Baseball: Royal’s Kurt Johnson is preparing to show off ambidextrous form

Get ready for a little bit of a freak show this spring at Simi Valley Royal.

Come one, come all to see the Highlanders’ ambidextrous pitcher, senior Kurt Johnson.

Committed to Sacramento State as a left-handed pitcher, Johnson spent much of the summer throwing right-handed to rest his left arm.

On Wednesday during baseball class, he was throwing left-handed and right-handed.

“It’s the coolest thing in the world,” assistant coach Tony Ortega said.

Coach Dan Maye is considering using Johnson, last season’s No. 1 pitcher, on a Wednesday to start left-handed and come back to relieve as a right-hander on Friday.

In the best of worlds, Johnson could be Royal’s starter on Wednesday and Friday, but the CIF requirement allowing no more than 10 innings in a week will prevent that.

As a 9-year-old, Johnson said he didn’t know whether he was left-handed or right-handed, so he threw both ways. During youth ball, he sometimes threw both ways in games. The only time he has thrown left-handed and right-handed in high school was as a freshman.

“Some guys don’t recognize it until it’s over,” he said. “Some figure it out halfway through. Some ask the umpire if it’s the same guy. They all have different reactions.”

Clearly, left-handers are more in demand, and he throws harder left-handed. But who knows what might happen in the spring of 2015. Maye goes to the mound, sees a right-handed batter and calls in Johnson to throw right-handed.

Lights, cameras, action.

Twitter:@LATSondheimer