BASEBALL ARM CARE AND VELOCITY DEVELOPMENT CLINIC
DECEMBER 9TH, 2009
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BRIAN HOLBERTON, JEN ROSENE AND CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN TAKE TOP HONORS AT 3RD ANNUAL HOT STOVE DINNER

A sellout crowd of over 450 guests were treated to a very special night of awards for area baseball and softball players.  The 3rd Annual Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Dinner was held Saturday January 26th inside the 50,000 square foot Carolinas Baseball Center.  With special guests UNC Head Baseball Coach Mike Fox, Peace College Head Softball Coach Charlie Dobbins and Former Negro League Player Carl Long on hand, 12 awards were distributed to the top youth baseball and softball players in the Greater Charlotte Area.

Myers Park catcher and UNC Chapel Hill commit, Brian Holberton was named as The Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Baseball Player of the Year.  Holberton is one of the leading hitters and catchers in North Carolina and has set all sorts of records for The South Charlotte Panthers Showcase organization.  Other finalists included; Ty Linton, Olen Little, Tyler Lewis and Jack Reinheimer.

On the softball side, Ardrey Kell senior Jen Rosene was named The Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Softball Player of the Year.  Rosene, a pitcher and infielder, will attend College of Charleston next season to continue her softball career.

“The Hot Stove Dinner was a great way to bring together some of the most talented ball players in the area,” said Rosene.  “It was a great honor to be recognized among this group and I feel extremely lucky to be a part of such an amazing community.”

Other finalists included; Kelly Braman, Chelsea Ingersoll and Sarah Mooney.

The battle for the High School Team of The Year Award was extremely close with three state champions, Ardrey Kell, Charlotte Christian and Lake Norman, battling it out.  In the closest vote of the year, Charlotte Christian was named as The High School Team of the Year.  Head Coach Greg Simmons led his team to the state title behind current Georgia Tech Freshman Pitcher Luke Bard and powerful hitting from Ty Linton among others.
The Scholar-Athlete Award produced two winners on this special night.  Ardrey Kell senior Alex Baker and Myers Park Senior Grant Fisher had near identical academic records and each received a scholarship check to use on college expenses.

The first annual Lou Presutti Contributions to the Game of Baseball Award was presented to Mike Shildt.  Named for the founder of Cooperstown Dreams Park, Lou Presutti, the award honored Shildt for his lifelong dedication to baseball.  In his career he has coached on the high school and professional level and was the founder of On Deck Baseball Academy.

Additional Award winners included:  Daniel Calabretta, (Youth Baseball Player of the Year), Peyton Jordan (Youth Softball Player of the Year), Ben Boykin, (Comeback Player of the Year), Ryan Butler (Pitcher of the Year) and Brad Zebedis (York County Player of the Year).

The guests were treated to some very important advice from Coach Mike Fox, Coach Charlie Dobbins and Mr. Carl Long.  The guests spoke about taking advantage of opportunities and always carrying a passion for the game.  Former Myers Park and UNC Chapel Hill Pitcher Robert Woodard, now a member of the San Diego Padres organization introduced Coach Fox and spoke about the outstanding experience he had while playing at UNC Chapel Hill.

In addition to the guest speakers, a charity silent auction was held to benefit three outstanding charities; Coaches Curing Kids Cancer, Team MLE, and The Hot Stove League Scholarship.

The evening was closed with a challenge from Hot Stove League President and South Charlotte Sports Report Publisher Tripp Roakes for everyone to serve as “Guardians of the Game.”  

Congratulations to all 2010 Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Award Winners

High School Baseball Player of the Year - Brian Holberton
HIgh School Softball Player of the Year - Jen Rosene
Scholar-Athletes of the Year - Grant Fisher & Alex Baker
High School Team of the Yea - Charlotte Christian
Comeback Player of the Year - Ben Boykin
Travel Team of the Year - Lake Norman Wildcats 14U
Youth Team of the Year - Community House Middle School Baseball Team
Youth Baseball Player of the Year - Daniel Calabretta
Youth Softball Player of the Year - Peyton Jordan
Lou Presutti Award - Mike Shildt
York County Player of the Year - Brad Zebedis
Baseball Pitcher of the Year - Ryan Butler

To view photos from the event, please click here

Saturday January 23, 2010

7:00 p.m.

AWARD FINALISTS NAMED FOR 3RD ANNUAL
GREATER CHARLOTTE HOT STOVE LEAGUE DINNER

Excitement is building for the 3rd Annual Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Awards Dinner. This first class night to celebrate the growth of youthbaseball and softball is set for January 23rd inside the 50,000 square foot Carolinas Baseball Center facility.

UNC Tar Heels Head Coach MikeFox is set to address over 500 guests on this special evening. In addition to Coach Fox, Peace College Head Softball Coach Charlie Dobbins will be on hand, along with over a dozen current major and minor league baseball players.

Twelve youth baseball and softball awards will be presented to some of the top student-athletes in the Greater Charlotte area. Please join us in congratulating these award finalists, chosen from a group of over 350 nominated players and teams.

Click here for the complete list of Award Finalists

UNC TAR HEELS HEAD BASEBALL COACH MIKE FOX TO APPEAR AT
2010 GREATER CHARLOTTE HOT STOVE LEAGUE DINNER

The baseball term “hot stove” is affiliated with the time of year when those associated with America’s past time, whether it is players, managers, front office personnel and fans, discuss the summer game during the winter months.  Even before the Boston Red Sox traded Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees in 1920, folks sat around the hot stove to debate and discuss the significance of their team’s transactions.  

Even though air conditioning and furnaces have replaced the iron stove as sources of heat, the term hot stove is still quite common in baseball vernacular.  A place it is used frequently is to reference baseball banquets that take place during the off-season.  The banquets are held to celebrate the game of baseball and to reward those in the game that contribute to its success.

On January 23, 2010 the 3rd Annual Greater Charlotte Area Hot Stove League Dinner, presented by The South Charlotte Sports Report  and Carolinas Baseball Center will be held at the new 50,000 square foot Carolinas Baseball Center.  This first class evening of entertainment will celebrate the growth of youth baseball and softball in the Greater Charlotte community. 

The Greater Charlotte Area Hot Stove League is honored to have UNC Head Baseball Coach Mike Fox deliver the keynote address for the 2010 Awards Dinner.  Mike Fox has guided his alma mater to the most successful period in school history and firmly established the Tar Heels as one of the nation's preeminent college baseball programs, capped by four straight trips to the College World Series. In 2008 Coach Fox was named as The National Coach of the Year.

Coach Fox attended East Mecklenburg High School before playing baseball at the University of North Carolina.  Fox was a three-year letter winner at North Carolina as a second baseman from 1976-78 and helped to lead te Tar Heels to the 1978 College World Series.

Many other current and former major league baseball players are expected to attend the 2010 Greater Charlotte Area Hot Stove Dinner.

In addition to the appearance of Coach Fox and many current and former major league baseball players, ten awards will be presented to area youth baseball and softball players.  Nominations for each award are now open at www.hotstovedinner.com

A special autograph session with current and former major and minor league baseball players will be held prior to dinner. Vendors will display their products and one of Charlotte’s largest auctions for sports memorabilia and other exciting locally donated items will be held.

As part of the awards dinner, college scholarship money will be presented to the top baseball and softball scholar athletes.

We would like to invite the Greater Charlotte community to join us for a night of baseball on January 23, 2010. Corporate Sponsorships and Award Sponsorship packages are available for this unique event.  The Greater Charlotte Area Hot Stove League Dinner sold out in year one and two and year three is expected to sell out earlier than ever before.
For more information and to purchase tables or individual seats, please visit www.hotstovedinner.com or contact Tripp Roakes at 704-906-5466.

COACH CHARLIE DOBBINS TO APPEAR AT 3RD ANNUAL GREATER CHARLOTTE HOT STOVE DINNER

With sixteen National Championships under his cap, Peace College Head Women’s Softball Coach Charlie Dobbins is the perfect candidate to join the list of special guests for the 3rd Annual Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Dinner on January 23rd.    Coach Dobbins has been around the game of softball nearly his entire life and in addition to coaching, he toured with the world famous “King and His Court” and “King of Diamonds” fast pitch teams.  In 2000, Sports Illustrated named the “King and his Court” the 7th greatest team of all time.

“We are very excited to add someone so well respected in the softball community to our list of special guests for the evening,” said Tripp Roakes, Publisher of The South Charlotte Sports Report and Co-Founder of the Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League. “Along with UNC Tar Heels Head Baseball Coach Mike Fox and a large contingent of major league baseball players, our third annual event is poised to triple in size from year one.”

Coach Dobbins enters his eleventh year as Head Women's Softball Coach at Peace College in Raleigh NC. Since joining the USA South Athletic Conference in 2004, his teams have continued to improve and established themselves as a leader in the Atlantic Region during the last six years.
23 players have been named to All Conference teams and 10 have been placed on the NFCA / Louisville Slugger Atlantic Division All Region Team since entering the conference.  
 
Coach Dobbins has served 8 years on NFCA DIII committees. From 2003 to 2006, he was the Atlantic region representative on the NFCA / USA Today Division III "Top 25" Committee.

Coach Dobbins recently completed two terms (2006-2009) as the Atlantic region representative of the NFCA Division III All-American and Coaching Staff of the Year Committee. He was the driving force behind the successful bid that awarded Peace College and the City of Raleigh the NCAA DIII National Softball Championships in 2005 and 2006. He presently serves on the NCAA Div III Atlantic Region regional advisory committee. Coach Dobbins also represented the United States during the summer of 2006 as the head coach of a USA Softball team that competed in the 2006 Spanish Cup in Barcelona Spain.

He is a 1981 graduate of Roger Williams University in Bristol Rhode Island where he played varsity baseball and football. Coach Dobbins has been married to his wife Lisa for 27 years. They have two children, Nicole and Corey. 

Tickets are now available for the 3rd Annual Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Awards Dinner.  A sellout crowd of over 500 baseball and softball supporters are expected to attend.  Head UNC Tar Heel Baseball Coach Mike Fox will also appear at the special event.  Twelve youth baseball and softball awards will be presented that evening at Carolinas Baseball Center.  For more information on the event and to purchase tickets, please visit www.hotstovedinner.com

The Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League is pleased to announce the following award categories for the 3rd Annual Dinner on January 23, 2010 to be held at Carolinas Baseball Center in Charlotte.

• Greater Charlotte Baseball Pitcher of the Year
• Greater Charlotte Baseball Player of the Year
• Greater Charlotte Youth Baseball Player of the Year
• Greater Charlotte Softball Player of the Year
• Greater Charlotte Youth Softball Player of the Year
• Comeback Player of the Year*
• Student-Athlete of the Year*
• High School Team of the Year*
• Travel Team of the Year*
• Youth Team of the Year*
• York County High School Baseball Player of the Year
• Contributions to the Game of Baseball Award

* awards are open to softball and baseball

Nominations for each award will open on September 23, 2009.  Finalists for each award will be announced no later than December 15, 2009.  A distinguished panel of baseball and softball officials will select the winner of each award.

Each award is open for sponsorship and sponsorship includes full naming rights to the award, recognition in all marketing efforts of the event, two VIP tickets to the dinner, invitation to VIP social before the event and advertisement on www.hotstovedinner.com

For more information on sponsorship of an award, please contact Tripp Roakes at Tripp@southcharlottesports.com

Congratulations to the award winners from The Greater Charlotte Hot Stove League Dinner. 

Thanks to everyone that supported this outstanding evening.