Fall 2011 All Peninsula: Honorable Mention

Earlier this week, the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd team All-Peninsula honorees were released on the GMOT. And while those 33 individuals who were voted in certainly had great seasons, with a league as deep and talented as this one, there are many awesome kickballers who didn't quite make the cut. Let's take a look at some of the players who came up just short.

Pitcher

Free Ballin's Mark Flores

Jimmy Wilcox, VD - Jimmy's one of the best in the country, but injuries and out of town trips late in the season limited him. Despite that, he still only missed making the 3rd team by the narrowest of margins. Only 1 point separated Wilcox and SnB's Brent Wentworth (3rd person alert!).
Will Monroe, JFK - Perhaps no one throws harder in VA Peninsula than Monroe. The southside native enjoyed an outstanding debut on the Peninsula this season.
Mark Flores, Free Ballin' - In his first season of WAKA Kickball, Flores turned a lot of heads. "Mark Flores is simply a phenomenal pitcher. His stuff is nasty." Lick It Captain George Kiriazidis said recently.
Mike Seals, Jagernauts - In addition to having a great season on the mound, Seals was an animal (get it?) at the plate two. In Jagers' week 8 doubleheader he actually had an eye-popping 9 RKIs.
Josh Joyner, Burning Bridges - The Bridges had one of the top defenses in the league and earned the number 1 seed. Joyner and his pitching had a lot to do with that success.





Catcher

One of the best action shots of the
season. Thanks MKEH!

Adam Flowers, 5 O'Clockers - Flowers was a human highlight machine for the resurgent Clockers, leading them back to the top of the standings. At the plate, he was a difficult out to. All-around fantastic season, and probably deserved a nod in the top 3 as much as anyone.
AJ Derr, Shake N Bake - Derr steadily improved as the season went on and developed into one of the best defensive catchers in the league. His performance in the tourney was vital to SnB holding up the trophy in the end.
James Salgado, VD - The speedy Salgado was just about automatic at the plate as the lead off kicker for Vicious & Delicious.
Roy Gilbert, Burning Bridges - Better known for being the guy who played with no shoes (that is before someone brought it to the league's attention that WAKA Rule 2.02 requires all players to wear athletic shoes). Gilbert is a very quick catcher with a good arm.
Michael Machie, Battlestar Ballsacktica - One of the most powerful kickers in the league. When field 1 was set up about 50 yards away from home in week 4, "The Machine" took advantage and crushed one over the wall on the first pitch for the home run.




Charger

Rumspringa's Ricky Holmes

Ricky Holmes, Rumspringa - One of the league's best. #81 just barely missed 3rd team in one of the deepest positions.
Bryan Turcotte, Shake N Bake - Turcotte spent 1/2 the season splitting time at C and in the OF. Once he started settling in at charger, he quickly developed into an elite player. With a fulls season at charger next spring, I'd expect Turcotte to earn a spot.
Manny Anderson, Kick Ass - Probably the fastest player in the entire league.
Matt Martin, Lick It Before You Kick It - You'd be hard pressed to find a charger who can throw the ball faster than Martin.
Joey Smith, VD - A pure athlete (have you seen his abs?!), Joey fielded balls that most chargers simply don't have the range for.
Joe Mazzitti, Jagernauts - Although solid in the field, Mazzitti really stood out as a consistent producer of runs at the top of the Jager order.
Nathaniel "Jorts" Johnson, Foul Balls - Consider his campaign to make honorable mention successful.
Frank Council, Free Ballin - Council impressed in his rookie season on both sides of the ball. Deadly accurate kicker. Strong arm. Charger is not an easy position to play, and he picked it up quickly.
Kyle Rowley, Battlestar Ballsacktica - Didn't have him on the ballot, and I got a lot of feedback afterwards for it on the Facebook page. He'll be a charger I'll have my eye on for next season.

Utility Players 

Just a bit on the intense side.

Dr. Jeremy Pinier, JFK - The Flying Frenchman had another outstanding season at the plate for the highest scoring team in the league.
Bryan "NoShoes" Moore, VD - The self-proclaimed 'On-base Machine' backed it up. He always seemed to get on, and with his trademark aggressive style made teams pay.
Kim "Silver Bush" Merritt, Jagernauts - Pitched and charged for the Jagers. Sprayed line drives all over the field when he was up to kick.
Dave Dixon, VD - Versatile player who played first, pitcher, and the outfield, all at a high level, for the defending champs.
Justin Blair, Shake N Bake - One of the league's most powerful legs belongs to SnB's Blair.
Hassan Dubose, Kick Ass - The big man on KA was a deep threat when up to kick. Very good pitcher and first baseman in the field.
Mike Ramey, Jagernauts - Played several positions for the Jagers and was very good at all of them.
Jeff Pauley, 5 O'Clockers - The veteran Pauley pitched, charged, and roamed the outfield for the 5OC. Offensively, he had one of his best seasons yet. His new and improved line drive while kicking away was dangerous to opposing defenses.
Adam Henry, Chicken Tetrazzini - Pitcher. First Base. Outfield. Whatever the Angry Birds needed, Henry was there.
Kris Hodge, Chicken Tetrazzini - Probably the MVP of CT. Not sure, but he may have played every single position at least once this season for CT.

1st Base
Ryan McNally, Lick It Before You Kick It - In his first WAKA season, McNally showed why he was highly recruited by Lick It.
Dennis Gholson, Foul Balls - In addition to being the league's version of Darius Rucker, Gholson was one of VA Peninsula's best power kickers.

Outfield

BB's Travis Cobb

Nick Sutton, JFK - For most of the season, Sutton kicked 2nd in the league's top offense, laying down great bunts and getting on base consistently.
Tommy "Shit Kan" Zuppke, VD - Not only can this man party with the best, but he can ball too. Very quality player.
Keith Morehart, Chubby Gangsters - Yet another transplant from the other inferior league. Morehart came in and was an impact player for the Gangbangers.
Rusty Wallace, Rumspringa - Rusty covers a lot of ground in the 'Springa outfield and is as sure handed as they come.
Jeff White, 5 O'Clockers - The Smooth Operator.
Ryan Schmid & Travis Cobb, Burning Bridges - Cobb and Schmid were both offensive standouts for the top seeded Bridges in their debut season. I have very few doubts that either man will make an All-Peninsula team in the future once the voters see them some more.
Andrew Swenck, JFK - The best ginger who is over 6'5'' in the entire league.
Phillip Tanner, Battlestar Ballsacktica - Tanner is a great athlete who produces at the plate. Strong leg.
Myung Bae, Free Ballin - An all around offensive threat. This soccer player can place a ball wherever he wants.

Females

The Nard Dogg. 

Amy Lowe, Lick It Before You Kick It - No female player is as solid and reliable in the outfield as Lowe.
Courtney Travis, 5 O'Clockers - As a former softball player, Travis is a gamer. Few lady kickballers run the bases as smart as she does.
Sarah Crecelius, JFK - One of JFK's many outstanding women in their stable.
Julie Kittelson, Jagernauts - Julie kicked third in the lineup for one of the league's most productive top of the orders.
Jen Nardi, Foul Balls - Nardi pitched, and did so well, for the Foulies all season. One of the best pure kickballers in the league.
Nina Richardson, Shake N Bake - Richardson had a great season for the champs.
Kecia Warner, Rumspringa - A summer job cheerleading for the UFL's Virginia Destroyers had Warner coming into this Fall season in great shape. It paid off as she was a solid contributor to Rumspringa.
Elizabeth Ricker, Chubby Gangsters - Her teammates were singing her praises on Facebook and lobbying for a spot in the AP team for this newcomer. One to watch out for.



And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many more players deserving of recognition. For the full All-Peninsula voting results, please see this google doc.

photos courtesy of Mary Katherine Evans, Free Ballin'