San Mateo American is off and running in District 52 10s tourney

After American opened the tournament Saturday with 19-1, three-inning mercy-rule win over Half Moon Bay — fueled by an 11-run outburst in the first inning — manager Jason Gordon downplayed the hitting depth of his squad. American’s bats again refuted that notion Sunday, scoring 12 runs in the first inning in a 14-3 win over Alpine.

“We have a lot of depth on this team pitching wise,” Jason Gordon said. “That’s the thing I worry about the least. Hitting wise is where we haven’t been as strong, so it’s really good to see them come through in the first inning.”

American has totaled 24 hits through its first two games and is currently batting .545 in the tournament. Workman, Jagger O’Brien, Carter Weyer, Christopher Moreno, Maddox Ward and Hudson Wong have each registered one multi-hit game.

“I think we’re strong for the most part,” Workman said. “Sometimes bats can get cold and quiet, but we just need energy to pick it up.”

This year’s breakout performance marks quite the turnaround for the American 10s team. The team had a quick dismissal from the 2021 tournament, including a loss to eventual District 52 10s champion Alpine. But the rare poor performance by an American All-Star team wasn’t entirely unexpected, as it was seen as something of a rebuilding year. Eight players from last year’s team were 9-year-olds.

The benefit to last year’s rebuild is all eight of those players have returned to American’s 10s roster this season.

“We’re really good,” Jason Gordon said. “We’re really deep on pitching. We’ve got four or five high-end guys here that, like I said, we’re a little more worried about the bats. But it’s going to be hard to get on base and score if our guys are throwing strikes.”

As for the lineup depth, Workman’s spot at the top of the order speaks volumes. Prior to the last two games, he’d only batted leadoff a handful of times in his life. With the West Coast Federals travel team, which he plays for in the fall and spring, he usually bats in the 2- or 3-spot, he said.

Wherever he bats in the order, though, his approach is always the same.

“Just to drive the ball hard,” Workman said. “Just to hit the ball hard and drive it.”

He certainly did that Saturday. After setting the table with a walk to lead off the game, he logged three straight hits in his last three plate appearances. With American sending 16 batters to the plate in the first inning, he came to bat with the bases loaded later in the frame and promptly cleared the bases with triple to center field. He singled in the second and finished the day with a two-run single in the third.

“On most teams he’s a 3- or 4-hitter but we’ve just got power [behind] him,” Jason Gordon said. “He just does a great job getting on base. He doesn’t mind hitting in any count and he’s a great base runner. I might not be done experimenting (with the lineup) but he did a great job in the leadoff spot [Saturday].”

On the mound in Saturday’s opener, Workman, Matthew Ward and Moreno combined for a one-hitter. That one Half Moon Bay hit came with one out in the bottom of the third and final inning, a line-drive double to left field by left-handed hitting Ollie Kern to break up the no-hitter.

“Yeah, I was plenty aware (it was a no-hitter),” Kern said. “I got one right in my zone waist high and just put the barrel on it.”

Kern’s double led the way for HMB to break up the shutout as well. After he advanced to third on a wild pitch, Wyatt Gunning drew a walk. Then HMB executed a double steal, with Kern swiping home on a throw through to second.

“It felt great,” Kern said of getting HMB on the scoreboard. “For me, I was just breaking out of a cold streak.”

Kern’s batting slump dated back to a warmup tournament in Burlingame, featuring many of the All-Star squads playing in the District 52 10s bracket. American and HMB matched up in that tourney as well, with American scoring 21 runs en route to the win.

“We knew what we were up against,” HMB manager Corey Gunning said. “We wanted to come out and battle. And [Saturday] our bats were a little cold and a few errors kind of started the tumbleweed going the wrong way for us. But we’ve got a decent group of kids and they’re going to compete the rest of the tournament.”

A Gordon family reunion

The Gordon family well represented in Saturday’s game. With Jason Gordon coaching American, his son Cody Gordon plays for the team. Jason Gordon’s brother Phil Gordon is a coach with HMB, and Phil’s son Luke Gordon plays for that team.

There was a cool moment in the second inning when Cody Gordon was running the bases and advanced to third base, where Jason Gordon was positioned as American’s third-base coach. Playing third base for HMB was Luke Gordon.

“It was awesome,” Jason Gordon said. “And then they got to face each other (with Luke Gordon pitching) that one time. Luke got the better of him last time (in the Burlingame tournament) and struck him out. He worked a walk this time.”

Cody and Luke Gordon are only recent rivals, as they play as teammates in the fall and spring with the West Coast Federals. They were both embracing their respective game-faces Saturday though.

“Up until yesterday I was like: ‘I’ve got to get a hit off this guy. I know he’s going to pitch,’” Cody Gordon said.

“He got me last time … he struck me out, he got a hit off me,” Cody Gordon said. “So, today, we didn’t see each other a lot, but he walked me.”

HMB also advanced in the tournament Sunday, rolling to an 18-6 win over Redwood City in the elimination bracket. HMB will now face San Mateo National Tuesday at Trinta Field at 5:45 p.m.

San Mateo American advances through the winners’ bracket to face Hillsborough Wednesday at 5:45 p.m.

The 13-team tournament spans through next week, with the championship game scheduled for Monday, July 4. An if-needed championship game would be played Tuesday, July 5.