A great day for baseball

Visiting Capuchino (1-0) won the day with an 11-0 victory in the non-league matchup. But the excitement was palpable as South City (0-1) took the field and, for the first time in almost 13 months, the words ‘Play ball!’ were heard in an official high school baseball setting.

“They were excited to be out here,” South City manager Matt Schaukowitch said. “I’m excited that our school board … has allowed us to be out here, and supported us through the facility being built, and making the decision to allow the kids to play. So, I think getting out of Orange Park was a blessing in both this year, and in the COVID year; getting them back out here was great.”

Between the lines, though, the day belonged to Cap right-hander Ryan Choi. The right-hander impressed in his first varsity appearance, firing six shutout innings.

Choi surrendered a hit to Francisco, South City’s leadoff man, in the bottom of the first — the first hit recorded on the new diamond — but Cap’s opening-day starter went on to retire the next 11 batters in a row. He ultimately yielded four hits and struck out 10.

The right-hander said he felt in command from the outset of the game.

“On the first pitch,” Choi said. “I knew I was commanding the ball well and I knew my defense had my back.”

Cap manager Matt Wilson waited until earlier in the day to decide on an opening day starter. And he had plenty of arms to deliberate about. There are currently 15 active players on the Mustangs’ roster. Of them, 13 are available to pitch.

“I sent him a text at 9 o’clock this morning and asked him how he’s feeling,” Wilson said. “He said he felt great. And I said: ‘Alright, you’re getting the opening day start.’ And he said: ‘Alright, let’s go out and get a “W” coach.’”

On a perfectly sunny South San Francisco day with the winds uncharacteristically still, the Cap bats broke through for a three-run rally in the third, supplying Choi with all the runs he’d need. But the Mustangs, who play in the upper Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division, were keen to continue adding on against a South City squad out of the lower PAL Lake Division.

The Mustangs added two runs in the fourth, two more in the sixth, and four in the seventh.

“Today with the quiet wind at game time, it definitely helped them,” Schaukowitch said. “And they barreled up some balls, so you’ve got to give credit to them.”

Cap junior Ryan Lordier scored the first run ever at the new diamond, plating on a wild pitch by Francisco. Senior catcher Mario Duran added a two-run single later in the inning, scorching a line drive to left field to drive home Choi and Frank Pellegrini.

In the fourth, No. 9 hitter Nicholas Gomez roped his second double of the day, a two-run swing of the bat. Duran picked up another RBI in the sixth, and Choi capped his big day with a two-run double in the seventh.

“Last year we started off 6-1 and it’s the same team,” Wilson said. “They know they can put things together and do something special with how much depth we have. They were itching today. They couldn’t wait.”

South City reliever Vinnie de la Fuente was a bright spot for the Warriors, entering in the fourth inning to quell a rally and get the game under control. The 5-3 southpaw might not throw hard, but he’s a strike-throwing machine with an off-speed look that ties opposing batters up with its eephus-pitch characteristics.

“When I came in, it was first and second … so I knew I had to get out of the inning,” de la Fuente said. “Just throw strikes and let my defense work behind me. When you walk people, that’s on you. But if you throw strikes and let your defense work out there, you get through the inning fine.”

Cap got a fairly remarkable relief outing as well as senior left-hander Jackson Moore fired a perfect seventh inning. In fact, he was one pitch away from an immaculate inning — striking out the first two batters he faced on three pitches each, then getting the first two strikes of the final at-bat. The game ended on a line drive one-hopper to right field, but the ball was struck so hard, Cap right fielder Ryan Lapuyade had plenty of time to throw to first base ahead of the base runner.

Choi only started pitching when he arrived at Cap two years ago and has just two junior-varsity seasons to his credit.

“This is my best game so far,” Choi said.

There was a memorable moment in the concourse behind home plate as well.

With fans allowed to attend the game, a strange foul ball ricocheted off the top of the 30-foot backstop behind home plate, and winged into an unsuspecting group of South City spectators.

One of the spectators, Raul Reyes, heeded a heads-up at the last moment and quickly snagged the ball as soon as he saw it. Because Reyes was wearing a stored lawn chair complete with Raiders embroidery over his right throwing shoulder, however, he handed the foul ball to his friend, Daren Camilo, who promptly chucked it back onto the field of play, hitting the catcher behind home plate with a perfect rainbow arc over the 30-foot backstop.