Youngstown State University coaches were at Fifth Third Field that night and couldn’t help but be impressed by the hard-hitting outfielder. Moore followed that midsummer breakout moment by leading the Greater Western Ohio Conference in hitting this past spring (.634) and earning second-team Division I All-Ohio honors.
That drew the attention of the U.S. Air Force Academy baseball staff. One of its recruiters was acquainted with the Youngstown staff and inquired about the area’s best baseball prospects.
Moore left last month for the academy at Colorado Springs, Colo., to play baseball, among other duties.
“Jordan basically landed an appointment to the academy on the recommendation of the Youngstown State coaches,” recalled Springfield coach Rob Cassell on the eve of the 11th Bob Ross Classic.
“This game got him exposed and got him in a great school. It’s a great experience for these seniors to be. It gets them in the right frame of mind for the upcoming year.”
The 11th Classic will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 17, at Fifth Third Field. It’s free to spectators.
The Red team will be coached by Cassell, and Wayneville’s Jason Whited will coach the Blue team. The game will be nine innings and everyone will play. Lebanon’s Anthony Mangino will likely be the Red team’s starting pitcher; Tri-Village’s Billy Slade gets the Blue team start.
Notable
• The MVP award is named after Cody Holp. The former Tri-County North standout played in the 2005 Classic. He died in the spring of 2007 in a tragic bus crash at Atlanta as a member of the Bluffton University baseball team.
• Three area Little League associations will participate in a pregame clinic at 5:45 p.m. with members of both teams.
• A memorial for Norma Ross will be held prior to the game’s start. The wife of deceased president Bob Ross died this past April.
• Jenell Ross, Bob and Norma’s daughter, will throw out the first pitch. She’s the dealer principal of Bob Ross Buick, Inc.
• A raffle will be held with half the proceeds benefitting the Action Youth Outreach, a charitable program started by the Ross family that’s geared toward the youth of Dayton.
• Veteran umpire Ron Clark of Dayton has worked every Classic. He’ll end his long career with this game.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2381 or mpendleton@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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