JC BASEBALL PREVIEW : Ventura Looks to Repeat Title

If the baseball teams at Ventura and Oxnard colleges each finish the season with .500 records, half of those involved will be happy.

The Oxnard players would be the last to admit that a .500 season is a team goal, but with seven freshman in the starting lineup and a rookie coach in the dugout, that’s about the best anyone could expect.

The expectations are considerably higher at Ventura, where veteran Coach Gary Anglin returns 14 players from last season’s Western State Conference championship team. But the possible loss of starting ace pitcher Dean McMillin (shoulder injury), coupled with what Anglin terms “a general lack of enthusiasm” in the preseason thus far, promise to cause havoc in the early going.

“Right now we’re not a very good team,” Anglin said. “We were much better last year at this time. We have the talent and the potential to be good, but we’ve got a lot of hard work ahead of us to get there.

“But we’re not expecting a repeat performance.”

Anglin won his first WSC title last season after 13 years at the school. The Pirates (29-11) were eliminated by Cerritos in the regional finals of the state tournament.

The biggest setback so far this season has been McMillin’s nagging shoulder injury, which may result in a medical redshirt for the WSC’s returning Player of the Year. McMillin, 10-3 with a 3.64 earned-run average and 89 strikeouts in 1989, has struggled in two outings this season with one loss and a no-decision.

The left-handed McMillin is suffering from inflammation in his throwing shoulder. Doctors have prescribed six to eight weeks of rest from the mound as the best chance of recovery.

“There’s no medicine or operation I can have to make it go away,” said McMillin, who was drafted by Kansas City and Houston in June’s amateur draft. “I’m going to therapy and doing arm exercises every night. It’s just going to take some time to go away. The timing couldn’t have been worse since it started bothering me right before the season.”

Anglin will monitor McMillin’s progress the next two weeks before deciding whether to redshirt his star player. If McMillin misses the season he said he will return to Ventura next year.

Ventura is hoping sophomore right-handed pitcher Mike Teron can help fill the gap. Teron, drafted by Minnesota, was 3-0 before Wednesday’s action and appears to be getting stronger every game. Rich Mendez, another sophomore right-handed pitcher, will follow Teron in the rotation.

Ventura’s main weakness in preseason has been its hitting. Shortstop Gabe Diaz, second baseman John Johnson and outfielder Ross Gotwals are the leaders, but they’ve been getting little support.

Anglin said he’s had to turn to freshmen for firepower. Returning all-conference third baseman Darrell McMillin, Dean’s brother, is one of several sophomores who have lost their starting jobs.

“We have to get more production out of our returning players,” Anglin said. “Until they rise to the occasion, it’s going to be a struggle. The talent is there, is just a matter of making it work.”

Onxard first-year Coach Lindsey Meggs said enthusiasm is the least of his problems.

“We’ll surprise some people this season just because our kids are so competitive and excited about what they’re doing,” said Meggs, who replaced George Peraza. “This is the hardest working group of guys I’ve ever been associated with. They love the game and have a strong desire to get better.”

Meggs, 27, played third base at UCLA from 1981-84. He was drafted by Kansas City and played three years in the minor leagues before getting into coaching. Last season he worked as an assistant at Cal Lutheran and was headed to UCLA as the hitting coach until the Oxnard job opened up.

The Condors are traditionally one the WSC’s strongest teams, but a young coach and a younger lineup likely means a rebuilding season.

Oxnard’s success appears to hinge on the hitting strength of returning all-conference center fielder John Swanson and third baseman Juan Cuellar.

“As these two guys go, that’s how our team will go,” Meggs said.

Pitching is Meggs’ major concern, as the Condors have no returning starters. Freshman right-handed pitcher John Brookman from Westlake High, 3-0 before Wednesday’s action, is receiving the most attention.