San Mateo’s Petey Halpin breaks camp with Team USA

The left-handed hitting outfielder never made the prestigious cut. That is, until this season.

Last Friday, Halpin was named to USA Baseball’s 15U National Team. He is one of 20 players that will travel to Cartagena, Columbia to play in the COPABE Pan Am “AA” Championships in a tournament with 10 other national teams from around the globe.

“I couldn’t feel my legs when I walked out of the room, honestly,” Halpin said of being informed he made the team after last Friday’s final cut. “It’s still kind of a shocking. … Being happy is kind of an understatement. I was kind of speechless.”

Team USA opens Friday against Panama at 11 a.m. PT.

“I think they’re ready,” Team USA manager Rob Shabansky said. “I think they’re ready to get out of North Carolina right now. … It’s a good club. In our mind, we should be there on the final day playing for a gold medal. That’s always the goal anyway. But we have as good a chance as anyone there.”

A regular on the travel baseball circuit in recent years, Halpin transitioned to the Baseball Performance Academy out of San Juan Capistrano this summer. He was selected to participate in 15U National Team Trials after a showcase event in Phoenix, Arizona. Shabansky said it was the first time he remembers seeing Halpin play.

And the young power-hitting outfielder made a quick impression in the sweltering desert heat of Arizona.

“He played the game really hard,” Shabansky said. “He is a guy that’s always in the right place at the right time. He takes quality at-bats. But he was the kind of kid, he played the game the same way every day not matter how hot it was.”

Halpin initially tried out for Team USA among a crop of 72 players from around the nation. Through three exhibition games, he batted .364 (4 for 11) with four RBIs. After making it to Phase II of trials with 34 players, he was more mindful of staying within himself than trying to impress, he said.

“Going into it, I was just really happy I made it this far,” Halpin said. “I wasn’t really expecting anything. The talent here is just incredible … so I just wasn’t trying to change anything. I wasn’t trying to overpower anyone or be a person I’m not. And it just seemed to work out this time.”

Shabansky said he has yet to decide on a starting lineup for Friday’s opener. Halpin has just one hit in his last 12 at-bats through six exhibition games, including a 1-for-6 stint through three warm-up exhibitions against Best In Class, an elite travel team from Charlotte, North Carolina.

“We have nine games to win a gold medal so, whatever we can do to win those games,” Shabansky said.

Despite the recent slump, Halpin said he is feeling good about his swing.

“I feel like it’s good,” Halpin said. “The competition and pitching is great. It’s hard to hit. But I’m doing what I can to show what I can do.”

The last San Mateo County native to play for Team USA was Pacifica native Elijah Ricks, who patrolled the outfield for the USA Baseball 12U National Team in 2013. With Halpin soon entering his sophomore year at St. Francis-Mountain View, he has a chance to someday pair with Ricks, entering his junior year at St. Francis, in the Lancers’ outfield.

San Carlos native Dan Descalso — now an infielder with the Arizona Diamondbacks — played for Team USA in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, winning a gold medal, while he was a minor leaguer in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.

Former Serra star Chuck Lofgren played three seasons for Team USA. He played with the 16U team for two years in 2001 and ’02, then advanced to the 18U team in ’03. Another former Serra star, Barry Bonds, played for Team USA in 1984 in the Amateur World Series.