Tony Pena: Busy Body in Need of a Rest

Tony Pena isn’t used to having much free time.

He spent four falls playing football, two winters playing basketball and three springs playing baseball for Mater Dei High School. He also played four summers of baseball.

Pena sat out his freshman baseball season to rest. He ended his basketball career after playing on an undefeated junior-varsity team as a sophomore.

His summer schedule indicates Pena isn’t slowing up much, however, despite the fact he has dropped football from his play list.

Pena graduated from Mater Dei two weeks ago, then spent 10 days relaxing on the beaches of Maui. He said he had a good time, which is a good thing. It might be the only break he gets this summer, assuming his tired pitching arm holds up.

“I’m trying to keep it pretty mellow,” he said.

He got off the plane from Hawaii Tuesday and played in the Orange County High School all-star baseball game that night. Pitching for the South, the right-hander gave up three runs in two innings, but was not involved in the decision.

“I was kind of embarrassed about the game,” he said. “But I didn’t pick up a ball for 10 days before that night.”

Pena was selected to play in a game that matched an Orange County high school all-star team against a team from Los Angeles County Thursday night. But he decided to pass.

Today, Pena is supposed to be part of an Angelus League all-star team that plays a team of Sea View League all-stars at 3 p.m. at UC Irvine. He isn’t sure if he will pitch, however. It depends how his arm feels.

Pena also pitches for the Cardinals, a Connie Mack League youth team. He will take a break from the Cardinals, to pitch in the U.S. Olympic Sports Festival at Oklahoma City. He was selected, along with Chris Sheff of Laguna Hills, to play in the festival.

Pena was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the June free-agent draft, but he hasn’t talked to them. He hasn’t really had the time.

Pena signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Arizona State. The Sun Devil coaches asked him to do one thing this summer--rest his arm.

“They (Arizona State) want me to take it easy,” Pena said. “They want my arm to be strong when I get there in August.”

Pena, 6-foot-2 and almost 200 pounds, was impressive this season for the league-champion Monarchs. Pena, who throws mostly a fastball and a split-finger fastball, was 12-2 with a 0.57 earned-run average. He had 88 strikeouts in 88 innings.

“We used him more than we have used any other pitcher here ever,” Mater Dei Coach Bob Ickes said. “You could tell by the end of the season that he was tired. Maybe the best thing he could do is take a rest.”

Pena said he noticed that he was losing something off his fastball toward the end of the season.

Mater Dei’s season ended in a 4-2 extra-inning loss to El Dorado, the eventual 5-A Southern Section champion. Pena entered that game in the fourth inning and didn’t allow a run until the eighth. Then El Dorado got three consecutive singles and a sacrifice fly to score two runs and end Mater Dei’s season.

“I’d lost a little zip by the end,” Pena said. “But I didn’t want the season to end with me any other place than on the mound, win or lose.”

Pena was named the most valuable player in the Angelus League for the second consecutive season. He also was The Times’ all-county first-team pitcher. As a junior, he was 9-0. He was 3-2 as a sophomore, also on the varsity.

His 24-4 career record was impressive, but Pena is also proud of another pitching accomplishment. He didn’t allow a home run in a high school game. The feat is even more impressive when you consider that he pitched about half the time at Mater Dei, one of the smallest fields in the Angelus League.

“It was something that I knew about, but didn’t really worry about,” Pena said. “It just seemed that no matter what, the ball would stay in the field.”

Pena could have been busier this summer had he not given up a promising football career.

Pena, a wide receiver, was second in Orange County with 64 receptions. He averaged 17.1 yards a catch and was an all-Angelus League and Times’ all-county pick as well. He was selected by the Orange County Athletic Directors Assn. as the male athlete of the year for his work in football and baseball.

Pena was asked to play in the Orange County High School all-star game and the Shrine All-Star game, which features the best Los Angles area players. But he turned down both invitations.

“I liked football a lot,” Pena said. “Being a receiver is a lot like being a pitcher. When you line up, it’s only you and the guy across from you. I like that challenge.

“I didn’t want to lead anybody (recruiters) on. I knew when football ended last fall that was it for me. I just had a feeling that baseball was going to be my sport. It’s where I see my future.”

As long as he gets some rest.