Now His Arm Does Talking

A smor-gasbord of notes, quotes and opinions from across the San Fernando Valley and its surrounding communities:

The kid with a big smile who talked to his bat named Susan on national TV is growing up. Matt Cassel, one of the stars from Northridge Little League’s national championship team of 1994, just turned 15.

He’s a 6-foot-3, 180-pound sophomore at Chatsworth High. He can’t take 10 steps around campus without a group of girls suddenly intercepting him. He’s still a character and still the best athlete from that marvelous group of young athletes.

As the starting quarterback for Chatsworth’s football team, Cassel has brought smiles to his retiring coach, 62-year-old Myron Gibford.

“He makes you laugh,” Gibford said. “He’s a character, no question about it.”

Cassel has so much talent that Gibford confessed, “He’s the best 10th grader I’ve ever had [at quarterback].”

It’s Cassel’s strong arm, intelligence, athleticism and love for competition that make him a special player in Gibford’s mind.

“I’m loving it,” Cassel said of playing quarterback for the Chancellors (4-3). “It’s a lot of fun.”

Baseball is supposedly Cassel’s best sport. There won’t be many sophomores better than him next spring. But there’s also no telling how good Cassel could become at quarterback with a little experience.

“With his personality, he’s one of those kids who can throw an interception, then come back and throw a touchdown,” Gibford said. “I haven’t had many kids who can go one play at a time. He’s a big-time player, no question.”

Cassel is still growing, which could be bad news for his older brother, Jack, star pitcher at Kennedy.

“Thank God,” Matt said. “Now I can stick with him in a fight. . . .”

So far, two players from the talented local baseball class of 1993, Jeff Suppan (Crespi High, Boston Red Sox) and Brad Fullmer (Montclair Prep, Montreal Expos), have made it to the major leagues. Another member of the ’93 class, former Harvard-Westlake catcher Kevin O’Malley, is on a path to one day help his former high school rivals.

O’Malley, 22, is the Dodgers’ new administrative assistant for their Class A farm team in Vero Beach, Fla. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania last May. Last summer, he was a coach for the Dodgers’ rookie team in Great Falls, Mont. It’s all part of learning how to run a pro baseball team.

“It gives me a great hands-on experience how business is run,” O’Malley said of his new job.

Even though O’Malley’s father, Peter, is selling the Dodgers, Kevin could be the next O’Malley to make an impact in pro sports.

Vero Beach is where Peter began his own baseball education.

“It’s an ideal place for him to break in,” Peter said.

Of course, the pressure is on Kevin when spring training begins.

“When everyone shows up, the hot water had better be on,” Peter said. . . .

What’s the chances of 6-7 Ian Boys gaining a hardship waiver to play basketball for Simi Valley this season? Try slim and none. Boys might want to start thinking of ways to apologize to Buena Coach Glen Hannah for leaving. . . .

After his football team upset top-ranked Notre Dame last week, St. Francis Coach Bill Redell hardly spent the weekend celebrating. “Let me tell you, I was out there doing yard work the next day,” he said. “I asked myself, ‘Gee, we beat Notre Dame. Why am I doing this?’ ” . . .

El Camino Real football Coach Rick Hayashida ought to start holding open tryouts for a kicker. The Conquistadores needed one extra point Friday night to beat Birmingham. . . .

Former Hart High and Colorado kicker Jim Harper is now an LAPD patrol officer. Isn’t there a law that bans ex-kickers from carrying guns? . . .

Loyola Marymount baseball Coach Frank Cruz is thrilled with the performance of his group of local freshman recruits in fall practice. Pitchers Mike Schultz (Cleveland), Mark Madsen (Quartz Hill) and Brian Felten (Crespi) are doing well, as is infielder Chris Gray (Chaminade) and outfielder Rob Hirsh (Crespi).

Outfielder Matt Riordan (Westlake), a freshman All-American last season, could be ready to become one of the nation’s best this spring for the Lions. . . .

UCLA’s 15-member freshman recruiting class was rated No. 1 in the nation by Collegiate Baseball magazine. But are they really that good?

“From the brief time we’ve had to look, I’m very pleased with what I’ve seen,” Bruin Coach Gary Adams said after three weeks of fall ball. . . .

Highland pitcher-outfielder Traviss Hodge, 6-2 and 210 pounds, is the best baseball prospect in the Antelope Valley. He scored 1200 on his SAT and has been impressive in scout ball. . . .

Chatsworth is heavily favored to win its eighth City Section 4-A girls’ soccer championship in 10 years. Junior Jackie Fodor will be one of the region’s top college prospects in 1999. Chatsworth plays host to Southern Section rival Chaminade on Dec. 16. . . .

St. John the Baptist De La Salle of Granada Hills won the Babe Laufenberg flag football tournament for Catholic middle schools. Most valuable player was eighth-grader Casey Wong, a receiver-defensive back.

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Eric Sondheimer’s local column appears Wednesday and Sunday. He can be reached at (818) 772-3422.