2011 Best of the West Team Profile – Maccabi USA

Seventh in a series of ten team profiles for the 2011 Best of the West Tournament, to be played June 4-5, 2011 at Elings Park in Santa Barbara, California Click here for schedule of games for the 2011 tournament.

Maccabi USA is one of ten teams competing in this year’s 2011 Best of the West (BOTW) tournament. They’ll be competing in Pool B, against the Italian Athletic Club, Pala Braves, Cal State Builders and CR/A1 Rockies.

Maccabi USA is a national chapter of the hugely successful Maccabi program that competes in a variety of sports, including softball, and hosts the “Maccabi Games” on the world stage.

Leading the Pitching Staff at this year’s Best of The West will be Jason Gluckman, who is starting to emerge as a pitching force in the SCIFL League, and in the Burbank City League. Jason also brings a strong bat to the Maccabi offense.

Josh Persell, who works as a Major League Baseball player Agent, was a 3 year starter on the USC Baseball team. Josh lead the entire 2009 World Maccabiah Games in hitting with a .721 average. Josh plays equally as well in the infield and outfield

Dan Winnick is one of the best lead-off htters in California, and is a veteran of numerous ISC World Tournaments. He can also run-down fluy balls in centerfield that most other outfielders can’t get to.

Corey Angel and Larry Silfen are now into their third year of Fastpitch, and both played integral roles on the Maccabi USA Master’s team that captured the gold medal at the 18th World Maccabiah Games in Israel. Larry’s versatility enables him to play every position on the field except pitch, and he has successfully switched over from hitting on the right side to hitting on the left side of the plate. Corey has learned how to play small ball quite well, and he can cause fits to even the best defensive infields.

The Maccabi USA Open Team and Master’s Team will be competing this December in the XI Pan American Maccabiah Games in Sao Palo, Brazil. Everyone is looking forward to that trip.

The 2011 squad was ranked # 38 in the ISC World Tournament pre-season rankings released earlier this week, and has their sights set on qualifying for a spot in the 2011 ISC World Tournament in Moline, IL. Qualifying for this year’s world tournament will have special meaning to Dave Blackburn, as he is slated to be inducted into the ISC Hall of Fame in the “service to the game” category, on Sunday morning, August 15, 2011.

Best of the West Tournament director Dave Blackburn is a longtime participant and honoree of the Maccabi team and program. As most everyone in the fastball community knows, Dave suffered serious injuries in a near fatal car crash last August, and has been battling back ever since. His recovery — and presence at this year’s Best of the West tournament in Santa Barbara this year is nothing short of remarkable.

PITCHERS
Cohen Fred P / 1B Deerfield, IL
Gluckman Jason P / C Van Nuys, CA
Day Debbie P Los Angeles, CA
Hoppe Rich P Sherman Oaks, CA

CATCHERS
Kahan Tony C / OF Glenview, IL
Gluckman Jason P / C Van Nuys, CA

INF
Fish Nate IF NY, NY
Silfen Larry UTIL Los Angeles, CA
Spear Jeremy IF Honolulu, HI
Angel Corey IF Los Angeles. CA
Puklin Jon IF St Charles, IL

OF
Rubin Paul OF /DH Scottsdale, AZ
Schucker Steve OF NY, NY
Winnick Dan OF Walnut Creek, CA
Frank Billy OF Los Angeles, CA

INF/OF
Reisner Brett OF / IF X Calabasas, CA
Persell Josh OF / IF Playa Vista, CA

Teams in the 2011 Best of the West Tournament
(Click links for other team profiles)

Pool A
California A’s
Liberty Fastpitch
Those Guys
Bakersfield Silverhawks
J&B Painting

Pool B
Cal-State Builders
Pala Braves
Maccabi USA
Italian Athletic Club
CR A1 Rockies

botwtp2011