BIRMINGHAM BASEBALL TOURNAMENT : Simi Valley Wins, 6-5, When Gonzalez Comes Out Swinging

Having to trek to the heart of the Valley for an unusually early baseball game Thursday, nobody could fault Simi Valley center fielder Robert Gonzalez if he were a little bleary-eyed.

When Pioneer Coach Tom Derrico decided to move Gonzalez back to the top of the batting order, the senior said to himself, “If I see it, I’ll hit it.”

And hit he did. Gonzalez was four for five, belting three doubles and driving in three runs in Simi Valley’s 6-5 victory over defending-champion Franklin in the 10 a.m. championship game of the Gold Division of the Birmingham tournament.

“I was just looking for anything over the plate,” said Gonzalez, who had been relegated to the eighth and ninth spots in the order over the previous four games. “It felt good to be back at the No. 1 spot.”

After Pioneer reliever Al Broyles (4-1) held Franklin hitless in the top of the seventh, Gonzalez came to the plate with two out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning and smashed a 2-and-1 pitch by Diego Garcia through the left side of the infield to score John Whipp with the game winner.

With Franklin leading, 5-3, in the bottom of the sixth inning, Gonzalez, who drove in his first run in the second, hit a slicing double to right-center field to score Whipp, who opened the inning with a triple. Gonzalez scored on a single by David Krewson to tie the game, 5-5.

Simi Valley (9-8-1) swept five games in the tournament. The Pioneers believe they can play spoiler in the Marmonte League, where they are tied for last place at 1-5.