HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL / SOUTHERN SECTION PREVIEWS : MISSION LEAGUE : Alemany

COACH: Jim Ozella, 10th season

LAST SEASON: 16-10-1; tied for 2nd in league, 8-4

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Third baseman Andy Dominique, who anchors the Indians’ all-senior infield, was a first-team all-league selection last season when he hit .392 and drove in 18 runs. Dominique has signed to play at Nevada. Shortstop Rene Rodriguez, a good defensive player who hit .287, second baseman Brian Shaw (four home runs in 1992) and first baseman Chris Tashima (.373) fill out the infield. The best outfielder is senior Ed Bushey, who will play left. Bushey, who will be playing his fourth varsity season, hit .250. On the mound, the Indians are led by senior right-hander Greg Kmet (4-2, 3.16 earned-run average). Senior Rob Nary (2-1, 6.30, 25 strikeouts in 22 innings) and junior Freddy Perez (2-2, 7.77) are the other main pitchers, although Ozella said he probably will use as many as seven. “I think our pitching is good but not outstanding,” Ozella said. “They’ll keep us in ballgames. All you got to do is get those 21 outs and they’re out of there. If they roll ground balls and we do what we’re supposed to do, we’ll be fine.”

OUTLOOK: Alemany is considered a strong contender for one of the three playoff berths in the league, but the Indians’ pitching is probably too thin to overcome Notre Dame or Crespi.

Chaminade

COACH: Dave Desmond, 1st season

LAST SEASON: 4-22; 7th in league, 1-11

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Senior third baseman Brian Powers, an outfielder last season, is the star of the rebuilding Eagles. Powers was an all-league and Times All-Valley selection, when he hit .472 with eight home runs and 25 runs batted in, all team highs. “I think he’s going to be one of the very best third basemen in baseball around here,” Desmond said. Another returning power hitter is left-handed first baseman Jason McLean (.320, four home runs). The shortstop will be sophomore Kevin Lohman, who started at second base last season. Junior John Gunn, up from the junior varsity, will start at second. Desmond said he will platoon junior Jason Fragosa and senior John Lucas at catcher. The Eagles boast speed but not experience in the outfield. Junior Casey Cote and freshman Jason Giovannettone are newcomers to the varsity. Junior right fielder Adam Crecion, who hit .477 in American Legion baseball last summer, is another middle-of-the order hitter. The Eagles’ pitchers are all right-handed, led by senior Ryan Graves and junior Joel Orme, who also will play outfield. Powers and Mike Haugh will be used out of the bullpen.

OUTLOOK: “We’re coming off a really lousy season, but we believe we have some pretty good ballplayers,” Desmond said. “As a group, they want to prove they are not a 4-22 team.”

Crespi

COACH: Scott Muckey, 7th season

LAST SEASON: 19-6; 1st in league, 9-3

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Senior right-hander Jeff Suppan, who has signed with UCLA and is a prospect for the June amateur draft, is the leader of the pitching staff. Last season’s Mission League pitcher of the year, Suppan was 7-3 with a 1.28 ERA for the Celts. He struck out 82 and allowed 52 hits in 71 1/3 innings. For the Encino American Legion team, Suppan was 8-1 with a 1.04 ERA and 120 strikeouts in 69 innings last summer. Suppan will play first base when he isn’t pitching. The rest of the rotation includes senior right-handers Jorvic Salazar (4-1) and Keith Evans, who was 3-0 before suffering arm problems. Junior right-hander Sam Clemons, who was academically ineligible, was 3-0 with a 2.75 ERA in Legion play. The Celts’ offensive leader should have been senior right fielder Kyle Carden (.361, 20 RBIs), but he will remain academically ineligible until at least late March. Senior Casey Snow, who was second-team all-league as a shortstop, is moving to catcher. The new shortstop will be junior Rich Gonzalez, a defensive specialist who started at second base for the junior varsity. Junior Brad Wright, a transfer from Agoura, will play first base and outfield. Senior Darren McInerney, who spent last season as a varsity reserve, will start at second. The leading returning outfielder is senior Javier Avila, who again will bat leadoff.

OUTLOOK: If pitching wins championships, the Celts are in good shape for another league title. “We’re going to be a pitching-oriented team and we’re going to try to rustle a few runs across the plate and hope that will stand up,” Muckey said.

Harvard-Westlake

COACH: Jim Brink, 13th season

LAST SEASON: 14-12; 3rd in San Fernando League, 5-5

PLAYERS TO WATCH: The Wolverines’ top offensive players are senior first baseman Kevin O’Malley, the son of Dodger owner Peter O’Malley, and junior catcher Jon Schaeffer. O’Malley, who will spell Schaeffer behind the plate, hit .307 last season. Schaeffer hit .428 with 31 RBIs and three home runs. Senior outfielder Todd Lemkin, who started in left but will be in either center or right this season, hit .315. Senior Damon Lapa (.242) will start at third base and will pitch. The two middle infielders are inexperienced. Junior shortstop Jeremy Rossman played for the junior varsity, and senior second baseman Will Taylor was a varsity backup. Juniors Ted Werner, Chris Anderson and Dan Mason will be the key reserves. The top pitchers are senior right-hander Tyler Atwood, who had a 3.71 ERA but walked 18 batters in 22 2/3 innings, and junior left-hander Scott Garson, who allowed 57 hits in 43 1/3 innings but still had a 4-0 record and a 3.88 ERA. Junior right-hander Nick Cramer, up from the junior varsity, also will pitch.

OUTLOOK: “The league is going to be tough for us,” Brink said. “It’s a notch up as far as competition (goes). There are some traditional Valley baseball powers (in the Mission League). We’re just hoping to be competitive.”

Notre Dame

COACH: Tom Dill, 1st season

LAST SEASON: 14-9-1; tie for 2nd in league, 8-4

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Three Knights already have signed to play at Division I colleges next season. Shortstop Ryan Stromsborg and first baseman Glen Carson have signed with USC, and pitcher Chris Garza will play at Nevada. Garza, who was 9-2 with a 3.01 ERA last season, is the best of a trio of left-handed starters who are the Knights’ strength. Senior Chris Leveque (2-4, 3.70) is a control-and-finesse pitcher who might yet earn a scholarship, Dill said. Junior Rich Igou (3-1, 3.48) pitched mostly in relief. Completing the Knights’ infield around Stromsborg (.338) and Carson are senior third baseman Cesar Martinez, who has started since his sophomore year and recorded 20 stolen bases in 21 attempts last season, and junior second baseman Joey Orlando, who has speed and soft hands. Senior Dave Supple, who led Notre Dame with three home runs, returns as the starting catcher. Senior Francisco Dongo, the starting center fielder last season, and junior Jabbar Craigwell, have two-thirds of the outfield locked up. Senior Ryan Voss and junior John Lichterman, who hit about .400 for the junior varsity, will compete for the third position in the outfield. Additionally, Garza might play outfield or bat as the designated hitter when he isn’t pitching.

OUTLOOK: The Knights’ solid lineup of returnees is the reason they are co-favorites, along with Crespi, to win the Mission League. The championship may come down to which team is playing better the week Notre Dame and the Celts meet in a home-and-home series.