PC Baseball hosts season opener Friday
Pirates host Lassen in season-opening doubleheader
Last season’s 1-38 finish was likely one of the worst in the history of Porterville College baseball. But with plenty of experience, young talent and a culture change; things should go a lot differently for the Pirates this season.
PC gets its first look at their revamped defense and disciplined offense Friday when they host Lassen in a doubleheader at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. They close out the season-opening series Saturday with a 12 p.m. game.
“The thing about it is we’ve got nine games in seven days, so we’ll know right away if we’re ready to go or not,” PC head coach Rich Sorenson said. “I feel real comfortable ... offensively and defensively this might be the best we’ve been here in years.”
One of the main reasons for Porterville’s struggles last season was that they lost their entire starting infield before the season started for several reasons.
This season they start off both healthy and eligible with four sophomores. Shortstop Andres Garza and second baseman Isaiah “Beast” Gomez (Porterville High) are up the middle while Brandon Dodd is at third and Lane Page (Monache) splits time with freshman Brent Vasquez at first.
“Our returning shortstop, who was ineligible last year, was second-team, (All-conference) as a freshman,” Sorenson said. “He only made four errors at shortstop his freshman year. He was fantastic. And losing him last year really hurt us because we had to move guys into certain positions who’d never played short, never played second.”
He added, “Our infield, solid. Good defensively. But the most
important part is they’re experienced.”
Gomez, a Porterville High alum who missed a majority of last season after breaking his foot, expressed his excitement on being back with the team.
“Honestly I’m just excited to be out here,” Gomez said. “I’ve been told by so many people that, like why am I still out here with what’s happened to me. And I mean they don’t understand it. It’s home, it’s what I’ve done forever. And it feels amazing. I’m so excited just to be out here honestly.”
In the outfield, the Pirates are making up for experience in athleticism and speed. “Outfield might be the quickest outfield we’ve ever had,” Sorenson said.
Top outfielders are freshmen Brandon Clingerman (Porterville), Fernando Montoya and Jorge Medrano with JT Edmonds in center field.
“You have to take a look at him,” Sorenson said about Edmonds. “He’s going to be phenomenal. He has been out of baseball for a couple years but he did play at Clovis West (High). He’s 6-foot-4, weighs 210, runs like a deer.”
Medrano, a Delano High alum, is another outfielder Sorenson talked about, saying, “Another real tough kid, real strong athlete. Pretty clear we didn’t get too many of those. And so it might be the best outfield we’ve ever had here so we’re real excited about that.”
If there’s one area on the field Sorenson does have concern about, it’s on the mound. Of the nine pitchers on the roster, only two are returners — sophomores David Jimenez (Lindsay) and Luis Garay. Jimenez pitched relief, but Garay was one of the team’s more frequently used pitchers and had a 5.95 ERA in 19 2/3 innings last season.
“I think early we’ll struggle a little bit pitching-wise just because of not having a lot of college experience,” Sorenson said. “But I think when the year goes on, I think we’ll be a lot better on the bump.”
Currently the team’s three-day starting rotation is made up of Garay, Aaron Hernandez (Monache) and Kadon Wright. Wright, along with Landon Jordan, are two pitchers from Washington who have surprised Sorenson. But the “biggest surprise” was Hernandez.
“He has really blossomed and done a really good job for us on the bump this fall,” Sorenson said. “His breaking ball is one of the best I’ve seen. When he’s got command on that, he’s filthy. He can really pitch. So where working on him as being a starter for us.”
Another pitcher to keep an eye on is, Mason Wilken from Alaska.
“He’s going to be somebody we rely on a lot,” Sorenson said. “He throws from down here, so he’s a sidearm-er and he’s tough on right handers. Right handers do not like to hit off him. So he’s going to be really a good addition for us.”
New faces are also behind the plate for PC this season with freshman Santiago Sanchez (Porterville) in as the team’s starting catcher and Troy Nieto (Monache) backing him up. Sanchez got the nod to start for his ability to call pitches.
“He knows how to work batters, he knows what the strengths are of the pitchers. And I think that’s real important,” Sorenson said. “I love the fact that catchers call their own games. I’m not a big proponent of me calling everything... Both Sanchez and I talked through the fall. Watched him call games and I just love it. He does a real good job behind the dish.”
Sanchez said he’s nervous, like always, for the team’s first games but respects the trust that’s on him at catcher this season.
“Lot of nerves, guess it translates from high school to college,” Sanchez said. “I still get those nerves. Every game I get nervous and everything but it’s a lot of trust. Coach and I have discussed it a lot, talking about how we want to mix our sequences for other players. He puts a lot of faith in me and I trust the guys on the mound.
“I do a lot with them outside of baseball. We hang out, we go somewhere to eat, just cause I want them to trust me just like I trust them. I want them to trust me to block a ball in the dirt just as much as they trust me calling a fastball when I (should) be. It’s a lot of communication and it’s only going to improve from here.”
The last area of improvement for the Pirates might be their biggest — hitting. Dodd was the team’s best hitter last season, going .338 in Central Valley Conference play, while the team hit .208 overall. This season PC has the athletes and experience to take a more disciplined approach at the plate.
“This year we know we have a lot of athletes, guys that can put the ball in play, so we’re going to do a lot of small ball.” Sorenson said. “A lot of hit-and-run, a lot of motion going on so we’re going to put the pressure on the defense. We don’t have a lot of guys that can hit the three-run homer but we do have a lot of guys that put the ball in play, do the things that we need to do to move runners over and score runs.”
That type of team play translates into the culture change that’s becoming more and more apparent in Sorenson’s third year at the helm. The Pirates are shaking the stigma that comes with playing for PC and focusing instead on the little things that will create positive change.
“We really changed the culture here and that’s what we needed to do. Because the fact that everything you mention about Porterville is, well they don’t have a winning program. They don’t win,” Sorenson said.
“Wins and losses will happen no matter what happens. But if you play the game the right way and you hustle to your positions and you just do the small things, little things — good things will happen. And we’re changing that culture here, making sure guys understand how every little detail will help us win the game. And that’s the culture that we’re trying to change here.”
Porterville closes out January with a four-game home series against Siskiyouis on Jan. 29 and 30 but don’t begin CVC play until Feb. 18 when they begin a three-game, three-day series against West Hills Coalinga.