Visiting Rockmart scored a pair of unearned runs in the top of the eighth inning Tuesday evening to edge Cartersville softball 6-4 in both teams’ season opener. The game went to an extra inning with the score tied 4-4. Rockmart scored three runs in the top of the first and one more in the second. Cartersville scored two runs in the bottom of the first, one in the second and tied the game with a single run in the fifth inning. Rockmart (1-0) out hit Cartersville 10 to 5. Kiley Arnold (2.2 IP, 4R, 3ER, 7H, 3BB) started in the circle for the Lady Canes and worked into the third inning. McKinley Chada (5.1 IP, 2R, 0ER, 3H, 3BB, 2K) pitched the rest of the way and was saddled with the loss. Lauren McElhaney had two hits for Cartersville. Hope Short hit a two-run home run in the first inning, added a walk, and finished with two RBI. Mattie Johnson and AnnaKate McElhaney added one hit apiece. Cartersville (0-1) returns to the diamond at Cedartown Thursday with first pitch scheduled for 5:55 p.m.

It was a good week for former Bartow County pitchers in pro baseball, highlighted by two scoreless appearances out of the bullpen for Cartersville High graduate Sam Howard with the MLB Colorado Rockies. However, the biggest news of the week also was the worst. It was announced former Hurricane Anthony Seigler would be out for the season with a knee injury. As for the good news, Howard faced the best team in baseball on July 30 and did not allow a run out of the bullpen in an inning and a third, one of two scoreless outings he had last week. Following in Howard’s footsteps as Cartersville natives trying to make the bigs, Elliott Anderson and Luke Schiltz each continued their strong debut seasons in rookie ball. ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Burlington Royals (1st yr. pro; LHP; Advanced Rookie Appalachian League; Kansas City Royals’ organization; Auburn; Cartersville HS)… Anderson gave up his first runs in pro ball on July 30 when he allowed two runs on five hits in 1.2 innings with one strikeout against the Elizabethton Twins. He bounced back, however, going two scoreless innings with four strikeouts on Monday, earning a hold in 13-0 win when the Royals opened the game up late. Despite allowing the two runs this week, Anderson still boasts impressive overall numbers, including a 1.06 ERA in 17 innings with 20 strikeouts, a .210 batting average against and a 1.06 WHIP. Burlington is 26-20 for the year and five and one-half games behind the first place Pulaski Yankees in the Appy League East. Importantly, the Royals lead the Bluefield Blue Jays by three and one-half games for the final playoff spot in the division with 22 games remaining in the regular season. SAM HOWARD — Colorado Rockies (6th yr. pro; LHP; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS)…Howard delivered in two scoreless appearances last week for the Rockies. On July 30 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the team with the best record in the majors, Howard threw 1.1 innings with two strikeouts, allowing just a walk in a 9-4 loss. Against the San Francisco Giants on Saturday, Howard again went 1.1 innings in a loss, allowing a hit and a walk with two strikeouts. The two strong outings give Howard a 6.35 ERA in 5.2 innings so far at the big league level. The Rockies are 52-60 and hold down fourth place in the National League West. Colorado is 21 and one half games behind the first place Los Angeles Dodgers. CONNOR JUSTUS — Mobile BayBears (4th yr. pro; Infielder; Double-A Southern League; L.A. Angels’ organization; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS)… Justus got off to a hot start to the week, going 4-for-7 in his first two games with a double. He's come back down to earth in his last three starts, though, going 0-for-11 with a walk. He’s now hitting .194 on the year with a .297 on-base percentage. He has played second base, third base and shortstop this year, and has an outstanding .970 fielding percentage at his primary position, shortstop. Mobile is 41-71 for the season and in last place in the Southern League’s South Division. LUKE SCHILTZ — AZL Rangers (1st yr. pro; RHP; Rookie Arizona League; Texas Rangers’ organization; Cartersville native; Stoneman Douglas / Parkland, FL HS)… Schiltz pitched a scoreless inning in his lone appearance this week, on July 31, allowing just a walk in the eighth inning of a 9-3 loss against the AZL Padres. Schiltz currently boasts a 3.27 ERA, and has strong peripheral stats, including a .162 batting average against and a 0.82 WHIP. The Rangers won the first half race in the Arizona League to secure a post-season playoff berth and are currently 7-5 in the second half standings, one-half game behind the division-leading AZL Royals. ANTHONY SEIGLER — Charleston RiverDogs (2nd yr. pro; Catcher; Class A South Atlantic League; N.Y. Yankees’ organization; Cartersville HS)… Seigler is out for the season with a patella fracture after a foul tip struck his knee on July 19. The No. 23 overall draft pick in 2018 by the Yankees, Seigler finished the season hitting hitting .175 with a .328 on-base percentage. Despite two injury-shortened seasons so far in the minors, Seigler is still considered a top-10 prospect in the Yankees organization. According to CBS Sports, in late June, RiverDogs manager Julio Mosquero said that Siegler has “impressed me a lot" and added that he “has a lot of ability.” “It’s just the way he manages the game,” Mosquera, a former catcher, said. “He’s got a good feel for it. He’s got a good feel for what the pitcher is trying to do to the hitters. He makes a lot of good decisions behind the plate. He makes adjustments fast. All of this helps him stay in the game. He’s a leader back there for his pitching staff, and for his age that’s really good.” — contributions by Jason Greenberg, The Daily Tribune News

We conclude our 2019 preseason video series with a visit with the Cass Colonels. Following a summer of encouraging work, participation, and camps, Cass Head Coach Bobby Hughes and his staff are excited about the growth and development they have seen in the off-season. "We took kids to three different padded camps this summer," noted Hughes. "It has probably been the best summer we've had since I took over here and we are definitely excited to witness the performances. Our effort has been outstanding -- both on the field and in the weight room. We have a lot to be excited about." "I think the padded camps have really helped us with conditioning too. Our kids have gone hard and they prefer it to simply running sprints," added Hughes. (story continues below) Cass will look to recover from back-to-back seasons where the Colonels picked up only one win, defeating Adairsville in their season opener last year. "I credit this group of seniors with the unity and standard they have already established for the season," said Hughes. "We were really close to turning a corner last year, but we needed a key play or two to go our way in crucial moments. These guys understand that now. A lot of these seniors were on the field in those close games. Now we just have to get over the hump. They've done a lot to move in that direction by holding each other more accountable," concluded Hughes. Cass will scrimmage at Pepperell on Friday, August 16 and then will have two weeks to prepare for their official season opener at Adairsville on August 30. NOTE: Videos for Adairsville, Cartersville, and Woodland are linked in the related stories below or may be found on the news page.

With the 2019 high school football season only days away from kicking off, it is a good time to take a look at how new National Federation of High School (NFHS) and Georgia High School Association (GHSA) rules may make the game look a little different for players, coaches, and fans. NFHS released the new 2019 rules in May, including a rule allowing states to adopt video review in playoff games. GHSA declined to adopt video replay for the upcoming season but will be implementing several other changes. The GHSA Executive Committee also adopted seven-person officiating crews for the state playoffs and has approved the use of seven-person crews for the regular season based on school requests. James Arnold of the local GHSA Etowah Valley Football Officials Association recently went over some of the changes for Bartow Sports Zone while Keith Hammond of Georgia Football Officials Association recently shared commentary on the new rules with Georgia High School Football Daily. The most obvious change for fans will be the adoption of a new 40-second play clock rule. The purpose is to have a more consistent time period between downs. In the past, the referee blew a whistle once the ball was marked ready for play and there was a 25-second play clock. The new rules define when 40 seconds will be placed on the play clock and when it will remain 25 seconds. “The game will be quicker,” said Arnold. “The pace of the game will no longer be determined by the Referee chopping in the “ready for play signal.” "Each week, a team gets different officials for their contest,” Hammond told GHSFD. “In the past, some crews may work faster than others, so the time between plays may vary. The prior plan was to try and have the ball ready for play within 12-15 seconds. Over the course of game, if one crew was consistently at 12 seconds and another at 15 and your team wanted to get 80 snaps on offense, you are potentially talking about another 240 seconds or four minutes of difference in game play. That could be quite a difference from week to week, especially in a close game. This rule change will provide consistent timing and prevent those differences,” Hammond continued. "The biggest distinction the typical fan may notice will be the reduction in the number of whistles that the referee will have to blow over the course of a game. There will be fewer ready-for-play whistles signifying a 25-second play clock to begin its countdown. For example, a three-yard run where the ball carrier is tackled will trigger the 40-second clock after the play ends. In fact, most plays, both runs and passes, will do the same. The 25-second clock will be in effect after items such as penalty administration, time-outs, measurements, scores, legal kicks or the start of each period. "There are procedures in place for schools that do or do not have the play clock at their home playing sites. For those with such a clock, a separate official known as the PCO or play clock operator will be employed to run the clock. For those without, the field judge in a six-man crew will operate the play clock from his position, or if a seven-man crew is utilized, the play clock is run by the back judge. "Officials have been studying and training with the new timing change since the spring, as many began utilizing it in those games held at the end of spring practice. In all cases, the 40-second play clock should provide a new consistency to the high school game in Georgia for 2019,” Hammond concluded. Arnold pointed out a distinct difference, however, between the college and pro game with the new high school rule. “In high school there are no match-up rules. That means when the crew sets the ball down and the crew is ready, the ball can be snapped. For example, if there are late offensive substitutions, the defense gets no extra time to match up,” Arnold added. Other rules adopted by NFHS and GHSA for 2019 include: — Improved visibility of numbers: To help officials and fans identify players, the committee has clarified the size requirements for jersey numbers through the 2023 season. The committee also added a new requirement that, effective in 2024, jersey numbers must be a single solid color that clearly contrasts with the body color of the jersey. The delayed implementation of the rule allows schools to use uniforms they've already purchased. “This does away with the low visibility numbers and the multi-colored uniforms that have made identification of players difficult on the playing field,” said Arnold. — Redefined requirements for a legal formation: A legal offensive scrimmage formation now requires at least five players on the line with no more than four backs. This change will make it easier to identify legal and illegal formations. “This rule does away with the formations that require seven men on the line of scrimmage,” noted Arnold. “The rule now states that you can have no more than four players in the backfield — like the NCAA rule — but you must have the five linemen in jerseys numbered 50-79 in a regular (non-punting) formation. Teams can now snap the ball with less than seven on the line of scrimmage.” — Prohibition on tripping the runner: To decrease risk, tripping the runner is now prohibited. It is now a foul to intentionally use the lower leg or foot to obstruct a runner below the knees. “This was a dangerous play that has now been made illegal,” noted Arnold. “I don’t think any of us want to get hit in the shins by a defender whipping his leg. We didn’t see a lot of it, but it was a dangerous play that has now been addressed.” — Illegal kicking and batting penalty reduced: The penalty for illegally kicking or batting the ball was reduced to 10 yards from 15. “This is a change that simply puts illegal kicking and batting the ball in line with any other illegal touching that was reduced to a 10-yard penalty a couple of years ago,” said Arnold. — Horse-collar tackle addition: Grabbing the name plate area of the jersey of the runner, directly below the back collar, and pulling the runner to the ground is now a personal contact foul. “This was another dangerous play that will make the job for officials a little simpler,” Arnold pointed out. “The new rule takes out a lot of guessing for the official surrounding this type of play. Tacklers can no longer pull down a player from high on the back of the jersey. The belief is this rule will help reduce knee injuries on ball carriers.” The NFHS also released its 2019 Points of Emphasis this past Spring. The two areas of note include the free-blocking zone and legal blocking along with proper procedures for weather delays. Free-Blocking Zone and Legal Blocking The free-blocking zone is a rectangular area established when the ball is snapped. It extends 4 yards laterally on either side of the ball, and 3 yards behind each line of scrimmage. Blocking below the waist and blocking in the back may be permitted in the free-blocking zone provided that certain conditions are met. Offensive and defensive linemen may block each other below the waist in the free-blocking zone provided that all players involved in the blocking are on their line of scrimmage and in the free-blocking zone at the snap, and the ball is in the zone. Each team’s line of scrimmage is a vertical plane through the point of the ball closest to that team’s goal line. Offensive linemen may block defensive players in the back in the free-blocking zone as long as the blocker is on his line of scrimmage and in the free-blocking zone at the snap, the opponent is in the free-blocking zone at the snap, and the contact is in the zone. To determine whether blocking below the waist and blocking in the back are legal, game officials must first determine whether players are in the free-blocking zone at the snap. Since offensive linemen are in the zone if any part of their body is in the zone at the snap, game officials must check the spacing between offensive linemen. As long as the line is using “normal” splits and the formation is “balanced” (i.e., the distance between the outside foot of each lineman and the inside foot of the adjacent linemen is no greater than 2 feet and an equal number of linemen are on each side of the snapper), all players, including the tight end, are deemed to be in the zone at the snap. If the splits are wider than 2 feet, the tight end is considered out of the zone and therefore cannot legally block below the waist or in the back. Once game officials determine which players are in the zone at the snap, the next determination is whether a block below the waist or a block in the back occurs in the free-blocking zone. Because the free-blocking zone disintegrates once the ball leaves the zone, it may be difficult to determine whether the ball is in the zone at the time the block occurs when the offense is using a “shotgun” formation (a formation where there is no direct hand-to-hand snap and the player who receives the snap is more than 3 yards behind his line of scrimmage), due to the very short time interval between the snap and the ball leaving the zone. In addition to observing blocking by offensive linemen, game officials must also be alert to defenders “cutting” running backs and wide receivers who are not on their line of scrimmage or in the free-blocking zone at the snap. Restrictions on blocking below the waist apply equally to offensive and defensive players. Finally, offensive players in the backfield can never legally block below the waist or in the back. Proper Procedures for Weather Delays At some point during the high school football season, many parts of the country have to address weather issues. Some of these, according to NFHS guidelines, dictate a suspension/ delay during a game. Most of the time, the delay is due to lightning and thunder (either lightning seen or thunder heard); and when a suspension or delay occurs, the teams are sent to a safe, sheltered area until the weather situation has ended. NFHS guidelines on handling lightning and thunder delays require use of the 30-minute rule, meaning when the game has been suspended, play cannot resume until at least 30 minutes have elapsed following the last sighting of lightning or the sound of thunder. Once the game is suspended, each further instance of lightning or thunder requires a reset of the clock and the commencement of a new 30-minute interval. Seldom is there a problem with game officials or site administrators following the basic 30-minute rule when there is lightning or thunder. However, some game officials and administrators are not abiding by the mandatory halftime intermission and warm-up rule when there is a lightning delay near the end of the first half. If there is such a delay late in the second period, once the second period is completed, NFHS playing rules require a halftime intermission of at least 10 minutes followed by the required 3-minute warm-up period before the third period may begin. Coaches or game officials cannot shorten the halftime intermission or the warm-up period. However, both coaches could agree to shorten (end) the second period during the delay, and then the third period could start after the delay as soon as the mandatory warm-up period is completed. It is important for game officials, coaches and administrators to be aware of the halftime intermission and warm-up rules on nights when the weather could present delays and to administer those NFHS football rules correctly. The four local schools — Adairsville, Cartersville, Cass, and Woodland — begin 2019 play with scrimmages Friday, August 16. The scrimmages include: Dalton at Cartersville, Cass at Pepperell, and Woodland at Adairsville. The regular season begins for three teams Friday, August 23 when Adairsville plays at Chattooga, Cartersville travels to Allatoona, and Woodland hosts Southeast Whitfield. Cass does not play on August 23 but the Colonels will launch their 2019 campaign at Adairsville August 30. WBHF-Cartersville (100.3FM / AM1450) and BartowSportsZone.com will combine to broadcast 23 regular season games this season and any state playoff games involving local teams. On August 23, WBHF will carry the Cartersville at Allatoona contest. The Southeast Whitfield at Woodland game will be live via BartowSportsZone.com. We will also have live updates on both formats from the Adairsville game at Chattooga. Since both Woodland and Cartersville are idle on August 30, WBHF will broadcast the Cass opener with Adairsville. The remainder of the 2019 regular season broadcast schedule includes: DATE -------------- WBHF ------------------------------------ *BartowSportsZone.com Aug. 23 Cartersville at Allatoona SE Whitfield at Woodland Aug. 30 Cass at Adairsville — no broadcast — Sept. 6 Luella at Cartersville Forsyth Central at Cass Sept. 13 McNair at Cartersville Cass at Woodland Sept. 20 Cartersville at Cherokee Haralson Co. at Adairsville Sept. 27 Cedartown at Cartersville Hiram at Woodland Oct. 4 Cartersville at Central-Carroll LFO at Adairsville Oct. 11 Cartersville at LaGrange Hiram at Cass Oct. 18 Sandy Creek at Cartersville Sonoraville at Adairsville Oct. 25 Chapel Hill at Cartersville Kell at Cass Nov. 1 Woodland at East Paulding Ringgold at Adairsville Nov. 8 Cartersville at Troup Co. Kell at Woodland Nov. 15 State Playoffs Begin *BSZ broadcast schedule is subject to change with playoff implications Pregame coverage begins each week with the Bartow Sports Zone radio show each Friday morning from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on WBHF. The show features live interviews with two of the four head football coaches each week. Pregame coverage continues at 6 p.m. on WBHF and BartowSportsZone.com and continues until kickoff at the stadiums at 7:30 p.m. Post-game coverage on WBHF picks up following the conclusion of our play-by-play broadcasts and continues until 11 p.m. or later each Friday of the season.

There are a few rules and editorial changes for high school volleyball and softball in 2019. Below are the changes issued this past Spring by the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS). 2019 NFHS Volleyball Rule Changes 2-2-2, 2-3j (NEW), 2-4-1e(NEW), 2-4 PENALTIES 3 (NEW), 9-8-1i: When the ball strikes the cables and/or the diagonal poles used to retract ceiling suspended net systems the referee will stop play and determine if the ball was playable. The referee will signal out-of-bounds or replay. Rationale: Establishes the cables and diagonal poles used to retract suspended net systems as restricted play and aligns officials’ treatment of a ball striking either the cables and/or the diagonal poles. 4-2-1, 4-2-1a (NEW), 4-2-1e (NEW), 4-2-2 (NEW): Eliminates the solid-colored uniform requirements, establishes that the libero uniform must clearly contrast with his/her teammates’ uniforms and reorganizes the legal uniform rule. Rationale: Clarifies the requirements for all legal uniforms and simplifies the requirements for the contrasting libero uniform maintaining the compliance of all currently compliant team and libero uniform jerseys. 4-2-4b: Eliminates the use of double zero (00) as a uniform number option. Rationale: Eliminates confusion surrounding the signaling of “00” and “0”. 4-2-4c: Beginning with the 2023 season the body of the uniform number must clearly contrast with the uniform top regardless of borders. This will eliminate the allowance of borders to provide contrast between the number and the uniform number. Rationale: Allows officials and scorers to easily identify uniform numbers. 5-5-1b; 5-6-1b; 7-1-1a; 7-1 PENALTIES 1; 7-1-2; 7-1-4; 7-1-4 PENALTIES 1, 2: Requires the second referee to collect team rosters at the prematch conference while allowing changes to be made until 10 minutes remain on the pregame clock and establishes lineups to be submitted to the second referee before each set. Rationale: Eliminates warmup interruptions by officials requesting rosters with 10 minutes remaining on the warmup clock, allowing for a smoother warmup process for coaches, players, officials and scorers. 5-9-2a NOTE: Establishes that the line judge shall take their position and move in line with the extension of the end line when the ball is being served near the line judge’s position replacing the old technique to move directly back in line with the sideline. Rationale: Allows the line judge to watch for foot contact with the end line and move quickly back for a view of the sideline. This is a more appropriate position and transition for line judges. 8-1-6, 8-2-5g (NEW), 8-2-6d: Establishes that the ball remains dead when tossed for serve and it touches any part of the backboard or supports hanging in a vertical position over the serving area and is an illegal serve (Signal 13) and not a service fault. Rationale: Accurately reflects the action since the ball is not contacted for serve. 2019-20 VOLLEYBALL MAJOR EDITORIAL CHANGES 2-1-5: Clarifies that the attack line shall be measured from the edge of the attack line farthest from the center line to the axis of the center line. 4-2-7: Clarifies the penalty for the removal of any part of the uniform top or bottom as a yellow card charged to the coach for unsporting conduct. 5-5-3b(26): Provides additional instructions for the second referee when conducting the coin toss prior to the deciding set by requiring the second referee to communicate with the first referee the serving team and the proper team benches. 8-1-6, 8-2-5g: Establishes the proper signal for a tossed ball that contacts a backboard or its supports hanging in a vertical position over the serving area is officials signal 13. NFHS Official Signals Chart: Removes signal 7 “Legal Back-Row Attack” from the chart and establishes the signal as an informal officials’ signal in the NFHS Officials Manual renumbering remaining signals. 2019-20 Volleyball Points of Emphasis Informal Officials Signals Ball-handling Side Folding Retractable Backboards 2019 NFHS Softball Rules Changes 1-1-7, 2-22-4, Table 5-1, 5-1-1o: The media shall be prohibited from being in live-ball area. The home team or game management may designate an area for the media in dead ball territory. Rationale: Clarifies that game management may designate a media area in dead ball territory. 1-5-2a: The knob may be molded, lathed, welded or adjustable, but must be permanently fastened. Rationale: Clarifies that an adjustable knob is permissible, provided the knob is permanently fastened by the manufacturer. 1-8-4: Defensive players are permitted to wear a shield on their face/head protection in the field but it must be constructed of a molded, rigid material that is clear and permits 100 percent (no tint) allowable light transmission. Rationale: In an effort to promote risk minimization, tinted eye shields are prohibited for defensive face/head protection. 6-1-1 PENALTY, 6-1-2 Thru 4 PENALTY, 6-2-1 PENALTY, 6-2-7 PENALTY: in the case of an illegal pitch, the batter is awarded a ball. The penalty that permitted base runners to be awarded one base without liability to be put out is removed. Rationale: The new language creates more balance between offense and defense. The batter should receive the award rather than runners already on base. 2019 SOFTBALL MAJOR EDITORIAL CHANGES 2-65-2: Clarifies there can be no appeal of the play that occurred prior to the umpire awarding an intentional walk. 6-1-2a, b: Clarifies what motion constitutes the start of the pitch and when the step back of the non-pivot foot may be taken.

With the third video installment in our local high school football previews, we visited with head coach Eric Bishop and several of his 2019 Tigers. Adairsville, state playoff qualifiers in five of the last seven seasons, looks to battle its way through Region 6-AAA to qualify again this year. The Tigers will need to bounce back from a 4-6 campaign in 2018.

With the second installment in our season preview series, the Cartersville Purple Hurricanes enter the 2019 season making some adjustments. The Canes have a new head coach in Conor Foster who was promoted to the top spot at Cartersville following Joey King’s departure to Coastal Carolina University. (story continues below) Foster, a former player at Cartersville, served as varsity defensive coordinator under King since the 2014 season. He also coached defensive backs and served as a varsity quarterbacks coach and junior varsity head coach. The Canes also dealt with being slightly displaced for most of the summer. Cartersville is moving into a new state-of-the-art fieldhouse adjacent to Weinman Stadium and did much of their off-season training work in the school’s old gymnasium. The challenge for Foster will be continue the impressive run the Canes have enjoyed. Cartersville, after falling to Blessed Trinity in the Class AAAA title game 23-9, finished the 2018 season with a 14-1 mark. The championship game loss was only the second time the Canes have fallen in four years with both setbacks coming to the Titans. Despite the loss, the Hurricanes won a seventh-straight region title and are 55-2 over the past four years with back-to-back state titles in 2015 and 2016. In 2019, Foster and his coaching staff will look to replace Bartow County Offensive Player of the Year Marcus Gary along with All County players — Jackson Lowe, Bobby Harris, Tristan Carlton, and Isaiah Chaney. The cupboard is far from depleted, however, and the first-year head coach will lean on multiple returning All-County selections. That list includes quarterback and Louisville commit Tee Webb; Memphis commit and offensive lineman Jonah Gambill; two-way player Marquail Coaxum; and nose guard La’Kwayme Jupiter.

The first in our video series of local high school football previews features the 2019 Woodland Wildcats and their six seniors along with head coach Tony Plott. BartowSportsZone.com will broadcast the regular season opener for Woodland with live, pre-game coverage beginning at 6 p.m. Kickoff and all the live play-by-play will follow at 7:30 p.m. You can listen online or use any smart device. BartowSportsZone.com will rotate coverage among the three county schools via the Johnny's NY Style Pizza Bartow County Game of the Week. You can also listen to the Bartow Sports Zone radio show each Friday morning, starting August 16, on WBHF-Cartersville. The show, which airs from 7-9 am. features interviews with the four local high school football coaches and provides coverage of the other Fall sports.

As the month of July winds down, the summer grind for local professional baseball players continues. Sam Howard made three relief appearances for the MLB Colorado Rockies during the week while first year pro Elliott Anderson continued his string of appearances without allowing an earned run in the Rookie Advanced Appalachian League. Pitcher Luke Schiltz contributed to the AZL Rangers’ first half division title that secured a post-season berth in the Rookie Arizona League playoffs and Connor Justus made seven starts during the week for his Double-A Mobile team. Meanwhile, Anthony Seigler was placed on the 7-Day Injured List by the Class A Charleston RiverDogs. The 2018 first round draft pick reportedly took a foul tip off his knee on July 19. ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Burlington Royals (1st yr. pro; LHP; Rookie Advanced Appalachian League; Kansas City Royals’ organization; Auburn; Cartersville HS)… continued an amazing start to his professional career with two more appearances without allowing an earned run. He also picked up his second win and third save of the year in his ninth and tenth appearances of the season. In a two inning home stint Wednesday night against the Bristol Pirates, Anderson worked the seventh and eighth innings of a 5-4 loss. He did not allow a hit, but yielded a walk and recorded two strikeouts. Saturday, the 21-year-old fanned one in a spotless ninth inning to earn a save in a 3-1 victory at the Princeton Rays. Anderson has now worked 13 and 1/3 innings of relief without allowing a run. He has 15 strikeouts, only three walks, and opponents have a mere .136 batting average against him. Burlington (20-18) is in second place in the Appy League’s East Division trailing the Pulaski Yankees by 3 and 1/2 games. SAM HOWARD — Colorado Rockies (6th yr. pro; LHP; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS)… After being called up from Triple-A Albuquerque last Sunday, the 26-year-old made one inning relief appearances Tuesday and Thursday at Washington along with a one inning stint Sunday at Cincinnati. He allowed four total earned runs on five hits, two walks, and one hit batsman. He struck out two. Prior to joining the MLB club, Howard was 2-1 with a 3.83 ERA in 36 appearances (44.2 IP) as a reliever at Albuquerque. Colorado (49-57) is in the NL West cellar 19 and 1/2 games behind Los Angeles. CONNOR JUSTUS — Mobile BayBears (4th yr. pro; Infielder; Double-A Southern League; L.A. Angels’ organization; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS)… in seven games over the past week Justus was 3-for-21 at the plate with a run scored and one RBI. For the season, he has a .192 batting average across 90 games and 266 official at-bats with two home runs and 20 RBI. Defensively, the 24-year-old carries a .949 fielding percentage in 313 total chances. He has been part of 37 of the BayBears’ double plays. Mobile is 14-22 in the Southern League’s second half and trails Biloxi by nine games in the South Division. The BayBears are 41-63 for the 2019 season. LUKE SCHILTZ — AZL Rangers (1st yr. pro; RHP; Cartersville native; Rookie Arizona League; Texas Rangers’ organization; Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS)… gave up three earned runs in a two inning appearance at the AZL Dodgers Mota last Wednesday but was credited with the pitching win in a 9-8 Rangers’ come-from-behind effort. Schiltz, who fanned three, worked the seventh and eighth innings allowing the runs on a walk, two triples, and a wild pitch and exited with his team trailing 8-4. The Rangers rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth making him eligible for his first win as a professional. The 19-year-old has now made five appearances. He has a 4.00 ERA in nine total innings. The AZL Rangers went 19-9 to win the first half West Division title and clinch a post-season berth. They are currently 3-1 in the second half standings. ANTHONY SEIGLER — Charleston RiverDogs (2nd yr. pro; Catcher; Class A South Atlantic League; N.Y. Yankees’ organization; Cartersville HS)… the Yankees’ first-round pick in 2018 has been placed on the 7-Day Injured List after appearing to take a foul tip off his knee July 19. In 30 games with the RiverDogs this season after spending time in extended Spring Training, Seigler has a .175 batting average in 97 official at-bats. He has 20 walks, three doubles, a stolen base, and six RBI. Defensively, the 20-year-old has a .984 fielding percentage in 183 total chances with three passed balls. He has thrown out eight of 23 stolen base attempts. After barely missing the first half divisional title, the RiverDogs are 14-22 in the second half and in last place in the South Atlantic League’s Southern Division.

Bartow County Parks and Recreation will host a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for their new multi-purpose sports turf field at Hamilton Crossing Park. The ribbon cutting ceremony will take place on Saturday, August 3 at 9:00 a.m. The Challenger League of Bartow County will play the inaugural game on the new field immediately following the opening ceremony. The public is invited to attend the celebration and opening of the newest addition to Hamilton Crossing Park.

ATLANTA (July 25, 2019) | Sen. Bruce Thompson (R – White) has been appointed by Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan to serve as Chair of the Senate Athletic Association Study Committee. “The current process surrounding our athletic association in Georgia is simply flawed,” said Sen. Thompson. “The Georgia High School Association is funded by tax dollars, and therefore should be transparent in its spending of these dollars. Because our students and school personnel are directly affected by the decisions made by the association, these individuals should be a part of the conversation, which will be a point of discussion in this study committee. This committee will also review the current board of directors to ensure that all schools throughout the state are being represented fairly and guarantee all parties have a seat at the table. I am honored to have been appointed to serve as chairman of this important committee and I look forward to creating effective legislation to address these issues.” “Georgians expect their elected leaders to make deliberate, informed decisions to better our state,” said Lt. Governor Duncan. “The study committee process allows our Senators to dedicate extensive focus to a single issue and generate in-depth proposals for our next legislative session. I look forward to the hard work of Chairman Thompson and the appointed members of the Senate Athletic Association Study Committee as they meet to study, discuss, and prepare legislative action items for the Senate to consider in 2020.” The Senate Athletic Association Study Committee was created by the passage of Senate Resolution 304 during the 2019 Legislative Session. As stated in the resolution, the committee shall be comprised of five members of the Senate. The Senate Athletic Association Study Committee will review funding of the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) and the current structure of interscholastic athletic events to recommend action or legislation the committee believes to be necessary. The committee must report its findings on or before December 1, 2019. Sen. Thompson encourages anyone who has had interactions with GHSA to email bruce.thompson@senate.ga.gov or to call the office at 404-656-0065 if you would like to share your experiences, positive or negative, with the committee.

Former Cartersville High School left hand pitcher Sam Howard was added to the Colorado Rockies’ 40-man roster Sunday morning following an impressive 19 appearance stretch for Triple-A Albuquerque that saw his ERA dip by more than two runs per nine innings pitched. Howard will join the Rockies on their current road trip in Washington. They also play at Cincinnati this weekend before returning to Denver for a homestand against the Dodgers and Giants. Elsewhere, Elliott Anderson continued his scoreless string of appearances launching his pro career. The Royals’ 23rd round draft selection this past June has now tossed more than ten innings without allowing an earned run at the Advanced Rookie level. Cartersville native RHP Luke Schiltz has also now made three straight scoreless appearances for the Rookie Arizona League Rangers and infielder Connor Justus is in the midst of an offensive surge for the Double-A Mobile BayBears. ELLIOTT ANDERSON — Burlington Royals (1st yr. pro; LHP; Rookie Advanced Appalachian League; Kansas City Royals’ organization; Auburn; Cartersville HS)… continued the stellar start to his professional career with two more scoreless relief appearances earning his first pro win and his second career save. He entered in the sixth inning at home against the Danville Braves last Monday with two runners on base and the Royals leading 5-2. Anderson completed the longest stint of his pro career with 2 and 1/3 innings. He kept Danville off the scoreboard, retired seven of eight batters faced (hit batsman), and struck out four. Burlington won the game 10-2. Last Thursday Anderson allowed one hit, but retired the side with a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning appearance to earn a save as the Royals beat the visiting Bluefield Blue Jays 4-1. Since joining the professional ranks, Anderson is 1-0 with two saves in eight relief appearances. He has not allowed an earned run and has 12 strikeouts with only two walks and one hit batsman. Opponents are hitting a mere .171 against the southpaw and his WHIP stands at 0.77. Burlington (17-15) is in second place in the Appy League East Division. The Royals trail the Pulaski Yankees by 3 and 1/2 games. SAM HOWARD — Colorado Rockies (6th yr. pro; LHP; Georgia Southern; Cartersville HS)… after making 36 relief appearances this season at Triple-A Albuquerque, Howard was added to the Colorado Rockies’ 40-man roster Sunday morning. The Rockies also recalled pitcher Jeff Hoffman from the Isotopes. The roster shakeup comes as Colorado is mired in a seven-game losing streak and has suffered back-to-back series sweeps to the San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees. To make room, the Rockies optioned starting pitcher Antonio Senzatela to Triple-A and designated Mark Reynolds for assignment. Howard is expected to add bullpen depth after posting a 3.83 ERA and 1.52 WHIP across 44.2 innings of relief this season for the Pacific Coast League Isotopes. This is Howard’s first appearance of 2019 on the MLB Rockies’ roster after seeing action in four games last season. Three of those appearances came in September after roster expansion and the 26-year-old southpaw has never thrown more than an inning with the Rockies. He has a 2.25 ERA at the MLB level with a 2.00 WHIP. Howard was non-tendered by the Rockies last December, but re-signed with the Colorado organization on a minor league contract in January of this year. He was eventually assigned to Triple-A Albuquerque where he has and 2-1 record and has made 36 relief appearances accumulating 57 strikeouts. Since May 27, Howard has allowed only two earned runs in 19 appearances across 19.2 innings. He has issued only four walks (two intentional) during that stretch with 27 strikeouts. His ERA over his last 19 games has dropped from 6.12 to 3.83. Colorado (47-52) is currently fourth in the National League’s West Division. The Rockies trail the division-leading Dodgers by 18 games, but are only 4.5 games back in the Wild Card race. CONNOR JUSTUS — Mobile BayBears (4th yr. pro; Infielder; Double-A Southern League; L.A. Angels’ organization; Georgia Tech; Cartersville HS)… hit safely in four of five games this past week including back-to-back multi-hit games at the Tennessee Smokies and at home against the Biloxi Shuckers. He also hit his second home run of the year Sunday in a home, extra innings loss to Biloxi. For the week, Justus was 7-for-19 (.368) with a pair of doubles, a walk, and four runs scored. His season batting average through 83 games now stands at .196 with 19 RBI and an OBP of .303 in 245 official at-bats. Defensively, the 24-year-old carries a .946 fielding average in 296 total chances. That includes 49 games at shortstop, 19 at third base, and 14 at second base. He has been part of 25 of the BayBears’ double plays. Mobile (13-16 second half) trails Southern League second half South Division leader Biloxi by six games. The BayBears are 40-57 in 2019. LUKE SCHILTZ — AZL Rangers (1st yr. pro; RHP; Rookie Arizona League; Texas Rangers’ organization; Cartersville native; Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS)… made a pair of scoreless appearances last week covering a total of five innings pitched. He entered in the second inning and fired three scoreless frames at the AZL Athletics Gold last Monday in an eventual extra innings loss. In that appearance, Schiltz scattered a pair of hits retiring nine of eleven batters faced all on contact — five groundouts including a double play and three fly outs. In Saturday’s 7-5 home loss to AZL Royals, he allowed only one hit over the final two innings. Schiltz has now made four relief appearances and worked seven innings with a 1.29 ERA. He has one walk, one hit batsman, and one strikeout. His WHIP stands at 0.71. Opponents have a .174 batting average against him. The Rangers (19-9) are in first place in the Arizona League’s West Division with a 1.5 game lead over the AZL Royals. ANTHONY SEIGLER — Charleston RiverDogs (2nd yr. pro; Catcher; Class A South Atlantic League; N.Y. Yankees’ organization; Cartersville HS)… had only one hit this past week in five games played. The sixth inning single came last Monday in the RiverDogs’ 3-2 win in at the Augusta Greenjackets. For the season, Seigler has a .175 batting average in 97 official at-bats across 30 games. He has three doubles, 20 walks, and six RBI with one stolen base for a .328 OBP. Defensively, the 20-year-old catcher has a .984 fielding percentage in 183 total chances. He has thrown out eight of 23 stolen base attempts. Charleston (13-18 second half) has slipped to the cellar of the second half SAL Southern Division standings. The RiverDogs trail Augusta by four games in the second half and are now 50-51 for the 2019 season.