1996 Baseball Preview : Orange League

Anaheim: 8-18, 4-11 in 1995. Coach: Dave Torres (ninth year, 91-108-1). Prospects: Torres is hedging his bets when he predicts his team will finish in the middle of the pack in the league race. Fact is, with what should be a solid pitching staff and a lot of players with varsity experience, the Colonists should challenge for the title. Pitcher Enrique Mejia was 4-6 last year with a 4.50 earned-run average; Joe Palacio was 4-7 with a 5.00 ERA, and both figure to better those numbers. Junior Edgar Macedo will also pitch and most likely play shortstop. Armando Pardo, who batted .333 last season, will be at second base, and junior Jose Rodriguez should anchor the outfield.

Brea Olinda: 17-10, 11-4 in 1995. Coach: Steve Hiskey (21st year, 197-184-7). Prospects: Hiskey is assured of getting his 200th victory at Brea early in the season. The Wildcats return six starters, including pitchers Allen Hough (9-1) and Bryan Robinson (3-4). Third baseman Todd Deck batted .309, and second baseman Brandon Maciel batted .340. Scott Davis is the shortstop, and Mark Ochoa will be in the outfield. Four other seniors will battle for starting jobs.

Magnolia: 16-8, 11-4 in 1995. Coach: Manny Rodriguez (second year, 18-7). Prospects: While home run production figures to be lacking, the Sentinels have the potential to be explosive at the plate. Shortstop Joey Camarillo (.363), third baseman James Penner (.413), designated hitter Colt Martin (.333) and outfielders Ryan Hieman (.365) and Rich Michaelson (.284) return. Pitcher Greg Young (8-4, 2.96 ERA) will be the mainstay on the mound. Newcomers include Art Garland, Brian Morris, Justin Redding, Dan Loza and Eric Fruend.

Savanna 8-16, 6-9 in 1995. Coach: Dave Sepe (first year). Prospects: Sepe is happy with what he has to work with. Rogelio Alvarado, a third baseman and pitcher, returns. He hit .416 last year and was a second-team all-league selection. Leadoff hitter Brad Bell is also back, as is Mack Long, a pitcher and second baseman. Newcomers Robert Hoium, a catcher, and Sal Alvarado, a utility infielder, are expected to help out. “I’m looking forward to the season,” Serpe said. “We’ll be competitive and if we don’t make mistakes, we’ll be fine.”

Valencia 11-12, 8-7 in 1995. Coach: Mike Scheetz (seventh year, 77-64). Prospects: The Tigers have been in a similar pattern the past two seasons: Begin the year slowly and try to finish fast. Last season, all that got them was third place and a first-round exit from the playoffs after a wild-card victory. Valencia returns 12 seniors. Scheetz’s leading edge is an outfield of Eric Reynosa (.373), Brad Morikawa (.342) and Jim DeDodo (.333). Reynosa was a first-team all-league selection, while the other two were second-team picks. Scheetz also hopes returning pitchers Derek Lee (2-0, 4.02) and Matt Hutchinson (5-6, 3.56) will be the staff leaders. Defense and lack of power are Scheetz’s main concerns, along with trying to replace all-league shortstop Joe Secoda, now at Rancho Santiago, and all-league third baseman Justin Averitt, who played in the county all-star game.

Western: 8-18, 5-10 in 1995. Coach: Robert Harrison (third year). Prospects: Harrison figures it will be a two-team race for the title between his Pioneers and Brea Olinda. “We’ve worked to get to this point,” he said. “I’ve had most of these kids since they were freshmen. We will contend for for playoffs.” The Pioneers start nine seniors. Key returning players include catcher Nick Swanson, right-handed pitcher-third baseman David Bell and designated hitter and left-handed pitcher Bret Halbert.