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CENTURY LEAGUE

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Canyon

Coach: Mike Najera

1999 record: 19-7

League record: 11-4

Canyon will probably battle Foothill for second place. Six starters are back from last season’s third-place finishers, but Canyon took a big hit with the graduation of first-team all-county shortstop Jason Corapci, who led the county in batting at .586. Catcher Chad Heistermann, an All-Southern Section and all-league pick, batted .418 with 33 hits and 35 runs. Starting pitchers Jon Holsto and Matt Fry, both all-league selections, return, along with Sean McDermott and Andy Clay.

El Modena

Coach: Steve Bernard

1999 record: 8-18

League record: 3-12

Steve Bernard is in his first year coaching in the county. The Vanguards return nine starters and should improve on last season’s fifth-place finish. El Modena picks up junior Jared Bauer, a transfer from Canyon who led the Comanche football team at quarterback. Senior Ryan Hertzberg moves from second base to shortstop to replace Tony Calderon, who was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 22nd round. Calderon batted .479 with 35 hits and 25 runs for the Vanguards and is at Santa Ana College this spring. Hertzberg and junior third baseman Kyle Nicoletti will be counted on to anchor a young infield.

Foothill

Coach: Vince Brown

1999 record: 15-10

League record: 12-3

Pitching is the Knights’ strength according to Coach Vince Brown. Mike Castillo and Aaron Swick, both first-team all-league players, and Nick Dolle and Bill Petersen are all back. Castillo was 7-3 with a 2.79 ERA and 91 strikeouts last year. Swick was 4-2. They’ll be joined by three pitchers from the league champion junior varsity team. Senior Mark Mitchell and juniors Neeraj Reddy and Joey Rodriguez round out what Brown says is the finest pitching staff he’s had.

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Orange

Coach: Chris Esperanza

1999 record: 5-21

League record: 2-13

With seven returning starters, Chris Esperanza, in his third year, expects to have a better team than last season. C.J. Joiner, Chad Bradley and Anthony Alvarado will provide the hitting power. Joiner hit .397, Bradley .353 and Alvarado .344. Alvarado also will return to the mound, where in 15 innings he struck out 15. Ray Torres also will pitch. Orange picked up three transfers, Mater Dei’s Ricky Suarez and Damon Cook and Orange Lutheran’s Brian Nock.

Santa Ana Valley

Coach: Leon Smith

1999 record: 9-17

League record: 5-10

Santa Ana Valley returns seven starters from a fourth-place team, but the Falcons lost one of their big bats to graduation--Bryan Save, who hit .507 last season. But pitcher/outfielder Robert Padilla is back after hitting .494, with 39 hits, 24 runs and 26 RBIs. All-league selections Padilla, Alex Guzman and Ruben Perales will make up the pitching staff and also are expected to lead the team at the plate. Coach Leon Smith doesn’t expect to catch the top three teams in the league, but don’t count the Falcons out.

Villa Park

Coach: Tom Tereschuk

1999 record: 16-9

League record: 12-3

The Spartans are favored to defend their league title, with a strong pitching staff and quick outfield. The big bats returning are first-team all-county utility player Jeff Tuttle and league co-MVP Brandon Averill. Tuttle finished in the county’s top 10 in batting at .514 and had 11 home runs and 35 RBIs. He also had 61 strikeouts as a pitcher. Third baseman Averill batted .444 with 25 RBIs last year and went 6-1 with a 1.88 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 44 innings. Tuttle and seniors Jake Monson, Sean Pritchett and Scott Foley are expected to provide speed in the outfield.

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