How is this for making a first impression?
In the first pitching start of his varsity career,
Milford (Highland, Mich.) junior
Derek Beslock was perfect. Literally.
Beslock retired all 21 batters in order Thursday against Huron (Ann Arbor, Mich.) in a 6-0 victory. He struck out only one, instead relying on his defense to preserve the perfect game.
"He's been a project of mine," first-year Milford coach John Rogatski told
The Detroit News. "He was very methodical. He had excellent command of his curveball… That was his out pitch."
Here are a few other notable recent baseball items:
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Seaman (Topeka, Kan.) junior
Ryan Colombo took a perfect game into the seventh inning before settling for a no-hitter Tuesday. As reported by
The Topeka Capital-Journal, Colombo struck out the first batter of the seventh, but then walked four consecutive batters.
He induced a groundball double play to end the game for a 5-1 victory against Hayden (Topeka, Kan.).
"I'm pretty mad," Colombo told the newspaper. "I was trying to get a zero up there but I just got tired."
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Logan Frati made history for his school,
Eastport-South Manor (Manorville, N.Y.), firing the first perfect game in the program's 10-year existence, according to
Newsday. Frati struck out 13 in the 10-0 win against Comsewogue (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) and needed only 74 pitches in his perfect effort.
"It hasn't sunk in yet," Frati told the newspaper. "After it happened it was a surreal moment. It's something I'll remember for the rest of my life."
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Goose Creek (S.C.) sophomore
Cody Smith is having a season to remember. Smith tossed his second no-hitter of the season Tuesday in a 6-0 win against Geneva (N.Y.). The righthander pitched his first no-no on March 19.
"The mood just wasn't the same," Smith told
The Post and Courier. "It wasn't quite exciting as the first one. But it felt pretty good."
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Spring Valley (Huntington, W. Va.) junior righthander
Elijah Wellman turned in a Herculean effort, but didn't factor in the decision in a 2-1, 13-inning victory for the Timberwolves over Nitro (W.Va.) on Wednesday.
Wellman pitched 10 hitless innings and struck out 22, as reported by the
Charleston Gazette. In fact, Spring Valley pitchers spun 12-plus hitless innings overall, as Nitro's first hit came with two outs in the bottom of the 13th. The game lasted just a little more than 4 hours, according to the paper.
Wellman didn't seem too concerned about not getting the individual win: "I was on tonight,'' he told the Gazette. "We played hard, had a good game today and everybody played as a team.''
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Earlier this week we had an item on Toms River South baseball coach Ken Frank. Frank had tied the New Jersey mark for most baseball coaching wins, and Wednesday he moved to the top of the list with his 755th career victory.
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Arlington Heights (Fort Worth, Texas) coach Tommy Elliott announced he will retire at the end of the season, after 30 years at the school and 36 years coaching overall. He has posted a 719-304 mark during his tenure.
"I got to looking at that, and all within 20 games, I got my 700th win, 300th loss and 1,000th game," Elliott told the
Star-Telegram. "All that kind of came at the same time, so maybe it's time to wind this dog and pony show down and let someone else do it."
* A tip of the cap goes to the Baltimore Orioles, after it was announced that the
Baltimore City Public School baseball championship will be played this season at Camden Yards, the home stadium of the Major League team.