Orange County Player of the Week : Steve Gill Is Leaving His Imprint on Diamonds

Like many great athletes, Steve Gill of El Dorado High School often leaves a big impression in the minds of his opponents.

But sometimes, Gill leaves an even larger--and more lasting--impression in the outfield fence. The one he often slams into while chasing a long fly ball.

“He’s completely crazy,” Golden Hawk second baseman Doug Ireland said. “He runs into (outfield) fences all the time. In one game, he almost killed himself running into a metal bar. I think he really looks forward to pain.”

Gill, The Times’ Player of the Week, felt no pain last week. The pitcher/outfielder led the Golden Hawks to victory in two Southern Section 4-A playoff games.

Gill pitched five innings, allowing just two hits, and had a two-run homer in a 5-3 quarterfinal victory over Crespi Thursday. And he yielded just two hits and struck out three in a 13-4 second-round victory over Simi Valley last Tuesday.

The victories were especially sweet for Gill, who is hoping to make the playoffs pay off for El Dorado this year. The Golden Hawks were eliminated by Fontana last year in the semifinals.

“Last year, all we were thinking of was playing in Dodger Stadium (site of the Southern Section finals),” Gill said. “Then, boom, it was all over. I knew this year we’d have to really do things to make it all the way.”

This season, Gill (11-3 with 2 saves) has a 1.53 earned-run average, allowing 49 hits and 17 earned runs in 77 innings while striking out 76.

He is hitting .376 with 4 home runs and 22 RBIs for the Golden Hawks (23-4).

But statistics don’t tell Gill’s real story. The one that details his, well, extra efforts. The motivation that turns his 6-foot 1-inch, 160-pound body into a human battering ram.

During an early-season practice, Gill ran for a ball flying toward the left-field fence. El Dorado Coach Steve Gullotti yelled to go ahead, thinking Gill had plenty of room.

Gill crashed straight into the chain-link fence, leaving a dent in the wire.

In a game at the Upland tournament last season, a chase for a fly ball took Gill right through the wooden fence. He didn’t make the catch.

Gill was chasing a line drive in the Loara tournament when he smashed into the metal fence support at Glover Stadium.

“He almost decapitated himself on that one,” Ireland said. “The metal hit him right in the neck.”

Gill admits to jumping off roofs into bean bags and doing back flips by running and pushing off a three-foot wall in front of the school office.

“Challenges are fun,” he said. “I guess I’m a little risky sometimes. I just go all out. If that’s what it takes, why not? That’s what baseball’s all about.”

That, and making big impressions.

Steve Gill

El Dorado High School

Position: Pitcher/Outfielder.

Height, Weight, Class: 6-1, 160, Sr.

Last Week: Gill pitched a two-hitter through five innings and had a two-run home run in a 5-3 Southern Section 4-A quarterfinal victory over Crespi Thursday. He gave up two hits and struck out three in a 13-4 second-round win over Simi Valley last Tuesday.

Season: Gill (11-3) has allowed 49 hits and 17 earned runs in 77 innings for a 1.53 earned-run average. He has struck out 76 batters, earned two saves and is hitting .376 with 4 home runs and 22 RBIs for the Golden Hawks (23-4).