SF Seagulls close out team’s first Golden State Collegiate Baseball League championship with hometown flair

Entering the best-of-three championship series as the No. 1 seed, the Seagulls swept the South Bay Storm with decisive wins of 12-4 and 11-3 to claim the team’s first-ever GSCBL crown. And they rode a pair of hometown arms to do it, with San Bruno natives Mario Vargas and Frankie Pellegrini earning the respective wins at their hometown digs of Lara Field.

“It was all drawn up for it to be our year,” Caviglia said. “The players went out there and they did what we had hoped for to make it our year.”

Pellegrini — a graduate of Capuchino who was relegated to a marginal bullpen role as a freshman at Cañada College in the spring — was on a mission to prove his mettle as a starting pitcher this summer. He finished that mission in style, firing his first complete game in Saturday’s championship series finale.

The right-hander held the Storm to three runs (two earned) on nine hits. And when he returned to the third-base dugout after a tenuous eighth inning, he laid claim to his chance to finish out the historic win.

“I went up to him to see how he was doing, and I had the bullpen warming, and he looked at me and said: ‘I’m finishing this out, coach,’” Caviglia said. “I said: ‘Go get it.’”

Pitching to contact throughout, Pellegrini finished the night with a walk and two strikeouts. The final out of the game was a one-hop grounder to second baseman Kellen Carr, who made an easy throw to first for the final out.

And while the Seagulls celebrated into the night — Caviglia said they were reveling on the field for a good 30 minutes after the final out — it took a minute to get the party started.

“It was pretty funny,” Caviglia said. “They were excited, but they almost didn’t start the celebration until the bench came out. … And then some fans brought some sparkling cider, they were shooting it up in the air.”

Pellegrini’s pitch-to-contact approach was a far cry from Friday’s 12-4 win, backed by six strong innings from Vargas. The right-hander allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits and four walks while striking out nine. Reliever Justice Naraghi worked three innings to earn the save, striking out eight.

Vargas and Naraghi combined for 17 strikeouts in the game, a season-best for the blue-and-black.

“Mario was excellent,” Caviglia said. “He’s a very mature college baseball player. … Every time we needed someone in a big situation, Mario was our guy. He was our ace.”

Outfielder Gabe Harris (Mission College) earned the championship series MVP honors, the Sam Bat Big Stick Award, scoring six runs in the two-game series while going 4 for 6 with a double and four walks.

Had the Game 3 tiebreaker been necessary, Caviglia would have turned to another San Bruno native to take the ball, with Capuchino graduate Devin Meyer locked and loaded. Pellegrini, though, protected the early lead with a valiant finish.

Pellegrini recorded an unbeaten record this summer, going 4-0 with a 2.58 ERA through nine appearances, including six starts. Caviglia said the 5-10, 185-pound right-hander did everything he could to get a look as a starting pitcher in his sophomore year at Cañada.

“Absolutely,” Caviglia said. “I’ve seen Frankie pitch for a few years, and he continues to get better. I know the junior college landscape pretty well … and I’m confident he can go win a rotation spot and get outs at that level.”

Caviglia said the Seagulls struggled at the plate through the early portion of the summer, but they certainly finished strong. The Seagulls totaled 23 runs on 17 hits through the championship series, getting a spark from Joshua Algarin (Ohlone College), who led off Friday’s opener with an inside-the-park home run, though he cruised home after putting the ball onto the softball diamond adjacent to Lara Field.

Algarin finished the summer with a .325 batting aveage, tying Dirk Ryan (William Jessup University) for the team lead with five home runs. Tevis Payne (Mission College) finished the season with a team-leading .362 batting average.

The Seagulls batted .282 as a team.

“It’s the most successful team I’ve ever coached because we won a championship,” Caviglia said. “We’ve had a lot of teams that have gotten along really well and this one’s right up there with them. … I think a lot of the alumni that showed up to support us might disagree, but I’d have to say this was our best team ever.”