By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
Senior pitcher James Comaroto had a breakthough game in what is fast becoming a breakthrough season for Covina high school’s baseball team. Comaroto gave up a lone double and run in the fourth, but was otherwise solid in a 5-1 victory over visiting Nogales on Tuesday. His one-hitter ended with his sixth strikeout — an 87 MPH fastball. (To continue click thread).
Blown call? — Covina’s Nick Simons ruled safe at third on a one-out double steal in the fifth. He looks out in the picture and looked out watching it. I thought Nogales coach John Romano might blow up when I asked him about it later because it led to the Colts scoring five runs with two outs. But instead, Romano gave a very classy response: “He (umpire) calls them, I coach them,” Romano said. “They’re doing the best they can and I’m doing the best I can.”
“He is a senior and he works unbelievably hard,” Covina coach Pete Loaiza said of Comaroto. “He’s here working when we’re not here, that should tell you a lot about him. Since his sophomore year he has worked hard because he really wants to be successful.”
Comaroto improved to just 2-2, but more importantly the Colts improved to 8-3 and a perfect 4-0 in the Valle Vista League with another big game on Thursday at Baldwin Park (6-5, 2-0), the only other team without a loss in league.”
Although Covina was still not ranked in Monday’s CIF-SS Division 4 rankings, a win over No. 10 Nogales followed by a pounding over neighboring Northview last week should start to get the attention of pollsters.
“It felt good and it feels good to win some ballgames,” Comaroto said later. “For a second there I thought I was losing my edge, but I made an adjustment and kept throwing strikes. I just hit my spots and we put a big inning together and scored a few runs.”
Nogales’ Rene Felix was pitching a solid game and helped himself with a one-out double in the fourth that was later cashed in on Carlos Martinez’ ground-out, scoring Felix from third for a 1-0 lead.
Felix was sailing along, allowing just two hits through four innings when things started to turn.
After Covina’s Nick Simons and Anthony Moreno hit back-to-back singles with one out in the fifth inning, a double steal moved them to second and third respectively, though it appeared to Nogales coach John Romano that Simons should have been called out a third after being ruled safe on a close play at the bag.
On the next pitch, Covina’s David Supelveda hit a rocket up the middle off Felix’s chest. Felix labored to get it, throwing Supelveda out at first and holding the runners, but he was clearly in pain.
After a long delay, Felix returned and Andrew Carillo promptly knocked a fly to right that Nogales’ Alex Sanchez had for a moment then dropped, allowing Simons and Moreno to score for a 2-1 lead.
Felix was clearly not the same, Carillo stealing second, then third and scoring on a wild throw to go up 3-1.
After Vinny Venegas reached on an error and stole second, Nick Hynes doubled Venegas home. Hynes later scored on Ramses Nava’s single to make it 5-1.
“It looked like an out (on the double-steal at third) and we drop a fly ball, but that’s not it,” Nogales coach John Romano said. “We didn’t string enough hits together so they deserved to win.
“That’s three times now we’ve played good teams and lost all three. We beat teams we’re supposed to beat, but we have to find a way to beat the good teams.”
After Felix pitched to a batter in the sixth he came out. After complaining of chest pains, an ambulance was summoned to check out Felix afterward.
It was that kind of day for Nogales, whose lost first baseman Caleb Rudusky in the second inning after a Colts runner stepped on the back of his leg on an inning-ending ground-out in the second inning.
Rudusky left to a nearby hospital and returned with 14 stitches.
