Story by Miriam Elghefari
Staff Writer
Photo by Zoe Chen
Managing Editor
On Friday, Feb. 6 at 6:00 p.m., South Pasadena High School hosted a media day and interview in the Little Theater for the Rio Hondo Baseball League. In attendance were baseball coaches from La Cañada, San Marino, Monrovia, and South Pasadena. Coach Jaime Garcia, joined by senior Aaron Kawasaki, senior Anthony Ortiz, and sophomore Cody Robinson, represented the Tigers. The three other head coaches were joined by three players from each of their teams.
Last year, 18 seniors graduated from the Tigers. Nine seniors are nearing the end of their high school career this year. However, several rising classmen show talent and could help to fill in the unavoidable gap, such as Robinson, who has recently become a frequent pitcher in preseason games. Despite pressure in the preseason, Robinson has shined both as a pitcher and an infielder, stating that the pressure does not affect him, a vital skill to develop early on in his career. The team captains aim to maintain a strong relationship with the younger players, through activities such as a light-hearted dance battle on Fridays.
During their interview segment, La Cañada baseball head coach Nathan Bernstein noted that they have eight of their previous nine hitters returning for the upcoming season. As a coach of 11 years, he stated that the team “uses baseball as a way to become better people and succeed.”
This year, the La Canada Spartans are working towards a consistent weight room training schedule as Bernstein encourages his players to be creative and collaborate as a team, hoping to execute different kinds of offensive stats. He was joined by senior Scott Burns, sophomore Ross Piken, and junior Joe Bell.
San Marino’s head coach, John Franklin, was joined by senior Miles Morning, junior Parker Wilson, and senior JT Lu-Morris. Similar to the previous teams, Franklin hopes to center the team’s focus on weight room training and eliminating small errors in their games. He noted some versatile players and defined success as “learning a better work ethic.”
Lu-Morris spoke about his confidence in his team to power through the season. Generally, while San Marino labels themselves as a quiet and serious team, they mentioned efforts to have team lunches after morning games this season.
Monrovia’s head coach Brad Blackmore has been coaching for 35 years. He was joined by seniors James Quesenbery, Troy Grise, and Sutton Powers. Monrovia’s dominance in the league has changed in the past few years. While the team is smaller than previous years, the coach and players highlighted that they have a solid infield. Notably, Quesenbery, one of their varsity pitchers, throws pitches with speeds up to 87 miles per hour. However, the Tigers have their own power-pitcher in sophomore Cody Robinson, who pitched 91 miles per hour in a preseason match against St. Francis High School.
The opposing teams face a stacked South Pasadena team this year. With several preseason wins and talented players, the Tigers will certainly be a team to look out for in the upcoming season. The final Rio Hondo League baseball season begins in March.