Siegel, Kapler Give Taft Boost as Playoffs Near

Taft High received a huge shot in the arm Tuesday from two NCAA Division I-to-be players who had essentially been in hibernation all season. And with the City Section playoffs less than a week away, the timing could be perfect.

Left-hander Justin Siegel, sidelined after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow in the spring, made his first appearance on the mound and pitched two innings of hitless relief. Siegel signed a letter of intent last fall with North Carolina State.

Infielder Gabe Kapler--whose batting average has hovered about .200--banged out three hits to lead Taft to an 8-1 victory over Reseda. Kapler signed with Cal State Fullerton last fall.

NORTHWEST VALLEY CONFERENCE

BASEBALL

Designated hitter Billy Murray of Kennedy is soon expected to return to the lineup--perhaps this week--adding even more sock to the potent Golden Cougars.

While in the batter’s box in the fifth game of the season, Murray sustained a dislocated kneecap while swinging at a pitch. He has been out since. Murray already had driven in six runs and tripled twice before the injury. . . .

El Camino Real pitchers Kevin Szymanski and Randy Wolf had finished 14 of 18 starts entering the week, which doesn’t leave much in the way of leftovers.

Tony Kyber leads the relievers with a scant 12 innings of work.

Entering the week, Szymanski led area City Section pitchers with nine complete games. Miguel Diaz and Tom Manning of Kennedy each had completed seven. . . .

PACIFIC LEAGUE

BASEBALL

Hoover catcher Nate Dishington was eight for 12 with five walks, three home runs and 10 runs batted in during a recent four-game stretch. At the start of the week, Dishington was batting .475 with five doubles, a triple and seven home runs for a slugging percentage of 1.288.

SOFTBALL

Crescenta Valley, ranked No. 20 in the state by Cal-Hi Sports, has outscored opponents, 163-14. Sophomore right-hander Danielle Robertshaw has 161 strikeouts in 122 innings. Robertshaw (15-3) sports an 0.40 earned-run average.

VALLEY PAC-8 CONFERENCE

BASEBALL

What a difference two days can make. On Tuesday of last week, Monroe’s Nos. 3-5 batters (Jorge Dorado, John Shellabarger and Joel Zamudio) accounted for nine of the Vikings’ 11 hits off two Birmingham pitchers. Two days later, Monroe batters Nos. 2-6 went hitless against Birmingham right-hander Steve Brown. . . .

* Who’s hot : Sylmar’s pitching staff has recorded five consecutive shutout victories and was working on a 36 scoreless-inning streak at the start of the week. The staff sports a 1.75 ERA and has 123 strikeouts in 152 1/3 innings. Carlos Velazco (8-1), a junior transfer from Hamilton, has allowed only seven earned runs in 56 innings (0.88 ERA) and has four complete games.

FOOTHILL LEAGUE

BASEBALL

Talk about turnarounds. Basement-dwelling Burbank was routed by Canyon, 20-0, last Wednesday but defeated second-place Hart, 1-0, two days later. . . . Hart sophomore pitcher Luis Sanchez (6-1, 1.90 ERA) started against Burbank and pitched a complete game and allowed only three hits. Still, he lost the first game of his high school career. Sanchez is 13-1 in his two-year career.

GOLDEN LEAGUE

BASEBALL

Jeremy Casteel (2-0) was not a one-day flash in the pan.

The freshman right-hander from Highland tossed a four-hitter Saturday to defeat Burroughs of Ridgecrest, 7-0. He has allowed one run in two starts spanning 15 innings. What’s more, Casteel has quickly learned about the economy of pitching. During one middle-inning stretch against Burroughs, Casteel recorded six outs in seven pitches. . . .

John Johnson and Larry Hunt deserve medals for meritorious service.

The pair, both pitchers at defense-starved Antelope Valley, have never said no when handed the baseball.

Johnson, a sophomore right-hander, has appeared in 18 of 19 games, including all 13 league games. Hunt, a junior left-hander, has appeared in 15 games.

The rubber-armed duo has allowed 101 runs in 82 2/3 innings, but only 48 have been earned. . . .

ALPHA LEAGUE

BASEBALL

One of the reasons L.A. Baptist has done so well is because its pitching staff has a 2.83 ERA. The leader is junior Matt Hernandez, who is 9-0 with a 1.86 ERA. In 64 innings, he has allowed 45 hits, struck out 65 and walked 18. Hernandez, who pitched a no-hitter against Village Christian a month ago, also is durable.

Last week, he pitched seven innings Tuesday and came back for 2 1/3 in relief Friday.

Kennedy Cosgrove and staff writers Steve Elling, Jeff Fletcher, Paige A. Leech, John Ortega and Jason H. Reid contributed to this notebook.