He’s Out of the Shadows, Into His Own : All-star baseball: Derek Glascoe, the No. 2 pitcher for Huntington Beach, is getting his chance in the spotlight.

Pitcher Derek Glascoe performed in the shadow of teammate Jon Ward for most of the 1992 baseball season at Huntington Beach High School.

Ward drew the scouts, the headlines and a first-round selection by the New York Mets in baseball’s amateur draft.

He threw a 90-mile-an-hour fastball that was instrumental in his winning nine games, striking out a county-leading 109 batters and pitching a no-hitter against Bolsa Grande.

Glascoe, the team’s top pitcher as a junior in 1991, had to be content this season as the second pitcher. He wasn’t drafted, despite an 8-2 record and 1.89 earned-run average. And he was overlooked by nearly every four-year college. But he never complained.

“I always thought it was to my advantage pitching with Jon,” Glascoe said. “All the scouts would come to watch him pitch, and the times when I came in to relieve him, I started to get noticed.

“I always thought my opportunity would come. I was content going to Golden West College. I was telling people that’s where I was going to college.”

But Glascoe’s future took a big turn a week before season’s end. Oklahoma Coach Larry Cochell called and asked if Glascoe would be interested in visiting the campus.

Three days later, Glascoe was touring the campus in Norman, Okla., and was among 8,000 fans watching the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State baseball game.

“Everything about the school was first class,” Glascoe said. “The players were treated like professional athletes. I knew I wanted to be a part of that.”

Signing with the Sooners climaxed an unforgettable season for Glascoe. Huntington Beach won a school-record 22 games and finished as the top-ranked team in Orange County. But the season will also be remembered for a 9-0 loss to Cypress in the first-round of the Southern Section 5-A playoffs.

Huntington Beach went into the 32-team, single-elimination tournament seeded No. 3 but managed only one hit off Cypress’ Micah Stovall.

“It was a weird day,” Glascoe said. “There was no school because of teacher conferences and our prom was that night.

“The game was intense for four innings. Jon and Micah were both throwing no-hitters through four innings. The fifth inning was a nightmare.

“They scored seven runs. I kept saying to myself, ‘This can’t be happening to us.’ We were in shock.”

But Glascoe and his teammates later realized at the team’s awards banquet what a wonderful season they had experienced.

“The boosters put together a video highlighting the season. It was a great year,” Glascoe said.

Among the highlights was winning the 32-team Loara tournament, considered the most prestigious in Southern California. Huntington Beach defeated nationally ranked Diamond Bar in the semifinals, and the nation’s then-No. 2 team, El Dorado, in the championship game.

Glascoe earned a 1-0 victory over Lakewood in the first round of the tournament and was the winning pitcher against El Dorado.

The season ended abruptly for Glascoe, Ward and teammate Howie Clark, who will make an encore appearance at 7 tonight in the 25th Orange County all-star baseball game at Anaheim’s Glover Stadium.

Mike Dodd of Huntington Beach will coach the South team and has announced that Ward will be the starting pitcher. Once again, Glascoe will be overshadowed by his 6-foot-6 teammate.

“I was happy that Jon got all the glory,” Glascoe said. “He deserves everything he’s gotten. We’re good friends. We run together and work out together.”

Dodd said he was concerned how Glascoe would handle being demoted to the team’s second pitcher before the season started. But Dodd found that the move paid off.

“The move created a competitive situation for both players,” Dodd said. “Jon brought out the best in Derek. Derek was our ‘out guy’ this year. If I needed one out, I’d rather have Derek on the mound than any other pitcher on our team.

“He’s a very bright kid (3.9 grade-point average). He lived in the shadow of Jon Ward, but he handled it real well. Derek was probably the third or fourth best pitcher in the county, but he wasn’t being recruited.

“I think it was hard for some to believe that Huntington Beach High had two great pitchers. I was glad to see that he’s getting the opportunity to play at a big-time program like Oklahoma.”