Rodriguez’s grand slam lifts Flanagan
PEMBROKE PINES There was no way Flanagan coach Ray Evans could have imagined ahead of this season that Daniel Rodriguez would be making major contributions in key district games.
Rodriguez wasn’t even living in the United States before the school year started.
Emigrating from Venezuela as classes started for his senior year, he made the team via tryout, two games ago got his first start, and on Tuesday, he hit the grand slam in the top of the sixth inning that lifted Flanagan over West Broward, 6-1, and gave the Falcons a season sweep of the Bobcats.
“I appreciate my manager for giving me the opportunity to play even though I haven’t spent much time at the school and it’s my first year here,” Rodriguez, who went 2 for 4 with five RBI, said in Spanish.
Rodriguez, whose long ball to left came with the Falcons trailing, 1-0, has hit safely in six of his 10 at-bats since getting the job.
“You have to give him kudos because he’s running with it right now,” Evans said. “He’s on fire.”
Primarily a catcher back in Venezuela, the 5-foot-9, 175-pound utility player found a chance to get plugged into the starting lineup at first base and hitting fifth despite being smaller than most at his position.
“I don’t know where I get the strength from,” he said.
Senior starter Frank Gonzalez went six strong innings for the win, giving up just one run on four hits and striking out eight.
“Mainly fastball and curveball were working today,” said Gonzalez, a Barry commit who improved to 5-0. “[This win] keeps us in the top seed, lets them fall wherever they are and keeps us as the big dog.”
The Falcons (8-1, 6-0) can essentially lock up the No. 1 seed for the District 12-9A tournament with a win vs. Cypress Bay, which they defeated, 10-0, two weeks ago, on April 3.
West Broward starter Danny Garcia was dueling with Gonzalez, tossing scoreless frame after scoreless frame until the Bobcats (8-3, 3-3) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth on Juhlien Gonzalez’s RBI single that plated Tyler Zayas, who doubled twice.