The Bonita Vista Barons finished one game ahead of the Eastlake Titans in last year’s Metro-Mesa League baseball standings. The Barons finished 6-2 in league play; the Titans finished 5-3.
Both teams ended the season with 24 wins overall. The 24th victory for Bonita Vista handed the Barons the San Diego Section Division II championship title.
The teams are ready to renew their league rivalry when the Barons host the Titans Wednesday at 4 p.m. in the first of two games. Eastlake will host Bonita Vista on Friday.
Both teams appear at the top of their game this season.
The Barons improved to 17-3 overall after nailing down a 3-1 victory against visiting Mater Dei Catholic last Friday.
The Titans, who advanced to the semifinals of this year’s Lions tournament, are 18-3 after recording a 5-0 win against visiting Central Union on Saturday.
Bonita Vista is 2-0 in league play after sweeping Mater Dei Catholic. The Barons are tied for the league lead with Otay Ranch (9-10 overall) after the Mustangs swept Olympian (0-2 in league, 14-5 overall) in the teams’ two-game series.
Eastlake opens league play with the series against Bonita Vista.
Series sweep
The Barons overcame an early 1-0 deficit against the Crusaders (0-2, 5-14) to extend their winning streak to seven games. Mater Dei Catholic pushed across a run in the top of the third inning against starter Kevin McCann.
But the hosts plated two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning and added another run in the fifth inning to go up by two runs.
Ricky Reynoso and Cris Isaaks both singled with one out and Alex Verdugo followed with another single to score one run. John Beilstein then drew a walk to load the bases and Chris O’Neill followed with an infield hit to plate another run.
Reynoso drew a two-out walk in the next frame. Isaaks singled and Reynoso later scored on an error.
McCann pitched the first four innings. Reynoso came in to pitch two innings and Daniel Schneemann closed out the seventh inning by striking out the side to pick up the save.
The three BV hurlers limited the visitors to three hits. The hosts managed to score the win despite only generating five hits. The teams combined for five errors, including three by the Crusaders.
McCann improved to 5-1 on the season. He has a 2.04 earned-run average with 48 strikeouts in 34 innings pitched.
The save was the third for Schneemann, who has a 2-1 record to go with a 1.81 ERA. He’s struck out 33 batters in 19 innings.
Isaaks continues to lead the Barons with a .409 hitting average, followed by teammates Alex Verdugo (.391), Andres Velasco (.328), Schneemann (.328) and Chili Valvidia (.316).
Reynoso is 7-0 on the season with a 0.30 ERA. He has struck out 53 batters in 46 innings.
During their seven-game winning streak, the Barons have out-scored opponents 38-7.
“Our defense has played really well and we seem to be scoring more runs than we were at the beginning of the season,” McCann said. “It makes it easier to pitch when you have a lead in the game.”
Bonita Vista will close out an eventful week when the team takes the field Saturday at Hilltop High School against the San Ysidro Cougars in the championship game of the John Baumgarten Classic.
San Ysidro is 17-3 on the season. Game time is 10 a.m.
The Cougars rate a formidable opponent. San Ysidro toppled Eastlake, 5-2, in a 10-inning contest on April 23 and is coming off a 6-3 non-league win against visiting Chula Vista last Friday.
Octavio Arroyo leads the Cougars with a .552 hitting average, followed by teammates Gilbert Suarez (.403), Conrado Diaz (.351), Andres Alvarez (.333), Herman Alvarado (.328), Juan Morales (.312), Cristobal Reyes (.310) and Edgar Lopez (.295).
Suarez paces the team with 22 RBI, followed by Alvarez and Lopez with 15 each and Diaz and Alvarado with 14 each.
Alvarado is 4-0 on the mound with a 1.30 ERA while Suarez (0.66 ERA), Abraham Rodriguez (0.75 ERA) and Jose Torres (1.75 ERA) are all 3-1. Suarez has struck out 40 batters in 32 innings while Arroyo (2-0, 0.47 ERA) has struck out 25 batters in 15 innings.
BV coach Vince Gervais is looking forward to Saturday’s championship game to get some of his non-starters some crucial playing time.
“It gives us an extra game that we were counting on in the Lions tournament,” the BVHS skipper explained. “We can get some guys in who haven’t seen a lot of action so far this year. In league play, we tend to go with a one-two pitching rotation. In the tournament, we can get our three-four-five pitchers in.”
Gervais said his team has as many as six pitchers at its disposal.
