{"id":165006,"date":"2023-04-11T03:39:02","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T08:39:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=165006"},"modified":"2023-04-11T03:39:03","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T08:39:03","slug":"random-thoughts-polls-pro-ball-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2023\/04\/11\/random-thoughts-polls-pro-ball-more\/","title":{"rendered":"Random Thoughts: polls, pro ball, more"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest installment of Random Thoughts centers around Crestview baseball and softball, spring polls, smooth sailing, MLB\u2019s pitch clock, the Fort Wayne TinCaps and a signing by the Baltimore Ravens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crestview<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What a fun day at Crestview on Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Head baseball coach Jim Wharton, one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, picked up his 600th career victory on Monday (10-0 over Spencerville). That’s quite an accomplishment. He was quick to say the achievement was made possible by players and coaches past and present and while that’s true, it’s also important to note that Wharton is a obviously a top notch coach that has churned out many good players and teams over the years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congratulations on the milestone coach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While that was happening, the softball team raced to a 15-0 win over Spencerville. Michaela Lugabihl and Olivia Heckler combined to throw a perfect five inning game – no runs, no hits and no walks, while striking out 13. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another outstanding performance by the Lady Knights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Polls<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The area is well represented in this week\u2019s Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association weekly poll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After losing to Wayne Trace, Lincolnview dropped from No. 2 to No. 5 in Division IV, while Kalida is No. 10. St. Henry is ranked No. 12 and Minster 18th, and Antwerp finished just outside the top 20.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defiance and Wapakoneta are 3-4 in Division II. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 1 last week but fell 2-1 to the Redskins last Thursday. While not ranked in the poll, Celina also received votes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Division III, Coldwater is ranked No. 12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To see the full poll, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first softball poll of the season, put out by the Ohio High School Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association, should be released next Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smooth sailing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week I asked Mother Nature for good weather for spring sports. As of right know, it should be perfect for baseball, softball, track and field and tennis all week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Pitch clock<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week I came out and said I like Major League Baseball\u2019s new pitch clock. After another week of games, I like it even more. The pace of the games is much more enjoyable and I doubt I\u2019m the only one who thinks that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like I said last week, if they need to tweak it or add a little more time, fine. It\u2019s still better than games that seemed to drag on forever, especially in the hot summer sun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TinCaps<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s hoping the Fort Wayne TinCaps pick up their first win in tonight\u2019s home opener.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beckham<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Odell Beckham Jr. to the Ravens. One year, $18 million, with $15 million guaranteed. I\u2019d tell the Ravens good luck but I can\u2019t do that since I\u2019m still holding a grudge against the former Cleveland Browns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless, this doesn\u2019t seem like a match made in heaven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As always, if you have thoughts or comments on any of the above subjects, feel free to email me at sports@thevwindependent.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent editor The latest installment of Random Thoughts centers around Crestview baseball and softball, spring polls, smooth sailing, MLB\u2019s pitch clock, the Fort Wayne TinCaps and a signing by the Baltimore Ravens. Crestview What a fun day at Crestview on Monday. Head baseball coach Jim Wharton, one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-165006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-27 00:05:40","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165006"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165006\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":165015,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165006\/revisions\/165015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}