Local RBI players
honored by the Phillies

By Elizabeth Stieber
Times Staff Writer

Surrounded by the bright lights of Citizens Bank Park, the teenagers who wear the Phillies name got a chance to feel what the real Phillies feel when they leave the dugout and jog onto the shimmering field.
No, the kids weren’t booed.
The Phillies RBI baseball and softball leagues were recognized before the home game on Aug. 17, and they were cheered by the thousands of fans.
Many of the young players also compete on local high school baseball and softball teams. They may be rivals during the spring season, but they’re teammates on the Phillies RBI teams.
And they all get along.
“We have so much fun together,” said junior team member Gabby Cugini, who also plays softball for Little Flower High School. “It makes playing high school ball even more fun. Plus, you know their strengths and weaknesses.”
In addition, the head and assistant coaches for the Phillies girls junior team are both coaches for St. Hubert’s softball team.
Dave Hoch, the junior team head coach and St. Hubert assistant coach, said there is an adjustment when dealing with both his players and new ones, but he keeps his coaching strategy consistent.
“Our philosophies are the same for both (teams),” Hoch said.
“It’s a whole different atmosphere,” said Leo Medernach, the St. Hubert head coach and RBI assistant coach. “They all seem to get along pretty good.”
Tryouts for the team are held in September, and practice picks up as the school year comes to a close in May. The extra playing helps build the players’ skills, Medernach said.
“To really take the game to the next level, you have to play in the summer at a higher level,” he said.
Every summer, the RBI junior boys and girls teams, composed of athletes ages 16 and under, and the senior teams, for kids 18 and under, play in regional tournaments.
In August, Major League Baseball sponsors the RBI World Series. Winners of regional tournaments compete in the junior and senior boys baseball and senior girls softball championships. Two weeks ago, the Detroit Tigers hosted this year’s World Series games.
Because the junior girls teams started just last year, a World Series for that group wasn’t held this summer. Still, the Phillies RBI junior team did well this season, going 27-2 and securing wins in three tournaments.
The Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities League — it’s called RBI — was founded in 1989 in south central Los Angeles as a way to teach inner-city youth the game, according to Major League Baseball’s Web site.
Today there are teams in 185 cities worldwide.
Girls softball was added in 1995, and the 16-and-under junior softball teams are new. There also is the RBI Rookie League for players 12 and under.
The Philadelphia teams have yet to bring home a World Series title, but the experience the players get from the summer-long series of games is worth all the effort.
“I’ve met a lot of new people. It’s made the summer more exciting,” said junior team member Anna Ruggiero, who plays softball for Archbishop Ryan High School.
Many of the players agree that playing in the summer gives them an advantage over other players.
Dale Curry, a Father Judge High School graduate, and Stan Orzechowski, a North Catholic High School grad, are on the Phillies RBI senior boys team. The summer games have prepared them for their freshman year at Gloucester County College in Deptford, N.J., where they’ll play for the baseball team.
“A lot of guys at school don’t get to play all summer,” Orzechowski said.
For some of them, it’s been a learning experience.
Junior team member Brittany Cannon is one of two players from New Jersey. She plays softball for Shawnee High School in Medford Lakes.
“I’m a pitcher, and now I’m focusing more on batting,” she said.
She also found that, as an RBI pitcher, the girls from Philadelphia are stronger at bat.
Teammate Katie Schreiber, a Northeast High School softball player, found that she had to adjust her batting strategy.
“It’s slower,” she said of the pitching, “and I had to get used to the pitchers.” ••
Reporter Elizabeth Stieber can be reached at 215-354-3036 or estieber@phillynews.com