San Fernando Claims Title on Rojas Hit

A moment after the ball fell in short center field, David Rojas fell at first base.

Credit about 20 players and coaches with an assist in knocking him down.

Rojas drove in the winning run with two out in the seventh inning off previously unbeaten Mike Busby as San Fernando High claimed its first City Section 4-A Division baseball title, downing Banning on Friday night at Dodger Stadium, 3-2, before a crowd estimated at 4,000.

The victory capped an incredible roller-coaster ride for the Tigers, the third-place team from the North Valley League. San Fernando (17-10) defeated the third-, second- and top-seeded teams en route to the first title in the school’s 96-year existence. It marks the 19th consecutive time a team from the Valley has won the 4-A title.

Easy as 3-2-1 it wasn’t.

“It was a heck of a high school baseball game,” San Fernando Coach Steve Marden said. “I don’t know that many people left early.”

San Fernando lost a 2-1 lead in the top of the seventh when Banning’s Mark Chavez tripled to center with two out to tie the score, 2-2.

In the bottom of the inning, Busby, who entered the game with one out in the sixth, hit leadoff batter Abel Barajas, then wild-pitched him to second. Art Tarin sacrificed Barajas to third, but with the infield in, Busby retired Ethan Rodriguez on a grounder to second for the second out.

Rojas then lined an 0-1 pitch into short right-center to score Barajas.

“I was just trying to make contact,” said Rojas, who was named the outstanding player in the playoffs. “It wasn’t a good hit. It was nothing to write home about. When I faced him before, I was just trying to make contact and I struck out about four times.

“But when I saw it fall, it was the greatest feeling in my life.”

Trailing, 2-1, in the seventh, Banning (20-7) was down to its final out when Chavez came through. Jeff Harris led off the inning with a walk and was sacrificed to second. He was balked to third and, one out later, Chavez sent a bomb over the head of center fielder Ethan Rodriguez to tie the score. Rodriguez nearly made a sparkling catch, but the ball glanced off his glove and Chavez sped to third with a triple.

San Fernando took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of a very wild fourth--much of it courtesy of Chavez’s wildness.

With one out, Jose Nunez walked and took second on a passed ball by Harris. Damacio Mendoza grounded to short for the second out, bringing junior shortstop Luis Rodriguez to the plate.

Rodriguez jumped on Chavez’s first pitch and sent a liner into right field, but third-base coach Harvey Fajardo, a reserve player, held Nunez at third, bringing Marden from the dugout with his hands on his head in shock.

After Chavez jumped ahead of Vince Vitela, 0-and-2, Rodriguez took off for second on a delayed steal, hoping to draw a throw so that Nunez might break from third. Chavez threw to third, however, and Nunez beat the throw with a headfirst dive.

Perhaps unnerved, Chavez fired the next pitch to the backstop screen and Nunez scored the game’s first run.

However, Banning tied the score in the fifth. San Fernando starter Canto Franco gave up a two-out single to Jose Bernal and was relieved by sophomore left-hander Jorge Gonzales.

Gonzales wild-pitched Bernal to second, then wild-pitched him to third on a ball-four offering to pinch-hitter Juan Garcia. The Tigers were poised to escape, but Rodriguez booted a grounder to short by Chavez as Bernal scored an unearned run from third to tie the score, 1-1.

Busby, who pitched a no-hitter in the first round against Van Nuys and a two-hitter in the semifinals against Poly, entered the game with an 11-0 record and an earned-run average of 0.59. He allowed one run on a hit and a walk and struck out two in 1 1/3 innings.

Chavez, the Banning starter, struck out seven of the first nine batters he faced. He finished with nine strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings and allowed two runs on five hits and three walks.

Franco, the San Fernando starter, allowed three hits and an unearned run in 4 2/3 innings. Sophomore right-hander Ray Rivera (3-1) picked up the victory, allowing a run on a hit and a walk in 1 1/3 innings.