HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL : Great Scott : Alemany Sophomore Lets Others Sing His Praises

Bill Scott’s batting average is .574, his grade-point average is 4.0 and his future appears as promising as a leadoff double.

Although he is only a sophomore on the Alemany High baseball team, coaches and scouts already are tape-measuring Scott’s home runs and trumpeting his talent.

A virtual unknown a season ago, Scott, a 6-foot-1, 187-pound cousin of Arizona wide receiver and former Alemany star Richard Dice, ranks among area leaders in several offensive categories and figures to be remembered as one of the school’s--maybe the area’s--all-time greats.

“In two years, the colleges will be beating down his door and the (professional) scouts will be standing in line to talk to him,” Alemany Coach Tim Browne said. “I see him having the world pretty much sitting in front of him. And he’s still only a kid.”

Yet adolescence rapidly is yielding to adulthood. In fact, for all of Scott’s progressive physical skills, it is his maturity that is, perhaps, most impressive.

“It’s the way he carries himself . . . his ability to take direction and apply it,” Browne said. “That’s going to carry him far in life--on and off the baseball field.”

Thoughtful, articulate, intelligent, Scott exudes qualities rare for a 16-year old. He wears celebrity well and respects the gravity of being in the limelight.

“I know I get a lot of attention for being just a sophomore and all that,” Scott said. “And I think most people are happy for me and like reading about me. But as far as letting it get to your head, you gotta be careful. It’s really easy to be caught up thinking about (publicity), and then pretty soon you’re not the same person anymore. I gotta keep my eye on the job.”

Still, there’s no reason not to enjoy the ride. And Scott is riding high.

He strolls through campus wearing what seems like a perpetual ear-to-ear grin across his stubble-covered, square jaw. Classmates greet him with mock reverence or good-natured, sarcastic barbs, questioning why he is not doing more to contribute to the team.

For Scott--who plays right field, bats cleanup and admits that he does not burn the midnight oil over homework--life is a can of corn.

“I guess I’m just blessed,” he said.

This month, Scott celebrated his birthday, began dating a new girlfriend, smacked his first grand slam, acquired his first car and scored 100 on his driver’s test.

“Took me 10 minutes,” Scott said. (The driving test, that is.)

He still can’t be out after 10 p.m. or attend an R-rated movie unless accompanied by an adult, but other than those his troubles appear to be few.

“My batting average dipped below .600 last week,” Scott said. “That’s about the worst thing that has happened to me lately.”

As the week began, Scott’s batting average was second in the area, and so were his four home runs, eight doubles and 26 runs batted in. Eight of his RBIs came against Paraclete during a game in which he had five doubles, tying a Southern Section record.

On Monday, Scott hammered a grand slam in a 12-7 loss to St. John Bosco in the St. Paul tournament. On Thursday, he slugged his fifth home run in a 16-6 victory over Arroyo Grande in the opening round of the San Luis Obispo tournament.

“His bat gets through the strike zone as quickly as any I’ve ever seen,” Browne said. “He can hit the ball to the opposite field. And with the power he generates behind it, the ball just explodes.”

Explosive might best describe Scott’s varsity debut as a 14-year-old freshman. He was promoted at midseason to replace an injured player. In his first at-bat in a game against Saugus, Scott belted a three-run double “that just about took the fence down,”’ Browne said.

With Scott toeing the bag at second, Browne, then an assistant to Jim Ozella, immediately knew the program’s precocious prospect had joined the varsity to stay. “Ozella and I looked at each other across the diamond and we both giggled,” Browne said.

Scott wasn’t as giddy.

“I was a little nervous,” Scott recalled. “I knew I had to prove myself. The biggest thing I needed was to be accepted.”

Scott batted .318. During the winter, he improved his skills while playing with a Cleveland Indian scout team. During one game, Scott belted a 420-foot home run to the opposite field.

With his size and strength, Scott probably would excel at football, as did Dice, a Times All-Valley receiver in 1991. Dice also was a four-year varsity member on the school’s basketball team and briefly was recruited by Arizona’s basketball program.

Scott suited up as a tight end for the Indians’ freshman team but gave up football after one season in order to concentrate on baseball.

“We went out and threw the baseball around a lot when we were younger,” Dice said. “And he was always a lot better than kids his age. He always practiced a lot. And he seemed like he liked it.”

Scott envisions his future in baseball. Whether he’ll play in college or play professionally straight out of high school remains to be determined. There is, after all, plenty of time to decide. Why worry about that now?

“Things are happening fast,” Scott said. “But I can handle it and still function normally. The most I have planned is to graduate. I have a goal of making the major leagues, so I’m going to keep at it until I realize I can’t do it or I get there.”