Acorns breaking in plenty of new starters
MORGAN HILL — Just as they sought not to think about 2008 a year ago when Live Oak baseball was coming off winning its only Central Coast Section championship, the Acorns will prefer not to live in the past this spring — a year removed from missing the playoffs for the first time in 17 seasons.
Senior center fielder Michael Schreiber is one of four active players, joining classmate Jeff Stine and juniors Rich Martinez and Kevin O’Rourke, who can say they have seen it all.
They were in the dugout when Live Oak beat Santa Cruz 3-2 in the Division III final two years ago. They were on the field for a fair part of the 2009 season, which the Acorns began in promising fashion only to collapse down the stretch.
Talent was a major difference between those two teams, but so was leadership.
“At the end, leadership was missing last year,” said Schreiber, Live Oak’s lead-off man. “That’s pushing me and the other seniors to be leaders this year. It’s my last one, so I’d like to see us get back to CCS, but I just want to see us compete the whole way.”
The Acorns began training in February with a genuine will to improve. Their progress became a benchmark, albeit tongue-in-cheek.
“From February to March, this time has improved more than any other team I’ve had,” said manager Mark Cummins, now in his 24th season at Live Oak High School. “Granted, we had a lot of room for improvement, but the important part is, they’ve bought in to what we’re coaching. I think we’re just going to get better and better.”
Though it is a different feeling for Cummins’ team to be a young underdog in the Blossom Valley Athletic League ‘A’ conference, he and his players can’t complain. Live Oak (4-2 overall) is 2-1 in the Mount Hamilton Division with wins against the top-two finishers from a year ago, including Wednesday’s 2-1 victory over reigning league champion Santa Teresa. The Acorns are getting production at each grade level, including their three freshmen, and leaders are emerging.
One of the biggest is junior pitcher Rich Martinez, who came off a near-career ending brain surgery in fall to return as the staff ace. Martinez (1-0) has 12 strikeouts and a save in two appearances — which the right-hander makes while wearing a helmet.
“He’s an inspiration just to be out here,” senior clean-up hitter Ryan Muir said. “Richie’s helped give us two big wins. We just feed off him.”
Martinez and the other pitchers feed off the hitting of Muir (.667 batting average) and Schreiber (.471), two of the team’s six seniors. Muir has six RBIs, two stolen bases and has doubled twice, and Schreiber has reached in 13 of 22 plate appearances.
“Mike just gets on base. I don’t know how he does it sometimes,” Martinez said. “The great thing about our team is everybody contributes. We have some chemistry for sure. This team could be pretty good.”
Martinez’s main batterymate, junior Cody Van Aken, is one of nine newcomers, though he plays like he’s been catching Live Oak pitchers for years. The transfer from Woodland High School is batting .381 with six RBIs.
“We were very fortunate to get him,” said Cummins, whose previous catcher, Tony Austin, started the last three years. “Cody is a tremendous athlete.”
Van Aken doubles in the rotation with Martinez and senior Ken Hall — another standout hitter (.278, five RBIs, four doubles). The Acorns have a true closer in senior Nick Robles, who picked up his first save Wednesday. Freshman Aiden Styczynski is the designated hitter and catches for Van Aken. Live Oak starts two other freshman: Jalen Salazar, Sean Silveira at the hot corner and shortstop, respectively.
“The speed of the game is a little fast for them, but they’re getting used to it,” Cummins said.
Hall is a second-year starter at pitcher and first base where he will play next to second baseman Dominic Bejarano, a junior with great range.
Hall is back in left field, and Nick Gustafson, Blair Zerr and Jakob Conlan are switching in right.
“I just have to throw strikes and get groundballs,” Martinez said. “I have a lot of talent around me. We’re young, but we can play. We’re gonna scrap.”
Which leads you to wonder how far the Acorns can go. They would love to deliver Cummins’ 11th league championship, but their goal is to play to their ability.
“We’re not focused on the end-of-the-year outcome,” Muir said. “If we play our best, that won’t matter.”
