Hampel’s Effort Helps Poly Put Grant at Arm’s Length

VAN NUYS —  Joe Hampel is grateful he’s left-handed, especially after breaking his right arm playing basketball last year.

He’s had four operations and will have a fifth when the baseball season ends.

Fortunately for Hampel, his left arm couldn’t be better. He threw a steady stream of curveballs for strikes Monday, finishing with a four-hitter to help Poly High take sole possession of first place in the Sunset Six League with a 6-0 victory over Grant.

Hampel, a junior who threw two no-hitters on the junior varsity team last season, struck out seven, walked one and made only 86 pitches.

“He looked sharp,” Coach Chuck Schwal said. “He has a good breaking ball. He’s tough on high school hitters. If he learns to change speeds, he’ll really be tough.”

Hampel was supported by a 13-hit attack, led by junior Gabe Pena, who contributed two doubles and a single, raising his team-leading batting average to .459.

Poly (10-3, 7-0 in league play) is dominating league competition despite a lineup that features seven non-seniors. Most impressively, the Parrots have had little trouble replacing two pitchers, Manny Flores and Abraham Gonzalez, who transferred to San Fernando.

Hampel (3-1) and sophomore Eduardo Baeza (6-0), who will pitch Wednesday against Grant, have filled in well.

“I’m thrilled to death being 7-0,” Schwal said.

Schwal said the Parrots were motivated by the unexpected departures of Flores and Gonzalez before the season. They left a team that played in the City Championship final at Dodger Stadium last year.

“They have something to prove,” Schwal said of his players. “This is nothing. They want to get to the playoffs and prove those guys who left were wrong.”

Grant (8-6, 6-1) surprisingly didn’t put up much of a battle even though the game was for first place. The Lancers were held to one hit through five innings.

They still miss infielder-pitcher Michael Marble, who has not played since separating his shoulder in the alumni game Feb. 26. Marble began working out last week, but Coach Jeremy Lawrence wants to see him hit and throw during practice before allowing him to appear in a game.

Zack Sims, Miguel Gomez and Alfredo Gomez each had two hits for Poly. Pena’s two-run double in the fifth inning was a key hit.

“We’ve been working hard the whole year and now that we’re in first place, it feels good,” Pena said.

If Poly wins Wednesday to open a two-game lead, the rest of the Sunset Six competition might as well start playing for second place.