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04-21-2007, 06:58 AM
Sinton avenges loss, grabs share of district lead
By JAVIER BECERRA Caller-Times
April 21, 2007
SINTON - Longtime Sinton baseball coach Gene Kasprzyk said his players weren't fully prepared when the team first played Mathis.
They were Friday night.
Sinton forged a tie for first in the District 30-3A standings with a 6-0 victory over Mathis, currently the fifth-ranked team in the state. The rival Pirates are now 7-1 with two games left in the regular season.
"There's a lot of tradition here and these guys have a lot of pride," Kasprzyk said. "They have a lot of respect for Mathis, but I think they felt we didn't put our best foot forward the first time we played them. We had a little bit to prove this time since we were in our own ballpark."
Mathis (21-3 overall) won the first meeting 4-2 on March 27. Sinton (17-5-1) was ranked fifth at the time, while Mathis had yet to enter the poll.
Friday night's game turned out much different.
Mathis made three costly errors and stranded five runners, four of those in scoring position. Sinton scored all of its runs in the first four innings, putting Mathis in a huge hole.
"We had men in scoring position and didn't bring them home," Mathis coach Rey Cardona said. "Momentum is a big thing in baseball and we just never got it."
Sinton got its offense going early, scoring a run in the bottom of the first to seize some of the control.
Shane Segovia hit a one-out single deep in the hole at short and advanced to second on a passed ball. Josh Rodriguez then walked and was replaced at first base by courtesy runner Wes Ring.
Anthony Trevino followed with a grounder to shortstop, which J.D. Pinon quickly fielded and tossed over to second baseman Ramon Herrera for the force out. Herrera tried to turn a double play, but his throw to first base pulled Victor Alvarado off the bag.
The error allowed Segovia to trot home and give Sinton a 1-0 lead while leaving Trevino at second. With two outs, a single to left by Andres Alaniz prompted Kasprzyk to waive Trevino home.
Trevino had just rounded when Jose Maldonado fired the ball to catcher Mike Cuellar, who made the tag for the third out.
That gave Sinton just enough confidence to take command.
"They made a couple of mistakes early, and we got a couple runs on them," said Kasprzyk, whose team finished with eight hits. "It's a little easier to play when you're ahead."
Rodriguez managed to work out of a jam in the bottom second after inducing two quick ground outs to start the inning. He gave up a base hit to Jamie Ruiz, who then ended up at third when Mike Cuellar reached on an error.
The sophomore recovered to strike out Herrera and preserve Sinton's 1-0 lead. He went on to retire the final 11 batters he faced.
"Josh didn't have the great fastball tonight, but he didn't hurt himself," Kasprzyk said. "He struggled spotting his curve, but he kept the ball on the outside part of the plate and got a lot of ground balls and pretty routine plays."
If Sinton and Mathis finished the regular season tied, the teams are likely to meet a third time to decide playoff seeding. However, both sides know it's too early to think about that now.
"That's a long way down the road," Kasprzyk said. "We still have to win two more ballgames."
Cardona agreed.
"We're not worried about that," he said. "Right now we're worried about the next game."
Contact Javier Becerra at 886-3734 or becerraj@ caller.com
By JAVIER BECERRA Caller-Times
April 21, 2007
SINTON - Longtime Sinton baseball coach Gene Kasprzyk said his players weren't fully prepared when the team first played Mathis.
They were Friday night.
Sinton forged a tie for first in the District 30-3A standings with a 6-0 victory over Mathis, currently the fifth-ranked team in the state. The rival Pirates are now 7-1 with two games left in the regular season.
"There's a lot of tradition here and these guys have a lot of pride," Kasprzyk said. "They have a lot of respect for Mathis, but I think they felt we didn't put our best foot forward the first time we played them. We had a little bit to prove this time since we were in our own ballpark."
Mathis (21-3 overall) won the first meeting 4-2 on March 27. Sinton (17-5-1) was ranked fifth at the time, while Mathis had yet to enter the poll.
Friday night's game turned out much different.
Mathis made three costly errors and stranded five runners, four of those in scoring position. Sinton scored all of its runs in the first four innings, putting Mathis in a huge hole.
"We had men in scoring position and didn't bring them home," Mathis coach Rey Cardona said. "Momentum is a big thing in baseball and we just never got it."
Sinton got its offense going early, scoring a run in the bottom of the first to seize some of the control.
Shane Segovia hit a one-out single deep in the hole at short and advanced to second on a passed ball. Josh Rodriguez then walked and was replaced at first base by courtesy runner Wes Ring.
Anthony Trevino followed with a grounder to shortstop, which J.D. Pinon quickly fielded and tossed over to second baseman Ramon Herrera for the force out. Herrera tried to turn a double play, but his throw to first base pulled Victor Alvarado off the bag.
The error allowed Segovia to trot home and give Sinton a 1-0 lead while leaving Trevino at second. With two outs, a single to left by Andres Alaniz prompted Kasprzyk to waive Trevino home.
Trevino had just rounded when Jose Maldonado fired the ball to catcher Mike Cuellar, who made the tag for the third out.
That gave Sinton just enough confidence to take command.
"They made a couple of mistakes early, and we got a couple runs on them," said Kasprzyk, whose team finished with eight hits. "It's a little easier to play when you're ahead."
Rodriguez managed to work out of a jam in the bottom second after inducing two quick ground outs to start the inning. He gave up a base hit to Jamie Ruiz, who then ended up at third when Mike Cuellar reached on an error.
The sophomore recovered to strike out Herrera and preserve Sinton's 1-0 lead. He went on to retire the final 11 batters he faced.
"Josh didn't have the great fastball tonight, but he didn't hurt himself," Kasprzyk said. "He struggled spotting his curve, but he kept the ball on the outside part of the plate and got a lot of ground balls and pretty routine plays."
If Sinton and Mathis finished the regular season tied, the teams are likely to meet a third time to decide playoff seeding. However, both sides know it's too early to think about that now.
"That's a long way down the road," Kasprzyk said. "We still have to win two more ballgames."
Cardona agreed.
"We're not worried about that," he said. "Right now we're worried about the next game."
Contact Javier Becerra at 886-3734 or becerraj@ caller.com