Baseball

Contact Coach Mario Porto

Baseball defeats East LA. Playing a rain make-up from the WSC Tournament, the Raiders defeated East LA College, 7-5. Ryan Cobb and Cliff Quick led the Raiders 2 hits each Mario Landeros went 1 for 4 with 2 RBIs.

Baseball defeats Cuesta. The Raiders defeated visiting Cuesta College, 6-5. With the score 6-5 in the top of the 9th, Cuesta led off with a double but could not advance him. Harrison Kain went 3 for 5 with 3 RBIs, Daniel Nimoy went 3 for 4 with an RBI. Ryan Cobb went 2 for 4 with an RBI.

Baseball splits with Oxnard. In the first game of the week, the Raiders were defeated by nemesis Oxnard College, 7-17. The Condors broke the game open in the 6th inning. In the second game two days later, the Raiders defeated the Condors, 4-3. Harrison Kain, Cliff Quick, Mario Landeros, and Daniel Nimoy each had two hits with Kain scoring twice. Quick also picked up a RBI and got the win.

Baseball defeats Santa Barbara. The Raiders defeated Santa Barbara City College, 6-5. Daniel Nimoy singled in Jon Villareal in the bottom of the 9th to win the game. Mario Landeros went 2 for 4 with a triple and Josh Gray homered and drove in 2 RBIs.

Baseball at Santa Barbara. The Raiders came up short at Santa Barbara City College, losing 5-6 in 10 innings. Daniel Nimoy and Harrison Kain both went 2 for 4. Daniel Payne went 2 for 5 with an RBI and a run scored.

Baseball in WSC action. The Raider's losing skid hit 5, losing to Ventura College twice. The Raider's Harrison Kain went a combined 4 for 8 in both games against Ventura which included a Home run and a double. The streak ended there when the Raiders defeated Hancock College, 6-0. Brian Kernochan pitched 8 scoreless innings to get the win. Daniel Nimoy went 3 for 5 with an RBI and a run. Daniel Payne went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs.

Baseball in WSC action. The Raiders are currently on a 3 game skid taking them to 4th place. After stating 4-1 in WSC North play, the Raiders lost to Oxnard College, 7-10. Then in a lackluster performance, the Raiders were defeated by Cuesta 1-10. Having to travel to San Luis Obispo, the Raiders again lose to Cuesta 9-12.

Baseball moves into First. The Raiders swept Santa Barbara City College, 5-4 and 13-6, then defeated Oxnard College, 13-0, in the latest WSC action. With the three wins, the Raiders move into a tie for first place with Cuesta College. In the first game, the Raiders were down 2-4 in the bottom of the 9th with two men on base, Patrick Donahoe flared a ball to right that got passed the outfielder allowing both runners to score to tie the score. Donahoe then scored on a wild pitch to end the game. Cliff Quick picked up the win. In the second game, the Raiders jumped to a 8-2 lead before allowing SBCC to score four in the bottom of the 6th. The Raiders then put the game away scoring 5 in the 7th.

Baseball splits with Hancock. The Raiders opened WSC action with Allan Hancock College. In the first game, the Raiders jumped out to a 11-3 lead before allowing 5 in the bottom of the 6th. Josh Gray went 4 for 4 with 4 RBIs an a home run. Patrick Donohoe added 3 RBIs. In the second game, Hancock got the win. 6-13. Josh Gray went 3 for 5 with 3 RBIs and a double.

Baseball at Porterville. The Raiders traveled to Porterville College for a 3 game series with the host Pirates. In the first game, the Raiders defeated the host, 13-1. Danny Nimoy went 4 for 4 with a grand slam and 7 RBIs. Mitch Rudebush picked up the win. On the second day, the Raiders split a double header as Porterville won the first, 6-7, and the Raiders taking the second game 9-8. Jonathan Villareal had a double and 2 RBIs and Brandon Kitchings collected two hits in the loss. Brian Kernochan picked up the win in the second game as Cliff Quick had three hits, Danny Nimoy had two hits with a double, and Harrison Kain also had two hits with a double.

Baseball at #2 Bakersfield Tournament. The Raiders traveled to Bakersfield College for the second of tournaments. On the first day the Raiders were defeated by San Diego Mesa College, 1-9. On the second day, the Raiders were defeated by Merced College, 3-7 and Modesto College, 6-11. The Raiders will travel to LA Harbor for a make up from the postponed WSC tournament.

Baseball goes 2-1 at Bakersfield Tournament. The Raiders opened the 2009 campaign at the annual Bakersfield Gade Fest Tournament. The Raiders defeated Irvine Valley College, 10-4 and Long Beach City College, 10-2. The lone loss was to College of the Sequiaos, 1-9.

Baseball 2009 Season Preview. Raider baseball coach Mario Porto has been around long enough to know the only certainty about JC baseball is that a team is going to deal with uncertainty.The veteran coach and his program got a reminder of that last season, when the Raiders entered 2008 with lofty expectations and a rejuvenated roster that fizzled instead of flourished. In 2009, the Raiders have a rarity in three returning sophomore infield starters. Shortstop John Villareal, third baseman Daniel Nimoy and second baseman Harrison Kain won't be able to do it alone, but Porto thinks this core of speed, defense and the right blend of offense might be enough to help Moorpark regain its footing. "You don't get a mostly all-sophomore starting infield very often," Porto said. "Based on that alone, I feel pretty good because I know we'll play good defense and have some speed, but you also need your sophomores to step up and play like sophomores." Villareal batted .303, scored a team-high 38 runs and stole a team-high 13 bases in 2008. His former Granada Hills High teammate, Nimoy, batted .250 with 10 stolen bases. Kain, from Thousand Oaks High, hit .246. "Those players were prepared well for this level while they were in high school," Porto said. "They were able to come in here and make an immediate contribution. I expect their development and contributions to continue." The Raiders also have returning sophomore center fielder Brandon Kitching, who hit .275 with 11 stolen bases, returning to the leadoff spot. He brings speeds to the top of the lineup and defense to center field. The middle of the Raider's batting order will probably be populated by freshmen, including outfielders Josh Grey and Brett Hale and catcher Mario Landeros. Porto said the three players are promising. The offense will have to find a way to replace the runs produced by catcher Steve Domecus, who hit 10 home runs and drove in 41 runs. He was Moorpark's most stable and consistent bat in the middle of its lineup. This year's club might be more predicated on speed first and power second. "I think we're going to be capable of scoring runs," Porto said. "As for other parts of the lineup, we're still figuring out who fits where." Porto said Moorpark's pitching staff is developing. "The big question is going to be the pitching," he said. To improve on the team's 14-25-1 2008 season which included an 8-16-1 finish in the Western State Conference North, good for only fifth place out of six teams and 12 games behind conference champion Cuesta, Moorpark will need to find some contributions on the mound. The Raiders will try to win with some combination that includes returning sophomores Mitch Rudebusch, Greg Waxler, and Geoffrey Landry. None of those pitchers threw more than 18 innings as freshmen, though Porto said Rudebusch will probably begin the season as the first starter. Freshman Cliff Quick should start the season as the closer and also play infield. Porto said anything is possible, based on last year's experience. "I thought we had as good a team as we had the year before when we won the conference," he said. "It ended up as a disappointment. So this year we'll see what happens." jc:vcs