It has been almost 10 months since local high school and college baseball players have been able to play competitively against each other, as well as for college and Major League scouts. With COVID-19 numbers on the rise and the pandemic slowing things down for recruiting, enter The Scout Ball Games LLC. This social enterprise of is also known as Baseball Resource Group, a California nonprofit corporation whose mission is to support an opportunity for a preselect group of baseball players who are highly regarded in the baseball industry.
BRG’s goal is to provide optimum competition to expose players to some of Southern California’s best talent and they just wrapped up their first season, which was held at the Lake Elsinore Diamond. Players who signed up and paid their fees played against some of the top arms in the area. While pitchers faced some of the top bats in a legitimate atmosphere of an actual minor league park.
“The first season was great,” Mishael Israel, executive director of BRG, said. “We accomplished all of our corporate goals on why we started it.”
BRG had local MLB scouts, assisted by local coaches, coach the individual teams six-game schedule, which was followed by an end of season All-Star game.
“It was an excellent opportunity for scouts and coaches to share their knowledge of the game along with players, scouts, and coaches getting to know each other,” Israel said. “It was truly about providing a rare opportunity to compete against some of the best upcoming and present talent in the state in a great atmosphere.”
Local collegiate and high school players were evaluated by coaches and pro scouts and at the same time got in some repetitions to improve their game. Former Great Oak High School baseball player and current Palomar College Comets player, Jonah Sebring, was named the MVP of the All-Star game, which took place Sunday, Nov. 1, at the Diamond in Lake Elsinore.
“The BRG scout games in my opinion was a complete success,” Sebring said. “There was great competition, great exposure, and best of all we got the opportunity to play on a beautiful field. All the hard work culminating toward getting the MVP honor was great. It is an amazing feeling to know you can play your game against such high-level players.”
Sebring graduated in 2019 from Great Oak where he was part of the CIF Division 3 Championship team. He also spent the shortened 2020 season at Palomar College.
“After I graduated, I’ve been trying to stay in shape as best I can and continue to hone my skills as a baseball player,” Sebring said, who was selected because of his tools.
“Tools get you in the game,” Israel said. “How well you play and display your tools in the game gets you MVP.”
The next step is to keep working hard, Sebring said.
“Just because I’m starting to get noticed doesn’t mean I stop getting better. If anything, it motivates me to work harder,” he said.
Sebring also said the BRG staff and scouts gave him great advice on how to better his game.
“Being around people with the years of experience they have was a blessing,” he said.
Currently the organization has plans for an instructional league in spring 2021.
“We will do some clinics and camps in the winter and tryouts in the summer for 2021 fall season,” Israel said. “We also plan for the BRG scout ball games to expand with more teams and other locations.”
To find out more information about the BRG Scout Ball Games, visit http://www.scoutballgames.com. Interested participants can also call 951-381-0585 or email info@scoutballgames.com.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
