Westlake Won’t Get Royal Treatment at State Tournament

The Westlake-Royal Oak baseball team won’t be staying at a fancy hotel or eating at four-star restaurants while competing in the state American Legion tournament this weekend in Yountville.

Quite the opposite.

Instead, the team from Ventura County will be exposed to a military lifestyle.

The living quarters? A locker room with 18 cots, located on a private, enclosed retirement facility for legionaries.

The food? It is served in a cafeteria and known for its blandness. Breakfast is at 6 a.m.

“Last year, they didn’t allow any of the kids off the grounds without an adult,� said David Soliz, who coached a Camarillo team at last year’s state tournament.

But Soliz’s players didn’t seem to mind the regimentation. The teenagers spent much of their spare time eating, talking and playing games with the resident veterans, who, incidentally, turn out for the tournament by the hundreds.

“They met some guys who played pro ball,� Soliz said. “They heard a lot of old war stories. They loved it.�

Westlake-Royal Oak Coach Mike McClure, who will lead a van convoy to Yountville on Friday, said it’s a matter of adjusting to a different environment.

“The kids will probably get bored after a few days,� he said. “But they’ll be up there to play baseball.�

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Soliz offered some advice to Westlake-Royal Oak: Stay out of the loser’s bracket or risk running out of pitchers.

“They don’t have Tim Carr [who signed with the New York Mets late in June after pitching 16 innings and going 3-0 for the legion team],� Soliz said. “He would have made the difference.

“But they’ve still got enough to win it. With the kind of offense Westlake has, they won’t have to worry about shutting anybody down.�

Led by Brent Egan, who is batting .506, and Matt Riordan, who is at .500 with 11 home runs and 56 runs batted in, Westlake-Royal Oak has a team batting average of .380. But it also has a 2.99 team earned-run average with 12 players sharing pitching duty.

The ace is Jay Kenny, who is 9-0 with a three-year legion record of 21-3.

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Carr has followed his former teammates since reporting to Port St. Lucie (Fla.). He phoned congratulations to them Sunday after they beat Valley North, 9-4, for the Area 6 championship.

Carr had a 2.19 ERA for Westlake-Royal Oak. His ERA for Port St. Lucie through Thursday was 1.37. He had five saves and 17 strikeouts in 19 2/3 innings.

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Westlake Royal-Oak’s three-game sweep through the Area 6 tournament did not pass without controversy.

Area Commissioner Charlie Hatfield mailed in his resignation Tuesday, three days after a state official granted eligibility to Westlake-Royal Oak’s Scott Christensen and Dan Wasserman.

Hatfield declared Christensen and Wasserman ineligible during the Area 6 tournament because they played on a team outside their area without a waiver.

“A rule’s a rule,� Hatfield said. “In the past, this rule was enforced and nothing was said about it.�

But McClure appealed, paying $300 to send papers to state and national officials. Legion State Chairman Harold Hall at first upheld Hatfield’s ruling.

A day later, on Saturday, Hall changed his mind.

“I have been in American Legion for 40 years and I’m not going to let them treat me that way,� Hatfield said. “I have nothing against the two boys or their manager. But why shouldn’t they go by the book?�

Hatfield coached teams from Sylmar and, most recently, Chatsworth for 33 years. He said he does not plan to return to legion ball in any capacity next year.

But Area 6 runner-up Valley North would like to have him back.

“Oh, absolutely we would,� Valley North Coach Steve Thompson said. “He’s a definite asset to our program.�

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Right-hander Stuart Sellz of Valley North pitched three complete games in the postseason, winning two and losing the Area 6 championship game, which he entered with a 6-1 record and 1.47 ERA.

He was 3-1 in the playoffs, winning a game in relief. Sellz completed all eight of his starts this summer.

“One of my goals in legion was to prove myself to some college coaches or some pro scouts,� he said. “But that didn’t happen. Nobody talked to me.�

He will attend Moorpark College after one varsity season at Chatsworth High, where he fought his way into the rotation after riding the bench half the season.