Ginter Is Fullerton’s Unlikely Power Source

Keith Ginter figures to become the most prolific prep home run hitter in Orange County history before he leaves Fullerton High School.

Ginter, who enters his junior season with 13 home runs, should break former Valencia High star Andy Ruscitto’s county mark of 22 homers (set in 1984-86) sometime in his senior season.

But the fact is, Ginter has never considered himself a home run hitter. What’s more, he’s the most unlikely looking power hitter you’ll ever see.

Ginter, 5 feet 10 and 165 pounds, wasn’t cut out of the same powerful mold as former county home run hitters D.C. Olsen or Ruscitto. Instead, he generates his power from strong wrists, biceps, forearms and unusually large hands.

“He’s got those Steve Garvey arms that allow him to wait on a pitch until the last possible moment,” Fullerton Coach Dolf Hes said. “He can generate tremendous bat speed.

“When he first came in as a freshman, there was no doubt he could play varsity baseball after we saw him in batting practice. I didn’t hesitate to put him on the varsity after I saw him hit.”

Ginter played left field and did some spot pitching for Fullerton as a freshman. He batted .368 with six homers and quickly established himself as a fixture in the lineup.

“I didn’t expect to be a home run hitter, much less make the varsity team,” Ginter said. “I was a little nervous, but for the most part, I felt very comfortable playing on that team.

“Guys like D.C. Olsen made me feel like part of the team. I never felt like a freshman.”

Ginter quickly adapted to the Indians’ unique ballpark that features short fences in center and right field. The center-field fence, only 235 feet from home plate, is particularly inviting.

“Most players see the short fences and think they’re going to hit them out of here right and left,” Ginter said. “But it doesn’t happen that way.

“Basically, you want to try and hit as much to center and right as you can. But I learned a long time ago that if you don’t try to hit home runs, that’s when they come. And when I hit a homer, I know the minute it leaves the bat that it’s going over the fence.”

Ginter also displayed a proficiency for pitching as a freshman, although he has never considered himself a pitcher. He shut out Kennedy for five innings in the championship game of the Anaheim tournament in his debut on the mound.

“Keith was a very good pitcher in the Golden Hills Little League from 7 years old until he was 15, but he doesn’t enjoy pitching because he thinks it takes away from his hitting,” said his father, Steve.

Last season, Ginter moved to third base and batted .380 with seven home runs. He was a first-team All-Freeway League selection and was generally regarded by major league scouts as one of the top sophomores in the county.

Fullerton won the Freeway League title after opening with eight consecutive victories. Ginter went on a hitting tear, going three for four in each of his last four games, as the Indians advanced to the 4-A quarterfinals.

“I hated to see the season end,” Ginter said. Which is more than Ginter can say about last fall’s football season.

Fullerton won only one game for the second consecutive season. Ginter, the starting quarterback, took plenty of flak from his fellow students on Mondays.

“It got pretty old after a while,” he said. “It wasn’t like we were out there trying to lose. Football is something I’ve enjoyed since I was 10. But it wasn’t much fun last year. I’m still undecided whether I’m going to play as a senior.”

Meanwhile, he figures to only get better in baseball. He spends three to four hours a week in Fullerton’s batting cages with his father after practice and works weekends at former Dodger minor leaguer Jim Acton’s hitting school at Sunny Hills High.

Ginter has established some personal goals this season that he only shares with his father, but he was willing to say, “I’d like to win the league championship again and get to at least the semifinals in the playoffs.”