EMERSON, Ga. – The Dulins Dodgers have been mainstays at
Perfect Game events over the years, winning three WWBA National Championships
since 2009. Led by head coach Tim Dulin, the Dulins Dodgers 14u Prime is back
at it again, one of 138 teams participating in the 14u WWBA National Championship, and they are off to a
hot start, leading their pool with a 6-0 record.
“This is such a tough event because, again, you’ve got pitch
limits which are vital and very important to the development of these young
kids, and the fact that we don’t bring a large roster, we’ve got to be very
strategic on how we utilize our pitchers and go that route, but I think the big
thing is they just keep grinding away,” Dulin said.
In his playing days, Dulin was a star at the University of
Memphis, breaking on to the scene as a freshman in 1982. At Memphis, he paced
the squad in hits as a sophomore, was named an All-American in 1983 and 1984
and would eventually be inducted into their Hall of Fame in 1994. The Baltimore
Orioles would draft him in the 5th round of the 1985 MLB Draft, and
he would play parts of seven seasons in the Minor Leagues, reaching as far as Triple-A.
Although Dulin’s professional baseball career would end in 1991, it was only
the beginning of his life in baseball, as the Dulins Dodgers were born later
that year.
“When I first got into it, I really had no intent on getting
into the younger age groups, so we were primarily, in the early 2000s, just a
16-, 17-, 18-year-old age group, and then as the years have gone, we’ve kind of
gotten younger and younger,” Dulin said. “Now we’ve got 19 teams that range all
the way from 10 years old all the way up to 17.”
Much of Dulin’s success is built off the philosophies that
he implements throughout his organization. Development is the primary focus of
the organization, and never will you see them push kids into situations that
could potentially put them at risk of an injury. Many of their squads are
comprised of around 15 players, allowing each player on the team an opportunity
to contribute to the team and gain experience.
“Our goal, unlike a lot of organizations, is not to win at
all costs,” Dulin said. “We don’t carry 25 or 26 guys on the rosters. It’s all
about developing, getting kids in front of the college coaches, obviously,
that’s why we come here, and then getting them on to the next level. I think
because we’ve spent a lot of time with that formula, it’s really worked out.”
His time in the Minor Leagues has also allowed him to take
those experiences and translate them into his everyday coaching. A key focus is
allowing his players make mistakes, but learn from them in the process. He said
that in today’s game, too many organizations do not let players think for
themselves, but it is the players who are able to grow and think on their own
on the diamond that stand out.
“This game’s a very difficult game, and we don’t try to make
it more difficult than it is, and we allow the players to be who they are,”
Dulin said. “We allow pitchers to call their own game, we allow catchers to
learn, and I think that’s what kind of separates us.” He would go on to say, “So,
we try as an organization to instill those players and players that are playing
for us, regardless of what age group it is, to learn, and to make mistakes, it’s
okay. Then the more they do that, then I think they become a better player because
of it.”
This formula has allowed his organization to attract some of
the best talent in the country. Over the years, the Dulins Dodgers have
developed Major Leaguers such as Mookie Betts, Matt Cain, Zack Cozart, Logan
Forsythe and Drew Pomeranz. Many of the professional players who are done with
their careers even come back to coach for the Dodgers.
“I mean we have guys every year come back to our facility
and whether it’s coming to one of our winter workouts where all of our kids are
in it, Mookie Betts, Drew Pomeranz, Matt Cain, Zack Cozart, all those guys, I
think, have a genuine respect for what we do and how we go about it, that, when
their time allows them, they give back to the organization, and that’s huge,”
Dulin said.
In addition to
success at the professional ranks, the Dodgers have placed many of their
players in DI colleges. They consistently place kids in SEC schools such as
Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Tennessee, and their 17u Dodger team has five
SEC commits already this year.
“I think we’ve placed more kids in the SEC than any other
organization in the country over the last 20 years,” Dulin said.
One of the SEC commits in their organization, Blaze Jordan,
is only 14 years old. The Mississippi State commit is ranked as the No. 2 player
in the class of 2021 and is the only commit to the program in his class.
“I went to a few other colleges, and when I went down to
Mississippi State, I just felt like I was at home,” Jordan said. “Everyone
treated me great down there, and when I went down there I felt like everyone
brought me in and they treated me as family down there. I’ve just loved all
their coaches and everything. It’s just great.”
The 6-foot, 215-pound right-handed hitter has been making
headlines since he was 11 years old when he hit a ball out of Globe Life Park in
Arlington. He would later hit a 461-foot home run in Marlins Park at 13, and
less than a year later he would hit a 504-foot home run in a home run derby at
the same location, rivaling the performance that Bryce Harper put up at
Tropicana Field in 2009. Even though he has that accomplishment under his belt,
he does not get complacent.
“I mean I don’t really look at it like I’m up there with
them, I just say I need to work harder so that I can be where they are right
now and just keep on doing what I’m doing,” Jordan said.
Jordan credits his brother Parker Jordan, a corner infielder
and pitcher at Christian Brothers University, with introducing and teaching him
the game when he was younger, while he gives credit to Dulin on helping him
over the past few years. Although Jordan said that he has been hitting the ball
hard ever since he was about 9 years old, the young slugger realizes that he
needs continue to have an approach of staying to the middle of the field if he
wants to have success moving forward. Dulin realizes how hard Jordan has worked
to get to this point, having worked with him from a young age, and sees the
desire that Jordan possesses to get better.
“I think a lot of people who follow him and see the success
he’s had, they don’t realize how hard the kid works. He’s a gym rat," Dulin said. "Last year,
this time, he realized although he was very talented, he realized he had a lot
of work to do. He’s lost some weight, gained some muscle, picked up his speed.
Now the guy’s a legitimate kid that can play third base at the next level, as
well as first, and he’s 89 [mph] off the mound. This kid is special.”
So far in the tournament, Jordan is 7-for-17 with two
doubles, a homer, nine RBIs and three stolen bases. His team has outscored
opponents 47-16 heading into their final game of pool play on Wednesday afternoon
against Gladiator Baseball, who is 4-2. Dulin’s team is set to take the top
spot in the pool and move on to bracket play. The Dodgers are set to make a
run, and Dulin said that he likes what he’s seen from his team so far, in
addition the fact that they were able to experience the tournament last year at
13 years old, another example of Dulin giving his team opportunities to learn.
“We’ve gotten down in some games early in this event, and we
just don’t panic, we just continue to grind it out. Hopefully we can make a
little bit of a run at it and see what happens,” Dulin said. “Obviously,
there’s a lot of great teams in this event from all over the country. I think
it helped them last year, we came as 13s, we came to the 14u [WWBA] so they
could just understand what it’s about, so this year here, I don’t think they’re
star struck or they’re in awe of the game or the speed of it.”