So far, the Lehigh Valley Legion season has been a tough one for the Salisbury Falcons. The young team is currently 2-5, three games behind league leaders North Parkland (5-2) and Emmaus (5-2).

Because the team is so young, itsprone to a lot of mistakes as some of the players get on-the-job training. The team is currently on a three-game losing skid that started with a tough 10-9 loss to Southern Lehigh in a game that saw the two teams commit 15 errors, with eight of them coming on the Falcons' side of the ledger. The next two set backs were a 7-1 loss to North Parkland and a 9-0 loss to Northern Valley.

Salisbury head coach Chris Rapp sometimes has to piece together his lineup and have guys playing positions that they're not comfortable playing, which has led to some of the defensive miscues. Defense and a lack of timely hitting have been two downfalls for Salisbury so far.

"Our biggest need would be two-fold," he said. "We need to group some hits together instead of them being spread out, but most importantly, our defense needs to be a lot better. We have a lot of guys playing out of their normal position, or we have younger players learning as we go. The effort is there, it's just a matter of getting reps and gaining confidence."

This week is an important one for Salisbury, if the team wants to claw its way back into the postseason battle. The week opens with a game at South Parkland (2-4) and on Thursday Salisbury hosts North Parkland before a trip back to Parkland High School for another road game against South Parkland Friday. The week wraps up with a home-and-home double-header Sunday with Fullerton (4-4). A hot streak could help to move the team toward the 500-mark and help to close that three-game gap in the standings.

"It's very important," said Rapp. "Having three games against both Parkland teams is a tough task, but if we play it one pitch and one play at a time, we can beat any team. I just think the kids need to believe that and play as hard as they can. We aren't going to overpower a lot of teams so we have to rely on pitching, defense and small ball."

Even though the team has struggled, three of its players have been recognized by the league and are on the roster for the annual All-Star Game against the Schuylkill-Berks League on Monday (June 23).

Jonathan Benitez (first baseman), Michael Palmer (outfielder) and Jeff Trexler (pitcher) will all be members of the team that plays at Reading's FirstEnergy Stadium, home of the Reading Fightin Phils, the Double-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rapp believes that all three players are deserving of the nods to play in the game.

"Benitez is a great defensive first baseman, who saves us a lot," said Rapp. "He makes good contact at the plate.

"Palmer is also strong defensively and gets a great jump on the ball. He's also got phenomenal knowledge of the game and is the strong and silent type that leads by example

"Trexler is a college freshman, who we're lucky to have. He's also a smart player who knows how to pitch. He had a year off from baseball and his offense is starting to come around again. On the mound, I think he's up there with the best in the league."

Benitez is hitting .333 for Salisbury, while Palmer has boosted his average to an impressive .625, while striking out just once in 16 at-bats. On the mound, Trexler is 1-1 with a 3.27 ERA and has thrown Salisbury's only complete game this season.

The three all-stars have been key players for Salisbury this season and could play a big role in helping to guide the Falcons through the tough schedule that they face heading up to the All-Star Break.

With the young players that Salisbury has in its lineup, the second-half of the season could prove to be better than the first half as those players start to get used to doing what they need to do to help the team win.