HELP FROM BELOW : Morse Baseball Given a Boost by Two Freshmen

Neither Sergio Guzman, who is 14 years old, nor Gilbert Benitez, 15, has ever gone to a high school dance, attended a high school assembly, hung out in the high school cafeteria during lunch or had his picture in a high school yearbook.

Neither could drive to class if even if he had a high school classes to attend.

But whenever Len Arevalo, Morse High School’s baseball coach, makes out his lineup card, he inserts the names of Guzman and Benitez, two of the youngest starting varsity players in the county.

“It’s a good thing both of their parents are interested in their baseball careers so they can get them to the games,” Arevalo said. “These two kids love to play ball, and they’re amazingly mature for how young they are.”

Guzman, who plays third base, and Benitez, who catches, are so young they don’t even attend Morse High.

Both are ninth-graders who go to Bell Junior High, a couple of miles down the road. Bell’s graduates attend Morse, and since athletic programs at four-year high schools are allowed to play freshmen, Arevalo is allowed to check Bell for possible talent.

This year, he came up with a third of his opening-day starting lineup.

Along with Guzman and Benitez, Arevalo also started ninth-grader Chris Nelson at the beginning of the season as a designated hitter. Nelson hit well, but Arevalo wanted to find a place for him to play defense, so he was forced to move him to the junior varsity.

Guzman and Benitez have stuck all season. Both attend Bell in the morning and then get rides from their parents to Morse for practice in the afternoon.

“When I made these kids starters at the beginning of the season, I wasn’t doing it because I wanted to build for the future,” Arevalo said. “I started these kids because I knew they could play right away.”

Guzman has four older brothers, one of whom, Marco, has played in the Mexican League for the past several years. Another, Cesar, is a starting outfielder at Morse.

“All of my brothers are good ballplayers, and they have all taught me a lot about the game,” Guzman said. “I knew I could play, but I must admit I was surprised that I could make the varsity so soon.”

Guzman has held down Arevalo’s third-base spot all season, and though he has struggled with the bat some--he is hitting in the .260s--he has played well.

“He’s really polished for his age,” Arevalo said. “He makes the plays down there at third, and you would never know he’s only a ninth-grader because of the way he handles himself.”

Benitez last year was on a San Diego-area based U.S. all-star team that played host to an all-star team from Japan. So, even at his age, he has experienced some competition.

“My uncle was down at the park where that (all-star) team was holding tryouts, just walking around,” Benitez said. “He asked the coach if he needed any catchers, and the coach told him that I should try out. I went down there the next day and made the team.”

Benitez has also had problems hitting (he is batting in the .220s), but his value is behind the plate.

Said Arevalo: “I knew if he could make that team, he could play. I haven’t been disappointed. He has an excellent arm, and he calls a good game behind the plate.”

At the beginning of the season, Arevalo, a former catcher at San Diego State, called pitches. But now he lets the ninth-grader do it.

“It gives me confidence,” Benitez said.

Before the season, both Guzman and Benitez lacked that. They made the team but found themselves surrounded by juniors and seniors at a school they don’t even attend.

“But the players on our team have been good to us,” Benitez said. “We’ve been accepted as members of the team.”

Arevalo, it would seem, has a great future with Morse. The Tigers started 4-1 this year in City Eastern League play, but then lost five in a row--three by one run--to fall out of contention.

But there’s always the next three years with Benitez, Guzman and Nelson.

“The one thing I worry about is what will happen when these kids come to school here,” Arevalo said. “Right now, playing on the baseball team is a tremendous thrill for them. But once they get to high school, you never know what kind of group of friends they’ll fall into or if they’ll still be as interested. It’s kind of like tennis burnout with all those youngsters.

“I can only hope these kids stay with it. Because if they do, they all have tremendous futures.”