Orange County’s Premier Baseball Teams

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2009 Cooperstown All Star Village Champions

 

 

 

The Hard 9 Baseball Club was formed by players of a travel ball club, 9 of them as you probably guessed.  When the travel ball club the 9 were with decided that it was more important to win than to teach players the skills of the game, and more importantly to have some fun, the 9 decided that wasn’t for them.  The players, twelve year olds, contacted their coaches Vern Hildebrandt and Brian Hunter, who were also concerned with the direction the team was taking, and said, “let’s go coach, the Hard 9 will go with you”.  And here we are, the Hard 9, a team formed by real ball players.

 

We are a baseball club that is committed to teaching players the skills and work ethic they will need to prepare for the next level; high school, college or the major leagues.  The Hard 9 professional coaches work with the local high school coaches to prepare their players to enter the high school program.   Hard 9 players learn the skills to play multiple positions, making them a valued addition to any high school team.  They are also put into different game time situations with the goal being strengthening their ability to work through or out of these situations.

Playing with the Hard 9 is a privilege. The coaches work with each player to determine the position they will be most successful at.  They encourage them to question what they don’t understand, to stand up and speak for themselves.  Hard 9 players run the game, and they run it to win.  They never give up.  This is how baseball works after little league, in high school and beyond.

 

We are a team that believes you get out what you put in…and while we expect our players to work hard, we also play hard….we are the Hard 9.

Vern Hildebrandt / Brian Hunter