Hamilton Joes

The Hamilton Joes (Baseball Club) is a collegiate summer baseball team that competes in the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League (GLSCL), which is one of eight leagues formed under the National Alliance of College Summer Baseball (NACSB). (The NACSB is responsible for other high-profile leagues such as the Cape Cod Baseball League.) ^[1] The Club was named after legendary Cincinnati Red's baseball player and broadcaster, Joe Nuxhall. The Club's name is also a tribute to his legacy of giving to the community.

Hamilton, along with nine other teams between Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, use wood-bats, just as in professional baseball. The GLSCL is one of only nine leagues throughout the United States to do so. The use of wood-bats in summer baseball leagues gives top collegiate baseball players the opportunity to hone their skills, and showcase their talents and abilities in front of scouts from professional baseball. However, the players are not paid to play, so as to maintain their NCAA eligibility. All Hamilton Joes games, as the rest of the GLSCL games, are played by NCAA Baseball Rules.^[2]

The Joes' roster is made up of players from around the U.S. They play their home games at Foundation Field in the city of Hamilton, Ohio.

Team name and logo

The Hamilton Joes' team name and logo are taken directly from the city of Hamilton's native son, the former Major League Baseball pitcher and broadcaster of the Cincinnati Reds, Joe Nuxhall. The local legend's son, Kim Nuxhall, who founded and is the Executive Director for his father's namesake, the Joe Nuxhall Character Education Fund, agreed to allow the Joes to immortalize his father's memory, and the forename portion of his signature, "Joe", in the team logo.^[3]

Foundation Field

Foundation Field was dedicated April 2, 2002. It was a $400,000 legacy gift from the Hamilton Community Foundation during the observance of its 50th anniversary. Foundation Field is the home field of the Miami University Hamilton baseball team. In the summer of 2003 the ballpark served as home field for the Florence Freedom, an independent minor league professional team in the Frontier League. The team played in Hamilton while a stadium was being built in Florence, Kentucky.^[4]

Operations and founding

The Hamilton Joes Baseball Club was founded in 2009 as a non-profit organization, by their then President/GM, Hamilton native Mike Brennan,^[5] along with their Manager/Head Coach, Darrel Grissom. Grissom is also the current Head Coach and Director of Baseball Operations for the Miami University-Hamilton Harriers.^[6]

In March 2011, Brennan resigned from his positions and named his successor, Joshua Manley, who had been with the organization from its start. Manley served as the organization's assistant general manager in its inaugural season. The following year, in 2010, Manley carried his coaching duties over from the collegiate spring season to the collegiate summer season. Manley took over as Vice President and General Manager of the Hamilton Joes, while Darrel Grissom was promoted to President and remained Director of Baseball Operations.^[7]

Coaching staff

The Joes Manager/Head Coach, Darrel Grissom, has coached the Miami University-Hamilton (MUH) Harriers' baseball team, who compete in the Ohio Regional Campus Conference, for 12 years. Over his decade-long tenure at MUH, Coach Grissom has compiled an outstanding 338-165 record, winning 11 of 12 league championships, and 11 tournament crowns.^[8]

Also pulling double coaching duty with the Joes, is Grissom's Assistant Coach/1st Base Coach/Recruiting Coordinator from MUH, Joshua Manley, along with Pitching Coach - Pete Chavarria, and Butch Davis. The newest member of the Hamilton Joes' coaching staff is former Xavier University record-holder and Atlantic 10 standout, Sean West.

2010 GLSCL Playoff Champions

In only their second season in operation and their first playoff appearance, the Hamilton Joes won the 2010 Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League Playoffs and captured the league championship. Grissom's Joes entered the playoffs as the 2 seed, and squared off against the Southern Ohio Copperheads in the Semi-Final Best of 3 match-up. The Joes won the first game in Athens by a score of 6-2, and returned to Foundation Field to secure their Championship Series bid after a walk-off hit in the 10th inning by Joes first baseman Kyle Weldon to defeat Southern Ohio by a score of 9-8. In the Championship Series, the Joes faced off against the number 1 seeded, Licking County Settlers. The first game was played at Foundation Field; the Joes won this game 11-6, thereby taking a 1-0 advantage in the finals. In game 2, the Joes rolled to a 7-5 victory, and captured The Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League Championship for the first time in franchise history.

References

External links

• Hamilton Joes