Heading into the week, the Cougars from 6-4-3 DP Athletics were not the favorites to win the Cooperstown Dreams Park National Championship. In the end, they silenced all nonbelievers by coming together as a unit to succeed with a 5-0 victory in the championship game over Beaver Valley. The tournament guarantees every team at least six games through pool play, and the top 32 teams after that advance to a single elimination bracket.
In the round of 32, the Cougars defeated the No. 36 SGV Cobras from South Pasadena, Calif., in a hard-fought 10-3 victory. During the next round they beat highly-regarded Team Mizuno from Texas in extra innings 4-3. This gave the Cougars the opportunity to face the San Diego Stars who, according to Cougars coach Danny Pralgo, “was one of the early favorites to take down that tournament.” Following the defeat of the Stars, the Cougars ended up beating the LaMorinda Spartans from Walnut Creek, Calif., 8-5 for their fourth win in less than 24 hours.
Winning all of these games set up a championship matchup against the Beaver Valley Red of Pennsylvania. Through four innings of the game, the Cougars starting pitcher, Rylan Goede, had a no hitter intact. Even with this feat still in place, Coach Pralgo thought the best decision would be to pull Goede for Kurtis Royalty. Pralgo stated that his pitchers throw many pitchers throughout the year and pitch count marked the primary reason Goede was taken out.
“We have 12 kids on that team and we’re going to use all 12,” said Pralgo. “We’re going to share the load and if we are just sharing the load and we are not good enough to win a baseball game it’s okay but we are never going to leave a kid’s arm on the field. We are going to win as a unit and lose as a unit. It is never going to be up to one kid.”
Even Royalty’s pitches rolled on all cylinders. He only allowed one hit in his two innings of work. The big second inning also contributed to the winning cause. With two outs, the Cougars rallied behind five straight hits to score four runs. The final run came on a Rylan Goede suicide squeeze in the third.
Pralgo also stated the use of pick plays made the difference for the team throughout the tournament. Early in the season they resulted in overthrows and errors but started clicking when it mattered most.
“Just watching our kids execute pick plays in key situations when the game could have gone the other way,” exclaim Pralgo. “I would say this as a unit was probably the turning points for us.”
One key use of the pick play occurred in the semifinal matchup against San Diego. The Cougars led the game 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth; the Stars had the bases loaded with one of their key hitters up to the plate. The use of the pick play took the Cougars out of the jam and caused them not to have to face a big threat with the bases loaded.
“We pulled out again another special pick play that we work on to get us out of that jam and not letting that big hitter hit with the bases loaded,” remarked Pralgo.
By winning the 10U tournament in Cooperstown, questions have spurred if the Cougars will make a return for the country’s largest 12U tournament, which is also held at Cooperstown Dreams Park. The park usually holds about 11 weeks of 12U tournaments each year and only one 10 U tournament. By having only one 10U tournament held at the park made the victory so much more special for Pralgo and the boys.
“No doubt. After having that type of experience up there we will definitely look at it,” proclaimed Pralgo. “The players and the parents would love to go on back, but we will definitely look at it one year at a time.”
One tradition the players and coaches would take part in again if the Cougars make a return in a few years is the pin trading event. This involves players from all teams trading their own pins amongst other teams. This usually takes part in the barracks after games or meals. There was that one elusive pin the boys did chase after the whole week in addition to gathering pins from all the other teams. The pins always create memories and help build friendships among players on other teams.
“It was so fun watching these kids just make all new friends from across the country,” proclaimed Pralgo. “As soon as these games were over, all these kids were hanging out at the barracks trading pins, sharing stories, playing whiffle ball games together. It’s like one big baseball family that goes on up there.”
Pralgo also compared the barracks to an Olympic village. Parents could not come in contact with the players; they only can see the players from the stands at the fields. This helped the players and coaches bond with one another. It truly created a baseball family for the 6-4-3 DP Athletics Cougars.
In the end, the Cougars learned to not just play for themselves but for the team. Before the championship game, players discussed whom they wanted to win the game for, and many stated for their teammates and coaches. It brought the team so much close to each other right before the big game.
However the spark of the moment before the game occurred when “God Bless the U.S.A.” played over the loud speaker. Each Cougar put an arm around a teammate’s shoulder and started swaying to the music. This embellished the relationship each had with each other, and they clearly expressed the friendships that they cherished.
“It didn’t matter whether we won or lost anymore,” said Pralgo. “It’s not about the game of baseball, but it’s about the game of life and life experiences.”
For the Cougars, shortstop Dominic Blaylock was a catalyst throughout the tournament.
One of the best athletes on the team, Blaylock ran the fastest time in the Road Runner competition with a time of 13.75 seconds. A player from all 83 teams was selected by their coaches to compete in the contest.
“A lot of people compare Dominick to Corey Patterson,” remarked his father, John Woods.
Woods also stated that there is a chance for Dominick to set a record if he returns for the 12U tournament; Cooperstown Dreams Park officials told him Dominick could break Delino DeShields Jr.’s record of 12.06 seconds in the Road Runner.
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