Santa Ana Measures Up to High Standards

The level of expectation for the top community college baseball teams in the Orange Empire Conference is best explained by Santa Ana Coach Don Sneddon.

Three weeks ago, Sneddon said his team wasn’t very solid and listed others, including conference favorite Riverside, that he felt were better.

Santa Ana has since won 11 of 12 games, including a victory over Sacramento, which has its best club in the last 10 years, according to Sneddon. The Santa Ana coach explains the success by saying his team has benefited greatly from the poor play of other teams.

Sneddon isn’t being critical of his players, just measuring them by conference standards. Orange Empire teams have won six of the last seven state titles, starting with Cypress in 1991.

Santa Ana (then Rancho Santiago) won it in 1993 and Cypress beat the Dons for the championship in ’94. Santa Ana won in 1995 and again in ‘96, beating Cypress.

Cypress came back to win its third title last year, beating Sacramento.

A look at the conference’s teams and their 1998 record:

Cypress (7-5)--The Chargers return no position starters from last year and have suffered as the first-year players adjust. Brandon Smith, a freshman first baseman who played on two Southern Section championship teams at Canyon High, has three home runs and 14 runs batted in in 11 games. Sophomore catcher Gabe Gerhardt is hitting .455 with three homers and 14 RBIs.

Steve Smyth, a freshman left-hander, is 3-0 and and has struck out 21 in 20 innings. Jeff Schultz, a sophomore right-hander, is 2-1, and Jim Kirkland, the winning pitcher in last year’s state title game, also returns.

Fullerton (7-4-1)--The Hornets are eligible for the playoffs again this season after not being last year because of an ineligible player.

Bobby Sunderland, a sophomore right-hander, is 3-0 and has given up only nine hits in 19 innings. Mike Timanus, a freshman right-hander, is 2-0.

The Hornets have struggled offensively, hitting .283 through 11 games. Outfielder Bo Bryant is back and hitting .371 with five doubles. Brandon Carter, another sophomore outfielder, is hitting .367.

Golden West (7-3)--Things are looking better for the Rustlers, who beat Orange Coast on the final day last season to avoid finishing last in the conference. Chad Spiker, a freshman right-hander, is 3-0 with a 1.35 earned-run average, and sophomore right-hander Cory Carr is 1-0 with a 2.52 ERA.

Golden West had been hitting well early but has been shut out in its last two games. Jarrad Jones was hitting .409 through nine games. Casey Flanigan is back at catcher and hitting .379.

Orange Coast (6-4)--The Pirates lost 30 games last season but are talking about making the playoffs this season. Darren Chandler is back in center field and hitting .429 with 13 RBIs. Catcher John Lukin returns and is hitting .324.

Jude Chavez, a sophomore outfielder, is hitting .419, and Yoshi Ehinger, a transfer from Oregon State, is hitting .424.

Josh Case, a sophomore right-hander, is 2-0 and one of the team’s four returning pitchers.

Riverside (10-2)--Cody Trask, a sophomore right-hander, was 11-2 and an all-state pick last year. He is 2-0 this season with 20 strikeouts in 16 innings.

First baseman Jaeme Leal, third baseman Greg Dobbs and second baseman Jason Clements return. Dobbs was hitting .535 with 23 hits through 10 games. Jeffrey Bajenaru returns in right field and is also working as the closer, and Daniel Pierce, a transfer from Cal State Northridge, is in left field.

Santa Ana (11-1)--Heath Bell, the best reliever in the state last season when he was 8-1 with nine saves, has moved to the starting rotation and is joined by freshman right-hander Michael Natale (4-0) and freshman left-hander Greg Young (3-0).

Chad Elliott, who is also an outfielder, and Shaun Wooley are working in short relief.

Rick Gonzalez is back in left field and hitting .488 with four homers and 19 RBIs in the first 11 games. Right fielder Michael Vento, slowed by an ankle injury, is still hitting .448.

Second baseman Cory Williams is hitting .500, and Bao Vinh, who played left field at Saddleback College last season as Johnny Nguyen but has since changed his name, is hitting .452.

Saddleback (10-1)--Saddleback has the conference’s strongest left side of the infield in returning third baseman Kirk Bolling and shortstop Nick Punto. Through 10 games, Bolling had seven home runs and was hitting .541 and Punto had six homers and a .425 batting average.

Freshman catcher Greg Pines is hitting .444, and freshman first baseman Jason Marian (.480) and sophomore outfielder Denny Seybert (.378) also are off to strong starts.

The pitching staff is deep and experienced. Right-handers Pat Versluis and Ryan Poe are back and are both 3-0.