For the San Benito 16- to 18-year-old All-Stars, the reward for
defeating Hanford on Saturday afternoon is another game later that
night. And for manager Andrew Barragan, it’s a good thing the
Senior Babe Ruth team is hosting the tournament at Veterans
Memorial Park. San Benito will open the Central California State
Tournament on Saturday at Vets Park against Hanford, which finished
runner-up to Modesto at last year’s tournament.
HOLLISTER
For the San Benito 16- to 18-year-old All-Stars, the reward for defeating Hanford on Saturday afternoon is another game later that night.
And for manager Andrew Barragan, it’s a good thing the Senior Babe Ruth team is hosting the tournament at Veterans Memorial Park.
“It’s home field (advantage) simply because we could have two games on Saturday,” said Barragan, who also manages the Anzar High baseball team in San Juan Bautista. “On the road, that’s tough because the kids have a tendency to relax. So it is a big advantage.
“It’s your home park and the kids are used to playing in that park.”
Host duties didn’t supply San Benito with a first-round bye in the tournament — San Luis Obispo and Delano were awarded that honor — nor did it match up the local All-Stars with a lesser opponent.
San Benito will open the Central California State Tournament on Saturday at Vets Park against Hanford, which finished runner-up to Modesto at last year’s tournament.
First pitch is 1 p.m.
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The defending champions will not be present for this year’s tournament, meanwhile, as Modesto is the host site for the upcoming Pacific Southwest Regional Tournament, giving them an automatic bid.
Watsonville had been the host site for the last three years, supplying them with an automatic bid to regionals. But with Modesto’s status as host this season, Watsonville, which advanced all the way to the Senior Babe Ruth World Series last year and includes several local players, will need to first start at the state level in order to return to the national championships.
“It’s good that they are on the opposite side, but we’ve got to work it out with Hanford first,” Barragan said. “They typically have a decent club.”
As does San Benito, Barragan feels. Currently with a roster that is 16-players strong, San Benito includes several current Haybalers as well as a trio of players from Palma and one from Monterey Peninsula College.
While former Balers Trevor Fabing, Ricky Garcia and Daniel Arevalo will compete for Watsonville, leading the way for San Benito will be varsity starters Craig Slibsager, Marcus Sabatte and Jacob Tonascia, who recently participated in the Bay Area World Series. Chieftains Tyler Quinby, Mitch Huston and 18-year-old Matt Naval are also on the team.
“Everyone comes stacked with 18 year olds,” said Barragan, who will coach the team alongside Joe Tonascia and Mike Martinez. “We have one. But we do have a squad that’s capable of beating anybody, 1 through 9.”
MPCs Kevin Salvas is on the team, as is Jacob Cabral, Tyler Pina, Robert Soto, Sean Corral, Justin Patterson, Skyler Fuss, Richie Beltran, Cody Gessell and Jose Guzman.
Barragan said Fuss will start Saturday against Hanford, with Gessell expected to get the ball in the team’s second game.
“We have seven or eight legit arms that can help us at any given moment,” Barragan said. “Our pitchers are gonna help us a lot.”
With a win Saturday, San Benito would advance to the quarterfinals later that same night against San Luis Obispo at 7 p.m., while Watsonville and Tracy will square off on Saturday morning, with the winner advancing to play Delano at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
