Palm Beach County baseball digest: Why Dr. Joaquín García has been impressive in first year
As a first-year program without seniors – and with a roster practically devoid of varsity experience – Dr. Joaquin Garcia High's baseball team was supposed to take its lumps this season.
Sure enough, the Bulldogs were thumped by county powers Park Vista and Dwyer to start the season, both by double-digit margins. It appeared they were little more than a JV team trying to compete with the big boys.
And then coach Nick Franco's "growing process" started to take hold.
In their third game, the Bulldogs beat Santaluces, the team Franco coached for 19 years before leaving to build the Garcia program from scratch. In mid-March, they had a 3-0 week, defeating Olympic Heights, John I. Leonard and Forest Hill.
And last Tuesday, the Bulldogs posted their signature win, rallying to defeat District 13-4A rival American Heritage-Delray 4-2 at their brand-new field west of Lake Worth.
"Tonight was a big, big step for us," Franco said afterward.
Garcia heads into the final month of the regular season with a winning record (8-7) and loads of optimism about the future. And Franco's decision to leave Santaluces for the new school less than 8 miles away looks like a smart one.
More baseball digest: How Boca Raton proved it's a legitimate contender
"I wasn't unhappy there, I loved it there," Franco said of Santaluces, where he spent a total of 21 years, including two as an assistant. "It has a big place in my heart and always will. But I got approached to start this program up and I was humbled. … To be able to put my name and my stamp on the program from the very beginning was something I didn't take lightly.
"It had to be the right opportunity to leave Santaluces. When the new school sought me out, I just decided it was the right time."
With Dr. Joaquin Garcia drawing most of its students from the Palm Beach Central, Park Vista and Santaluces areas, Franco knew he would have some talent to work with.
"We had a good nucleus of kids come to us from previous programs, but they had no varsity experience," he said. "We've had some ups and downs because of that lack of experience. It's a growing process. We do lose focus at times, and we've lost some games that we probably shouldn't have."
But last week definitely fell into the "up" category.
Against American Heritage-Delray, the Bulldogs were dominated in the early innings by ace right-hander Joey Abbazia, a Florida Atlantic commit. They scratched across a run in the fourth and took the lead with a three-run fifth, helped by two Stallions errors. Isaac DeJesus pushed a single through a drawn-in infield to drive in the go-ahead run, Joaquin Urrutia followed with a single and Troy Burke drilled an RBI double.
Abbazia struck out nine in four-plus innings but took the loss. Porter Trees, Hunter Butler and Robert White combined on a three-hitter for the Bulldogs.
One night later, Garcia defeated Coral Glades 4-2 in the annual "Franco Feud." Franco's brother, Joe, is a longtime coach in Broward County. The brothers have been facing each other for years, going back to when Nick was at Santaluces and Joe was at Monarch, with Nick holding an 11-6 lead in the series.
As the Bulldogs prepare to play mostly Class 6A and 7A schools down the stretch, Franco likes what he sees from his young team.
"I think they're buying into the process of what it takes to be successful," he said. "They are really a nice, tight-knit group. They're like a family -- they all root for each other no matter what."
With the JV team rolling at 13-2-1, Franco expects more competition for playing time next season. "It's a good problem to have," he said. "Competition from within builds success."
Meanwhile, the young Bulldogs will try to continue to surprise people and help build a foundation for the future. As Butler, a sophomore right-hander who threw two scoreless innings against Heritage, put it: "We're the base for this program, starting everything from the ground up and getting it ready for the next generation of players to come through here."
Park Vista's surprise star
When Park Vista ace Ethan Mattison beat nationally ranked Parkland-Stoneman Douglas on Thursday night, striking out 13 in an 8-2 victory, it might not have been the Cobras' best pitching performance of the week.
Two nights earlier, senior right-hander Cael Brannon pitched a no-hitter in a 1-0 victory over Port St. Lucie-Centennial, walking two and striking out 10. Brannon missed all of last year with an injury and then started slowly this season, but his workload has been steadily increasing.
"He's bounced back," coach Larry Greenstein said. "He's a hard worker and he's starting to be able to repeat his mechanics, and the results were outstanding."
The Cobras (8-8), who reached the state Class 7A tournament last season, can use more big games from Brannon. They have struggled to win when Mattison isn't on the mound.
"The playoffs are three weeks away and it's time for us to figure out who's going to step up," Greenstein said.
Litman lights it up
By his own standards, it had been a bit of an off year for West Boca Raton right-hander James Litman.
A season-opening loss. Two no-decisions. No double-digit strikeout games.
Last week, however, state power Miami-Columbus got a chance to see Litman at his best. The FAU commit gave up a first-inning run and then shut the door, finishing with a three-hitter and 15 strikeouts in a 3-1 victory.
When the teams met in February, Columbus won 13-0.
Week 6 standouts
Brady Blanks, Jupiter: Went 5-for-7 with four RBIs in victories over Jensen Beach and Wellington.
Edinson Cantillo, Santaluces: Went 4-for-6 with a double and a triple, scored four runs and drove in four in two games.
Anthony Duran, Lake Worth: Went 4-for-5, scored four runs and had three RBIs in three games.
Chase Gray, Seminole Ridge: Went 5-for-8, scored four runs and had two RBIs in victories over Wellington and Atlantic.
Charlie Houd, Palm Beach Central: Pitched two innings for the save in a 6-5 win over Dwyer; threw a five-inning complete game in a victory over Forest Hill.
Nolan Payne, King's Academy: Went 4-for-7, scored three runs and drove in two in wins over Boca Raton and Oxbridge Academy.
Nick Rovitti, Dwyer: Pitched a complete-game three-hitter in a 3-0 victory over Orlando-Timber Creek.
Mason Van Dieken, Oxbridge Academy: Went 2-for-4 with five RBIs and pitched four innings for the win against Jupiter Christian; for the week, went 7-for-12 with seven RBIs.
Thomas Velardi, St. John Paul II Academy: Went 2-for-4 with a double, home run and four RBIs in a victory over Royal Palm Beach; went 2-for-2 in a loss to North Broward Prep.
EJ Velez, Boca Raton Christian: Pitched a complete-game shutout, giving up three hits and striking out nine, in a 3-0 win over Somerset Academy-Canyons; went 4-for-5 with five RBIs in two games.
Week 7 top games
Tuesday
Boca Raton (11-4) at St. John Paul II Academy (8-7-1), 4 p.m.: Battle for Boca bragging rights.
Dwyer (10-4) at Benjamin (10-4), 4 p.m.: Neighboring schools match powerful lineups.
Cardinal Newman (12-3-1) at Martin County (12-2): Crusaders take on Treasure Coast's top team.
Wednesday
American Heritage-Plantation (9-7) at West Boca Raton (10-6): Defending state Class 5A champions make the trip north.
Friday
Suncoast (12-3) at Jupiter (10-4): Can Warriors handle unbeaten Brady Benevides?
Rick Robb's Top 10
Cardinal Newman (12-3-1)
Jupiter (10-4)
Dwyer (10-4)
Benjamin (10-4)
Suncoast (12-3)
West Boca Raton (10-6)
Boca Raton (11-4)
Park Vista (8-8)
Palm Beach Central (8-6)
King's Academy (7-6)
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dr. Joaquín García baseball impressing in team's first season
