Thirty-five graduating senior baseball players from St. Louis City and County public high schools competed against one another on the field of the 2011 World Champions during the Delta Dental’s SmilesLEAGUE Coaches’ Choice All-Star Baseball Game.
The game was played following the St. Louis Cardinals vs. Kansas City Royals baseball game. The all-star lineup included 35 high school seniors from St. Louis City and County public high schools.
Each of the SmilesLEAGUE all-star athletes was pre-selected by their school’s coaching staff. Players from the participating St. Louis City and County public high schools were randomly combined to form the “All-Star Blue Team” and the “All-Star Green Team.”
The “All-Star Blue Team” was coached by former Cardinals third baseman Scott Cooper, a St. Louis native who played high school baseball for the Pattonville Pirates, spent seven seasons in the major leagues and was a member of the American League All-Star team in both 1993 and 1994.
The “All-Star Green Team” was coached by former Cardinals outfielder Kerry Robinson, who is also a St. Louis native. Robinson was a three-sport athlete for the Hazelwood Spartans and went on to play for the Tampa Bay Rays and was a Cardinal from 2001 to 2003, appearing in the post-season in 2001 and 2002.
The event got underway with a Home Run Derby competition. Participants were selected by Cooper and Robinson based on statistics from the 2012 high school baseball season and included “All-Star Blue Team” players Kevin Phillips (University City), Ed Pilgrim (Parkway West) and Lucas Tamaran (Ladue Horton Watkins); and “All-Star Green Team” players Clayton Evans (Rockwood Summit), Brandon Harrell (Cleveland Junior Naval Academy) and Sean Ullrich (Marquette). Each player was pitched 10 balls by former Cardinals pitcher Scott Terry and scored according to distance.
The game was announced by Jennings High School’s head baseball coach Lance Hash and Gerald Quincy Jones. The national anthem was presented by Brianna Hernandez from Carnahan High School. Fredbird and Delta Dental’s Tooth Wizard were also on hand entertaining attendees.
In addition, representatives of Delta Dental continued to promote its new oral health initiative designed to help create a tobacco-free generation of healthy kids. St. Louis native and Cardinals David Freese is the spokesperson for this campaign.
“Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of death and disease in the United States,” said Monica Green, manager of corporate communications for Delta Dental of Missouri.
“It can cause health-related problems for teens at an early age, including periodontal disease, coughing, shortness of breath and other issues related to nicotine addiction. The fact is that we cannot end the tobacco epidemic without focusing our efforts on young people. Nearly 100 percent of adults who smoke every day started smoking when they were 26 or younger, so early prevention is key. If we can prevent adolescents from using tobacco before the age 18, the chances are high that they will not take up the habit.”
Each SmilesLEAGUE All-Star signed a tobacco-free pledge, acknowledging that they do not smoke or chew and outlining their willingness to advocate no-smoking and no-chewing lifestyle choices among Missouri’s youth. Additional information tied to creating a tobacco-free generation of healthy kids is available on Delta Dental’s microsite, www.GoodHealthStartsHere.org.
To learn more about the SmilesLEAGUE Coaches’ Choice High School Seniors All-Star baseball game, visit www.smilesleague.com.
