Baseball: Roosevelt (8-0) begins Big VIII League with showdown against Corona

The Big VIII League is pretty good in football and basketball, and it’s not too bad in baseball, either.

It begins on Tuesday with a showdown between Roosevelt (8-0) and Corona (5-2) at Roosevelt.

Roosevelt has done well preparing for its league opener. Kyle Koontz has been the leading hitter with an average above .400. Joseph Contreras is 2-0 on the mound. There have been wins over Trabuco Hills, Yorba Linda and Corona del Mar.

Corona has faced a tougher nonleague schedule. The Panthers have tough losses to Beckman and Riverside Poly and big wins over Gahr, Capistrano Valley and Palm Desert.

Brendan Beck has become the Kenley Jansen of the Panthers with four saves. So the key for this game for Roosevelt is to get the lead and make sure Beck doesn’t have a chance to save it.

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