GETTING INTO THE SWING OF THINGS PITCHERS ONCE DOMINATED SOFTBALL, BUT NOW HITTERS ARE CATCHING UP.

Byline: GERRY GITTELSON

Staff Writer

The greatest softball hitter in region history played her high school ball for a basketball coach. If Crystl Bustos needed help on her jump shot, he knew exactly what to say. The intricacies of the zone defense? No problem.

But learning how to pick up the spin on a rise ball? Good luck.

"He did a good job in softball, but he was learning the game just like we were." said Bustos, who helped Team USA win two Olympic Gold medals.

Fortunately, she had a secret weapon: a private hitting coach.

These days that might not seem unusual. But when Bustos played at Canyon High in the early 1990s, specialized hitting instruction was a luxury few players enjoyed -- or even considered.

Back then, the only players getting personalized training were pitchers. And it showed in the scorebooks. Pitchers dominated, and when two good hurlers squared off you could almost count on a 1-0 final score and an extra-inning game.

"(We) just couldn't make the adjustments. They'd keep striking us out, " said Valencia coach Donna Lee, who played at Taft of Woodland Hills in the early 1980s.

But over the past decade or so, the hitters have closed the gap. Quickly.

Just last year, two locals hit an area-record 16 home runs -- Bianca Mejia (El Camino Real of Woodland Hills) and Baillie Kirker of Crescenta Valley) -- and that's been part of a ongoing trend.

This season, Lancaster's Shawna Wright hit 14 home runs -- more than most teams hit in a whole season a generation ago.

And it's not just the cleanup hitters that are doing better. More often, pitchers are finding they can't just blow through the bottom of the lineup.

There's no shortage of explanations why: more specialized training; better bats; a switch to a yellow ball, which is easier for batters to see out of the pitcher's hand.

But mostly, it's the specialized instruction hitters are getting, and the knowledge they take to the batter's box.

"There are a lot of good instructors who have a real understanding of the game," said Bustos, who gives private lessons. "When I was in high school, there was talent but not enough coaches to bring it out."

The proof is in the stats. According to Cal-Hi Sports, of California's 16 highest single-season batting averages of all-time, 10 have come over the past nine seasons. Of the 10 Southern Section pitchers who've recorded 400 strikeouts or more, just one has done so within the past 10 years.

This year at Valencia, six starters are batting .308 or better, which is especially significant considering the Vikings -- the nation's top-ranked team -- have played a difficult schedule.

Camarillo, the No. 2-ranked team in the country, features three starters batting .500 or better and five others hitting .300 or better.

"A lot has to do with the evolution of the sport," said U.S. Olympic team star Jessica Mendoza, a former Camarillo standout. "When softball first started, you just went up there and hit. Now there are better coaches, better training, better hitters. Back when I played, there was a certain rawness. You just went out there and hit, but over the past 10 years there has been so much more teaching involved."

Bustos' prodigy is Jessica Spigner, a junior from Valencia who has committed to Tennessee. Spigner is one of the top power hitters in California, routinely hitting 275-foot-plus home runs over the past two seasons. She credits Bustos not only with crafting her swing, but also sharpening her intellectual approach.

"I think the most important thing is the lessons have given more a lot more confidence." Spigner said. "It's a intellectual and physical game."

Spigner is part of a new generation of softball hitters who hone their craft as diligently as pitchers do. As a result, hitters arrive in the batter's box with better skills and a smarter approach.

"For pitchers, there's always been that technical aspect because you can't just go out there and pitch," Mendoza said. "You have to learn how to do that. With hitters, you can't just go up there anymore and just take your swings. You just can't get away with that."

It also helps that bat manufactures are arming hitters with super-powered, high-tech bats that can turn popups into home runs.

"It's really raised the bar for hitters," Mendoza said. "I remember when college teams might hit three or four home runs in a year, and now they hit 30 or 40."

The newer bats cost around $300, and some even more than that, putting a new spin on the phrase, "more bang for your buck."

"It's insane," Mendoza said. When I played in high school, we didn't even have our own bats, we just passed two or three around for all of us, grab one and go up there. Now every player has their own bat."

And these days, they know what to do with it.

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Photo:

(color) Annissa Lagos, left, Delaney Willard, center, and Lindsey Pierce lead Camarillo, the No. 2-ranked team in the country.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer