Player of the Year

From the time he was a freshman and batting cleanup in Westlake High’s batting order, Kevin Howard has faced the pressure of high expectations. When he batted .512 as a sophomore, Howard entered phenom status.

Then came his junior season, when a pressing Howard acted as if every at-bat meant the difference between success and failure. He slumped to .366 and people wondered if he had peaked too young.

However, 1999 will be remembered as the year Howard lived up to every expectation and more. Playing shortstop, Howard hit, fielded and helped make a young Westlake team a contender.

He saved his best for his final year of high school, batting .551 with 12 home runs and 38 runs batted in.

“I think he put the team on his back and carried us,” Coach Chuck Berrington of Westlake said of Howard, who has been selected The Times’ Ventura County player of the year.

Once a three-spot athlete, the 6-foot-3, 170-pound Howard has bid farewell to football and basketball. Baseball is the sport he has chosen to use his athleticism and determination to go as far as he can.

He signed with Miami and was drafted in the 22nd round by the San Diego Padres.

Howard learned this season what can happen when he doesn’t worry what others think.

“I think you never get used to pressure, but as the years go by, you get more used to it,” he said. “This year was the most comfortable I felt.”

He took on the role of team leader and set an example with his actions on and off the field.

“He creates an attitude, an excitement,” Berrington said. “He pumps everybody up.”

There wasn’t a fan, player or coach who didn’t become suddenly alert whenever Howard came to the plate. You always knew something was about to happen.

“Everybody stops, ‘Kevin Howard is up,’ ” Berrington said.

Howard swung at fewer bad pitches, was more patient and forced pitchers to suffer the consequences when trying to sneak fastballs past him.

“He was relaxed from the beginning,” Berrington said. “He just gets better every day. As a hitter, if he gets a pitch in his zone, he’s not going to miss it.”

To hit better than .500 twice in high school reveals plenty about his hitting skills, but he does have skills to improve. Some think he can be faster, hit better against left-handers and develop a stronger arm.

But the legacy Howard has left will be hard to duplicate. He came in with everyone expecting him to excel and he’s leaving as one of the best players in school history.