12 Mar Pittsburg Baseball Dominates De Anza High in Road Win

The Pittsburg High Pirates’ J’Marion Bella got four hits — including a bases-clearing triple — drove four runs in and scored three as Pittsburg beat De Anza High 12-1 in five innings Friday.

Story and photos by Joe Porrello

In their first road game of the season, Pittsburg High stormed into Richmond on Friday and defeated De Anza High 12-1. A full team effort saw six different Pirates record hits and runs batted in, and seven players score.

With four straight victories and a five-fold advantage in runs over their opponents, the win kept Pittsburg’s varsity baseball team unbeaten to start the year. Meanwhile, De Anza entered the game winless, having been outscored 26-7 and losing six consecutive games dating back to last season. 

Game highs in runs, hits (10), walks (8), hit-by-pitches (3) and extra base hits (3) helped Pittsburg to their largest margin of victory this season. And they did it in just five innings, as umpires ended the contest early due to the one-sided score and limited sunlight.

 

Four De Anza errors contributed to their most runs allowed and biggest loss of the season. 

“In the start of the season, sometimes it’s hard to get in a groove — there’s anxiety and nerves, and it takes a little bit to settle in,” said first year Dons head coach Jeron Davis, who has been with the team since 2018.

Previously, Pittsburg had beaten De Anza five times in a row over 18 years by a combined score of 66-14. However, the Pirates lost to the Dons last March 10-1.

“We kind of wanted to return the favor this year — we got them back,” said Pittsburg head coach Marco Cartagena, now in his 11th year.

 

Despite the blowout, De Anza showed early signs of holding their ground. In the first inning, after a leadoff double by Pittsburg, two flyouts to the warning track helped De Anza escape the frame without allowing a run. It would be the only inning without a run for the Pirates.

De Anza took a 1-0 lead after back-to-back two-out doubles in the bottom of the first. But that would be the Dons’ only offense, as they failed to get a hit or score again, going down in order every remaining inning.

 

Two second inning Dons errors — one throwing and one fielding — aided the Pirates in breaking through for their first run. Another pair of warning track flyouts temporarily maintained the tie and kept Pittsburg without a home run this season.

The Pirates used an RBI single and a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in the third inning to pull ahead 3-1. Brothers and Pittsburg teammates Paul and Santino Salazar were plunked with the bases full in back-to-back innings.

The fourth inning saw Pittsburg explode for four runs, helped by two RBI singles, a couple of walks, and two doubles, including a two-RBI double by Diego Deluna. He also scored twice, contributing to the Pirates’ dominant offense.

The Pirates were far from finished. They tacked on five runs in the fifth, with a two-RBI single by JD Wilson and a three-RBI triple by J’Marion Bella.

 

On the day, Bella added three singles, three runs and a fourth RBI. Devin Simonton, who entered the game with a team-leading .462 batting average, contributed a single, two walks and two runs. Senior JJ Robinson chipped in with a double, two singles and two runs.

 

“I was just trying to be aggressive and let my hands fly,” said Robinson.

Pittsburg starting pitcher Desmond Toomer, who entered the game with a team-high 14 strikeouts, earned his first win of the season.

 

After enduring 13 straight losing seasons from 2004 to 2017, Pittsburg has turned its program around. With 20 wins in each of the past two years, the Pirates are on track for their fifth straight winning season.

De Anza, which had only one losing record in the past seven years (during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season), is off to its worst start in a decade after losing three coaches and several starters — two of whom received college scholarship offers.

“They were a big part of our team,” Davis said.

The following day, Pittsburg shut out Kennedy High of Fremont 11-0, improving their record to 6-0, their best start in over 20 years.

“We didn’t have too hot of a start last year, but this year we’re ready — everyone’s confident and flowing,” said Pittsburg senior Ty Thompson, who notched his team-leading seventh RBI.

 

Next up, the Pirates look to stay unbeaten when they take on Castro Valley (4-1) Thursday in Pittsburg — part of 12 games before they begin Bay Valley League play.

De Anza is in the midst of a 10-day break before returning to action at home against Hercules High on March 17.

 

“We need to get back to practice and focus on the little things — have fun — and it will work itself out,” said Davis. “This is just one blip on the radar; I’m staying focused on making sure they play for each other and give their best [effort].”

With three games remaining before Tri-County-Rock League play, Davis hopes his team can regroup before facing divisional rivals. Last year, the Dons lost three of their first four games but still managed a winning record after taking five of their final seven games.