Avocado Baseball Preview : Longtime Coaches Will Do Battle for Title

It could be the year of the old-timers in the Avocado League.

Bill Kutzner of Escondido and Ron Layton of San Marcos have coached baseball at their schools for 10 and 13 years, respectively, and they figure to have the top two teams in the league.

Bill Tamburrino has coached at Ramona for 10 years, too. Traditionally, Ramona has not had a strong team, but it could break into the league’s top three. Oceanside’s Dave Barrett, another 10-year veteran, is trying to improve on last season’s fifth-place finish.

But Kutzner said there is more to the league than just “who finishes where.” Constancy gives league games a special feeling.

“It’s nice to be playing against people you know,” he said. “They’re not just coaches. You know what to expect from coaching styles, playing styles. It also helps if you are trying to steal signs. We’re all kind of old-timers.”

One of the new guys in the league, Carlsbad’s second-year coach, Joe Pimentel, may spoil the old folks’ fun. With four of the best pitchers in the league, Carlsbad could win the title.

Carlsbad

Last season: 13-11, 8-4 league (tied for second).

Coach: Joe Pimentel.

Top returners: Tom O’Grady (senior, P), Reed Pippen (senior, 3B), Jeff Meyers (junior, P/1B).

Top newcomers: Scott Karl (junior, P), Adrian Lopez (senior P/1B).

Outlook: Carlsbad will rely on pitching. The Lancers would have done that anyway with Meyers and O’Grady back, but the staff got even better with the transfers of Karl (from Palmdale) and Lopez (Carson Banning). Left-hander Karl (2-0) has struck out 26 in 20 innings. Meyers, another left-hander, has thrown a one-hitter. O’Grady (2-1), the No. 4 starter, has a shutout, and Lopez is 2-0. The four have kept Carlsbad in every game so far; the four losses in 10 games were by a total of five runs. The problem has been offense. Meyers is one of the only players hitting well; he has four home runs.

El Camino

Last season: 2-18, 0-12 league (fifth).

Coach: Adrian Leon.

Top returners: Fred Spears (senior, SS), Julian Cortez (senior, P), Rick Sundstedt (senior, CF), Manuel Gutierrez (senior, P).

Top newcomers: Ricky Spears (sophomore, C/OF), Scott Oatsvall (senior, P).

Outlook: A combination of poor defense and injuries has hurt the Wildcats, who are 1-8. Senior Ray Brey went 7 for 13 before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the season. Cortez, who was expected to be the team’s top player, has pitched only three innings after he broke his hand. But he is on his way back; in his first two at-bats, he hit a home run and a triple. The defense is a different story. “We’re not too sound fundamentally,” Leon said. The Spears brothers are bright spots. Fred Spears has stolen 8 bases and is hitting .370, and Ricky Spears has hit .474 with 2 home runs.

Escondido

Last season: 13-11, 10-2 league (first).

Coach: Bill Kutzner.

Top returners: Andy Martin (senior, P), Mike Scales (senior, P), Tim Bone (senior, SS), Gary Larrabee (senior, 3B).

Top newcomer: Tom Afenir (sophomore, C).

Outlook: Escondido, which returns the bulk of the team that won the 2-A title last year, has struggled at times and is 6-6. But Tamburrino said: “They always seem to jell right before league.” Injuries to the pitching staff are part of the reason for the poor nonleague record. Robert Erp, who was expected to be a top pitcher, has been bothered by a biceps injury. Mike Scales, who started in the 2-A title game, separated a shoulder the day after he threw a shutout. Larrabee played catcher the past two years and was an all-league selection last season. He has adjusted nicely after moving to third to make room for Afenir. Afenir’s hitting has made it look like a smart move; he has 14 RBIs.

Oceanside

Last season: 7-15, 5-7 league (fifth)

Coach: Dave Barrett.

Top returners: Kip Sosa (senior, SS), Dwayne Wilson (senior, LF), Tommy Urso (junior, CF), Mike Luna (senior, P).

Top newcomers: Jerry Garrett (sophomore, RF), Fred Armijo (sophomore, 3B).

Outlook: Barrett figures the Pirates (5-5) will be in a group of teams after San Marcos, Escondido and Carlsbad. But what really excites him is the future. Garrett, 15, has especially impressed him. Three returners also figure to play well during the league schedule. Wilson set the school record for stolen bases last year with 25 in 16 games. Sosa has not been consistent in the field, but he has made a few spectacular plays. Luna has a 2.21 ERA after not pitching for two years. He had a punctured lung his sophomore year and then was academically ineligible.

Ramona

Last season: 3-16, 3-9 league (sixth).

Coach: Bill Tamburrino.

Top returners: Jason McClenaghan (senior, SS), Jamie Gibson (senior, C), Art Tucker (senior, 2B), Ray Bowen (senior, P).

Top newcomer: Chris Gunnett (junior, P).

Outlook: The Bulldogs (6-3) have improved since last season. Tamburrino said all three losses were because of unearned runs, and the hitting, a problem last season, is better; the team is hitting near .390. The Bulldogs also are getting strong pitching from Bowen and Gunnett, both left-handers, and Ray Brewster. Up the middle, Ramona is strong. Gibson is hitting over .400; McClenaghan was an all-league selection, and Tucker was an all-league honorable mention. All of that could add up to a high finish for Ramona. “The way we look at it,” Tamburrino said, “the only team that is going to beat us is the Ramona Bulldogs.”

San Pasqual

Last season: 15-9, 8-4 league (tied for second).

Coach: Bill McAllister.

Top returners: Jay Jures (senior, 2B), Chris Bill (senior, CF), Kevin Herde (junior, P/C), Matt Clayton (junior, SS/P).

Top newcomers: Mike Escarcega (junior, P).

Outlook: San Pasqual (4-6) starts only three seniors. Offensively, that hasn’t been a problem. Pitching is a different story. The top two pitchers, Herde and Escarcega, are both juniors. “They just don’t have the varsity experience,” McAllister said.

San Marcos

Last season: 13-11, 8-4 league (tied for second).

Coach: Ron Layton.

Top returners: Mark Villa Lobos (senior, C/P), Travis Beasly (senior, SS), Bill McElroy (senior, 2B).

Top newcomers: Toby Lehman (junior, P), Gordan Sanchez (junior, 1B/C).

Outlook: San Marcos is known for its hitting, and this year is no exception. Beasly had an injured shoulder early in the season but has come back to hit .350. Villa Lobos is at .395. No. 4 hitter Tom Morton was hitting .400 before the Lions tournament.

Rancho Buena Vista

Last season: Did not compete.

Coach: Steve Hargrave.

Top players: John Robirds (junior, P/1B), Robert McCleod (sophomore, P/1B), Dave Roberts (sophomore, CF), Steve Valencia (sophomore, 2B).

Outlook: Rancho Buena Vista, a new school that does not have seniors, lacks experience. “Roberts was the only one of them on Vista’s junior varsity team,” Hargrave said. “The rest were either bench warmers or not playing.”