Brownholtz in Control as Mt. Carmel Breezes Past Torrey Pines, 6-1

Torrey Pines High School’s batters swung late at Joe Brownholtz’s fastball, early at his knuckler and over his biting curve.

Yet it was after Torrey Pines finally put someone on base, with one out in the third inning, that Brownholtz’s mastery became most obvious in host Mt. Carmel’s 6-1 Palomar League baseball victory Wednesday.

“Balk,” yelled the Torrey Pines players.

After the simplest, most obviously legal throw to first.

“Balk,” they continued.

Even before Brownholtz threw.

“Balk, balk, balk.”

They might as well have yelled, “Help.” The next two runners grounded out to first base.

Brownholtz (7-1) allowed four hits, struck out nine and walked only one. The senior left-hander, who shut out Torrey Pines three weeks ago, required just 88 pitches. He also benefited from fine defense and the reversal of an umpire’s ruling.

This from a pitcher who was cut twice a year ago and pegged, at best, for short relief possibilities by Coach Sam Blalock this season.

“As a forecaster, I’m not too good,” Blalock said, “but I’m not a fool, because when I see something good, I stick with it.”

Brownholtz regards publicity as poison--though once he did not.

Said catcher Chris Beeman, who has been Brownholtz’s friend and batterymate for five years: “(Before), no one wanted to talk to him. Last year, he decided to bear down. . . . I don’t think anyone in the Palomar League can come close to him when he’s on, and today he was on.”

Beeman helped his friend, ripping what Torrey Pines pitcher Aaron Mirandon (7-3) called a hanging curve for a two-out, two-run double in the first inning.

Mt. Carmel added another run that inning and three more in the fourth. The runs were unearned.

Torrey Pines seemed to be near a breakthrough in the fourth. Bob Kennedy lined a single for his team’s first hit.

With one out, Tim Walker pushed a bunt toward first base as Brownholtz fell toward third.

Then things got crazy.

Brownholtz fielded the ball and, his momentum carrying him across the baseline, flipped it toward first baseman Chris Lofthus. The ball struck Walker, who initially was ruled safe, and Lynch reached third.

Mt. Carmel protested that Walker was outside the lane when hit by the ball. The umpires agreed; Walker was ruled out and Lynch put back on first. Thereafter, Brownholtz, second baseman John Tejcek’s diving putout and a nifty double play turned aside Torrey Pines.

No. 9 Mt. Carmel (16-10, 6-2) has won three in a row and is tied for first in the league with Poway. No. 4 Torrey Pines fell to 18-3 and 5-3, tied for third with Fallbrook.

“In football, we had 49 (players) thinking as one,” Beeman, the quarterback, said. “Finally, I think we’ve got 16 baseball players thinking as one.”