TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Plant City Steals The Show

ADVERTISEMENT

By DAREK SHARP

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 30, 2008

PLANT CITY - After watching their upcoming opponent nail five home runs in one inning, the Plant City Senior Baseball All-Stars might have been right to feel some intimidation.

No such luck for Dade City, which had home-field advantage but not enough offense to keep up with Plant City. The Plant City All-Stars defeated Dade City 9-7 to win the Section 4 championship.

The July 19 sectional title advanced Plant City to the state tournament, which was scheduled to conclude Monday in Fort Myers. If Plant City emerged victorious from that eight-team event, it will go for the Southern regional championship in Vero Beach with a trip to the Senior Baseball World Series in Maine at stake.

"They're making me look good," Plant City coach Jeff Jacobsen said. "These guys, I really don't have to say anything to them; I can just see by the look in their eyes that they want to win."

Composed primarily of players from Jacobsen's Raider Baseball team - a club squad that features several Plant City High players - the all-stars are used to playing together, and it has shown this summer.

Just like its district championship, Plant City needed just two victories to win sectionals, but the trip to Dade City was a lot more difficult. At the District 4 tourney, Plant City cruised past host Lake Wales by scores of 13-3 and 12-3.

The format for sectionals was a three-team round robin. Plant City opened up against Bloomingdale on July 18 and won a pitchers' duel, 4-2.

Doing most of the throwing in that game was Brett Nizamoff, and Travis Cannoles had a big hit with a two-run single.

"We almost didn't get to play because it rained so much that night, but the grounds crew at Dade City did a great job. It was a nail-biter," Jacobsen said.

Rain was not the concern July 19. First, it was a scorcher of an afternoon from a weather standpoint. Then there was the opponent. Plant City watched in the stands as Dade City eliminated Bloomingdale in the win where the hosts hit five homers in a single inning.

That set up a winner-take-all game between Dade City and Plant City, and with the powerful bats of the opponent, Jacobsen decided to go with the change-up-oriented style of pitcher Lee Easters.

The strategy worked, as Easters kept Dade City off balance for four-plus innings. Plant City took a 7-3 lead into the fifth, but as Dade City began to rally, Jacobsen sent K'Shawn Smith to the mound, and his flame-throwing approach again caught Dade City on its heels.

In the final inning as Dade City got the first two runners on base with a 9-7 score, Art Knight went out to close the game and used his curveball to subdue Dade City.

Offensively, Rene Negrete, who homered in both district tourney games, hit a big three-run homer, and Knight added a solo shot in the seventh. While the power bats were there, Plant City inflicted much of its damage on the base paths.

"We have so much team speed. The key to the whole thing was our base running," Jacobsen said.

For example, Kaylen Smith, K'Shawn's brother, pinch-ran four times against Dade City - all four times he stole second base, then stole third and then scored.

Combined at districts and sectionals, Plant City stole 17 bases, and on the other side, its opponents only attempted one steal against Plant City catcher Sebastian Ray, who threw that runner out.

A.J. del Valle completed the five-man pitching rotation; Jacobsen said the team doesn't have one or two ace pitchers but instead the five reliable options.

Even though the Senior age category allows 16-year-olds to participate, Plant City only used two of them, Zach Batley and Cole Dickson.

"If we keep this team together next year, look out," Jacobsen said.

Reporter Darek Sharp can be reached at dsharp@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT