BASEBALL PREVIEW: YOUNG BUT FOCUSED SAUGUS ATTITUDE GOOD; PITCHING STAFF COULD BE A WEAKNESS.Byline: Kirby Kirby is a common place name, surname, and given name. Other common uses include:
Lee Special to the Daily News The Saugus High baseball team appears to be in for another long season after missing the playoffs for the second consecutive year in 1999. The Centurions have only three returning players from a 11-14-1 team which finished tied for fourth in Foothill League play at 5-9-1. What cannot be measured, however, is attitude. ``These guys are very scrappy scrap·py 1 adj. scrap·pi·er, scrap·pi·est Composed of scraps; fragmentary: scrappy evidence. scrap and focused,'' Saugus coach Dave Worley said. ``They want to win. Their car or girlfriend is not more important. They love to win. We're young, but we're not waiting for next year to come together.'' Worley, in his 25th year at Saugus and the school's only baseball coach, sensed that quality coaching the majority of the players during 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. this summer. A league title might be out of reach, particularly with defending Southern Section Division II champion Hart looking strong again. Still, Worley believes Saugus will be competitive with Burroughs, Canyon and Valencia for the league's three postseason berths. ``I see a real dogfight,'' Worley said. ``We probably have the least amount of starters back, but we still have a lot of a talent.'' Seniors Jeff Mayberry and Nathan Steele and junior Wes Travis are the mainstays from last year's team. Mayberry, a first baseman, earned all-league first-team honors as a junior, batting Batting has several meanings:
Saugus will be solid at shortstop with junior Andy Warren Andy Warren may refer to:
In sports, usually at the high school and college levels, members of a team who are not the main players in a competition (such as a football or basketball game) are called junior varsity players. and over .500 in limited varsity action last season. The speedy Steele will start in center field with senior B.J. Vrbanic getting the starting nod in left field for the Centurions, who open the season with home games against Alemany on Friday and Westchester and Saturday. ``We're not a little-ball type of team,'' Worley said. ``I think we can hit with some power.'' Pitching is untested, but there are plenty of candidates. Senior right- handers Shawn Wolfington and Brian DeVita are battling junior Casey Benesch, a 6-4 left-hander, as Saugus' primary starter. Wolfington and DeVita are power pitchers In baseball, a power pitcher is a pitcher who relies on the velocity of his pitches, sometimes at the expense of accuracy. Power pitchers usually record a high number of strikeouts and statistics such as strikeouts per 9 innings pitched are common measures of power. and crafty Benesch moves the ball around. The three are being pushed by senior Ryan Slocum, juniors Kyle <noinclude></noinclude> ''This article or section is being rewritten at One derivation of the surname is from the Scottish Highland word caol, 'channel', or 'strait'. There are other possible derivations (see below). Love, Shawn Pellet pel·let n. 1. A small pill; a pilule. 2. A small rod-shaped or ovoid mass, as of compressed steroid hormones, intended for subcutaneous implantation in body tissues to provide timed release over an extended period of time. and Ryan Lindgreen, and sophomore Matt Romero. Lindgreen and Romero will also split time at catcher when they are not pitching. ``We can hit the ball with anybody and I have a lot of confidence in our defense,'' Worley said. ``Our struggles could be pitching. That is pretty common anytime you have a young team.'' The second-base position is up for grabs between junior Garner Humphrey and sophomore Josh JOSH Joshua JOSH Job Scheduling Hierarchically Fogel. Fogel is one of three sophomores along with Romero and left-hander Matt Underwood elevated from the Centurions' freshman team which finished 19-5-2 last year. ``That could be the key,'' Worley said. ``Some years are better than others. We are a lot deeper. It is not just numbers. There is more competition and we have more guys that can play. All of them could contribute and not just fill up space on the roster.'' AT A GLANCE Team: Saugus High Last season: 11-14, 5-1-1 Foothill (tied for fourth) Coach: Doug Worley (25th year) Assistant coaches: Doug Maggiora, Wade Williams Wade Andrew Williams (born December 24, 1961) is an American actor who currently has a starring role as Captain Brad Bellick on Fox's television series Prison Break. Top returners: Jeff Mayberry, Sr., 1B; Wes Travis, Jr., OF; Nathan Steele, Sr., OF. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: Saugus High's Nathan Steele, left, Jeff Mayberry and Wes Travis are mainstays left over from last year's nonplayoff team. Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer Box: At a Glance (see text) |
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