LJ baseball 5, Steele Canyon 11

Kyle and Dad play tag in the outfield

before game. (Photo by Ed Piper, Jr.)

By Ed Piper, Jr.

With multiple games each week during pre-league tournaments, La Jolla has had to dip into its other arms on the mound.

"Pitching by committee," assistant coach Steve Booth called it before the Vikings' game at Steele Canyon Fri., March 24.

And not only was Booth talking about the team's pitchers. His five-year-old son, Kyle, was in tow for his first away game, and though he was well-behaved, dad was rightfully concerned that no foul ball hit his son during the game. So he constantly checked that Kyle had a batting helmet on and was behind a barrier while the ball was in play.

"Aidan (Suljic), 'Sea-bass' (Sebastian Partida), Blaise (Gimber), with Sam (Stewart) starting today," Booth ticked off the names of the "committee" for the game to come. Later, he added, "Dane (Hansen) also."

Meanwhile, the coach juggled keeping an eye on his son, who had never served as batboy, with his duties with Viking players during warm-ups and the game.

At its worst, pitching-by-committee descended into six walks in the bottom of the third inning divided among three hurlers, head coach Gary Frank pulling Stewart, in his first start, after loading the bases to start the inning. Then Frank saw enough of Hansen after only three batters, including two walks. He switched Hansen for Gimber at first base.

After giving up a sacrifice fly to Cougar Matt Brinkmeier to score Steele Canyon's fifth run, tying the game, Blaise then suffered an error at the hands of Hansen to reload the bases after inducing Trevor Dickey to hit a groundball.

Things only got worse, as La Jolla pitchers through the fifth inning gave up five more walks, a hit-by-pitch, and a wild pitch, as the hosts got used to circling the bases, collecting only three more hits  while scoring six more runs.

Unfortunately, on the offensive side for the Vikings the runs dried up after a soaring Garrett Brown home run down the left field line, a three-run shot, keyed a four-run second inning.

In that inning, after designated hitter Christophe Naviaux flied out, Gimber hit a fly that went off a diving Aaron Taylor's glove in right field. After Sola Hope struck out swinging on a pitch in the dirt, second baseman Noah Brown singled to left. That put runners on first and second.

Nick Ferenczy, who last pitched Tues., March 21, a strong six and two-thirds innings in a hard-luck loss at home to Montgomery, singled to right, driving in Gimber. That put two aboard for Brown's blast, which sailed high and over the fence, beyond the 292-foot sign down the line.

By the fourth inning, Kyle Booth found a new project to keep himself busy. He began collecting all the loose baseballs in the dugout, pitching them into the combination seat/bucket his dad provided for him.

Meanwhile, the game ball thrown by La Jolla pitchers was hitting the dirt, flying to the backstop, and going everywhere else but the strike zone, it seemed.