EMERSON, Ga. - There is no doubt that San Diego Show is always out to impress. That
they did in a quick five-inning victory over 6-4-3 DP Jaguars on Tuesday
at the WWBA 14u National Championship, maintaining their undefeated
status and their No. 1 spot in their pool.
“Every game here is
an important game for us, so we approach every game like a championship
game,” said head coach Luiz Lorenzana. “We come out here and do our job:
throw strikes, play defense and our situational hitting’s gotta come
through when we have our chances.”
Their situational hitting was
up to par on Tuesday. Jacob Allred, Andrew Crane, and Joseph Magrisi all
had clutch singles. Crane and Magrisi’s singles both brought home a
runner. Chase Wehsener had one double and one RBI.
In the field,
the Show did solid work only allowing one run in the last inning. The
Show showed their strong defense with some impressive, unexpected plays.
“I think (Jose) Cerda’s play at third on defense really set the
tempo for the whole game. It was a 3-0 ball game at the time and he
made a diving play that ended up being a double play so that kind of put
us in a good spot,” recalled Lorenzana.
On the mound, Michael
Pendergast was composed, and the Jaguars were unable to get anything
going. During his five innings of work, he only gave up three hits, four
walks and no earned runs. He struck out two.
“Michael P, he’s a
good little crafty lefty who usually pounds the strike zone with the
lead,” said Lorenzana. “He did a really good job. Our defense picked him
up a few plays there but he did what he needed to do which was throw
strikes.”
Throughout this tournament, the Show has been
impressive on the mound only giving up six runs over the course of six
games. On Friday, Magrisi threw a no-hitter, with eight strikeouts and
no walks. Wehsener was able to keep Tri-state Arsenal from scoring in
their three inning, 16-0 victory on Saturday. Allred also allowed no
runs in his time on the mound while striking out four batters on Monday.
“Our pitching has been pretty impressive, and we’ve had a
couple shut outs. I think the most runs we’ve allowed is three,”
recalled Lorenzana. “We’re an organization that is built around pitching
and defense so we take a lot of pride in those two areas of the game.”
At the plate, the Show has been on fire. In just six games, they
have scored 50 runs. Leading the team in RBI with five, is Benjamin
Petty-Hull. Over the course of six games he is averaging .700 with four
doubles and three singles.
“Benjamin is the ultimate hard nose,
120 mph each play kid. He’s just a grinder and he sets the tempo for our
team and he’s great to have in our ball club. He’s been on base all the
time, [has a] double gap-to-gap approach, and he’s a menace on the
bases. He’s definitely a player that creates a lot of havoc,” explained
Lorenzana.
The Show’s 14u has only been to a few Perfect Game
events, including the 2014 MLK Championship where they came in second
place. This is their first time in Ga. at the WWBA National
Championship. After just missing the championship title at the MLK
tournament, they are hungry to win this one.
“Our goal is to
come out on top,” said Lorenzana. “I think all the teams come out with
that approach but we’re here to play our brand of baseball and at the
end of the day, come home with a championship.”
The Show is known
for being one of the top baseball programs in the country, and prides
themselves on helping their players get to the next level. Many players
start with the Show at eight-years-old and move their way up until they
go off to college or pros.
“A lot of this group here has been
together for three years. They know the implications and know we are out
here to compete. Let the chips fall where they fall, but were
definitely here to bring our brand of baseball. It’s an organization
that from eight-years-old to 18 the whole goal is for them to stay with
us throughout and they know our style of playing so it will help us when
we come to these events,” explained Lorenzana.
The Show is now
6-0 going into their last pool game against Team Demarini GA on
Wednesday who is 5-1. Fortunately for the Show, win or lose, they will
still go on to the playoff round because of the high scoring games
they’ve had. However, the Show still has a goal of winning every game
they play for here on out.
“Every game is an important game for
us,” explained Lorenzana. “We came all the way across the country with a
business like mentality and we’re [ready] to take care of business.”