The San Benito High baseball team enters the season as the best program to have never won a Central Coast Section championship—bar none. The Haybalers routinely send players to four-year programs and do well in the playoffs.
However, they haven’t been able to win a title because they’re in the toughest division with the powerful West Catholic League teams and some of the best public schools as well.
It’s a gauntlet that San Benito hopes to break through this season.
“We’re trying to get over the hump,” said Billy Aviles, who is in his sixth year as the San Benito coach. “We’re the only program (among Open Division and Division I schools) in the section in the last nine years that has been to the finals four times. We’ve got the talent and work ethic, and we just have to go do it.”
The Balers, who opened the season with a 4-3 loss to Homestead on Tuesday, return several key players from a team that finished 22-8 and won another league championship with a 12-6 mark in the Monterey Bay League’s Gabilan Division. Some of the key returnees include shortstop Drew Williams and second baseman Andrew Sotelo.
Williams is a UC Santa Barbara-signee and Sotelo a Cal State Los Angeles-signee. Both players are adept at getting on base, leading by example and playing excellent defense.
In Sotelo, the Balers have the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player, a magnificent player who can affect the game in a variety of ways.
“Any time you can return a league MVP, that’s huge,” Aviles said.
The key to winning a CCS title is having not just one ace, but a couple of them. Aviles expressed excitement when talking about the potential of the pitching staff, which returns 6-foot-4 left-hander Diego Fisher, who possesses a nasty curveball that is almost unhittable to left-handed batters.
San Benito also returns Daniel Hopkins, who is a tenacious competitor, and Kyle Stevenson, a 6-5 senior who throws in the upper 80 mph range.
“Those three guys are looking really impressive,” Williams said. “Their stuff is pretty good, and it’ll be interesting to see who our ace is pretty soon.”
Tyler Biersdorff, who was the starting left fielder a year ago, is another returning impact player who can play catcher and the outfield. Derek Moeller, who plays first base and third base, along with center fielder Josh Harris, third baseman Matt Hill and infielder Josh Tonascia, are also expected to make strong contributions.
Newcomer Tyler Triano has the potential to be a strong player as well. The Balers are counting on Sotelo and Williams to be two of their most consistent players.
“We expect those two guys to hold down the middle,” Aviles said.
Williams committed to UC Santa Barbara shortly after his sophomore season, and he’s particularly excited about this year’s team because of the new additions to the coaching staff. Former Balers coach Mike Luna—he was the San Benito skipper from 2005 to 2010—has returned after a four-year coaching run at Mission College in Santa Clara.
“I’ve already learned a lot from coach Luna,” Williams said. “He’s probably the best coach I’ve ever been around. I can’t explain how much I’ve learned already, and you’re going to see him making an impact with other guys, too. If you get to listen to that guy, you’d trip out because he’s so good at teaching.”
Williams said Luna has helped him hone his footwork and throwing with a certain arm slot that has made him more accurate with his throws. Williams also gained 10 to 15 pounds of muscle over the off-season, so it’s no wonder big things are expected out of the 6-1, 185-pound Williams.
Williams spent the off-season doing—you guessed it—playing baseball. Since Williams doesn’t play other sports, his sole focus the last several years has been improving and developing every facet of his game. The hard work has paid off for Williams in the form of a scholarship, and the icing on the cake would be helping the team win its first-ever section title.
“That would be amazing,” he said.
Williams said it’s a great experience playing with Sotelo, as the two have developed a strong chemistry that shows when they’re on the field turning double plays, covering the bases and carrying out certain assignments.
“I’m very happy to be playing by Andrew’s side,” Williams said. “He’s a great guy to play with and probably the best player on the team. He’s just an awesome guy to be around, and I’ve learned a lot from him.”
Sotelo and Williams grew up playing together for the Hollister National Little League All-Star teams, and now they’re teammates again at San Benito. They’ve both accomplished their dreams by earning a Division I scholarship, and they along with the rest of their teammates would love nothing more than to make history this season.
