Baseball: Depth propels Pirates
The Orange Coast College baseball team found more competition on its roster than it did in the opposing dugout Thursday, when the Pirates trounced previously unbeaten College of the Canyons, 13-3.
OCC, the two-time defending state champion which slipped to No. 14 in the Southern California rankings after a 2-5 start, amassed a season-best 18 hits to win its fifth straight and its sixth triumph in its last seven games.
Ten Pirates contributed to the hit parade, led by freshman second baseman JT Navarro, who was three for four.
And while a lineup that included five position players who had not started at least half the previous 13 games was getting a collective boost from some lesser-known faces, sophomore right-hander Jack Pabich continued to display his consistent excellence on the mound.
Pabich, who shifted from a bullpen role last season to the starting rotation this spring, allowed one run and six hits while striking out a career-high eight in a career-long seven innings. Pabich, who threw just more than 100 pitches, earned his first win after no-decisions in his previous three starts, and lowered his earned-run average to 1.89 in 19 innings.
Pabich, who struck out 15 in 22 1/2 innings last season, all in relief, has fanned 24 in 19 innings this season, while walking just four.
Pabich and the Pirates (8-6) trailed the Cougars (8-1 and ranked No. 2 in SoCal), 1-0, before scoring six runs in the fourth inning. OCC tacked on one in the fifth and six more in the seventh to reach double-digit runs for the fourth time this season and the second time in a three-game span.
All six runs in the fourth inning came with two outs, as sophomore center fielder Chris Prescott and freshman catcher Andrew Garcia each singled in two runs, while sophomore third baseman Jaiden France and freshman shortstop Nolan Powers added run-producing singles.
Garcia, France and Powers were part of an adjusted lineup card designed to provide opportunities to those who had not been major players thus far. The aforementioned trio all had a pair of hits, as did freshman left fielder Jake Scott and freshman right fielder John Balliet, both of whom had made six starts coming in.
Scott doubled twice, walked twice, drove in two runs and scored three to make the most impressive case for more playing time.
Freshman designated hitter Eric Wagaman, who had made seven starts coming in, also had two hits to bolster the hosts’ production.
Prescott, who like Navarro has been a regular this season, was two for five, while regular first baseman J.T. McLellan was the lone starter without a hit.
Sophomore Robert Bultena and freshman Thomas Waldenberger came off the bench to produce hits. Bultena, who has started just once, is now batting a team-best .500 in 10 at-bats.
Navarro, who had been playing primarily at shortstop, lifted his average to .413, while Prescott, who was one for three, actually saw his average dip to .370.
Prescott, Garcia, Scott, Balliet, France and Powers all finished with a pair of RBIs for the winners.
“We kind of mixed up the lineup a little bit and the guys who had been waiting their turn came in and did a good job,” said Nick McDonald, an assistant who was filling in for OCC head man John Altobelli. Altobelli was serving the last game of a three-game suspension issued by the school for playing a player who was subsequently ruled academically ineligible.
Pabich and fellow starters Michael Giacone (2-1 with a 1.71 ERA), Colin Ashworth (1-0, 2.05) and Casey Costello (2-1, 2.92) have helped the Pirates post a 2.66 team ERA this season. And with Orange Empire Conference play set to begin March 5 against defending champion Cypress, the pecking order in the pitching rotation has yet to be established.
The pitching prowess has helped overcome the loss of projected No. 1 starter Aaron Dominguez (a freshman bounce-back from Mississippi State who will undergo arm surgery) and projected No. 2 starter Sean Trimble (a sophomore bounce-back from Long Beach State who is ineligible).
“This is the deepest pitching we’ve had since I’ve been here,” said McDonald, in his fifth season. “So, we have guys who can come in and compete. [The loss of Dominguez and Trimble] will hurt us a little bit, but if the other guys can step in and take advantage of the opportunity, I think we’ll be all right.”
OCC plays host to Long Beach in its final pre-conference game on Saturday at noon.
Canyons sophomores Tyler Rios (an Estancia High product) and Wyatt Hoppie, who both played at OCC last season, went one for five and one for four, respectively.
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Nonconference
Orange Coast 13, Canyons 3
SCORE BY INNINGS
COC 010 000 002 – 3 10 1
OCC 000 616 00x – 13 18 1
Wheatcroft, Prober (4), Keach (6), Carson (6), Ward (7), King (8) and Lepre, Felber (7); Pabich, Manahan (8), Walker (9) and Garcia, Hawkins (6). W – Pabich, 1-0. L – Wheatcroft, 2-1. 2B – Scott (OCC) 2, Balliet (OCC), Powers (OCC), Felber (COC), Hoppie (COC), Bultena (OCC). 3B – Verdujo (COC).
