AAA Baseball Last Decade (99-08)

[Borobaseball]

With the 2009 season just a week away, I thought a historical perspective on the last 10 years might be fun. I have lived in middle tennessee for 15 years and feel fortunate to have seen many great players and teams in that time spand. Every year teams across the state's highest level have dreams of winning it all and being crowned State Champions. One team gets to turn dream into reality.......one team!

 

I have put together a 10 year history (1999-2008) of the TSSAA AAA Baseball Tournament. When looking at this remember that in the earlier part of the decade (99-02) only 4 teams made it to the state tournament. Expansion came in 2003, and 8 teams have reached the state tournament since. Arguements can be made for both formats, but this observer feels like the state tournament has been watered down since 2003.

 

Ok, here are my findings

 

Farragut-8 trips (99,01-06,08) 4 Championships (03-04,06,08) 3 Runner-Up (99,01-02) 25-9 .735 winning %

Oakland-4 trips (99-00,03,08) 2 Championships (99-00) 10-4 .714 winning %

Houston-4 trips (99,03,05,07) 1 Championship (05) 9-6 .600 winning %

Science Hill-4 trips (00,06-08) 5-8 .385 winning %

Riverdale-4 trips (01,03,05-06) 0-8 .000 winning %

Barlett-3 trips (06-08) 1 Championship (07) 2 Runner-Up (06,08) 10-3 .769 winning %

Munford-3 trips (02-04) 1 Runner-Up (03) 6-6 .500 winning %

Collierville-3 trips (04-06) 5-6 .455 winning %

Hendersonville-3 trips (99-00,03) 1 Runner-Up (00) 4-6 .400 winning %

Franklin-3 trips (05-07) 3-6 .333 winning %

Germantown-2 trips (00-01) 1 Championship (01) 4-2 .667 winning %

Lavergne-2 trips (01-02) 1 Championship (02) 4-2 .667 winning %

Knox Halls-2 trips (04-05) 1 Runner-Up (04) 4-3 .571 winning %

Ravenwood-2 trips (06,08) 3-4 .429 winning %

Mt. Juliet-2 trips (03,08) 0-4 .000 winning %

Ooltewah-2 trips (02,06) 0-4 .000 winning %

Overton-1 trip (04) 1 Runner-Up (04) 3-1 .750 winning %

South Doyle-1 trip (07) 1 Runner-Up (07) 3-2 .600 winning %

McGavok-1 trip (04) 2-2 .500 winning %

Lincoln Co.-1 trip (08) 1-2 .333 winning %

Bradley Central-1 trip (07) 1-2 .333 winning %

Smyrna-1 trip (07) 1-2 .333 winning %

Tullahoma-1 trip (05) 1-2 .333 winning %

Hunter's Lane-1 trip (04) 1-2 .333 winning %

Sullivan East-1 trip (03) 1-2 .333 winning %

Arlington-1 trip (08) 0-2 .000 winning %

Cleveland-1 trip (07) 0-2 .000 winning %

Columbia-1 trip (04) 0-2 .000 winning %

Soddy Daisy-1 trip (04) 0-2 .000 winning %

 

There have been 28 teams reach the state tournament in 10 years

11 teams have reached the championship game

6 teams have won championships

 

It was a great decade of baseball in Tennessee......how will the next one compare???

 

Please feel free to share you thoughts

[davidlimbaugh]

Best players I have seen:

 

#1 without a doubt is Zach Miller. I have an autographed ball and a home run ball from SEC tournament a couple of years ago of Zach. (Ask my Tullahoma friends about Zach - they remember

 

#2 is Wayne Kendrick of Riverdale. Made 2 errors in high school and went on to be MTSU's single-season hit record holder.

 

#3 could be a bunch of folks. Look around SEC and other rosters over the past few years and a lot of folks played in the Warrior Spring Classic and I was able to see them. David Price, Sonny Gray, Brian Morris, Kyle Waldrop, Tony Delmonico, Mike McHenry, Stuart Pomerantz, Jared Frazier, Zach Cozart and the list goes on and on.

 

And who can forget Lavergne's Matt Scott's senior year - someone needs to write a book about that!!!!

 

Got to see some great games over the years - several great (Not AAA) USJ vs Goodpasture games. A great Farragut vs Houston game at Riverdale a few years ago - DelMonico and Miller showed off that day - fun to watch!

 

I have seen Stuart Pomerantz throw 7 perfect innings at field #2 at USA Classic, and then almost kill a kid from Miami Christian in the 8th with a 93 mph fastball that sunk into his chest as he squared to bunt.

 

Watched Riverdale score 8 runs with 2 outs and nobody on base in the top of the 7th against Christian Brothers to turn a 11-4 game into a 12-11 game, including a 2-out, 2-strike grandslam by Alex Watson that put us in front.

 

(Not AAA) Watched Mikie Minor and Drew Hayes square off in what may be the largest crowd at MTSU baseball for a high school baseball game ever. It looked like everyone from Forrest and McKenzie took the day off and came to the Boro. I got to see sneak peak of Mikie as a sophomore when he pitched against and beat Marshall Co in their first ever meeting in baseball on a Saturday morning at the Warrior Spring Classic.

 

Watched the epic Farragut vs Houston game at Tiger Field in Memphis the first year of Spring Fling there, when they had 2 people directing parking and ran out of cokes in the second inning when no one except us true high school baseball fans anticipated the size of the crowd...

 

Outside those great Oakland teams of Sharber, King, Rauschenberger and crew, the best 4 teams I have seen in 14+ years all met in the same bracket: http://www.tssaa.org/2002Champions/StateBa...ssAAA/State.htm

 

Check out some of those boxscores and names. The first six hitters in Riverdale's lineup all went on to play D-1 baseball and they went 0-2. Those 4 teams were loaded. Some fun baseball to watch.

 

Seen some great teams over the years and some great kids. And we have more to see!

[TKZ1025]

With the 2009 season just a week away, I thought a historical perspective on the last 10 years might be fun. I have lived in middle tennessee for 15 years and feel fortunate to have seen many great players and teams in that time spand. Every year teams across the state's highest level have dreams of winning it all and being crowned State Champions. One team gets to turn dream into reality.......one team!

 

I have put together a 10 year history (1999-2008) of the TSSAA AAA Baseball Tournament. When looking at this remember that in the earlier part of the decade (99-02) only 4 teams made it to the state tournament. Expansion came in 2003, and 8 teams have reached the state tournament since. Arguements can be made for both formats, but this observer feels like the state tournament has been watered down since 2003.

 

Ok, here are my findings

 

Farragut-8 trips (99,01-06,08) 4 Championships (03-04,06,08) 3 Runner-Up (99,01-02) 25-9 .735 winning %

Oakland-4 trips (99-00,03,08) 2 Championships (99-00) 10-4 .714 winning %

Houston-4 trips (99,03,05,07) 1 Championship (05) 9-6 .600 winning %

Science Hill-4 trips (00,06-08) 5-8 .385 winning %

Riverdale-4 trips (01,03,05-06) 0-8 .000 winning %

Barlett-3 trips (06-08) 1 Championship (07) 2 Runner-Up (06,08) 10-3 .769 winning %

Munford-3 trips (02-04) 1 Runner-Up (03) 6-6 .500 winning %

Collierville-3 trips (04-06) 5-6 .455 winning %

Hendersonville-3 trips (99-00,03) 1 Runner-Up (00) 4-6 .400 winning %

Franklin-3 trips (05-07) 3-6 .333 winning %

Germantown-2 trips (00-01) 1 Championship (01) 4-2 .667 winning %

Lavergne-2 trips (01-02) 1 Championship (02) 4-2 .667 winning %

Knox Halls-2 trips (04-05) 1 Runner-Up (04) 4-3 .571 winning %

Ravenwood-2 trips (06,08) 3-4 .429 winning %

Mt. Juliet-2 trips (03,08) 0-4 .000 winning %

Ooltewah-2 trips (02,06) 0-4 .000 winning %

Overton-1 trip (04) 1 Runner-Up (04) 3-1 .750 winning %

South Doyle-1 trip (07) 1 Runner-Up (07) 3-2 .600 winning %

McGavok-1 trip (04) 2-2 .500 winning %

Lincoln Co.-1 trip (08) 1-2 .333 winning %

Bradley Central-1 trip (07) 1-2 .333 winning %

Smyrna-1 trip (07) 1-2 .333 winning %

Tullahoma-1 trip (05) 1-2 .333 winning %

Hunter's Lane-1 trip (04) 1-2 .333 winning %

Sullivan East-1 trip (03) 1-2 .333 winning %

Arlington-1 trip (08) 0-2 .000 winning %

Cleveland-1 trip (07) 0-2 .000 winning %

Columbia-1 trip (04) 0-2 .000 winning %

Soddy Daisy-1 trip (04) 0-2 .000 winning %

 

There have been 28 teams reach the state tournament in 10 years

11 teams have reached the championship game

6 teams have won championships

 

It was a great decade of baseball in Tennessee......how will the next one compare???

 

Please feel free to share you thoughts

 

 

Man thats great stuff right there... i know Tennessee isn't the best high school baseball state by any means, but man there have been some great players come out of Tennessee. Cool to see everyone's stats too

[baseonballs27]

We can't forget about Mr. Price. He is going to be one of the greatest pitcher's to ever come out of this classification. And maybe TN.

[Borobaseball]

I would take 1999 Oakland as the best team of the decade. They were the first team and established what would be a great decade of baseball. Nationally ranked in the Top 10 in three different polls... Game 2 of the State Tournament against Farragut who had beat them earlier in the season, down 6-1 in the bottom of the fourth they scored 15 unanswered runs in 3 innings to runrule Farragut. That game descibes how good they were...it was unreal

I think they had like 20 runrules that year

 

SS Brennan King---can't describe how good he was at Oakland....ask Tommy Lasorda he will tell you

3B Casey Rauschenber* may be the best talent I've ever seen.....he hit balls 500 feet across the road at Oakland....I saw it

P/OF/DH Jerry Knox----12-0 on the mound that year, destroyed Bradley at Bradley in the sectional that year....pitched a gem and hit 3 bombs

Jeremy Wilson---might be best CF in Oakland history....hit the Grand Slam heard around the world against Riverdale

Brian Blaylock---started career at Riverdale but finally saw the light..LOL....great defensive catcher

Joey Yost---Speedy Outfielder with TONS of heart

Ben Hendrix--Emotional Leader

 

Then you had those Juniors

 

John Williams---11-0 that year...one of the winningest pitchers in Tennessee history....Lefty that had ICE in his veins..

Jason Sharber---6-1 that year... Could throw a fastball thru a concrete wall....hit balls almost as far as Rauschenber...I said almost

Patrick Hicklen---Starting Pitcher in the College World Series for UT

Steve Kline---Nasty lefty....pitched at MTSU

Chuck Akers--- 4 year starter at MTSU

Shane Vaughn--solid 2B...worked well with King in the middle infield

 

And a sophmore by the name of Jeremy Slayden who played at Georgia Tech

 

All these guys were either drafted or played some level of college baseball

 

I know we will never know who the best really is.....but I would take this team and play ANYBODY

[BroncoFan]

I agree I believe Rauschenberger was probably the most talented player on that team. I was coaching at Goodpasture and we were to supposed to play them in the Tullahoma Tournament in 99, but got rained out. Played them and Germantown in 2000, and both were absolutely loaded.

 

And I agree someone needs to write that book on Matt Scott's senior year.

 

But Here is a look at all the State Titles won since the split after the 96-97 year.

 

Farragut (AAA) 4

Goodpasture (DII) (A) (AA) 4

CBHS (DII) 4

USJ (A) 3 -a 4th was vacated

Lipscomb (AA) 3

Covington (AA) 2

Oakland (AAA) 2

Baylor (DII) 2

 

18 other schools all 1

 

And still there is no school that has ever three-peated in TSSAA history

[columbiaguy]

I played against the '99 Oakland team and have seen almost all of the teams mentioned since then. Oakland is head and shoulders the best team in the last Decade and probably the best team in the history of Tennessee High School baseball. There is, of course, no way to prove that.

[Switchhitter]

Great thread!!! I've umpired the last decade in Middle TN and have called games with the best teams from this state...all the champions were special...I took region week off in '02 to see LaVergne and Matt Scott's great performance...

 

I am very proud to have had the opportunity and honor to officiate these great teams.

 

My most memorable game was the first game played at Blackman HS...David Price was a freshman and had just thrown a no-hitter against Mt. Juliet...Matt Scott was a junior and threw for LaVergne...LaVergne won 3-1 as Draper Oakley hit two HR's against Price.

 

Thanks to the Riverdale Warrior Classic I've been able to see Bartlett, Farragut, USJ, Goodpasture, Dyer Co., and many other class teams...

 

Looking forward to seeing who I will get to see at the classic this year.

 

Thanks Middle Tennessee!!

[davidlimbaugh]

My most memorable game was the first game played at Blackman HS...David Price was a freshman and had just thrown a no-hitter against Mt. Juliet...Matt Scott was a junior and threw for LaVergne...LaVergne won 3-1 as Draper Oakley hit two HR's against Price.

 

 

Oh! I forget about the great candy bar game! /hungry.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":hungry:" border="0" alt="hungry.gif" />

[Borobaseball]

This is great stuff....memories that will stay with us for life

 

I will always remember those Great Oakland-Riverdale games before the other two high schools came around.

 

Some of those middle to late 90's games could have been ESPN instant classics....but who could ever forget the Blake Melton game