Clarendon Hills Little League celebrates end of magical season
While no World Series championship was in the cards for Clarendon Hills, it did bounce back from its opening-round loss to Nevada to beat Pennsylvania, meaning the team returns home with a win on their record.
The positives of the experience and making it that far wasn't lost on the team.
'My dream was to play with my friends as long as possible,' said infielder Matthew Kalish. 'Just being here, learning new things about different cultures, was amazing. We spent a lot of time with the team from Japan, and being here with the international teams and all the other teams was incredible. This experience meant so much. I love and live baseball.'
Teammate Henry McMahon called the experience of participating in the World Series 'the best experience I've have had in my whole life.'
'It went by so fast,' McMahon said. 'We've been practicing for a long time. Knowing there are no more games is hard to take in.'
Clarendon Hills manager Brian Herold said all along that his team wasn't satisfied to 'just be there' for the World Series. But there was plenty to be positive about, even after being eliminated.
'It's an amazing experience, an accomplishment that was our goal,' Herold said. 'We quickly shifted gears when we reached this level. To play the best teams from across the world and to elevate your game, that is what we did.
'We're also very proud of our community and where we're from. We've had great support, and we're excited to come home and share our experiences with our community.'
Details had not been set as of Tuesday morning, but Clarendon Hills officials said there will be some organized celebration for the team.
There were watch parties set for the Sloan triangle in downtown Clarendon Hills for each of the three games the team played in Williamsport, Saturday night's moving inside local establishments due to storms.
The team got off to a rough start in its first game Aug. 13, finding itself in the elimination bracket by virtue of a 16-1 loss to the Mountain Region and Nevada State champion from Las Vegas.
But the team battled back Saturday night with a 3-2 victory over the Mid-Atlantic Region/Pennsylvania State champion in front of 20,000 spectators.
Herold's son, Brody, pitched the entire game and was benefited by the team scoring first, manager Herold said.
'We know we play our best when we're ahead, and it put Brody at ease with a lead,' he said.
Elimination came Sunday with a 9-1 loss to the West Region winner from Hawaii. Teams from Hawaii won the World Series titles in 2005, 2008, 2018, and 2022.
Clarendon Hills showed resilience multiple times during its summer run, as it lost a game in district competition to Naperville, before beating the same team for the championship.
After winning the Illinois state championship without a loss, Clarendon Hills was defeated by Ohio in the Great Lakes Region tournament, but came back again to beat that same team, which earned a berth in the World Series.
Players on the 2025 Clarendon Hills team were Brody Herold, Jack Kaczmarski, Matthew Kalish, Christian Gernot, Connor Lazar, Sean Bolger, Jack O'Malley, Liam Harrigan, Luca Striltschuk, Hudson Lauerman, Luke Schaller and Henry McMahon.
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Yahoo
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Little League World Series scores: Schedule, results as Washington, Mexico, Hawai'i, Canada are eliminated Tuesday
The 2025 Little League World Series is underway. Eight teams continue their quest to win it all in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday in the annual summer tournament. A new winner will be crowned in 2025 after last year's champion, Lake Mary, Florida, was eliminated in the regional round. Which teams will prevail and remain in the winner's bracket? Catch up on all of the action below. Wednesday's LLWS schedule Chinese Taipei vs. Venezuela | 1 p.m. ET Connecticut vs. Nevada | 3 p.m. ET Aruba vs. Japan | 5 p.m. ET South Dakota vs. South Carolina | 7 p.m. ET Little League World Series format In case you need a refresher, the 2025 Little League World Series will feature a total of 20 teams: 10 from the United States and 10 international clubs. Those teams will compete in a modified double-elimination tournament. Play began Wednesday, Aug. 13, with the winners advancing and remaining in the winners' portion of the bracket. Starting Saturday, Aug. 16, the teams that lost their first games will face off to determine which teams remain in the event. Once a team loses twice, it is eliminated. That changes once the championships begin. The U.S. championship game and the international championship game will be held Saturday, Aug. 23, and will both be single-elimination games. The same thing will be true for the LLWS championship game. That creates a scenario in which a team could be eliminated from the event with just one loss. Games will last six innings. If a game is tied after six innings, both teams will play the seventh inning as normal, with no ghost runners on base. If a game extends past the seventh inning, a runner will open each inning on second base. How to watch the Little League World Series Every game through Friday will air on ESPN. On Saturday, both the U.S. championship game and the international championship game will air on ABC. The LLWS championship will also air on ABC on Sunday. That game will begin at 3 p.m. ET. Fans looking to watch the consolation game on the 24th will be able to do so over on ESPN2. That game begins at 10 a.m. ET. Little League World Series scores Tuesday, Aug. 19 Japan 6, Mexico 0 South Carolina 3, Hawai'i 0 Aruba 6, Canada 1 South Dakota 9, Washington 0 Monday, Aug. 18 Venezuela 4, Japan 0 Nevada 1, South Carolina 0 Chinese Taipei 4, Aruba 0 Connecticut 13, South Dakota 1 Sunday, Aug. 17 Washington 3, Massachusetts 2 Canada 12, Australia 0 Hawai'i 9, Illinois 1 Mexico 2, Panama 1 The evening closed out with the New York Mets beating the Seattle Mariners 7-3 in the MLB Little League Classic from Bowman Field in Williamsport. Saturday, Aug. 16 Australia 5, Czechia 3 Massachusetts 7, Texas 3 Mexico 11, Puerto Rico 5 Illinois 3, Pennsylvania 2 Friday, Aug. 15 Venezuela 4, Canada 0 Nevada 5, Washington 3 Aruba 8, Panama 2 Connecticut 5, Hawai'i 1 Thursday, Aug. 14 Japan 12, Czechia 0 South Carolina 13, Massachusetts 0 Chinese Taipei 3, Mexico 0 South Dakota 2, Pennsylvania 0 Wednesday, Aug. 13 Venezuela 5, Puerto Rico 0 Nevada 16, Illinois 1 Panama 7, Australia 2 Connecticut 1, Texas 0
Los Angeles Times
an hour ago
- Los Angeles Times
Dodgers Dugout: The 10 best center fielders in Dodger history
Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. On Friday, we'll see how they did in the four games against the Rockies and look at the final Padres series of the season. But until then, here's a bonus edition of the newsletter. Here are my picks for the top 10 center fielders in Dodgers history, followed by how all of you voted. Numbers listed are with the Dodgers only. Click on the player's name to be taken to the page with all their stats. 1. Duke Snider (1947-62, .300/.384/.553, 142 OPS+, seven-time All Star) Snider is known primarily as a power hitter, but he also led the NL in runs three times, in walks once and in OB% once. He also led the league in homers in 1956 with 43 and in RBIs in 1955 with 136. He hit 40 or more homers in four consecutive seasons and it can be argued that he is the greatest player in Dodgers history. He also hit four home runs in the 1955 World Series and 11 World Series homers overall. Snider grew up in Compton and went to Compton High, where the Dodgers discovered him and signed him for $750 after he graduated before the 1943 season. He was assigned to the minors and developed a reputation as a bit of a crybaby, once demanding he be sent to another team after a manager flashed him the take sign. He joined the Dodgers in 1947 and was a part-time player for a couple of seasons. Branch Rickey took him under his wing in 1948 and helped him improve his plate discipline and his footwork in center field. He became the starting center fielder in 1949 and quickly became one of the better players in the league. When the Dodgers moved to L.A. in 1958, injuries and the Coliseum, with its' 430-foot distance to right-center, hurt his power somewhat. Snider hit only 15 homers in 1958 and 23 in 1959. He then became a part-time player again, but is the first Dodger to get a hit in Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers sold him to the New York Mets in 1963 and he retired after a season with the San Francisco Giants in 1964. It took him several tries to be elected to the Hall of Fame, finally breaking through with 86% of the votes in 1980. Snider died in Escondido on Feb. 27, 2011. 2. Willie Davis (1960-73, .279/.312/.413, 107 OPS+,two-time All Star, 3 Gold Gloves) Davis was an outstanding defensive player who led the NL in triples twice (1962 with 10 and 1970 with 16) and whose offensive numbers don't look as impressive as they should because he played during one of the biggest pitchers eras in baseball history. His best season was probably 1969, when he hit .311 with 23 doubles, eight triples and 11 homers, or it could have been 1962, when he hit .285 with 18 doubles, 10 triples and 21 homers, or 1971, when he hit .309 with 33 doubles, 10 triples and 10 homers. He didn't walk much and had moderate power, but he caught everything hit to him (except for that one game in the 1966 World Series, but let's not get into that). He is still the L.A. Dodgers' career leader in runs (1,004), hits (2,091) and triples (110). He was traded to the Montreal Expos after the 1973 season for reliever Mike Marshall and retired after the 1979 season. Davis played in the majors for 18 seasons and had over 2,500 hits, but strangely never appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot. Not that he would have made it, but he certainly deserved to be up for consideration. He died in Burbank on March 9, 2010. 3. Pete Reiser (1940-42, 1946-48, .306/.384/.460, 132 OPS+, three-time All Star) Pete Reiser never met an outfield fence he didn't like crashing into and it may have cost him a Hall of Fame career. After playing in 58 games with the Dodgers in 1940, Reiser came into his own in 1941 when he hit a league-leading .343 to go with 117 runs, 39 doubles, 17 triples, 14 homers and 76 RBIs. He also played great defense in center. That got him second place in NL MVP voting behind teammate Dolph Camilli (Reiser should have won). Reiser led the league in nine categories. He followed that by hitting .310 with 33 doubles and 10 homers in 1942, leading the league with 20 steals and making his second straight All-Star team. However, on July 18 of that year, he crashed full speed into the center field fence while chasing a fly ball. He ended up with a separated shoulder and fractured skull. In those days though, you didn't let little things like a fractured skull slow you down. He returned to the lineup a week later, but he wasn't the same. He hit .244 the rest of the season. He then enlisted in the Army and spent three years there. Reiser returned to the majors in 1946 and broke his leg while stealing second. He crashed into the fence in St. Louis and missed some time. But he still led the league with 34 steals, though his batting average dropped to .277. In 1947, he was chasing another fly ball when he crashed into the wall face-first. This caused another fractured skull. He was given the Last Rites by a priest in the hospital before making a miraculous recovery. He ended up playing 110 games that season. He was a bench player the following season, as he had put on a little weight and had been slowed tremendously by his numerous injuries. The Dodgers traded him to the Boston Braves after the season for Nanny Fernandez and Mike McCormick. He retired after the 1952 season and came back to the Dodger organization as a roving minor-league hitting instructor. He joined Walter Alston's coaching staff in L.A. in 1960 and helped tutor Maury Wills on how to steal bases. Reiser had a heart attack in 1965, went on as an assistant coach for other teams. Reiser, who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day throughout his adult life, died of emphysema in Palm Springs in 1981. He was only 62. 4. Matt Kemp (2006-14, 2018, .292/.348/.494, 127 OPS+, three-time All Star, two Gold Gloves) I won't write too much on Kemp since I assume everyone knows a lot about him. His arthritic hips robbed him of his speed, so if you only know him from his 2018 return, keep in mind that he stole 40 bases in 2011, 35 in 2008 and 34 in 2009. He never really had a bad season with the team, it's just that his best seasons were so good that his other seasons looked bad in comparison. He was robbed of the MVP award in 2011, finishing second to Ryan Braun of Milwaukee, who was later suspended for 65 games for violating baseball's drug policy. Kemp had a better season than Braun. 5. Mike Griffin (1891-98, .305/.399/.416, 125 OPS+) It's really hard to compare players from the 19th century to players much later, because it was such a different game. But Griffin was great and deserves a spot in the top 10. Griffin score 100 or more runs in six of his eight season in Brooklyn, stole 264 bases and was considered the finest fielding center fielder of his day. In 1894, he hit a career-high .357. He was named team captain in 1895. But his career ended strangely. Brooklyn fired manager Bill Barnie during the 1898 season and named Griffin as player-manager. He had that position for four games, decided he didn't like it and asked to be just a player again. Team president Charles Ebbets became the manager. After much cajoling, Ebbets convinced Griffin to try and become player-manager again for the 1899 season. He signed a contract for $3,500. What Griffin didn't know was that Brooklyn was having financial problems, as was Baltimore, so Ebbets (who was wealthy) bought the Baltimore club and merged it with Brooklyn. Baltimore was managed by Ned Hanlon, considered a top manager. Ebbets no longer needed Griffin as a manager, and sent him a new contract for $2,800 as just a player. Griffin refused, saying he had a signed contract for $3,500. In March, 1899, Ebbets sent Griffin a telegram that stated: 'You have been released to the Cleveland club. They wish you to report to Cleveland on Monday, to go with team to Hot Springs. Personally I wish you the best of luck in your new position.' Griffin said he wouldn't play for Cleveland. After two weeks of fighting over it, with various lawyers involved, Cleveland sold his contract to St. Louis. He never reported there, instead announcing his retirement and suing Ebbets for breach of contract. The New York State Supreme Court ruled in Griffin's favor. But Griffin never played in the majors again. He died in 1908 of pneumonia. He was 47. 6. Cody Bellinger (2017-22, .248/.332/.487, 118 OPS+, two-time All Star, 2017 Rookie of the Year, 2019 NL MVP, one Gold Glove) After his first four seasons, it seemed possible that Bellinger was going to be the best position player in Dodgers history and a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Then, while celebrating a home run in the 2020 World Series, he and Kiké Hernández high-fived so strongly that Bellinger separated his shoulder. He was never the same after that, hitting .165 in 2021 and .210 in 2022. The Dodgers had little interest in re-signing him as a free agent, and he has since played for the Cubs and Yankees, putting together solid seasons for both teams. But he has never again reached the heights he once reached. 7. Johnny Frederick (1929-34, .308/.357/.477, 117 OPS+) There's not a lot out there about Frederick. What is known was dug up by baseball historian Graham Womack: Frederick came into the league as a 27-year-old rookie in 1929 and led the league with 52 doubles (to go with 24 homers). He followed it up by hitting .334 with 44 doubles, 11 triples and 17 homers. Then Rawlings introduced a cork-cushioned baseball to the majors and Frederick's power slowly began to slip. He was out of the majors for good when the Dodgers traded him to a minor-league team in 1934 for Frenchy Bordagaray. In 1935, he hit .363 for Sacramento. He then hit .322 over five years with the Portland Beavers, who made him player manager for his 19th and final professional season in 1940. Frederick finished his minor league career with 2,467 hits. Add that to his major league total, and Frederick had 3,421 hits in his pro career. He died in 1977 in Tigard, Ore., at the age of 75. You can read much more about Frederick here. 8. Jim Wynn (1974-75, .261/.394/.463, 144 OPS+, two-time All Star) Wynn might be a little too high here, but he was my first favorite player on the Dodgers, so here he is. The Dodgers acquired Wynn from the Astros before the 1974 season for Claude Osteen. Wynn got off to a fast start and became a fan favorite, with the bleachers in left center being dubbed 'Cannon Country,' after Wynn's nickname, 'The Toy Cannon.' Wynn hit .271 with 32 homers and 108 RBIs in 1974 while leading the Dodgers to the World Series. Honestly, he should have won the MVP award that season, but he finished fifth to Steve Garvey, He got off to a good start in 1975, hitting .270 with 14 homers at the All-Star break, but slumped after that. The Dodgers, always ones at that time to trade a player a season too soon rather than a season too late, sent him to Atlanta for Dusty Baker. Strangely, Wynn is probably best remembered by Dodgers fans for a play in the 1974 World Series. Usually a standout defender, Wynn hurt his right shoulder making a diving catch near the end of the season, and his throwing arm after that had all the strength of a wet paper towel. Knowing this, right fielder Joe Ferguson and Wynn had a deal. If a ball was hit between them and a runner was on third, Ferguson would make the catch with the hope his stronger arm would hold the runner, or that he could throw them out trying to score. Game 1 of the World Series reached the eighth inning, with Oakland leading, 3-1. With Sal Bando on third for the A's, Reggie Jackson hit a fly ball to right center. With a left-hander up, Wynn was playing toward right-center, and Ferguson was closer to the right-field line, so it looked like Wynn's ball all the way. Wynn set himself for the catch, when at the last second Ferguson, who started racing over as soon as the ball was hit, cut in front of him, made the catch, and threw a perfect strike to catcher Steve Yeager 300 feet away. Bando barreled over Yeager, who held on to the ball for the out. Some Dodger fans, even now, think Ferguson was just trying to show up Wynn, which isn't true. 'I called to him that I could take it and he said 'Go ahead,' ' Ferguson said. Asked if that was true, Wynn responded 'Yep. Wasn't that one tremendous throw? It hurt my arm just to look at it.' You can watch that play here. 9. Brett Butler (.298/.392/.368, 112 OPS+, one-time All Star) Butler was a pest. He seemed to be on base all the time, ran the bases with reckless abandon and scored 80-100 runs every season. Signed as a free agent, Butler made the All-Star team in his first season with the Dodgers and led the league with 112 runs and 108 walks. His on-base percentage topped .400 three times with L.A. and he played solid defense. He was caught stealing a little too often (28 times in 1991 compared to 38 stolen bases), but he's the type of player you don't see too often in the game today. In May of 1996, Butler was diagnosed with cancer of the tonsils. He underwent treatment and returned to the lineup in September. He played one more season with the team and retired. 10. Kiké Hernández (2015-20, 2023-current, .236/.303/.413, 93 OPS+) I've written tons about Hernández. With the Dodgers, he has played at least 50 games at every position for the Dodgers, except pitcher (where he has appeared 10 times) and catcher (zero). One of the biggest fan favorites in Dodger history, he becomes an entirely different hitter in the postseason, where he has hit .278/.353/.522 in 75 postseason games with the Dodgers, including 10 homers and 26 RBIs. 1,302 ballots were sent in. First place received 12 points, second place nine, all the way down to one point for 10th place. For those of you who were wondering, I make my choices before I tally your results. Here are your choices: 1. Duke Snider, 1,193 first-place votes, 15,125 points2. Willie Davis, 107 first-place votes, 10,610 points3. Matt Kemp, 8,394 points4. Cody Bellinger, 6,731 points5. Pete Reiser, 5,706 points6. Rick Monday, 1 first-place vote, 5,651 points7. Brett Butler, 5,374 points8. Jim Wynn, 1 first-place vote, 4,266 points9. Ken Landreaux, 1,911 points10. Kiké Hernández, 1,579 points The next five: Johnny Frederick, Joc Pederson, Juan Pierre, Mike Griffin, Don Demeter. Who are your top 10 Dodgers right fielders of all time (including Brooklyn)? Email your list to and let me know. Remember, we are considering only what they did with the Dodgers. Many of you have asked for a list of players to consider for each position. Here are the strongest right fielder candidates, in alphabetical order. Mookie Betts, Buzz Boyle, Hubie Brooks, Thomas Burns, Dick Cox, Willie Crawford, Mike Davis, J.D. Drew, Andre Ethier, Ron Fairly, Al Ferrara, Carl Furillo, Shawn Green, Tommy Griffith, Babe Herman, Teoscar Hernández, Frank Howard, Jay Johnstone, Fielder Jones, Willie Keeler, Harry Lumley, Mike Marshall, Raúl Mondesi, Yasiel Puig, Frank Robinson, Reggie Smith, Casey Stengel, Darryl Strawberry, Ed Swartwood, Dixie Walker, Paul Waner and Hack Wilson. A reminder that players are listed at the position in which they played the most games for the Dodgers, which is why Frank Howard and Ron Fairly are listed here, for example. Willie Davis homers off of Nolan Ryan in the 1973 All-Star Game. Watch and listen here. Have a comment or something you'd like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Little League World Series scores: Schedule, results as Washington, Mexico, Hawai'i, Canada are eliminated Tuesday
The 2025 Little League World Series is underway. Eight teams continue their quest to win it all in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday in the annual summer tournament. A new winner will be crowned in 2025 after last year's champion, Lake Mary, Florida, was eliminated in the regional round. Which teams will prevail and remain in the winner's bracket? Catch up on all of the action below. Wednesday's LLWS schedule Chinese Taipei vs. Venezuela | 1 p.m. ET Connecticut vs. Nevada | 3 p.m. ET Aruba vs. Japan | 5 p.m. ET South Dakota vs. South Carolina | 7 p.m. ET Little League World Series format In case you need a refresher, the 2025 Little League World Series will feature a total of 20 teams: 10 from the United States and 10 international clubs. Those teams will compete in a modified double-elimination tournament. Play began Wednesday, Aug. 13, with the winners advancing and remaining in the winners' portion of the bracket. Starting Saturday, Aug. 16, the teams that lost their first games will face off to determine which teams remain in the event. Once a team loses twice, it is eliminated. That changes once the championships begin. The U.S. championship game and the international championship game will be held Saturday, Aug. 23, and will both be single-elimination games. The same thing will be true for the LLWS championship game. That creates a scenario in which a team could be eliminated from the event with just one loss. Games will last six innings. If a game is tied after six innings, both teams will play the seventh inning as normal, with no ghost runners on base. If a game extends past the seventh inning, a runner will open each inning on second base. How to watch the Little League World Series Every game through Friday will air on ESPN. On Saturday, both the U.S. championship game and the international championship game will air on ABC. The LLWS championship will also air on ABC on Sunday. That game will begin at 3 p.m. ET. Fans looking to watch the consolation game on the 24th will be able to do so over on ESPN2. That game begins at 10 a.m. ET. Little League World Series scores Tuesday, Aug. 19 Japan 6, Mexico 0 South Carolina 3, Hawai'i 0 Aruba 6, Canada 1 South Dakota 9, Washington 0 Monday, Aug. 18 Venezuela 4, Japan 0 Nevada 1, South Carolina 0 Chinese Taipei 4, Aruba 0 Connecticut 13, South Dakota 1 Sunday, Aug. 17 Washington 3, Massachusetts 2 Canada 12, Australia 0 Hawai'i 9, Illinois 1 Mexico 2, Panama 1 The evening closed out with the New York Mets beating the Seattle Mariners 7-3 in the MLB Little League Classic from Bowman Field in Williamsport. Saturday, Aug. 16 Australia 5, Czechia 3 Massachusetts 7, Texas 3 Mexico 11, Puerto Rico 5 Illinois 3, Pennsylvania 2 Friday, Aug. 15 Venezuela 4, Canada 0 Nevada 5, Washington 3 Aruba 8, Panama 2 Connecticut 5, Hawai'i 1 Thursday, Aug. 14 Japan 12, Czechia 0 South Carolina 13, Massachusetts 0 Chinese Taipei 3, Mexico 0 South Dakota 2, Pennsylvania 0 Wednesday, Aug. 13 Venezuela 5, Puerto Rico 0 Nevada 16, Illinois 1 Panama 7, Australia 2 Connecticut 1, Texas 0
