SIDELINES : Valley’s Johnson Hoping Yamaoka Can Deliver Like Nomo

It seems that Dodger pitcher Hideo Nomo, who last week was named National League rookie of the year, has inspired other Japanese to come and play in the United States.

And Chris Johnson, Valley College coach, is one happy camper because of it.

Johnson plans to anchor his pitching staff next season with Taiki Yamaoka, a freshman right-hander with a nasty forkball and live fastball that has dominated opponents in winter-league action.

“He’s more than pretty good,” Johnson said. “He can throw it through a straw. . . . He looks a lot like Nomo. He has the same sort of delivery but not as extreme.”

Yamaoka, 18, played high school ball in Osaka and then with an American Legion team in the Valley last summer. He has adapted well to American baseball, but is still trying to adjust in other areas.

“He’s got the basic communication problems, getting the rent paid and making sure the cable [TV] stays on,” Johnson said.

Johnson, conversely, is keeping his fingers crossed that Yamaoka stays at Valley.

“He’s going back to Japan for the Christmas break and I had a nightmare the other night that he wasn’t coming back,” Johnson said.

A little perspective: Reminders of Ronney Jenkins’ record-setting rushing performance last Thursday keep rolling in.

And they point out what a tough season the Bell-Jeff High football team has had.

Jenkins, who ran for a national-record 619 yards against Rio Mesa, had more rushing yards in one night than the Bell-Jeff team had all season.

The Guards, who had 595 yards, capped a 1-9 season with a 45-0 loss to Cathedral, marking the seventh time they were shut out in a season in which they were outscored, 316-26.

Twelve of those 26 points and the lone Guard victory came against Santa Fe League rival Pius X, which did not score all season.

Dallas transfer: You had to see it to believe it. Manny Marquez, Cal State Northridge’s 5-foot-7 sophomore kicker, was playing running back for the Matadors’ scout team one day last week.

Matt Ornelaz, the Matadors’ starting kicker, watched the little No. 22 running the ball and joked: “Isn’t that Emmitt Smith?”

Marquez volunteered to go into the fire because, well, life as a redshirt kicker can be pretty dull. Once Marquez stepped into the offense, practice became more fun for all of the Matadors, who laughed hysterically as he plunged into the line or went out for a pass.

“He’s like a little field mouse,” said Darren Walton, one of Northridge’s starting running backs.

Said Coach Dave Baldwin: “He’s our secret weapon. We figure [the defense] can’t see him there in the backfield.”

Quotebook

“Every time I see it, my arm hurts.”

-- Ventura race car driver Cory Kruseman, describing the videotape of his Midget car flipping end over end 14 times. The accident left him with a fractured skull, blurred vision and his right arm fractured in three places.

“I need to go to one of your clinics and hear you speak.”

-- Camarillo High cross-country Coach Mike Smith, to Nordhoff Coach Ken Reeves after Reeves’ teams won the boys’ and girls’ titles in the Ventura County championships.

Honors

Cal State Northridge quarterback Clayton Millis has been named American West Conference offensive player of the week for his 429-yard passing game against St. Mary’s. Millis set a Division I-AA record with 48 completions, and his yardage and 65 attempts were school records.

Things to Do

Cal Lutheran, the defending Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women’s basketball champion, will play at The Master’s College in a season opener Friday at 5 p.m. The Regals posted a 23-3 record and advanced to the play-in round of the NCAA Division III tournament last season.

Contributing: Fernando Dominguez, Darin Esper, Jeff Fletcher, John Ortega, Peter Yoon.