2009 EDITION !!!

When you start a season with a full roster, you hope you can make it through the season with that same roster. Unfortunately, in this day and age vacations and injuries have often become the cry of Moon Legion managers. This year, it was no different, as Moon Manager Dom Santeufemio again saw his team become depleted at the most critical time of the season, the County playoffs.

On Sunday afternoon, minus several key players and a hurting pitching staff, Chartiers Valley/South Fayette, picked over the remnants of the 2009 Ohio River League Champs, 17-0.

I saw this same scenario in the summer of 2000, my last year before I got married and moved. Seven key players opted to take vacation or ran off to another team that was having a tournament in Florida. We bowed out in three games that season. It really hurts to see this happen year in and year out. Sorry to sound off here, but Dom and the players that did remaind faithful to the end, didn't deserve the fate they saw this past weekend. I can understand injuries and emergencies. But when you make a commitment to play for a team, you need to know what it entails. Jobs and vacations are important, but come playoff time, you need to look at creative rescheduling of those. Why even play a regular season if you're going to bail at the end. It makes a Manager wonder why he even bothers to put in the time. I definitely know it's not for the money.

SUNDAY JULY 12: WINNERS BRACKET

PLUM .................... 10 - BALDWIN ................. 0

BETHEL PARK .............. 5 - BURGETTSTOWN ............ 2

SHALER .................. 10 - ELIZABETH FORWARD ....... 4

MONROEVILLE ............. 10 - SWISSVALE ............... 7

LOSERS BRACKET

PLEASANT HILLS ........... 4 - SPRINGDALE .............. 2 (Springdale eliminated)

WEST MIFFLIN ............ 13 - CRAFTON-INGRAM-THORN .... 1 (C-I-T eliminated)

CHAR VALLEY/SO FAYETTE .. 17 - MOON TOWNSHIP ........... 0 (MOON TWP. eliminated)

KEYSTONE OAKS ............ 9 - PETERS TWP .............. 8 (Peters Twp. eliminated)

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MONDAY JULY 13: LOSERS BRACKET GAMES

BALDWIN ................. 5 - PLEASANT HILLS ............3 (Pleasant Hills eliminated)

BURGETTSTOWN ........... 11 - WEST MIFFLIN ............ 11 (Game Suspended -Darkness)

CHAR VALLEY/SO FAYETTE . 10 - SWISSVALE ................ 9 (Swissvale eliminated)

ELIZABETH FORWARD ...... 18 - KEYSTONE OAKS ............ 3 (Keystone Oaks eliminated)

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TUESDAY JULY 14 SCHEDULE:

WINNERS BRACKET (Winners advance to Region 6 Tourney)

PLUM ......................... 13 - MONROEVILLE .................. 0 (PLUM advances to Region 6 Tourney)

SHALER ....................... 1 - BETHEL PARK ................... 0 (SHALER advances to Region 6 Tourney)

LOSER'S BRACKET

BURGETTSTOWN ......... 14 - WEST MIFFLIN .................13* (* - 10 INNINGS, Completion of suspended game) (West Mifflin eliminated)

CHAR VAL/SO FAYETTE . 9 - BALDWIN ........................ 5 (Baldwin eliminated)

ELIZABETH FORWARD .. 13 - BURGETTSTOWN ................... 2 (Burgettstown eliminated)

WEDNESDAY JULY 15:

Winners advance to Region 6 Tourney, Losers eliminated

CHAR VALLEY/SO FAYETTE vs. BETHEL PARK at Mayview Field at 6:00 PM

ELIZABETH FORWARD .. 11 - MONROEVILLE ................... 5 (Monroeville eliminated)

Moon Legion's call to arms

By Bill Utterback - Times Sports Staff

SHALER TWP. — When Moon manager Dom Santeufemio asked for volunteers to pitch in the playoffs, very few of his players raised their arms to respond. Their elbows and shoulders ached too much. "We literally have no pitchers," Santeufemio said after Moon dropped a 17-7 decision to Elizabeth Forward at Shaler in the first game of the double-elimination Allegheny County American Legion baseball tournament. "We have hitters. We hit over .300 as a team this year. But you can’t win without pitchers."

Starter Cody Quinn pitched to three batters before leaving with a back injury. Mike Jeffries, an ace with the WPIAL champion high school team, has a sore arm. Bo Bogats pitched over 100 pitches in Wednesday’s victory. Elizabeth Forward scored five times in the first inning, and then six times in the sixth inning to invoke the 10-run rule.

Ben Taylor used a double and a single to drive in three runs for Moon Area, who won the Ohio River League title with a 16-2 record. Steve Karaffa singled and scored in the second inning. Bogats, Brandon Buck and Taylor contributed hits, and Cory Chamberlain drove in a run, to a three-run rally in the fourth that created a 9-7 drama.

Moon plays Chartiers Valley/South Fayette, who lost an 8-6 game to Shaler, in an elimination game at 3 p.m. today at Shaler. Moon defeated Chartiers Valley in the WPIAL AAA championship game. CV/SF has players from both teams that made the PIAA Class AAA and PIAA Class A Championship games and finished as runner-ups.

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ALLEG. CO. ALB - SATURDAY JULY 11 results :

Plum ........................... 13 - Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg ....... 9

Bethel Park .................. 10 - Springdale ............................ 7

Elizabeth Forward ......... 17 - Moon Township ..................... 7

Swissvale .................... 10 - Peters Township ................... 8

Baldwin ....................... 11 - West Mifflin ......................... 6

Burgettstown ............... 10 - Pleasant Hills ....................... 7

Shaler ......................... 8 - Char. Valley/So. Fayette ........ 7

Monroeville .................. 16 - Keystone Oaks ..................... 5

SUNDAY JULY 12 Schedule :

Winner's Bracket : (All games at 12 Noon)

Plum (ARL#1) vs. Baldwin at CCAC Boyce Campus Field

Bethel Park vs. Burgettstown at Meyer-Middleton Field in Crafton

Shaler vs. Elizabeth Forward at Shaler's Matulevic Field

Swissvale vs. Monroeville at Peterswood Park in Peters Township

Loser's Bracket : (All games at 3 PM)

Pleasant Hills vs. Springdale at CCAC Boyce Campus Field

West Mifflin vs. Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg at Meyer-Middleton Field in Crafton

MOON TOWNSHIP vs. Char. Valley/So. Fayette at Shaler's Matulevic Field

Keystone Oaks vs. Peters Township at Peterswood Park in Peters Township

Good morning! Moon Township enters the Allegheny County ALB Double Elimination playoffs on Saturday (July 11) when they will travel to Shaler's Matulevic Field to play Elizabeth Forward at 12 Noon in the first game.

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In the opening day of the playoffs on Saturday:

Plum (ARL#1; 17-4-1) vs. Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg (ORL#4; 10-9) at CCAC Boyce Campus Field at Noon

Bethel Park (SOL#1; 13-4) vs. Springdale (ARL#4) at Meyer Middleton Field in Crafton at Noon

MOON TOWNSHIP (ORL#1; 16-2) vs. Elizabeth Forward (MYL#4) at Shaler's Matulevic Field at Noon

Swissvale (MYL#1) vs. Peters Township (SOL#4) at Peterswood Park at Noon

Baldwin (SOL#2; 10-4) vs. West Mifflin (MYL#3; 11-5) at CCAC Boyce Campus Field at 3:00 PM

Pleasant Hills (MYL#2; 13-4) vs. Burgettstown (ORL#3; 12-9) at Meyer Middleton Field in Crafton at 3:00 PM

Shaler (ARL#2; 17-6) vs. Char. Valley/So. Fayette (SOL#3) at Shaler's Matulevic Field at 3:00 PM

Keystone Oaks (ORL#2; 14-6) vs. Monroeville (ARL#3) at Peterswood Park in Peters Twp. at 3:00 PM

Key : ARL - Allegheny River League, ORL - Ohio River League, SOL - Southern League, MYL - Mon Yough League.

An article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette West edition about Moon's 16-2 regular season :

Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Article about Moon Twp. Legion baseball (7/9/09)

The Moon Twp. Legion baseball team finished their regular season with two wins and won the 2009 Ohio River League title in the process. It is their 5th League title and the 19th time they enter the Alleg. Co. playoffs since 1981.

They beat West Allegheny on Monday (July 6th), 14-8. Dan Jeffreys got the win going 4 2/3 innings. Scott Liller and Paul Pitaro each had three hits including a triple. Alex Knox, Jesse Dempsey (2B, 3B), Dan and Mike Jeffreys each added a pair.

On Tuesday, Bo Bogats went five innings to get the win as Moon beat Upper Saint Clair on the road, 12-8. Scott Liller and Jesse Dempsey (2B) each had two hits. Mike Jeffreys and Corey Chamberlain each homered for Moon as the team improved to 16-2.

The Chartiers Valley/South Fayette game scheduled for Thursday was cancelled.

Dom will be attending the Allegheny County American Legion Baseball Palyoff pairings meeting on Friday night to see when, where and who the boys will be playing on Saturday. I will have more details on the pairings for this double elimination tournament this weekend.

The topfour teams from each of the four leagues advance to the County's tournament. Out of the ORL : Moon Twp. was first (16-2), Keystone Oaks was second 14-6, Burgettstown was third (12-9) and Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg was fourth (10-9)

Moon picked up a forfeit win on Wednesday as Burgettstown forfeited a game. On Tuesday, Mike Jeffreys took to the mound and the plate to give Moon 6-3 big win over Keystone Oaks. It was Jeffreys' bases loaded triple in the first that sparked Moon at home. On the mound, he struck out six and walked two. Paul Pitaro added two hits. With the wins, Moon continues to own the Ohio River League. They are officially, 9-1, 12-1 if you add in the 3 wins via the forfeits from a folded Sewickley team.

Moon will host West Allegheny on Thursday at McCormick Field at 6:00 PM.

Moon's trip to the Parkway Center Mall area was not a great day for shopping as the boys dropped their first game of the year to Keystone Oaks, 6-4 in the first game of a doubleheader. Dan Jeffreys went four innings and took the loss. In the second game, KO was on top 5-1 before Mother Nature pulled one of it's favorite things to do this summer so far, rain. The game will be rescheduled and played over as a new game.

Hello everyone! Moon beat Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg last night (Friday), 16-1 in 5 innings at Meyers-Middletown field. Bo Bogats pitched five innings, striking out 7 while walking only one. The losing pitcher was Dan Webster. He worked four innings, striking out one and walked eight. Jesse Dempsey went 3-4 with a triple and 3 RBI's. Julian Spinosi also had 3 hits.

The boys bounced Burgettstown, 15-2 in five innings. They travel to Duquesne Field in Green Tree to play Keystone Oaks at Noon. Moon is 6-0 (9-0 if you add in the 3 forfeit wins over Sewickley.

On Thursday, Moon trounced West Allegheny, 13-1

Julian Spinosi - C

Cory Chamberlin - 1B, OF

Paul Pitaro - 1B

Jay Rush - 1B

Angelo Aletto - 1B

Bo Bogats - P, INF

Scotty Liller - SS, P

Brandon Buck - OF, INF

Alex Knox - OF, P

Michael Jeffreys - P, 3B

Dan Jeffreys - OF, P

Matt Jeffreys - OF

Ben Tayler - INF

Jesse Dempsey - OF

Derek Kazraie - 2B

Steve Karaffa - INF

Cody Quinn - P

Unfortunately, I have been a bit preoccupied with a lot of things in recent weeks and have not been on here to update this site. I hope to get some steadier updates as the season progresses.

On Sunday, the Moon Legion baseball team started it's season with a doubleheader win over Elliott. They won the opener, 9-1 and the nightcap, 14-2. Manager Dom Santeufemio says it has been a rough several days trying to finalize the roster and reschedule games postponed after the H.S. team's season was extended due to the run in the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs.

As soon as he sends the roster and schedule, I will be posting them.

Another team folded in the past month or so, Sewickley has officially dropped out due to lack of players. It follows the losses of Sto-Ken-Rox, Robinson Twp., and West View-Ross. It is really a shame to see this happening to American Legion baseball in our area. Pittsburgh and the surrounding area has always been a hotbed for this prestigeous organization. If this continues to precipitate, we could lose a very valuble asset for the future of our children. I urge folks to get out and support the program and help rebuild the honor and respect this fabled program deserves.

Hello everyone! It deeply saddens me to announce the passing of a great man, a good friend, and mentor to me over the past thirty years. Region 6 Director, Bob Hester has passed away at the age of 68 on Monday April 13th. Our condolences to Bob's wife Cathy and his sons, Robert G., Thomas, Dennis, and Donald and their families.

Bob took over the reins of the Region 6 director's position in the early 1980's and was a strong leader and advocate of the program ever since. It was only this past summer when he announced he was stepping down from the position due to poor health. Region 6 American Legion Baseball will not be the same without his leadership, wisdom and understanding. The ALB program has lost a dear friend. May God Bless you Bob and your family. You are in our prayers and will never forgotten my friend

Those wanting to pay their respects will be received at the WALTER J. ZALEWSKI FUNERAL HOME at 216 4th Street in Lawrenceville. Viewing will be held on Tuesday from 7 PM -9 PM, Wednesday 2 PM -4 PM and 7 PM - 9 PM. Funeral Mass will be held in St. Joseph Church on Thursday at 1pm.

Some other sad news, Legion baseball not only lost a good friend, but apparently the recession and bad times have led to the demise of several outstanding American Legion franchises. I have been notified that Robinson Twp., Sto-Ken-Rox, and West View/Ross have all apparently folded their programs for this year. This leaves a lot of boys without a place to play baseball. This truly saddens me. Baseball is a rite of summer and when you take away that from our youth, you diminish their futures. I can only hope and pray that things will improve and we will see the return of these programs in the near future.

I need your help. I am looking for all players to have ever suited up for a Moon Township American Legion team since 1978. I am currently working on a project and want to make contacts with all of these players. In this time frame, we had players from Moon Area, West Allegheny, Sewickley Academy, OLSH, and Cornell. If you are one of these players or know one of them, please contact by email :

Please note, I am NOT looking to solicit or use any one's contact information. I am just trying to prepare a history of the Moon Township American Legion program from 1978 to present. I am also looking to find the scorebooks from the following years :

1979 - 1983 - 1984 - 1985 - 1986 - 1988 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005 - 2006

The latter five seasons I may be able to acquire, however the books the previous years may be long gone. If any knows, Andy Kortyna, Gene Veytovich, Mike Hughes, or Fred Taylor, please let them know I am looking for those scorebooks, rosters, and/or stat sheets. These gentlemen were the Legion Managers during the mid-80's. I thank you all in advance in this matter.

The 2007 Allegheny Co./PA Region 6 ALB Homepage is NOW UP AND RUNNING. You can follow all the PA ALB REGION 6 Action on it with results from Allegheny, Beaver, and Fayette Counties :

Alleg.Co./PA Region 6 ALB Homepage 2007 : Information regarding PA, Region 6, and Allegheny Co. American Legion Baseball

The 2007 Allegheny Co./PA Region 6 ALB Homepage is under reconstruction. You can follow it's progress as I add the Master schedules to it at this link :

Alleg.Co./PA Region 6 ALB Homepage 2007 : Information regarding PA, Region 6, and Allegheny Co. American Legion Baseball

Great page written by W.A. Head Baseball Coach and former Moon Twp. A.L.B. player, Bryan Cornell about another Moon Twp ALB and WA baseball standout, Scott Patterson.

Where are they now ? : Great page about former Moon Township Legion and West Allegheny H.S. Baseball player Scott Patterson by Bryan Cornell

You can checkout our Legion teams ARCHIVED homepages from previous seasons at these links :

The 2008 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2008 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2008 Moon Legion Homepage

The 2007 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2007 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2007 Moon Legion Homepage

The 2006 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2006 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2006 Moon Legion Homepage

The 2005 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2005 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2005 Moon Legion Homepage

The 2004 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2004 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2004 Moon Legion Homepage

The 2002 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 2002 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 2002 Moon Legion Homepage

The 1999 Season :

Moon Twp. Legion Baseball 1999 : The ARCHIVED edition of the 1999 Moon Legion Homepage

The New Pa State Region 6/Allegheny County American Legion Baseball Homepage that I promised Region 6 Director Bob Hester last year is now up and running. All updates from here on outwill be exclusively on this website. I have also added photos from the game on that site. Please go there by clicking this handy link :

Alleg. Co/ PA.Region 6 : Official news, scores, and schedules from Allegheny County and PA State Region 6 American Legion Baseball playoffs

2008 MOON TWP American Legion Schedule as of: 7/22/2008

Date	Day	Time	EX-LEAG	Location	Opponent	H/A	W/L	Score	Record
6/8/2008	Sun	6:00 PM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S. Field	Robinson Twp.	H	LOSS	8-3	0-1
6/9/2008	Mon	6:00 PM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S. Field	Sewickley	H	WIN	13-7	1-1
6/13/2008	Fri	6:00 PM	LEAG	Chartiers Valley H.S. Field	Chartiers Valley/South Fayette	A	WIN	8-6	2-1
6/15/2008	Sun	5:30 PM	LEAG	Herb Field	West View/Ross	A	WIN	11-1	3-1
6/17/2008	Tue	6:00 PM	LEAG	Donaldson Field	West Allegheny	A	WIN	8-5	4-1
6/18/2008	Wed	6:00 PM	LEAG	Baldwin-Whitehall H.S. Field	Baldwin	A	WIN	4-1	5-1
6/21/2008	Sat	10:30 AM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S Field	Sto-Rox	H	WIN	17-1**	6-1
6/21/2008	Sat	2:00 PM	LEAG	Herschel Field	Elliott	A	WIN	10-0**	7-1
6/22/2008	Sun	12:00 NOON	LEAG	Duquesne University Field	Keystone Oaks	A	WIN	18-5**	8-1
6/24/2008	Tue	6:00 PM	LEAG	Meyer-Middleton Field	Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg	A	WIN	11-1	9-1
6/25/2008	Wed	6:00 PM	BANQUET	Crowne Plaza/PGH Airport	14th Annual MAPHC BB Banquet	H	---	---	---
6/28/2008	Sat	12:00 NOON	LEAG	CCAC Boyce Campus Field	Plum	A	CXL	---	---
7/1/2008	Tue	6:00 PM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S. Field	Crafton-Ingram-Thornburg	H	WIN	6-3	10-1
7/3/2008	Thu	6:00 PM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S Field	Elliott	H	WIN	7-0 !	11-1
7/6/2008	Sun	12:00 PM	LEAG	Duquesne University Field	Keystone Oaks	A	WIN	8-3	12-1
7/7/2008	Mon	6:00 PM	LEAG	Sto-Ken-Rox Field	Sto-Rox	A	WIN	8-3	13-1
7/10/2008	Thu	4:00 PM	LEAG/DH	Hawthorne Field	Sewickley	A	WIN	5-4	14-1
7/10/2008	Thu	6:00 PM	LEAG/DH	Hawthorne Field	Sewickley	A	WIN	13-5	15-1
7/11/2008	Fri	6:00 PM	LEAG	Donaldson Field	West Allegheny	A	LOSS	8-2	15-2
7/12/2008	Sat	12:00 NOON	LEAG	Moon Area H.S. Field	Robinson Township	H	WIN	7-0 !	16-2
7/13/2008	Sun	11:00 AM	LEAG	Moon Area H.S. Field	West View/Ross	H	WIN	17-7*	17-2
7/15/2008	Tue	8:00 PM	LEAG	Volunteer Field	Carrick	A	CXL	---	17-2
7/18/2008	Fri	6:00 PM	AC PLAYOFFS	Meyer-Middleton Field	Springdale	H	WIN	11-4	18-2
7/19/2008	Sat	3:30 PM	AC PLAYOFFS	Shaler's Matulevic Field	Chartiers Valley/South Fayette	H	LOSS	7-6	18-3
7/20/2008	Sun	1:00 PM	AC PLAYOFFS	Shaler's Matulevic Field	Shaler	H	WIN	12-0	19-3
7/21/2008	Mon	6:00 PM	AC PLAYOFFS	Peterswood Park	Peters Twp.	H	LOSS	10-6 @	19-4