Yucaipa wins, keeps control of first place

Yucaipa baseball coach Ralph Grajeda didn’t hesitate to bring in sophomore pitcher Trevor Busby on Tuesday in a game where first place in the Citrus Belt League was on the line.

The score was tied in the fifth inning and the Thunderbirds couldn’t afford any missteps.

Busby faced nine batters, four of whom he struck out, allowed one hit and earned the win as Yucaipa defeated Citrus Valley 8-3.

Yucaipa (14-9 overall) improved to 8-3 in the CBL, while Citrus Valley (15-7) dropped to 6-5 in league.

“No, not at all,” Grajeda said when asked about having any doubts about bringing Busby into such a pressure-filled situation. “He’s our third or fourth starter, but we brought him in last week in a similar situation.”

Busby got two outs on fly balls to end the fifth inning, and Yucaipa came back to score three runs in the top of the sixth inning to take the lead for good.

Catcher Luke Scherer hit a bases-loaded double with two outs to snap the tie.

“I just wanted to come in and throw strikes,” Busby said. “I knew they couldn’t hit my fastball.”

Busby is committed to UC Santa Barbara and is hopeful that he will be drafted for professional baseball.

His first strikeout Tuesday was on a changeup, and he struck out all three batters in the seventh to close out the game.

“I was excited about being in the situation,” Busby said, “but the first thing I had to do was to calm myself.”

Grajeda said his team started slowly in league play. After losing a doubleheader to Redlands East Valley, which is in second place in the CBL, the T-birds had a 6-7 record on March 28.

“It was a difficult preseason for a young team,” Grajeda said. “We’ve improved over the course of the season. We’ve gotten better over the course of the season, and that’s all you can ask.”

Grajeda said the T-birds are in a good position to win the CBL and are looking forward to success in the CIF playoffs. He said he doesn’t dwell on what he can’t control.

“If you keep one eye on the future and one eye on the past, you will go blind in the present,” he said.