EMPIRE LEAGUE BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Esperanza Shows Signs of Recovery

ANAHEIM — No one is ready to say that the Esperanza High School baseball program has returned to glory. Not yet anyway.

But judging by Friday’s performance, there are a few Empire League coaches who might be concerned that the Aztecs are indeed back.

Esperanza defeated Loara, 12-1, behind a 15-hit attack at Loara.

“We’re getting better every week,” Esperanza Coach Mike Curran said. “But I don’t think you can compare us to the great teams we’ve had in the past.”

Still, it’s better than a year ago.

The Aztecs made three consecutive appearances in the Southern Section championship game. They won the title in 1986 and finished second the following two years.

But Esperanza slipped last season and kept slipping.

“I’ve blotted last season from my mind,” Curran said.

The Aztecs finished 10-11-1 last season, 4-10-1 in league play. That was good for fifth place, the team’s worst showing under Curran.

But those days may be behind Esperanza, which returned three starters from the 1989 team. The Aztecs are 7-2, 3-0 in league play and tied for first with Los Alamitos.

“I don’t think you can judge anything by three games,” Curran said. “But we seem to be executing a lot better this season. We’re doing the little things, like moving runners over and hitting behind runners. We have some concerns about the pitching, but today, we put everything together--the hitting and pitching.”

The Saxons (2-8, 1-2) can testify to that.

Of course, Loara didn’t help itself with five errors and four wild pitches. However, Esperanza really didn’t need the help.

Danny Redington led Esperanza with four hits. The Aztecs had four extra-base hits, including a grand slam by Greg Hauser--the No. 9 batter in the order.

The score was tied, 1-1, after two innings, but Esperanza scored two in the third and two in the fourth. Redington singled and scored in the third, then doubled home a run in the fourth.

Hauser had the big hit in a five-run fifth, driving a 2-2 pitch over the 354-foot sign in left-center field.

“This was by far our best showing offensively this season,” Curran said. “We seemed to get a hit every time we needed it.”

Shade Summers (4-0) allowed six hits, three of which came in the second inning when the Griffins scored their only run.

Redington went the final two innings, striking out three.

In other league games:

Katella 11, Cypress 8--Danny Allen had a grand slam and a double to lead Katella (2-1, 7-3) at Cypress. Kevin Smith had three hits, including two doubles, for Cypress (0-3, 1-9).

Los Alamitos 10, El Dorado 6--Anthony Napolitano had three hits, including a triple and a double, and had three RBIs to lead Los Alamitos (4-5-1, 3-0) at home.