Rowand Looking for the Long Ball

Aaron Rowand accepted a baseball scholarship to Cal State Fullerton last November and is expected to be selected in the first or second round of next month’s amateur draft. But the Glendora High senior has some unfinished business.

Heading into Friday’s Southern Section playoff game against Paramount, Rowand has 15 home runs this season, one shy of the section record and two off the state mark.

“I’m constantly thinking about the record,” said Rowand, a shortstop and relief pitcher. “Perhaps I’ve put too much pressure on myself and I’m forcing my swing.”

Although he hit only four home runs in the previous two seasons, Rowand hit seven in the team’s first eight games. The pace has slowed, however, as opposing teams tend to pitch around him.

“I rarely get anything I can swing at anymore,” said Rowand, who is 6 feet, 175 pounds. “I get intentionally walked quite a bit. It’s frustrating.”

In 83 at-bats, Rowand is batting .663 with 55 hits and 50 runs batted in.

Glendora (19-6) won the Baseline League title and is considered an outside contender in Division II.

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Simi Valley’s Mike Scyphers, one of the area’s winningest baseball coaches, was unceremoniously removed from the playoffs and his job last week.

On Wednesday, Scyphers, 42, announced that he had been forced to resign, effective at the end of the season. On Saturday, Simi Valley lost a coin flip with Westlake for the Marmonte League’s third and final berth in this week’s Southern Section playoffs.

“They make it so it’s not even fun anymore,” Scyphers said of school administrators. “If someone wants you out, they’re going to get you.”

In 17 seasons at Simi Valley, Scyphers won eight league titles and advanced to two sectional championship games. He has a record of 343-113.

But the last two seasons have been difficult. Scyphers was charged with mishandling team discipline and finances last year and nearly lost his job. He was given a reprieve, but things got worse this year when the parent of a former player accused the coach of trying to keep his son from transferring to Simi Valley Royal. Scyphers was found guilty of undue influence and had to sit out six games.

The Pioneers still had a chance to win another league title, but losses to Royal and Thousand Oaks last week dropped them into a tie for third. Even though Simi Valley defeated Westlake twice during the regular season, league principals chose the coin flip to break the third-place tie.

Scyphers appealed the league’s decision, and Southern Section officials will hear the case today.

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A rare case of baseball coaches sharing duties has worked wonders at Calabasas. The Coyotes are 24-0 and top-seeded in the Southern Section Division IV playoffs.

Rick Nathanson and Scott Drootin experimented with co-coaching three years ago, and the team has improved every season. Calabasas won its first Frontier League title and has the most victories in school history.

“Rick is an on-campus teacher who takes care of most of the administrative duties that go along with the job,” said Drootin, a walk-on coach who won a City Section title in 1985 at Granada Hills Kennedy. “I can walk on the field and [don’t] have to worry about all that stuff. It’s working out great.”

Prep Notes

Former Gardena football coach Mike Sakurai is the new coach at Carson. He replaces Dave Williams, who recently stepped down after two seasons. Sakurai was Carson’s defensive coordinator last season. . . . Elissa Palmer of Los Angeles Marlborough won the all-around title at the Southern Section girls’ gymnastics finals last Saturday at Brea Olinda High.

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Times’ Top 20 Baseball Poll

The Times’ top 20 high school baseball poll, with teams from the City and Southern sections.

School Sect. Div. Rec. LW 1. Millikan SS I 22-2 1 2. Fountain Valley SS I 21-3 2 3. Fontana SS I 22-2 3 4. Mater Dei SS I 19-5 4 5. Bishop Amat SS I 23-3 5 6. La Quinta SS III 23-3 7 7. Lakewood SS I 20-6 9 8. Marina SS I 20-6 6 9. Calabasas SS IV 24-0 10 10. GH Kennedy City 4-A 21-4 8 11. Arlington SS II 22-3 11 12. Gahr SS II 19-4 15 13. Ayala SS I 20-5 18 14. Peninsula SS I 20-5 16 15. South Hills SS II 21-2 12 16. Crescenta Val. SS I 19-3 NR 17. Bell City 3-A 23-2 19 18. Temecula Val. SS II 22-3 NR 19. Corona SS III 21-5 NR 20. West Torrance SS I 22-6 13