Hoberg’s hitting improved Superstition pays off for shortstop

BANGOR – Baseball is a game of superstition, and Urbandale, Iowa, shortstop Mike Hoberg wasn’t above resorting to positive vibrations in an attempt to boost his game at the Senior League World Series.

Hoberg, the leadoff hitter for the new SLWS champions, had struggled at the plate during the U.S. Central regional tournament and went 0-for-2 in his series debut against Latin America.

So instead of sleeping in his bed after that first game, he opted for the floor.

He may have been a little sore the next day, as he went 1-for-3 in a win against 2004 series champion Freehold Township, N.J.

But in his last four tournament games, Hoberg went 9 for 14, including a 3-for-3 effort in a semifinal win against Clarkesville, Ga., and 3 for 5 in Saturday’s 7-2 championship-game victory over Pearl City, Hawaii.

He also had three RBIs, three stolen bases and three runs scored in his last two games as he ignited the Urbandale offense.

“It pays to sleep on the floor,” said Hoberg’s dad, Urbandale manager John Hoberg. “Once he started sleeping on the floor, he started hitting, and once he did that, he said, ‘hey, I’m not going to mess with something that’s working.'”

Pitching proves pivotal

As confirmation of the “pitching wins championships” clich?, look no further than the 2005 SLWS champions from Urbandale, Iowa.

In 39 tournament innings, Urbandale pitchers allowed just 22 hits and 10 earned runs, while holding opponents to a combined .186 batting average.

That effort was led by lefthander Jared Norris, who allowed just three earned runs and seven hits in two complete-game victories.

Urbandale also got complete-game wins from Alex Conlon, Brad Watson and Sean Raisch, performances that set the U.S. Central champions up to have Norris available for the championship game.

The Urbandale pitching staff didn’t overpower its opposition, but mixed pitches effectively and threw strikes – yielding just 17 walks while recording 33 strikeouts.

“We were fortunate that the other guys could do their jobs to get us in position to throw Lefty in the finals,” said Urbandale manager John Hoberg.

Attendance on the upswing

Attendance at this year’s Senior League World Series looked to be ahead of last year’s turnout, with a crowd estimated by tournament officials at 1,300 on hand for Saturday’s championship game.

The increase could be attributed to several factors, among them host Bangor’s competitive showing in pool play, close games throughout the tournament, and decent weather for most of the seven-day tournament.

The series was hampered by rain on opening night Sunday, Aug. 14, with one first-round game suspended until the following Wednesday. Threatening skies also greeted fans and teams involved in Saturday’s final, but with the exception of an early mist, the weather did not play a factor and the Mansfield Stadium stands gradually filled.

Pool A wins all-star game

A new feature of the Senior League World Series this year was an all-star game held before Saturday’s championship contest that featured the top players from the eight teams not competing in the final.

Pool A scored five runs in the fifth inning, and went on to an 8-7 victory over the Pool B stars.

Neal Russell of host Bangor and Brannon Humphries of U.S. South champion Clarkesville, Ga., each had two singles for the winners, while Alejandro Diaz of Asia-Pacific champ Agana, Guam, added a two-run double.

Ruben Tejada of Latin America champion Santiago Veraguas, Panama, led Pool B with two singles, a double and three runs scored.

Christopher Bewski of Canadian champion Thunder Bay, Ontario, earned the pitching win, while Dominick Hayes of U.S. East representative Freehold Township, N.J., took the loss.