Headfirst Baseball is excited to announce a new goal for 2017, the return of the Gamers as very competitive teams (Upper in January and Lower in Fall, 2017).  From the early days of travel ball, perhaps the most respected team name on the tourney circuit was the “Gamers.”  Most players interchanged “Headfirst” and “Gamers” and thought they were one in the same (in reality, Gamers were the name of the HF teams).  HF is going to make it an emphasis to bring glory back to the Gamers program in 2017.

            Headfirst has sent hundreds of players to college and most of them played on the Gamers.  In more recent years, Bercovich has grown in prominence in the Upper and Lower Divisions with many tourney titles and strong teams.  The Danville Blackhawks have also created a strong reputation with teams from 12U-17U and making the 16U Mickey Mantle World Series in Connecticut (along with Bercovich).  It is time for the Gamers to make a strong comeback!

            One way for this to happen is for the Bercovich and Gamers teams to share the same coach!  This means a single coach will run both a Bercovich team and a Gamers team rather than two Bercovich teams.  Another step toward the goal is to only have one Bercovich team in each age group, meaning some current “Bercovich” teams will be renamed “Gamers.” 

            The goal is for the Gamers, Bercovich and Blackhawks to all have a chance to compete for the title each time out and for all players to have a chance to make a team in the HF Upper Division.  For example, there are currently four teams at the 12U and 14U levels but there will only be space for three teams as they enter high school.  This type of competitive atmosphere will challenge all players and maximize development.  It will mean there is not a “safety zone” or “comfort” for players and they need to keep working hard and developing to stay at the same level as their peers.  Only this will prepare them for high school baseball and beyond, where it is extremely competitive and where there are no short cuts.