Hhrbl

The Helping Hands Recreational Baseball League, more commonly known as HHRBL, is an amateur baseball league headquartered in Barto, Pennsylvania. The league has more than 60 chartered members aged 16 to 24, and stages games on weekday evenings and Saturday afternoons throughout the Berks-Mont area.

History

While the HHRBL did not truly develop into a self-sufficient league until the early 2000s, it was in operation in 1998 in the form of a neighborhood pick-up game held at Roberts Field. The original members that are still active include Tyler Nakonechny, Justin Sachs, Jared Sachs, Will Roberts. Josh Brokaw, and Leigh Ann Roberts.

The early form of the HHRBL could be described as a sandlot experience. Dealing with trees, bushes, curbs, houses, and the occasional bird, the league used wooden planks as bases and tennis balls instead of real baseballs, due to the size of the field.

After several seasons, it became apparent that Roberts Field was not large enough. The league moved to Helping Hands Inc. Field in Barto, Pennsylvania during the summer of 2000. Despite the move, because of inconsistent scheduling, the interest level and level of play was still rather low. However, in the years following it, the league continued growing, adding Tim Benner, Eric Sweinhart, Alex Patt, and Ryan Bellevou.

The league had still failed to create a stable base until 2004, when the league began a campaign to recruit new talent. This was essentially the beginning of a new era as the league began scheduling games each Saturday.

2007 was a year of significant change for the league, as it expanded to over 50 members, added a Wednesday evening schedule, and held its first All-Star Game. However, after receiving many complaints about field size and condition, the league was forced to relocate five miles to the south in June. The league played briefly at at the Douglass Community Park in Gilbertsville and at West Field North and South in Boyertown, before settling on a home field at the adjacent Boyertown Park.

The HHRBL also handed out awards for the first time in its existence in 2007. Veteran outfielder Phil Snyder was named Most Valuable Player, Sharif Saber took home top pitching honors, and Brennon Ferrizzi was named Rookie of the Year.

The 2008 season witnessed the league's first doubleheader, with two games being contested on adjacent fields at the same time on July 12. The league held a second doubleheader in mid-August.

It was also the first season where official statistics were kept, documenting player performance throughout the summer for the purposes of scorekeeping and facililtating end-of-year awards voting.

Naming Controversy

The league took its name from the operators of their original home field, Helping Hands Inc. After the field was closed and the diamond covered in June 2007, a brief controversy arose about whether the moniker should be kept. In July 2007, it was announced that the name would remain despite the absence of a Helping Hands representative or signage at the ballpark.

HHRBL East/West All Star Game

The HHRBL held its second annual All Star Game on August 4, 2008, at Boyertown Park. The event included 18 of the league's brightest stars, together and split geographically for the first time all season.

The East All-Stars defeated West 12-9 in a game that was largely a blowout for most of the game. Brennon Ferrizzi hit two home runs and recorded six RBI en route to Game MVP, while East put up nine runs in 2.2 innings on Ryan Miller. Although the contest, which remained at 9-3 for more than four innings at one point, eventually narrowed to a one-run deficit in the eighth inning, East pulled away with a strong ninth inning to pull off the victory as darkness fell.

The game's surprising popularity led to another East-West game the following week which East also won, this time by a larger margin.

The HHRBL staged its first All-Star Game in July 2007. The game encountered significant controversy after an off-field incident resulted in police activity one hour before game time. The contest eventually started on time, but was called after three innings.

HHRBL Off-Season Awards

In 2008, the HHRBL issued it's first end of year awards, voted on by the HHRBL Writer's Association:

Most Valuable Player Award:"Phil Snyder" (SS, 3B, OF) receiving 64% of the votes.

Sharif Saber Award for Best Pitcher:"Sharif Saber" (P, 2B) receiving 50% of the votes.

Rookie of the Year Award:"Brennon Ferrizzi" (2B, SS, OF) receiving 43% of the votes.

Golden Glove Awards:

Pitcher: "Sharif Saber" receiving 43% of the votes.
First Base: "Sean Frey" receiving 57% of the votes.
Second Base: "Chris Hetrick" after the award was vacated by Deric Hafer due to conduct detrimental to the league.
Shortstop: "Alex Patt" receiving 86% of the votes.
Third Base: "Mark McClure" receiving 86% of the votes.
Outfield (1): "Ryan Kramer" receiving 29% of the votes.
Outfield (2): "Tyler Nakonechny" receiving 26% of the votes.
Outfield (3): "Drew Sobjak" receiving 14% of the votes.

Player's Choice Award (Voted by each member's voluntary submission):
"Will Roberts" receiving 64% of the votes.

Top Prospect Award: (Awarded annually to the player who wants it the most)

"Matt Cassel" receiving 57% of the votes.

The 2008 awards are slated to be voted on immediately following the season, which ends August 21.

Fields Used

1998-2000: Roberts Field, Barto, Pa.
2000-2007: Helping Hands Inc. Field, Barto, Pa.
2007: Douglass Community Park, Gilbertsville, Pa.
2007-2008: Boyertown Park, Boyertown, Pa.
2007-Present: West Fields, North and South, Boyertown, Pa.
2008: Bruins Field at B.A.S.H., Boyertown, Pa.
2008: East Fields, Lower, Gilbertsville, Pa.

Trivia

• Helping Hands Inc. Field was known for a sunken pitchers mound, uncut weeds, bumps and holes, a backstop with gaps, and sometimes muddy conditions in the infield. Despite this, the field was largely in playable condition for most of its existence.

• While at Helping Hands Inc. Field, several balls were hit onto or over nearby Congo-Niantic Road. At Boyertown Park, despite a net constructed to keep balls off Madison Street, many home runs have cleared the net and fallen into oncoming traffic or onto the property of the neighboring middle school. This became more prevalent in 2008, after a midwinter ice storm felled trees and power lines, and with them the net that had protected Madison Street.

• Boyertown Park was vacated in August due to player complaints that the game had become too offensive. In recent weeks, home runs were being hit at a rate well above the league average, which some players felt was reducing the quality of play. The league moved to nearby Bruins Field on the grounds of the Boyertown Area Senior High, where it played out the remainder of its schedule.

• Only two home runs have been hit at Bruins Field, both by left-handed hitter Josh Moyer. Bruins Field is known for its short right field porch, relative to its distant left field dimensions.

• Only one home run was hit in the first season at pitcher-friendly West Field South, a line drive down the left field line by Mark McClure. In the second season of play at the West Field South, Brennon Ferrizzi cleared the left field fence to claim the second home run at that field.

• The league is known for a long tradition that dates back to its sandlot roots: the serving of ice cream for players and fans in attendance at the season’s final game.

• The last hit at the original Helping Hands Inc. Field was a Chris Hetrick double. Coincidentally, the first strike out away from Helping Hands was also by Chris Hetrick during the same afternoon of baseball.

External links

* [http://www.hhrbl.com Official Website]
* [http://helpinghandsinc.com Helping Hands Inc.]