LJ baseball: Licking his chops

Head coach Gary Frank huddles with his 21 players
after warm-ups, before the team breaks into
rotating skills stations at practice
Wed., Feb. 19.
(Photos by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Gary Frank, beginning his 17th year as head baseball coach at La Jolla High--having eclipsed the school record of 15 of his now-assistant coach, Bob Allen, last year--is veritably licking his chops at the prospects for the new season.

"We have a lot of varsity games under our belt," said Frank Wed., Feb. 19, as he sat behind his desk in his office off the Viking team clubhouse at Muirlands Middle School.

"Most of the guys have been there when we struggled. This year we can turn the corner."

Of the 21 players Frank is going to keep on a huge varsity roster, 11 are seniors. All but one starting position player (Blaise Gimber was the only graduating starter) returns. The organized, statistics-savvy coach quoted numbers citing "176 of 185 innings pitched" last year are returning, and "85 percent of at-bats", as well.

Frank, entering his 16th year as skipper,
hits grounders to his infielders
near the sloped cement wall in right field.

That means seasoned experience, leadership, with solid offense, defense, and pitching, in the program's outlook.

"We fell behind early, 3-0, in the Alumni Game Saturday," Frank recalled of the unofficial contest Feb. 15. "I said to the guys, 'Hey, trust yourselves.' We were able to come back.

"The guys couldn't hear that before believing they could do it."

The former Viking second baseman summed up, "Before you win, you've got to believe you can win."

And he sees his players at that point entering this season.