THE HIGH SCHOOLS : Woodfin Keeps His Temper in Check as Sylmar Tries to Strong-Arm the 4-A

Olonzo Woodfin, Sylmar High’s junior left-hander, has set himself apart this season. He throws harder, wins more games, strikes out more batters and, in the playoffs, is proving to be more durable than any other Valley pitcher.

In a span of 48 hours this week, he pitched back-to-back shutouts, allowing only six hits and striking out 18 in 14 innings to lead Sylmar into the semifinals of the City Section 4-A playoffs. In a tournament format that virtually demands two pitchers, Woodfin defied conventional wisdom, throwing a four-hit shutout at San Fernando on Friday to beat the Tigers, 6-0, on one day’s rest.

But pitching, even on one day’s rest, has been the easy part for Woodfin, whose temper has become as legendary as his 85-m.p.h. fastball. At times this season Woodfin has been as likely to hurl an obscenity from the mound as he has a strikeout pitch.

Woodfin hit bottom after losing to Fairfax, 4-2, on May 12. Even his coach and teammates had lost patience with his outbursts.

“I was fed up with him; the team was fed up with him and his behavior,� Coach John Klitsner said.

“He gets so emotionally upset and then he starts letting everyone know about it,� catcher John Shelburne said. “Sometimes it gets ridiculous.�

Shelburne didn’t hide his feelings. The day after the Fairfax defeat, he confronted Woodfin during a team meeting.

“We all agreed that when he gets out of control, it gets embarrassing,� Shelburne said. “He starts cussing up on the mound. I told him it was embarrassing to the team.�

Klitsner agreed.

“We had a lot of guys with frustrations, and they were handling it like men. We all expected him to take it like a man. He was carrying on in the middle of the field, blurting out obscenities. We try to conduct ourselves with a certain amount of class and style. He wasn’t conducting himself well,� he said.

Woodfin took the criticism to heart.

“He’s the star and he could have said forget it,� Klitsner said. “But he understood. He’s an intelligent kid. The players jump down his face just as hard as they jump down anyone else’s.�

“He took it all right,� Shelburne said. “He doesn’t have a big head and he knows what he does wrong.�

The team disciplined its star pitcher. Usually the daily maintenance of the field is a team activity. For one day, it was a one-man job. While Woodfin dragged the infield and raked the mound and the home plate area by himself, his teammates sat along the sidelines, feeding him a steady stream of good-natured insults.

Amid the laughter, Woodfin got the message.

“I took the meeting seriously,� he said. “I didn’t feel bad because I knew where they were coming from. I had done wrong. The coach said we had a lot of frustrated players on the team who could control themselves, why can’t I.

“It made sense. It’s been a good lesson. It helped coming from the players themselves.�

Woodfin is 3-0 since the meeting and the team has noticed the difference.

“It’s always been his weakness and he’s starting to realize how important it is,� Shelburne said. “When he doesn’t lose his poise, he pitches better. He thinks better on the mound. In the playoffs, he’s been really good. He’s really under control.�

Woodfin intends to keep it that way.

“I’ll try to be like ice on the mound,� he said. “I know when I control my emotions, that’s when I have my success. Besides, I don’t want to drag that field again. It’s hard work.�

The other guys: Woodfin has lowered his earned-run average to 1.19 and has 159 strikeouts in 94 innings. He allows an average of 3 1/2 hits per game and is the Valley’s winningest pitcher at 11-3. Sylmar (16-8) is one of the Valley’s best teams when he pitches. When he doesn’t, the Spartans are 5-5.

Is Sylmar a one-man team? Klitsner says no.

“When Lonny pitches for us we have an air of confidence and we can play with anybody in the city,� he said. “He’s not doing it by himself. We know how to execute bunts, we know how to play defense. We know where to be on cutoffs. No doubt that Lonny is the key, but we’re playing good, sound fundamental baseball.�

Although Donnie Kelley, Sylmar’s first baseman, has been overshadowed by Woodfin, his teammates appreciate his contribution. He entered the playoffs with a .507 batting average, 4 home runs, 29 runs batted in and 14 stolen bases. Center fielder Shawn Fontenot hit .389 with 4 home runs and 19 RBIs and is the team’s best outfielder.

Shelburne is batting .364 with 3 home runs and 16 RBIs and does a good job handling Woodfin, Klitsner said. “He’s a good receiver and frames the ball well. He helps us get the calls from the ump.�

Sylmar also has received a boost from right fielder Tony Taisacan, an all-East Valley League player last season who slumped to .241 this year. But in two playoff victories, he is 4 for 7 with 5 RBIs and 3 triples.

The other pitcher: Woodfin shoots for his third playoff victory when Sylmar plays top-seeded Canoga Park on Tuesday at either Birmingham High or Cal State Northridge. City officials are expected to decide Monday.

While Woodfin figures to command center stage, there will be another pitcher on the mound Tuesday. Although Coach Doug MacKenzie is waiting until Monday to name his starting pitcher, he figures to go with junior right-hander Mike Kerber.

Kerber increased his record to 6-0 with a six-hit, 3-0 shutout of Granada Hills on Friday. Kerber, at 6-4, 185, is imposing on the mound and has not lost a varsity game in 11 decisions.

He didn’t pitch this season until April 14 because of tendinitis in his elbow and has since pitched with no fewer than four days’ rest.

“The biggest factor in my decision is how Kerber comes out of Friday’s game,� MacKenzie said. “The season is still new for him. This would be the shortest turnaround for him this season. If he tells me he wants the ball, he can have it.�

Kerber threw 92 pitches Friday and awoke Saturday with no pain in his arm.

“I’m surprised because I’ve had soreness after the other outings this year. But I don’t even have normal stiffness. I could throw today,� he said.

Kerber is one of the few Canoga Park players who has seen Woodfin pitch--and that was two years ago in a Pony Baseball all-star game.

“I’d love to throw against Woodfin, just the thrill of pitching against a guy as popular as he is. I think it will be a good game, a low-scoring game,� he said.

The other coach: Sentiment sides with Canoga Park’s MacKenzie, who is retiring as a teacher after 37 years and has never won a City title. Klitsner is sentimental about MacKenzie’s last season--up to a point.

“Sentiment is nice and I respect the time and effort he has put into the coaching profession. But we’ve got to put that aside Tuesday,� he said.

What if Klitsner denies MacKenzie his City title?

“I think I can live with that,� he said. WOODFIN’S 10-STRIKEOUT GAMES

Team Date Opponent IP SO Result March 3 Grant 7 15 Won, 11-0 March 5 Hollywood 4 10 Won, 12-7 March 12 Fairfax 7 16 Won, 8-1 March 24 North Hollywood 7 11 Won, 5-2* April 2 Verdugo Hills 7 14 Won, 7-4 April 6 Fairfax 7 14 Won, 6-2 May 12 Fairfax 7 11 Lost, 4-2 May 21 North Hollywood 7 14 Won, 5-3 May 27 Carson 7 11 Won, 6-1

* NO-HITTER