Surf City will host arguably the most compelling first-round game in the CIF-Southern Section Division I baseball playoffs Friday when Edison High entertains Lakewood at 3:15. Runs should be at a premium when two of the best pitchers in Southern California face off.
Edison (19-5) won the Sunset League after completing its slate at 12-3, and will throw its ace, senior right-hander Kurt Heyer.
Heyer (9-2, 0.79) has thrown an incredible 10 complete games, including four shutouts. He has an almost 9-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and has walked just 13 batters all season.
Lakewood (19-11-1) counters with Jonathan Worrell (6-1, 0.46), who is coming off a one-hit shutout over Moore League champion Millikan this past Thursday.
Worrell has been more than solid after returning late in the season after battling kidney stones.
Worrell’s arm should be better rested after throwing just 46 innings this season, while Heyer has thrown an unusually-high 80.
Los Alamitos coach Mark Clabough faces Edison twice each season and offered his thoughts.
“Edison and Heyer will give anyone a tough matchup, but if someone has the bats to battle them, its Lakewood,” Clabough said. “Lakewood is a very tough first game for a Sunset League champion to face. Edison plays in a park that isn’t big and the wind blows out, so the score might be higher than you’d think.”
Perhaps Worrell’s biggest obstacle will be Edison’s Donald Sneed, who is hitting .405, with 32 hits, has six doubles and seven home runs.
The Chargers are hitting .313 as a team.
“I feel good and I want the ball,” Worrell said. “We know we’re facing a good pitcher and a good team, but we’re ready. I just need to get ahead of batters and we need to make the plays and execute. If we do that, we’ll have a good shot at winning.”
The Lancers have a line up that has struggled at times, but have put up numbers that rival anyone offensively.
Jeff Yamaguchi is hitting a team-high .450, with 45 hits, has 23 RBI’s and has scored 29 runs.
David Peters and Matt Duffy have combined for 72 hits and 73 RBI’s for Lakewood.
Alex Padilla (.341, 30 hits, 26 runs scored), Anthony Razo and the rest of the supporting cast could be the difference if the Lancers are able to make Heyer throw a lot of pitches.
Here are what the players think.
Matt Duffy: “We need to play flawless defense. That’s the main thing. I think Worrell’s numbers say everything. He’s our horse and has the ability to shut anyone down.”
David Peters: “We need to be focused, but we also just need to play loose.. If we play Lakewood baseball and the way we’re capable of playing, we’ll have a good chance of winning.”
Jeff Yamaguchi: “If we can prevent them from having a big inning and can put some hits together, we think Jonathan will be able to keep us in the game. We’ve been practicing all week, so I’m excited to get out there and play.”