AROUND THE LEAGUES : Thrashing by Hart Was Just One in a Series of Rotten Breaks for Burroughs

In his team’s 17-3 loss to Hart last week, Burroughs Coach Paul Heaney had to be relieved when the seventh inning rolled around. After all, things couldn’t get any worse, right? Wrong.

Three Burroughs batters were hit by pitches in the inning by Hart’s Chris Matkins. Todd Pam, who was batting .571 in league play, and Ken Kusler suffered broken hands. Kevin Johnson also was hit in the hand and suffered a bruise. “The only reason Johnson’s wasn’t broken was because he was caught on the meat part of the hand,� Heaney said. “The pitcher wasn’t intentionally throwing at us, he was just wild.� Burroughs has only 11 players available. . . . Pitcher Adam Schulhofer started two games in three days for Canoga Park last week, but he’s a long way from breaking the school’s iron-man streak. In the late 1960s, Coach Doug MacKenzie started Dave Leveque in 17 straight games over two seasons. Schulhofer threw 100 pitches in a 9-0 loss to El Camino Real and came back on one day’s rest and threw 84 pitches while earning the victory in Canoga Park’s 15-5 rout of Reseda. . . . After struggling through his first three performances, Shawn Bowen of Chatsworth needed only 84 pitches to shut out Cleveland, 1-0. Bowen and Cleveland’s Kirk Surabian each allowed only five hits and the game took just 90 minutes.

Volunteer fireman: Marmonte League teams Newbury Park and Royal received surprise pitching help last week. Wally Thornhill is Newbury Park’s best batter with a .469 average, five doubles and two home runs, and was impressive in relief in the team’s 8-6 win Friday night at El Segundo. Thornhill, a senior in his fourth varsity season, hadn’t pitched since last year but entered the game with two men on and one out and retired the side to record a save. . . . Royal shortstop Sean Sullivan pitched three scoreless innings and struck out seven last week against West Torrance. “I knew Sean could pitch but didn’t want to move him off shortstop,� Coach Mike McCurdy said. “It looks like he’ll be our short reliever now, though.� . . . Simi Valley went to the junior varsity for pitching help and found sophomore Rich Langford, who is 2-0 since being promoted. “Rich has a good live arm,� Coach Mike Scyphers said. Simi Valley will play in the Colonial Classic tournament in Florida April 11-18. Last season, the Pioneers won the the tournament, the finest in the nation, according to Collegiate Baseball magazine.

Multiple methods: The prefix poly, according to Webster’s, is synonymous with many. Through seven games this season, the Poly baseball team has proved the definition true. Poly, ranked No. 1 in the Valley by The Times, has nine players batting above .300, and eight with six or more runs batted in. Ali Aguilar has 12, followed by Joey Speakes (10), Rodrigo Fuentes and Danny Gil (8), Luis Garcia (7), and Bill Chavez, Hans Hekking and Luis Porres (6). . . . Moorpark Coach Mario Porto said the team’s 18-5 loss to St. Bonaventure last week was the worst game he’s ever seen. The team’s play was so bad that even Porto’s wife left before it was over. So Porto and the team spent as much time afterward talking about playing aggressive baseball as they did on the practice field. “A guy hit a home run and he was hot-dogging it going around the bases. And my second baseman had the nerve to pat him on the butt, as if to say, ‘Good hit.’ I told them if that would have happened when I was playing there was either going to be a fight or the next guy would be thrown at.� Moorpark rebounded to beat Santa Ynez, 8-5.

Saugus is good as Bolde: Is Saugus batboy David Bolde a good-luck charm? The Centurions are 33-5 over the past three years when David, the 8-year-old son of assistant coach Bill Bolde, is picking up after them. Without David, Saugus is 10-10. David misses games only when he’s playing center field for the Hart Pinto League Astros. Saugus will dedicate its new electronic scoreboard this week to the memory of Kevin English, a former player killed in an auto accident in February, 1986.

The survivors: Montclair Prep (9-1) has survived an injury wave that might have crippled a team with less depth. Curtis Minks, the team’s leading batter (.457) in 1986, is out for the season with torn shoulder ligaments and will undergo surgery in two weeks. Third baseman P.C. Shaw will be sidelined for a week with a gash on his right arm. Shaw shattered a lamp on his arm, requiring 18 stitches. Outfielder Robbie Briggs broke his right wrist in a car accident earlier this season and started his first game on Friday. And outfielder Mike Howard is out indefinitely after separating his right shoulder diving for a ball in practice last week. . . . Walt Steele, Montclair Prep girls basketball coach and assistant baseball coach, will succeed head baseball Coach Jeff Pressman next year. Pressman, in his 12th year, has announced he will resign at the end of the season for personal reasons.