Small ball in at OCC

Bryce Alderton

Those looking to catch home run balls off the bats of Orange Coast

College baseball players may be in for a boring spring.

OCC Coach John Altobelli, entering his 12th season at the helm,

inherits seven returners from a team that went 19-21-1, 8-16 in the Orange Empire Conference, and failed to make the Southern California

regional playoffs.

Much like last year, Altobelli said OCC’s runs should come more by

the sacrifice fly or line-drive single than the long ball.

“We will have to manufacture runs because we are not a

power-hitting team,” Altobelli said. “We will have to hit and run

guys along since we won’t be able to sit back and wait for the home

run.”

Coast slammed 25 home runs a year ago. Sophomore right fielder

Jeff Piaskowski hit .286 with six home runs and 17 RBIs. Piaskowski,

along with probable starting center fielder Jose Castaneda, have both

signed with the University of Hawaii. Castaneda transferred from

Cypress, which won last year’s state title.

Freshman Keith Mastel (Fountain Valley High) should start the

season in left. Freshman Joe Parades adds another dimension in the

outfield and has “good wheels,” according to Altobelli.

Tyler Shaffer and Jarrod Carchio are the only returning infielders

at second and third base, respectively. Carchio had 17 hits in 59

at-bats last season (.288) while Shaffer hit .268 and scored 22 runs.

Sophomore Anthony Duarte transferred from Santa Ana College and

should provide some competition at second base. Freshman Garrett

Young adds a right-handed bat at third.

Robbie Blauer (Edison) figures to get the nod at first with Scott

Martin and Daniel Sokarda waiting in the wings.

Freshman Brandon Lewis, a CdM product, joined the team two weeks

ago. Altobelli is trying to find a spot for him.

“He brings a left-handed bat and he is a big guy [6-foot-3, 205

pounds],” Altobelli said. “I told him to be more aggressive.”

Bryan Jackson, a converted first baseman, and Mike Farias are the

two returners on a pitching staff that finished with a team ERA of

4.87 and tallied 302 strikeouts, 33 more than opponents.

Kyle Allen, Garrett Murdy and Jimmy Treece accounted for 14 of

Coast’s 19 wins. Allen, now pitching for Lewis-Clark State College in

Lewiston, Idaho, went 6-5 with a 3.35 ERA and a team-leading 120

strikeouts last season.

Altobelli named sophomore right-handers Mike Peck (Woodbridge) and

Reid Horton, along with left-hander Steven Johns (Villa Park) as the

top three starters.

“Peck throws hard and has a nice slider,” Altobelli said. “He is a

tall [6-5], lanky ... typical pitcher.”

Jackson and Farias, each won one game for Coast last season and

anchor a bullpen that will also feature freshmen Jonathan Salazar,

Josh Gagne, Vince McKinney, Shaun Busby and Brandon Lutgendorf, as

well as sophomores Brandon Wells and Ryan Ahern.

Busby played shortstop in high school and can switch hit.

Freshman shortstop Matt Cline is the probable opening-day leadoff

hitter while Dustin Hicks returns behind the plate. Hicks batted .301

with 37 hits in 123 at-bats last season. Sophomore Micah Hazen had 15

hits in 52 at-bats (.288) and will back up Hicks. Sophomore Jake

Brennan is another option at catcher.

Martin can play either first base or the outfield and has

impressed Altobelli during simulated games in the preseason.

Freshman Casey McDonald redshirted at UNLV last year and provides

infield depth.

Sokarda and Luke Beck, a freshman BYU transfer, figure to fill in

at designated hitter. Beck can play third base or pitch.

OCC, like every other team in the state, had its regular season

trimmed by eight games due to the state’s budget deficit, Altobelli

said.

The playoff format was also restructured during the off-season.

Sixteen teams (eight from the north and eight from the south) will

qualify for the regional tournament, which will feature

single-elimination games instead of a best-of-three format used in

past years. The top two teams from the north and the south will

advance to the state championship round, which will also be a

single-elimination format, contested over two days to cut down on

overnight expenses.

To further reduce travel expenses, seeding in the regionals will

take geography into account. Teams cannot travel farther than 150

miles to play games, making the possibility of facing a conference

opponent more likely, which would not have happened in past years,

Altobelli said.

So, can OCC make a return trip to the postseason?

“There is no reason why we couldn’t be a playoff team,” Altobelli

said. “Top to bottom, we have more depth, a better defense and are

more team-oriented than we were last year.”

The Pirates open Feb. 3, playing Mt. San Antonio College in the

Matt O’Brien memorial tournament at OCC.