Kim nearly perfect in win
TUJUNGA — Having seen Andreas Kim reach the planned 65-pitch count, Crescenta Valley Rountree Glass Major Baseball Coach Rick Moreno reluctantly walked to the mound to pull his ace pitcher.
Moreno had to weigh plenty, as Kim had just lost his bid for a perfect game and still had a no-hitter intact. Moreno also had to consider the fate of the team for the duration of the tournament.
Kim and Patrick Moreno combined on a no-hitter to spark Rountree Glass to a 6-0 victory against the Tujunga Angels in a winner’s-bracket game of the Tri-Cities Major Baseball Tournament at Tujunga Little League Fields on Wednesday night.
Kim, a right-hander, walked lead-off hitter Jessie Carriera on a full-count pitch in the bottom of the sixth inning, bringing the elder Moreno out of the dugout.
“It’s a shame that I had to pull him, but we have other games in the tournament,” said Moreno, whose team will face the Crescenta Valley Gangi Builders in another winner’s-bracket contest at 5 p.m. Thursday at Pacific Park. “He’s been reliable all year long and he’s able to work the plate well.
“He’s been our ace all season and he’s shown a lot of poise.”
Since Kim threw 65 pitches, he’s required to next pitch on three day’s rest. Had he thrown more than 65 tosses, he would have needed to sit out on four day’s rest.
Kim showed plenty of composure, as he struck out nine.
“I knew about the perfect game and I got a little too eager when I walked [Carriera],” said Kim, who struck out the side in the third and fifth. “I just went out there doing what I could do to help the team.
“Just before the game, I had a good feeling that I could go out there and throw strikes. I also have faith in my defense.”
Patrick Moreno got the final three outs to complete the win.
Rountree Glass grabbed a quick 1-0 lead when Kim homered to right-center field with two outs in the first.
“I got a pitch outside and just took it the other way,” said Kim, who finished with a pair of doubles and scored three runs. “Normally, I’m a pull hitter.”
Crescenta Valley made it 2-0 on a run-scoring single by Lucas Martos RePath in the second.
Crescenta Valley spiked the plate twice in the third on a two-run double by Michael Gee that scored Moreno and Kim.
Kim made it 5-0 with a double and then scored on a single by Gee to complete the scoring.
Gee finished with two hits for Rountree Glass, which got one from Asher Fausett.
