Aztecs’ Curran Made All the Right Moves

There were many superb coaching performances in the 1997 baseball season.

Bob Flint’s overachieving Irvine team stole the Sea View League title. Vince Brown’s Foothill team surprised everyone by winning the Century League championship. Bob Ickes led Mater Dei to a sixth consecutive South Coast League title, and the Monarchs were the county’s only team without a league loss. They finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the county.

Steve Gullotti guided a solid but faceless El Dorado squad to the Empire League title, and while Dave Posthuma’s Brethren Christian team did not win the Olympic League championship, it did reach the Division V title game.

Still, the best overall coaching performance was turned in by Esperanza’s Mike Curran, who returned the Aztecs to the glory they enjoyed in the Empire League before moving to the Sunset League four years ago.

That is why Curran is The Times Orange County coach of the year.

Over the course of a 25-5 season, Curran’s Aztecs had their share of big moments.

They won two tournaments, the Newport Elks in March and the National Classic in April. They earned Curran his 400th career victory (and 300th at Esperanza) on May 7 against Marina.

And Saturday, Esperanza defeated Long Beach Millikan, 11-3, for the Division I championship, their third overall and first since 1993.

The Aztecs’ big 1997 season made it easier to forget the injury-marred 1996 season that kept the team from reaching its potential.

“Last year we never seemed to get the ‘big’ hit or pitch,” Curran said. “We never hit on all cylinders.

“I knew this year would be different when, in the [Elks tournament semifinals], Mater Dei hits three homers off us in first inning and our guys showed the character we would have by coming back to win. From then on, we showed we were a good tournament team.”

Gullotti, who is a good friend of Curran’s and whose El Dorado squad lost to Esperanza in the Classic championship game, said the Aztecs’ consistency was key to their success.

“From an outsider looking in, what impressed me the most was his kids, game in and game out, played the game hard,” Gullotti said. “They were good defensively, opportunistic on offense. They didn’t have a great pitching staff but got lots of mileage out of what they had.”

But there was something else. Curran not only knew when to be tough, but also when to listen.

In the Sunset League clincher against Fountain Valley, the Barons had loaded the bases with one out in the fifth against Aztec starter Nathan Choate. Curran, who usually removes the pitcher if he comes to the mound, instead listened to Choate’s request to stay in the game. Curran left him in, Choate got out of trouble without a run being scored and went on to pitch a complete game.

Curran showed the same flexibility with Brandon Pack in the Division I semifinal victory over La Puente Bishop Amat. Even though Amat wasn’t hitting (four singles for the game), Pack struggled with his control, walking eight.

The last two came in the sixth inning. Curran came to the mound and had a one-way, hand-waving conversation with Pack. But again he listened when Pack said he could finish the game. And Pack did just that.

“This has been a special group,” said Curran of his players. “Fun to work with, very motivated. I never had to tell them to practice, even on a Saturday.

“They established themselves as a good team, never losing two games in a row except for a doubleheader to Canyon. But they made every gut check. They answered every call.”

And they responded to a coach who gave them every chance to succeed.