Orange County Player of the Week : Clancy Took to the Cage to Break Out of His Slump

Kevin Clancy of Esperanza High School couldn’t sleep the night before the Southern Section 4-A final game.

He was nervous. Clancy had been in a batting slump during the playoffs and was worried about how he would perform in Dodger Stadium on Saturday in front of a large crowd, his family, baseball scouts and the cameraman his father hired to videotape the game.

So instead of tossing and turning in bed all night, Clancy decided to spend the wee hours swinging and slashing. He and teammate Dave Moralez sneaked into a batting cage and worked out from 1 to 4 a.m. They videotaped the event to analyze their swings and prepare for the championship game.

Their clandestine practice would have remained a secret except that Clancy, in the excitement of his team’s 9-3 victory over Fontana to win the 4-A title, told reporters about it.

Now, Clancy and Moralez aren’t offering any more information about the event and vow to never reveal the location of the batting cage.

“That was a mistake, it was a slip of my mouth. I was just so happy I didn’t care,” Clancy said. “I was just so excited about getting the chance to play in Dodger Stadium and winning the title.

“I’ll always have that (playing in Dodger Stadium) in my mind. Not too many kids have the chance to play there. I might not have the chance again. I don’t ever want to forget anything about being in the stadium. I had tears in my eyes when we won the title.”

All the championship game jitters were dispelled for Clancy in his first at-bat. The right fielder lined a single to left field. Even though Fontana pitched out on the first pitch, Clancy stole second. One out later, he scored on junior Tom Redington’s home run into the left-field pavilion.

Clancy, The Times’ Player of the Week, was 3 for 4, scored three runs and stole four bases. He also threw a runner out at third who was trying to advance on a fly ball in the bottom of the first inning.

“It was just me and the ball,” Clancy said. “I blocked everything else out. I started hearing the music from the ‘The Natural’ as I made the throw. I didn’t think it was going to get there, but Dave (Moralez) faked the guy, then made a good tag. Throwing to my best friend made it even better.”

The championship completed a season in which Clancy, a three-year varsity player, set and achieved an impressive list of goals.

He set school records in hits (41) and stolen bases (21). He also set a record by reaching base 17 consecutive times with 11 hits and six walks.

“He plays the game like his personality,” said Mike Curran, Esperanza coach. “As a coaching staff, we knew that he had been struggling, but in the championship game he was bound to get after it. When he got that first hit, I knew we would be OK.”

Clancy’s late-season slump can be traced to a series of injuries. He hurt his right ankle in a collision at first base against Katella and was in a cast and on crutches for a week. In the first round of the the playoffs against Huntington Beach, Clancy injured his hamstring and was back on crutches for two days.

Those injuries were minor compared to one he suffered a few years ago. Clancy, then 12, was riding a minibike on the street when he caught his right thigh on the bumper of a parked car, tearing the quadriceps in his leg.

According to the doctors’ first diagnosis, Clancy would never walk again. But after four months in the hospital, he was walking and began running with no signs of the injury.

“Once I get out of high school I’m not going to be the Esperanza hero anymore,” Clancy said. “But the feeling of winning the championship is something I’m never going to forget. I’m going to remember that the rest of my life.”

Kevin Clancy

Esperanza High School

Position: Right fielder

Height, Class: 5-9, Senior

Last Week: Was 3 for 4, scored three runs and stole four bases in Esperanza’s 9-3 victory over Fontana in the Southern Section 4-A baseball championship. He also threw a runner out at third.

Season: Batted .466 (41-88), scored 32 runs, and had 21 stolen bases.