Expect the unexpected with Murcia on the mound

After Murcia's performance against Aragon on Friday, Baccei may have found his No. 1 starting pitcher. The 5-9, 150 pound Murcia dominated the Dons. He gave up only one run on seven hits and struck out 10 in leading the Knights to a 3-1 win, their first of the season.

For his efforts, Murcia has been named the San Mateo Daily Journal's Athlete of the Week.

"RIght now I think he's our No. 1 pitcher," Baccei said. "Before he was like our No. 3. We kinda babied him along (earlier in the preseason). [Friday] was his first real test."

Murcia aced it. What made Murcia's performance even better was the fact that he spent the summer playing with many of the Dons on the San Mateo American Legion "B" team and he had a lot to prove to his friends.

"This (past) summer I didn't pitch too well," said Murcia, who spent the remainder of the offseason attending camps and clinics to improve his game. "I improved a lot and I wanted to show them."

Mixing up his fastball and curveball with equal effectiveness, Murcia kept a usually potent Aragon lineup in check. Baccei said that was the biggest reason for Murcia's dominance.

"I think he was able to throw both his fastball and curveball over for strikes," Baccei said. "I thought he had them off balance. I don't think they knew what pitch was coming."

Which is just the way Murcia likes it. Forget conventional baseball wisdom when Murcia is on the mound. He doesn't go by the book. For instance, on a two-strike, no-ball count, the book says to throw a curveball away, or in the dirt. Murcia could come with a fastball around the eyes. A 3-2 pitch usually calls for a fastball down the pipe. Not Murcia, he may try to lock you up with a curve ball.

"I mix it up a lot," Murcia said. "I'm not overpowering. I like to keep my curveball working. I even try to mix up my fastball."

Against the Dons, Murcia struck out the side in the first and had at least one strike out in every inning except the second. In the third inning, Aragon had a chance to break the game open, having scored a two-out run on a David Higgins single. Stephen Held followed with a double to put runners on second and third but Murcia ended the inning with a strikeout.

"I didn't think I would pitch that well," Murcia said. "I was happy with my performance. I just tried to stay focused."

Murcia takes that focus to the plate as well. He has been batting in the No. 2 slot which requires a batter to have good bat control, a good contact guy and someone who takes what is given to him. Murcia meets all those requirements. Baccei said Murcia is batting over .300 during non-league play and he helped his own cause Friday by driving in the game-winning run on Friday.

"I think I'm a batter who can pitch," said Murcia, who plays the outfield when he's not on the mound. "I'm always in the lineup. I just like being in the game."

The Knights moved up to the Peninsula Athletic League's Bay Division last season and took their lumps. They moved back to the Ocean this season and Murcia sees no reason why the Knights can't contend for a title and a Central Coast Section berth. Murcia is hoping that his experience at Serra transfers with him to Hillsdale.

"I just want to have a winning team. We won a lot at Serra and I expect to win here too," Murcia said. "Our pre-season numbers (1-8) won't say anything. I just want the league to look at us as contenders."