Busby Gets Attention, but Banning’s Harris Is Hero

At least six scouts stood behind the Banning High backstop Thursday, aiming radar guns and jotting down notes as Mike Busby popped the catcher’s glove with 90-m.p.h. fastballs.

But despite the swirl of attention, the person Busby was throwing to ended up being the most important player on the field.

Banning catcher Jeff Harris drove in three runs to lead the Pilots past visiting San Pedro, 5-2, in a Pacific League opener. Harris’ two-run double in the bottom of the fifth inning was the difference, giving Banning a 3-2 lead.

Busby, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound right-hander who led the South Bay in strikeouts last season with 127 in 92 innings, struck out nine and allowed only two hits.

But Banning Coach Syl Saavedra said Busby wasn’t as dominating as usual.

“With all the scouts here, Mike was overthrowing,” Saavedra said. “He sees those radar guns over there, and he wants to impress them. He was throwing 90 miles an hour, but they were all over the catcher’s head.”

Busby (3-0) walked three. He was most effective with off-speed pitches, recording more than half of his strikeouts on changeups and curveballs.

Busby struck out the first two batters he faced. The second--San Pedro shortstop Jose Espinoza--reached base when Harris dropped the third strike, then threw wildly to first.

It was the first of three Banning errors in the inning, all of which led to San Pedro’s two runs. Espinoza scored when Banning third baseman Jose Bernal booted Brian Fitzgerald’s ground ball for an error.

Fitzgerald moved into scoring position on an overthrow by left fielder Juan Garcia, then scored on a single up the middle by San Pedro catcher Jose Duarte.

Harris got a run back in the third, driving home Andy Torres with a sacrifice fly to center.

Torres got the Pilots going again in the fifth, reaching first when Espinoza kicked his sharp grounder for an error. He moved to second when Espinoza dropped a throw from San Pedro pitcher Joel Barton (0-1) on an attempted force play.

Banning took the lead when Harris hit a ground-rule double to right-center, scoring Torres and Raul Diaz, who reached on the force play.

The Pilots (3-2) added two insurance runs in the sixth.

“This is a pitcher’s diamond,” San Pedro Coach Jerry Lovarov said. “Joel Barton is a good little pitcher who throws strikes, but we’ve got to play better defense behind him.”

San Pedro (1-1) plays Fairfax today at 3 p.m. in the second round of the Westside tournament and Banning plays host to Leuzinger at 3 p.m. in the consolation round of the El Segundo tournament.