The Kitchener Fastball League's 2012 season kicks off tonight with a pair
of Red Division tilts on the recently renovated front diamond at Budd
Park.

At 7:00, the Thunder and Bulldogs square off, with both teams coming off
tough 2011 campaigns and looking to start the season off right. At 9:00,
KFL fans can get their first look at the new Tri-City Jays as they take on
the Smoke, who are hoping to avoid the slow start that plagued them last
year and necessitated a late-season push to lock up the last playoff
position. With two great games on a beautiful night for ball, it should be
a stellar start to the KFL's 2012 campaign.

Other match-ups to watch this week include a pair of divisional battles
featuring the Predators, who look to replicate last season's undefeated
month of May, as they take on the Diamond Jaxx on Tuesday and the
Moonshiners on Thursday.

Rogers TV Game of the Week
On Thursday night at 7:00, the Selects and Classics renew acquaintances in
a rematch of the KFL Final of the last two years. Though the anticipated
starters for both teams will have changed from last season, both squads
will do their best to entertain in the KFL's television debut. This series
has been rather lopsided in the Classics favour in recent years, making
them the prohibitive favourite, as the Selects seek to end a five-game
losing streak in this head-to-head match-up that dates back to 2010. The
game will air with a one-hour tape delay on Rogers TV (Cable 20) at 8:00
p.m.

We're just days away from opening night of the 2012 season, so it seemed
like a fitting time to take a look at this year's slate of KFL squads, the
14 teams that will make Budd Park their battleground for another exciting
summer of ball. Today, we look at the Black Division, home to both the 2011
champs and runners-up, as well as five feisty clubs taking aim at the
targets on their backs.

Barons - After a tough entry to the league in 2010, the Barons
upped their win total by six games last year before losing a close one, 7-6
to the Moonshiners in the B quarterfinal. Now in their third year, this
young squad is hungry for their first postseason win. They hope to get
another strong season out of Brad Gartz, who finished third in the league
last year with eight single-game MVP nods.

Classics - Boasting the title of back-to-back defending champions
and more veteran savvy than many of their competitors combined, the
Classics are just that: an absolute staple of the KFL. They understand how
to peak at the right time and, with offensive firepower from top to bottom,
they're never out of a game. Last year, they knocked off two tough squads
in the Black Sox and Bell Cartage before sweeping the Selects in an
anticlimactic final. Until further notice, this is the indisputable team to
beat.

Diamond Jaxx - With four playoff appearances in four years in the
league, anyone who takes the Jaxx lightly does so at their own peril.
Rumour has it that last year's tough quarterfinal exit at the hands of Bell
Cartage has left this squad hungrier than ever and new bench boss Jim
Mercier has had them working hard throughout the winter. Add to that the
offseason addition of one of the league's most dominant hurlers in Doug
Hoffman and the return of reigning home run champ Warren Williams and the
Jaxx have to be considered the Classics' toughest competition for the Black
Division title. Circle August 9th on your calendars, ladies and gentlemen.
That Classics-Jaxx match-up, televised on Rogers TV, may well decide the
division's top dog.

Moonshiners - Entering their fourth season in the KFL, the
Moonshiners are still in search of their first appearance in the league's
upper echelon. With the addition of Derek Mitchell to the pitching staff,
they're hoping 2012 is the year they make the leap. A quick start could
make all the difference in whether or not they're in the playoff hunt down
the stretch.

Phillies - In their first year in the league, the Phillies knocked
off the Bulldogs and New Dundee Dodgers before falling to the Kings in the
B finals. This year, they look to build on that and find their way into the
A side. To do so, they'll need to take care of business in their divisional
match-ups and get another big year from slugger Brandon Viol.

Predators - The Predators always seem to be a team on the bubble.
In 2011, they rode a torrid start to a playoff appearance, but were bounced
by a talented Cardinals squad. Now in their seventh year in the KFL,
they're looking to make back-to-back A side appearances for the first time
in team history - and go a little deeper if they do.

Selects - The Selects have been consistently good without ever
being great. They boast the distinction of being the only team in the KFL
to make the semi-finals every year since 2006, but have only two finals
appearances to show for it, losing to the Classics in both 2010 and 2011.
Expect the 2012 Selects to be a team in search of an identity. They lost
their staff ace and starting catcher in the offseason, as Doug Hoffman
joined the Jaxx and Glen Hall has been sidelined with health issues. Can
they overcome those losses to keep playing at a high level? With a season
opener looming against the same Classics squad that dismantled them in last
year's finals, they don't have long to figure it out.

It's shaping up to be another great year in the KFL. Check back soon for
the Red Division preview.

Though you wouldn't know it to look outside, the start of the 2012 fastball
season is upon us, with the first major tournament of the year set to get
underway next week at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena
Vista, Florida (just southwest of Orlando). 

Running from January 26-29, the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) International
Men's Fastpitch Softball Tournament will feature its largest field in the
tourney's 17-year history, with 48 teams from Canada, the US, Venezuela,
Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Bahamas represented. On the 26th and 27th, 12
four-team divisions will square off in divisional play, before the
elimination round begins on the 28th. 

Of the nine Canadian teams represented, four will include KFL players. 

In pool B, the Niagara Fury feature two members of the Cardinals, pitcher
Bryan Belisle and infielder Casey Toews. 

The Kitchener Bell Cartage Outlaws' roster, meanwhile, is loaded with
familiar faces for anyone who spent much time at Budd Park last year,
including Tim Dubois, Derek Martin, Pete Schaefer, Matt Stagg, Corey
Tinline, and Brandon Wohlgemut from Bell's KFL squad, as well as Ryan
Tinney of the Moonshiners and Kevin Buckley, a longtime member of the
Cambridge Reds who played a few games with the Diamond Jaxx last year. The
Outlaws will compete in pool G. 

The reigning KFL champion Classics contribute Devon Abbey, Sam Forbes,
Jason Hoch, and Jodie Schnarr to the Cobourg Force squad that will compete
in Pool I, while the Kitchener Selects will represent the KFL in Pool J
with a handful of their regulars - including Mike Brown, Glen Hall, Doug
Hoffman, Kevin Ryrie, and Mike Welton - as well as Brandon Viol of the
Puslinch Phillies. 

For a complete list of teams, rosters, and schedules, check out the
following links from Al's Fastball:

Pools
and Schedule
Rosters
Part 1
Rosters
Part 2

For an article about the history of the tournament, click here.

And lastly, for video from last year's tournament, head over to the
ESPN Wide World of Sports tournament website.

Best of luck to all the KFL players heading south!

(Post contributed by Mike Brown)

After overseeing seven seasons of the Kitchener Fastball League, I am
stepping down as president. 

I would like to announce that, as of the year-end meeting last week, Bryan
Reeve of the Diamond Jaxx has been elected as the incoming president of the
league and I have full faith that the KFL is in great hands for the
future.

I have had a blast being a part of this league and still intend to offer
help where I can as well as be a part of the Selects, but the majority of
my time and focus will be shifted to teaching the next generation of
superstar fastball players here in Kitchener.

I would like to wish Bryan all the best in taking the KFL to the next
level. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the league with me for
the last seven year.

Trevor Botting

The Classics bats just proved to be too much as they once again put up
double digits in the finals. 12-2 was the final score and that makes it a 3
game sweep for the Classics over the Selects.

Congratulations to the Classics for their second consecutive title and
their third in four years.

Thank you to every one for another great season.