One player made it to the Central California Cal Ripken State All-Stars All-Tournament team

TEMPLETON — It was a successful season for the Templeton Youth Baseball Leagues (TYBL) as their All-Stars made their appearance in tournaments for the first time in nearly two years.

TYBL is a division of Babe Ruth’s Cal Ripken League Baseball. Keeping baseball fun—especially in the early stages of youth baseball—is a primary concern of the Cal Ripken division.

Youth ages 12 and under play in different divisions of the league, depending on their age. Following their spring season, All-Star players are chosen to compete in the All-Star season tournaments. All of the teams — 10U, 9U, and 8U — made it to the state tournaments.

Steve Herring, team manager for the 9U players, said, “All in all, it was a good season.” 

All-Star tournaments come after the TYBL regular spring season, making the team a big commitment for the young players to play in the long tournaments along with weekly practices. Due to covid-19, the last two years of baseball have been either modified or canceled altogether, so the players had to make up for the lost time.

“They all had a great attitude and were great sports,” said Herring. “That was the one thing the coaches and I were adamant about teaching was being a good sport, being motivating to each other, being a good teammate. That was the main focus.”

The 9U players weren’t winners at the start of their tournaments but ended up going to the State Qualifying Championship in Kerman, where they lost to a Tulare team.

“The amount that they developed and how quickly they did was amazing,” Herring said. “They basically made up for a year and a half in four months.”

The 8U team wrapped up their All-Star season with a 13-10 win over Central.

The 10U team made it far into the state tournament, losing to the top seed in the semifinal game.

While most of the teams wrapped up their tournament season in early July, one 10U player was chosen to join the All-Tournament team with other selected players around the state.

TYBL recognized Tommy Beckwith at its end-of-season party for being the only TYBL athlete selected to a Central California Cal Ripken State All-Stars All-Tournament team.

Congratulations to Beckwith and the rest of the TYBL All-Stars for a great season.