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Building the Franchise
The Victoria Baseball Club, LLC was formed in 2007 with the intent of bringing summer baseball back to the city of Victoria. After many exploratory meetings with several different leagues, team owner Tracy Young, a local businessman, decided to place a team in the Texas Collegiate League in November of 2008.
Brad Haynes was hired as the interim general manager and vice president of baseball operations to begin building the organization. The team signed a lease agreement with historic Riverside Stadium, the former home of the Los Angeles Dodgers Triple A franchise, the Rosebuds, to be the home field of the new team.
In December of 2008, management decided on the team name Victoria Generals, and the team began to sign several of the top collegiate players from across the country. Chris Clemens was named the General’s first head coach and soon after hired his assistant coach in Blake Koch. The foundation for summer collegiate baseball in Victoria was in place. The Inaugural Season
As the summer season neared, anticipation grew in the community of Victoria. Several local businesses got behind the Generals to help get the word out in the community about the team.
The team opened its inaugural season on the road, playing against the East Texas Pump Jacks in Kilgore, TX on June 5, 2009. The Generals jumped out to an early 5-0 lead after the first inning, but ended up falling at hand of the Pump Jacks, 9-6. Just one day later, the Generals notched their first win in franchise history, beating the Pump Jacks 9-1.
On June 11, 2009, a crowd of nearly 1,500 people were on hand to witness the first home game in team history as the Generals hosted the McKinney Marshals. Willie Kempf got the start for the Generals and gave way to Chase Cleveland who ended up getting the win in a close 9-7 ballgame. The fans at Riverside were on their feet cheering for the final out as closer Zach Nuding notched his first save of the season on a strike out to end the game.
The Generals started the season on a tear, winning seven games in a row after their opening loss. Not only were the Generals gaining respect from teams around the Texas Collegiate League, they were also gaining recognition from scouts from around the nation. In the first national poll released by the Perfect Game Crosscheckers during the summer of 2009, the Generals were ranked #21. The General’s ranking continued to improve as the season moved along, getting as high as #16 before finishing the year at #22. The Generals were the only team in the TCL ever ranked during the 2009 season.
The Generals quickly took hold of first place in the league and established themselves as the team to beat in the Texas Collegiate League. Although the 2009 Victoria Generals may not have been the most talented team in the league, they played extremely well together as a team and seemed to always find a way to win close games under the leadership of head coach Chris Clemons.
As the inaugural season continued, the Generals pulled away from the pack and clinched the regular season league championship in early August with a record of 30-14-2. The team recorded two ties during the regular season, an oddity that rarely ever happens in the game of baseball, due to rainouts during extra inning affairs in East Texas and McKinney.
The Generals entered into the playoffs as the #1 seed in the league and faced off against the Brazos Valley Bombers in the opening round. The Generals made quick work of the Bombers, winning the first game of the series in Bryan 4-0, and the second game in Victoria 13-2, to move on to the TCL Championship Series against the Coppell Copperheads.
Although the Generals had beaten the Copperheads 11 of the 12 times they played during the regular season, the Generals couldn’t seem to solve the Copperheads in the Championship Series. The Generals lost a hard fought opening game in Coppell, 5-3 before returning to Victoria for game two. The Generals found themselves down early in the game, 12-5, but fought back by posting 6 runs in the bottom of the eighth inning before running out of gas and falling at the hands of the Copperheads 13-11. It was the Copperheads third championship in league history.
All in all, the Generals had a phenomenal inaugural season, exceeding everyone’s expectations on the field on off. If there was one thing that was certainly clear following the 2009 season, it was that the Victoria Generals were here to stay and would be a force to be reckoned with in Texas Collegiate League for many years to come.
The Championship Season
In 2010, the Generals returned under the guidance of second-year head coach Chris Clemons with a clear mission: win the Texas Collegiate League championship that eluded them the year before. The Generals wasted no time, getting to work, jumping out to a first-place lead by going 13-7 during the month of June.
The Generals were once again not only gaining recognition in the TCL, but also across the nation. The Generals had a league-high eight players named to the TCL South All-Star Team. The team’s national ranking kept improving week by week as they stayed in the top 30 all season long. The Generals also captured the First-Half TCL Championship, securing their spot in the post-season for the second straight year.
The 2010 TCL All-Star game was hosted by the Generals at Riverside Stadium on July 5. With a great crowd on hand of over 1,200, the game ended in a 7-7 tie.
The Generals picked up right where they left off after the all-star break and continued their hot streak. The Generals continued to stay at the top of the standings and continued to climb in the national rankings.
By the beginning of August, the Generals had secured the TCL Regular-Season Championship for the second straight season and locked up the #1 seed in the TCL playoffs.
The Generals opened the post season on the road in Weimar, TX against the fourth seeded Texas Tomcats. The Generals made quick work of the Tomcats in game one, winning 8-0 on the road. The Tomcats then came back to defeat the Generals 6-2 in Victoria to force a decisive game three. The Generals were able to hold off the Tomcats to win the series by beating them in game three by a final score of 4-2.
The Generals moved on to the TCL Championship series for the second time in two years. This time they would face a new opponent in the championship round: the East Texas Pump Jacks.
The Generals were on the ropes in game one in Kilgore, trailing 5-0 heading into the eighth inning. However, the Pump Jacks could only hold the hot Generals bats at bay for so long, as the Generals struck for five runs in the eighth to tie the game at 5-5. The Generals then added the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth that proved to be the game winner as the Generals took game one 6-5.
With the TCL Championship one win away, the Generals wasted no time in game two at home in Victoria. The Generals dominated the game from the start as the game was well in hand early. The Generals won game two 10-2, securing their first TCL Championship in team history.
In the final national poll of the season, the Victoria Generals finished with the highest team ranking in Texas Collegiate League history at #14.
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