Vigilantes Can’t Solve Opening-Night Trouble

The Vigilantes’ 1998 season opener was a bit more low key than last year.

No Susan Anton arriving late to sing the anthem after getting caught up in holiday traffic. No marching bands or circus acts, although there were fireworks during the seventh-inning stretch.

But, just as they did last year, the Vigilantes opened the Western League baseball season Saturday night with a 9-6 loss to the Chico Heat in front of 3,178 at Saddleback College.

The Heat’s Ken Shamburg broke a 5-5 tie in the seventh with a two-run homer off Vigilante reliever Josh Belovsky, (0-1).

The defending league champions scored three runs in the seventh and added another in the eighth to hold off Mission Viejo.

Also hitting home runs for the Heat were Brian Arntzen and Terrel Hansen. Hansen added an RBI double in the eighth to drive in three runs for Chico.

The Vigilantes’ Phil Kernan homered, doubled and singled in four at bats, and drove in two runs. Tim McDonnell and Alan Burke also homered for the Vigilantes.

“Tonight we got some of our guys’ feet wet,” Vigilante Manager Buck Rodgers said.

“We’re going to use this home stand to find out who can play and who can’t. I was pleased to see the way we hit the ball tonight. At least tonight the hitting caught up with the pitching.”

The Heat had 11 hits and the Vigilantes had 10.

Vigilante starter Mike Smith, who struggled with his control, went six innings, giving up seven hits and five runs (three earned). He walked four and struck out four.

Heat starter Jeff Sobkoviak, who won 14 games last year for High Desert in the Class-A California League, lasted three innings Saturday night. Sobkoviak gave up four runs on five hits, four of them for extra bases.

But the Heat bullpen outperformed the Vigilante bullpen. Every Mission Viejo reliever--Belovsky, Wally Ritchie and Steve Certerko--gave up at least one run. Two of the four Heat relievers--Adam Bryant and Dawley--gave up no runs.

Todd Schiffhauer (1-0) pitched two-plus innings to get the win. Joey Dawley worked the ninth for Chico to earn his first save.

The Heat took the early lead by loading the bases in the second, thanks to shortstop Brian Grebeck’s error on Bo Durkac’s grounder with two out. Jeff Rhein promptly slapped a two-run double off Smith down the left-field line.

But Mission Viejo got the runs back in its half of the second.