BASEBALL BEAT: SPECTOR A SPECTER FOR OPPONENTS.Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Mitch Spector learned a valuable lesson last year as a member of the Taft High School baseball team. ``I think we saw what can happen when a team has too many `I' players on it,'' said Spector of the Toreadors, who started the year 12-3 but lost 10 of their final 12 games. ``You win as a team and you lose as a team.'' The lesson has been heeded this summer. The Woodland Hills East American Legion American Legion, national association of male and female war veterans, founded (1919) in Paris. Membership is open to veterans of World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. team, which is made up primarily of players who will play at Taft next year, is 14-5 so far. ``Talent was never a question,'' said Spector, a right fielder right fielder n. Baseball The player who defends right field. Noun 1. right fielder - the person who plays right field outfielder - (baseball) a person who plays in the outfield who has been named to the District 20 Western All-Star team. ``But now we've gelled as a team. Everybody loves one another and we're having a lot of fun.'' None more so than Spector, a senior-to-be who is hitting .500. ``Right now I'm just playing baseball and having fun,'' said Spector, who left for Fresno Monday night to try out for the Area Code Games. ``I'm playing well, but I still want to improve every game.'' Spector is joined on the team by his brothers, twins Jason and Jeff, who will be juniors at Taft next year. Jason is batting .352 with eight RBI RBI abbr. Baseball runs batted in Noun 1. rbi - a run that is the result of the batter's performance; "he had more than 100 rbi last season" run batted in ; Jeff is hitting .345 with 16 RBI. Jeff, who also pitches, is 2-0 with a 3.42 ERA. Woodland Hills East has another set of twins in Justin and Josh Wade. Justin, a pitcher, is recovering from arm problems but should be healthy enough to pitch by next season. He's hitting .333 with seven RBI. The team's best pitcher this summer has been John Meier John Meier may refer to:
``I think we're building up very well for next year,'' said Spector. ``This is a good start for us.'' BRINGUIER BRINGING IT Jon Bringuier might have been disappointed with his sophomore season at Granada Hills, but he's certainly making up for it this summer. Bringuier turned on the power for the Granada Hills West American Legion team with four home runs in a recent four-game stretch. ``He's been on a litle bit of a tear lately,'' Granada Hills West coach Steve Thompson Steve Thompson or Steven Thompson may be:
Bringuier, who was just named to the District 20 Eastern All-Star team, hit .316 with six doubles, three home runs and 20 RBI last year for the Highlanders. They weren't quite the numbers he had hoped for, especially after hitting over .400 through the first half of the season. ``The team started losing a lot of games and I went into a slump,'' Bringuier said. ``It all started to roll downhill from there.'' After 18 American Legion games, Bringuier is hitting .380 with four home runs and 16 RBI. ``This is about the level I feel I can play at,'' said Bringuier, who credits the teammates that hit behind him for the amount of good pitches he gets. Thompson felt Bringuier took time to learn the system at Granada Hills as a sophomore last season. What he's doing this summer is simply a natural progression. And Thompson believes that will carry into next year. ``I expect big things from him,'' Thompson said. ``He's got the size, desire and ability to take care of business and get the job done.'' AREA OLYMPIANS Two area players recently earned spots on a prestigious national team. Kevin Howard Kevin C. Howard (born June 25, 1981 in Hinsdale, Illinois) is a infielder in Minor League Baseball who plays for the Jacksonville Suns in the Double-A Southern League. of Westlake and Jessie Kozlowski of Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. will both play forthe first-ever 16-under National Junior Olympic Team in Taiwan starting July 12. Howard, a junior infielder/pitcher, is accustomed to playing baseball in faraway places The Faraway Places is an indie rock band. Originally formed in Boston, Massachusetts as Solar Saturday, they changed their name after moving to Los Angeles, California. . Over the past few years, he's played in world competitions in Michigan, Florida and North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop. . Kozlowski will be a sophomore pitcher at Simi Valley next season. Etc. In a pinch: Former Westlake High School Westlake High School may refer to:
Franco's pinch-hit, two-run home run on Sunday against the Pirates was his sixth consecutive base hit as a pinch-hitter. Rusty Staub holds the major-league record for consecutive pinch-hits with eight. All Star game: The American Legion East-West All-Star game will be played Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Valley College. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO No, this isn't a new signing group. It's the key players on the Woodland Hills East legion team. (left to right) Jon Meier, Justin Wade, Josh Wade, Jason Spector, Jeff Spector and Mitch Spector. John McCoy / Daily News |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion