21 players from across Southern Missouri have been selected to be a part of Cardinals Legacy Perfectos 2021 season. The team started the season with a 2-day, 5 hours a day practice spring training at Clearwater High School. Players stayed at the Stone Crest Motel in Piedmont, ate breakfast each morning at the Zepher Cafe and pizza-and-pop dinner provided by Piedmont Gas Mart on Tuesday (May 25) and a bar-b-que by the Holmes Family at Clearwater Lake on Weds (May 26).
This year the coaching staff consists of Manager Brian Becker, Head Coach Cole Sheets and Assistant Coaches are Perfectos Alumni Jack Becker (2019) plus Trey Davis.
Perfectos left Piedmont on Thursday morning for a private showcase at Missouri Baptist University where Head Coach Eddie Uschold and St Louis Community College Head Coach Scott Goodrich were to be attending. An hour before the showcase was to start the skies opened and thunderstorms scratched out the event. The MoBap private showcase has since been rescheduled for July 1st.
GMB Memorial Bash Tournament
The team was also scheduled to play Friday evening to start the 18U GMB Memorial Bash but that first game was postponed to Saturday morning giving the team of players an entire day with nothing to do in St Louis.
The St Louis Zoo was booked solid, but the players were split into two teams to see who could get the fastest time at Escape The Room - St Louis. It ended in a tie as both teams ran out of time on the final puzzle.
That evening the team booked a 2.5 hour practice at Bud Dome's largest indoor baseball field. A full 90 foot baseball infield on 145' x 145' turfed area plus two batting cages. Mineral Area College's closer (and Perfectos Alumni), Kaleb Richards (2019) drove up to be with the team and pitch live to the players. Players also got great hitting videos of their swing to post on their recruiting profile for college recruiters. Saturday the team had a double header with 1:40 time limits. Game 1 was against Adidas Athletics - Desloge and the teams fought to a 3-3 tie after 7 innings when time expired. Game 2 was against St Louis Recruits and Coach Sheets used the opportunity to give his younger players a chance to gel. The game was a 5-5 tie going into the bottom of the 6th where Recruits drove in a run and time had expired. Final score 5-6. After Saturday's games concluded, the Perfectos found themselves in 4th place and facing the 5th place Adidas Athletics again. After a quick top of the first with pitcher Jorden Eaton (State Fair College commit, Clearwater High School, 2021), the Perfectos came to bat with leadoff Joey Holmes (Clearwater, 2022). Holmes took the first pitch off the helmet and the impact ripped his ear in three places causing 14 stitches and a mild concussion.
A bloody Holmes insists, "I'm good, I'm good!"
Adidas took a one-run lead in the top of the 3rd and held off each of the Perfectos attacks in the remaining innings to win 1-0 in seven innings. Both teams' pitchers went the distance. Perfectos' Eaton threw a gem of a game taking the loss throwing 99 pitches. Eaton's one earned run loss had 11 strikeouts giving up 2 hits, a walk and hit by pitch. Manager Brian Becker said, "Jorden has grown so much as a pitcher over the past 12 months. I'm excited for him to continue his baseball dreams at State Fair College."
Adidas Athletics, after putting out the Perfectos in the single elimination bracket, went on to defeat the Nike Redbirds and Easton Tigers to win the GMB Memorial Bash tournament.
After playing 14 innings against the Perfectos, Adidas Athletics assistant coach Sandy Schenck said "It was a joy to share the diamond with the Perfectos this weekend. They definitely play the right way - fundamentally sound, always hustling, positive attitudes and with pure love of the game that you don't always see at this level." Prior to their first matchup, Schenck said he had read over the Cardinals Legacy web site (www.FoundationForBaseball.org) and even started following their posts on Twitter and Facebook (@CardinalsLegacyPerfectos), "it's an organization with a fantastic mission and we wish the Perfectos players and coaches continued success this season and beyond."
Home Opener vs Wayne County Lumberjacks
The Perfectos first home game of the season is against their sister-team, Wayne County Lumberjacks on Wednesday night June 2nd at 6pm at Clearwater High School.
The Lumberjacks are a newly formed adult team sponsored by Cardinals Legacy to provide players the opportunity to continuing playing the sport they love. The team is made up of college and post-college players as well as high school baseball stars who entered the work force rather than college. The Lumberjacks will play six games over the summer on each Wednesday night from June 2 to July 7. Four of the six game season will be against the college teams of Cape Capahas and Scott County Tropics College team.
Home Schedule @ Clearwater High School
Jun2 6pm - Perfectos vs Lumberjacks
Jun16 6pm - Lumberjacks vs Tropics College Jun28 5pm - Perfectos vs Tropics 19U Jun30 5pm - Lumberjacks vs 19U Mineral Area Orioles Jul7 7pm - Lumberjacks vs Cape Capahas
Most games are live streamed at facebook.com/cardinalslegacyperfectos
2021 Cardinals Legacy Perfectos Roster
#1 - Kayson King, 2023, Poplar Bluff
#2 - Jed Montgomery, 2021, Alton, commitment Evangel College
#3 - Axton Eisenbeis, 2022, Poplar Bluff
#4 - Levi Poulette, 2021, Thayer, commitment Missouri Valley College
#5 - Joel Koenig*, 2021, Saxony Lutheran
#6 - Jaden Anderson, 2023, Liberty
#7 - Lexton Haddock, 2021, Alton
#10 - Brycen King, 2021, Ellington, commitment Three Rivers College
#11 - Kade Lindgren , 2022, Meadow Heights
#12 - Jorden Eaton, 2021, Clearwater, commitment State Fair College
#13 - Brandon Mayes, 2023, Clearwater
#15 - Trae Davis, 2020, Meadow Heights
#17 - Cainan Heck, 2021, Alton
#18 - Dalton Gatewood, 2022, Poplar Bluff
#19 - Joey Holmes, 2022, Clearwater
#20 - Talan McDaniel, 2024, Greenville
#21 - Tad Davis, 2022, Bernie
#22 - Chris Collins, 2022, Piggott
#23 - Preston VanDyke, 2023, Kennett
#24 - Morgan Lincoln, 2023, Meadow Heights
#25 - Nate Ware, 2022, Zalma *Koenig was awarded the Presidential Scholarship to Missouri State for academics
About Cardinals Legacy Foundation for Baseball
The Perfectos team is made up of players from 13 different high schools spanning across 5,000 square miles of Southeast Missouri. When selected, the baseball opportunity is free of charge to allow players from any economic level to compete in showcase baseball. Sponsors of the Cardinals Legacy Perfectos include St Louis Cardinals Care, a current owner of the St Louis Cardinals and former Cardinals owner Edward C. Becker's (1892 - 1908) family.
Cardinals Legacy Perfectos' main goal is to get players in front of college coaches as often as possible. One method is to do private showcases where the program rents a college's baseball field and invites local coaches to attend. The team goes through a pro-style workout: 60-yard dash with laser timers, arm velocity (pulldown) with radar readout, fielding ability from position followed by a 3-inning, 5-batter per side, showcase format game to give the coaches a look at six of the team's top pitchers, and give each of the hitters 2 at bats.
Another way they promote their players is to hire college coaches to come into the dugout for a game to interact with players and get to know the Cardinals Legacy program. The players have a chance to interact with a college coach and the coach gets an up close perspective of the players' abilities. Following the game, the team's post-game meeting is conducted by the visiting coach who talks about their own program and college or university, and shares his observations about players during the game. Often, the college coaches go the extra mile and provide evaluation information about each player that the organization can use to promote the players on college recruiting services like FieldLevel.com or NCSA.org.
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