Newman ace gets back on track in win
BOCA RATON — Coming off his worst start of the season, Blake Anderson was in trouble right off the bat.
Cardinal Newman High's ace gave up hits to the first two batters Wednesday night and found himself facing the heart of West Boca Raton's order with runners on second and third.
“He could have easily gone, ‘Oh, here we go again,'” pitching coach Zach Miner said, referencing Anderson's previous start, when he lasted only two innings and gave up five runs against King's Academy.
Instead, Anderson retired Tyler Lichtenberger on a weak comebacker, then struck out the Bulls' No. 4 and 5 hitters to escape the jam. He settled in to pitch six strong innings, striking out nine, and the Crusaders pulled away late for a 7-1 victory.
It was quite a turnaround for the junior right-hander after his struggles in the Westminster Academy tournament in Fort Lauderdale.
“Last week was a tough week for Blake,” Miner said. “We got rained out back-to-back days, so we went down there thinking he was going to start and he got ready twice. … To me, that's just one you flush. He's too good to have back-to-back outings like that.”
Against the Bulls, Anderson scattered six hits and two walks, giving up an unearned run on a throwing error in the third inning. He was aided by several outstanding defensive plays, including one of his own when he picked off Parks Fucci, West Boca's dangerous leadoff hitter, at second base in the third inning.
Two innings later, right fielder Grant Hugus threw out a runner at the plate to prevent the Bulls from tying the score at 2-2.
“My defense is great,” Anderson said. “They have my back.”
The Crusaders (5-3-1), who scratched across single runs in the first and second innings, opened up some breathing room in the sixth without getting a hit.
Bulls starter Daniel Norbeck hit the first three batters to load the bases. Carl Calixte hit a sharp grounder to third baseman Alan Hernandez, who made a diving stop but could manage only a force at second, allowing a run to score. Reliever Derek Godfrey's wild pickoff attempt at first base let in another run to make it 4-1.
Cardinal Newman tacked on three runs in the seventh when Gabe Acevedo hit a two-run double and later scored on a wild pitch. That prompted coach Joe Russo to replace Anderson with reliever Alex Thompson in the seventh inning.
“I was thinking maybe send him back out in the seventh, but we scored a few more runs so we went to the bullpen,” Russo said.
Thompson pitched a scoreless inning, helped by a double play started by Anderson, who showed off his glove work at third base.
Both coaches, Russo and West Boca's Jerry Albert, agreed that Anderson got stronger as the game progressed. He struck out the side in the fourth and added two strikeouts in the sixth, the last on his 88th pitch of the game.
“He's a tough kid,” said Miner, a former major league pitcher. “He wanted to finish but we got those extra insurance runs late. … If it was 4-1, he was going back out. He's a dog out there — for the most part this year, that's how he's looked.”
Albert, whose team dropped to 4-5, lamented the missed opportunity in the first inning.
“For us not to put some runs across in that situation is a big swing in momentum for the other team,” he said. “That's not something we expect because those kids, the No. 3 and 4 guys, have been very productive as of late.”
As for Anderson, Albert said: “He got confident because we didn't put in on him when we had a chance. If we put a couple runs across early there, the whole game changes. … The kid really got into a good rhythm. I thought his velocity actually picked up as the game went along.”
Cardinal Newman managed only three hits but put 10 other runners on base via walks and hit batsmen.
“We were able to manufacture some runs,” Russo said. “When you get the free 90s, you've got to capitalize. I thought we ran the bases well, swiped some bags, got some bunts down. We got the big base hit with Gabe at the end, but we have to swing the bat better. Offensively, we have to do a better job.”