with ease. Allen Hemeyer can play with anybody and Rick White is a solid player as well. Other than that, lots of young players. Jay Darling had a win tonight and did a good job throwing strikes and making people hit in on ground. Sold infield defense did the rest. 

Have beat Post 22 once and were very competitive on an early season eastern SD swing. How club matures will tell the tale.

Probably will need a lot of 6-3 putouts in the scorebook to be successful.

Joe K

After the first day of the Firecracker tournament a few teams are already starting to separate themselves. Rocky Mountain Colo. the defending Firecracker champions went 2-0 on the day beating Coon Rapids, Minn. and Merced, Calif. The Lobos are the real deal and have to be considered the favorites to win the tournament. Missoula, Mont. also went 2-0 on the first day with big wins over Las Vegas and West Warwick, R.I.. The two undefeated teams meet Wednesday at 3 p.m..
Post 22 ended the first day at 1-1 after dropping their opener to Cheyenne, Wyo. and then bouncing back with a win over West Warwick, R.I.. Post 22 ace Kolton Emery pitched the night-cap and was outstanding. Emery threw only 55 pitches in the win, 41 for strikes, and retired 9 of the last 10 hitters he faced. That is the best I’ve seen Emery pitch all season and it could just propel Post 22 in the right direction the rest of the tournament.
-Jake-