Karp Has Matadors Fishing in 10-5 Loss

Who knows how many, if any, Cal State Northridge players will ever reach the major leagues, but at least they had the chance to test themselves Friday night against Josh Karp, a 20-year-old right-hander from UCLA whose arm is as valuable as some paintings in the Getty Museum.

Karp (5-1) toyed with the Matadors for six innings, allowing two hits and two unearned runs while striking out six in the Bruins’ 10-5 nonconference victory at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

Bill Scott, from Alemany High, had four hits and catcher Forrest Johnson contributed four hits and four runs batted in to lead a 16-hit Bruin attack.

Karp is the reason the major league team that finishes with the worst record this season shouldn’t feel too badly. That team will have the No. 1 pick in the 2001 draft and can use it to choose Karp, whose two-year college pitching record is 13-4.

“He’s a bona fide blue-chipper who just needs to get the experience of pitching,” said Bruin pitching coach Tim Leary, who pitched 10 years in the majors. “He’s further along now than I was as a sophomore.”

It was only a month ago that Karp lost 15 pounds and was stuck in bed for three days with a bad case of the flu. Slowly, he has regained his strength and stamina.

In his last two outings, he has struck out 18 in 13 innings while allowing only five hits.

“I think I’m healthy now,” he said.

Karp has a fastball clocked between 90 and 96 mph, but it’s his change-up that can be particularly difficult to hit.

“I throw it with the same arm speed as my fastball,” he said.

Freshman Aaron McKenzie, who came in as Northridge’s leading hitter with a .389 average, struck out twice against Karp but learned from the experience.

“He’s a great pitcher,” McKenzie said. “It’s a great challenge to face a pitchers with his kind of talent. His change-up is real nice. It has a lot of movement and drops off at the last second.”

Northridge (13-24), which has lost seven of its last nine games, took a 2-1 lead in the third inning, keyed by a run-scoring single from freshman Bill Murphy.

But UCLA (24-13) scored two runs in bottom of the third on Garrett Atkins’ home run and Johnson’s run-scoring single.

Johnson homered in the fifth, giving UCLA 72 home runs this season, tops among Pacific 10 Conference teams.

Andy Davidson (3-4) gave up 10 hits and six runs in five innings.

Freshman Tim Coltey had three of Northridge’s seven hits.

It was the first of a three-game series, with a game scheduled today at Northridge.

Coach Mike Batesole of Northridge is determined to keep letting his young players develop.

“We played eight sophomores and freshmen [Friday] and let them have a look at what we hope they’ll be,” he said. “They get to go to war with these guys and get as many at-bats as they can.”

One player who learned something was sophomore Jason Gorman, who was picked off second base on a trick play by UCLA shortstop Josh Canales in the fifth.