2007 Baseball Preview: Lineup Card Will Look Much Different This Season
January 31, 2007

With 2/3 of the starting outfield, 3/4 of the starting rotation, both starting corner infielders and a handful of dependable role players gone this season, CSUDH interim baseball head coach Murphy Su’a will have is hands full filling his swiss cheese looking line-up card in his first official year at the helm of the Toros baseball program.

“We lost some studs,” states Su’a with a semi-smile. “Most of those guys had their career years last season, so there are a lot of holes we had to fill. However, I have great faith in the players we have returning. Plus we brought in some talented young men who I think will do well and hold their own.”

The Second Time Around
Head coach Murphy Su’a is no stranger to being at the helm of the Toros baseball program.

In 2004, when then-head coach George Wing was sidelined due to cancer after 14 games, Su’a was thrust into the head coaching role.

Although his record that season was 10-37, it was one season that he is most proud of in his career thus far.

“That was probably my most rewarding year as a college coach,” begins Su’a. “Our record was not real good, but the things we went through and the challenges we faced were great because we overcame them. I love that year so much.”

A Cinderella Run in 2006
The 2006 Toro baseball team was a bit of a Cinderella story as, after being picked to finish 8th in the preseason conference poll, the Toros shocked everyone and finished 1st heading into the CCAA tournament.

In addition to being the front runners after the regular season, the Toros picked up CCAA Player and Pitcher of the Year awards for senior Chris Borchers and Jason Klug, while 18-year head coach George Wing would be awarded his second CCAA Coach of the Year award prior to announcing his retirement the following summer.

After the dust settled and all the awards were handed out, the Toros boasted one All-American, one West Region MVP, two 1st-Team All-West Region selections, one CCAA Player of the Year, one CCAA Pitcher of the Year, one CCAA Coach of the Year, three 1st-Team All-CCAA honorees, one 2nd-Team All-CCAA nod, four All-CCAA Honorable Mentions, and five players named to the All-CCAA Tournament team, making the 2006 team one of the most highly-decorated squads in Toro history.

However, just as in the fairy tale, the clock struck midnight and the ride came to an unexpected halt when the Toros were not selected to participate in the NCAA D-II West Regional playoffs.

“It was very disappointing,” states Su’a, looking back at the snub. “What happens happens, and we couldn’t control it, but to just do what we did during the regular season was phenomenal. I felt more for the players at the end of the season. For us as coaches, that is just something that we have to deal with.”

Houston Hernandez is a key returnee this year. He's a four-year starter and will be the team captain.

Who’s Back in 2007
Despite the losses both in the pitching staff and in the line-up, the Toros will return a number of key players from last season’s team.

Looking around the diamond, four-year starter and captain Houston Hernandez will once again be the man at second base. Over the past three seasons, Hernandez has started 131 of 141 games at second base, while steadily increasing his offensive numbers.

“Houston probably has the best hands in all of the conference, and acutually, I do not know of anyone who has better hands than Houston,” begins Su’a about his senior captain. “He is a tremendous leader who I think has grown and developed as both a player and a leader. He has a great career in coaching this game once he hangs up his cleats.”

Helping Hernandez turn the double plays at shortstop this season will be returning 1st-Team All-CCAA selection Cody Puckett. In his first season as a Toro, Puckett showcased a combination of power and speed. The Apple Valley Native blasted four home runs and slugged .546, stealing five bases and legging out 11 doubles, two triples, and only grounding into just one double play all year.

“Cody possesses great strength and a super arm with tremendous range,” says Su’a of his lone returning all-conference player.”

Once again the man in the iron mask will be Martin Conde, who started all but two games last season behind the plate.”

Martin Conde will be behind the plate this season, but might surface at third base some.

“Conde is a gifted athlete and a tremendous catcher as well as a good leader,” states Su’a. “He handles the pitching staff quite well and is not afraid to make mistakes. He will be carrying the load for us right now behind the dish, but you might see him at third base from time to time.”

Backing up Conde as well as providing some much needed power from the left side will be Dustin Hicks, who sat out last season after eight games due to injury. In those eight games, however, Hicks batted .500 with runners in scoring position, driving in six runs in only 10 at bats.

“Dustin is a gifted young man,” says Su’a. “He is a power-hitting left-handed hitter with a tremendous arm behind the plate who blocks the ball really well.”

After spending last season in right field, strong-armed Mateo Marquez is the lone starting outfielder returning this season, and will be seen captaining the outfield in center for 2007. Although he had only three assists in the stat book at the end of the year, his highly-powered and accurate right arm turned what should have been easy doubles into singles and RBI singles simple into base advancing knocks. With the shift to the middle of the outfield, the Toros should be able to further take advantage of the speed of Marquez, who was sixth in the CCAA with 18 stolen bases, and averaged one amazing catch in the outfield every game.

“Mateo posses tremendous speed and has a tremendous arm,” begins Su’a. “He can play small ball now and bunt really well and, coupled with surprising power, he has a chance to play pro ball after this season.”

Returning All-CCAA tournament team selection Chris Hunter will be looked upon to fill the hole in left field left by departing senior and All-CCAA honorable mention Fred Medina. Hunter started last season filling in off the bench, but was inserted as the designated hitter just before the mid-way point of the season, and never gave up the starting spot. With seven doubles, four home runs, four stolen bases, and one triple on the season, the Vallejo native showed an impressive combination of power and speed in his first real season of everyday playing time.

“Hunter is a very talented player with exceptional power,” says Su’a. “I believe that he is going to be tremendous, and I think he is going to open up some eyes this season.”

Matt Hopps is the only starting pitcher from last year returning. He began his CSUDH career playing in the infield.

Returner and former CCAA Freshman of the Year Matt Hopps will be the lone starting hurler on the mound again. After spending his entire freshman year in the infield due to a teammate's injury, the 6-5 righty was finally handed the ball as a sophomore.

Hopps would strike out 53 batters in only 60.1 innings of work in his first year as a collegiate pitcher.

“He is our number one and going to be our horse,” states Su’a. “He has a good, live fastball, his breaking pitches look good, and he is throwing everything for strikes.”

Backing up nearly every infield and outfield position will be senior Jerit Coleman, whose versatility allowed him to spend time at second base, center field, and left field last season.

“Jerit is a versatile player,” begins Su’a, “I call him our Chone Figgins (center fielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) because he gets ready to play every position, everyday, and he plays them well.”

Also returning will be backup catcher MurphiBennett Kennedy.

“Murphi is a strong young man with a pretty good arm behind the plate,” states Su’a.

Matt Magallon, who utilized a red shirt season last year as a true freshman is back, and has been a pleasant surprise to coach Su’a.

“He has really surprised me with his development from last year to this year,” begins Su’a. “He is an aggressive player and I love the way that he moves in both the infield and outfield.”

A key loss to the Toro batting order will be All-American, West Region MVP, and CCAA MVP Jason Klug, who will sit out this year due to off-season surgery.

“We are going to miss Klug, our All-American redshirt, but look forward to having him back healthy in the 2008 season” says Su’a.

In addition to starter Hopps on the the hill, charging out of the bullpen will be a quartet of tested veteran arms.

Southpaws David Leyva and Chris Abbott, along with right-handers James Dodson and Gus Hernandez, all will see ample time on the mound as the Toros look to keep opposing offenses at bay,

“I believe that David has finally matured into the pitcher we are looking for as far as experience and strength,” begins Su’a. “He is going to give us a lot of quality innings and may be seen in a starting role for us this season, while Chris has a lot of experience at this level having been with this program for many years, and he will be coming out of the bullpen to give us the lefty-lefty situation. He has the potential to maybe bid for a starting spot.”

“Dodson is one of our control guys, and is a tremendous team guy who we have seen signs of brilliance out of, and I think that he is going to surprise a lot of people on the mound this season,” begins Su’a, while “Gus is Gus, Gustavo-mania,” begins Su’a with a chuckle. “He is a competitor who just gets out there and competes. He will give up some hits and then come back and shut down the middle of the lineup.”

The Missing Pieces
Filling in the holes in the Toro lineup card will be a mixture of players hailing from Division I, NAIA, fellow CCAA schools, junior college players, and true freshmen.

Coming from the Division I world are senior Michael Craig (Pepperdine University) and sophomore Kelvin Kondo (Chicago State).

“Craig is a power pitcher and a power hitter who could set a new standard for power numbers at CSUDH, and maybe for the entire conference,” states Su’a, while Kelvin, “has had a tremendous winter and has a chance to be a closer for the Toros this year. He is armed with a pretty good splitter and a decent fastball,” says Su’a.

Making the transition from NAIA is senior Buddy McNeill via Azusa Pacific.

“Buddy throws a pretty heavy fastball with some pretty good juice,” begins Su’a. “He also has a chance at a closer role, a setup role, or maybe even as a possible starter, so I am excited about him.”

Following the trail blazed by Marquez last season, former Cal State L.A. Golden Eagles Scott More and Kyle Schneider are both playing their senior seasons as Toros.

“Scott is a power-hitting lefty first baseman, while Kyle is on this club because he is a competitor, begins Su’a. “Both are veterans, so they can help the younger players as well.”

Stepping up from the JuCo level is a quartet of hurlers in, Clay Young (Cerritos College), Matt Sannes (El Camino College), Jeff Phillips (Harbor College), and Rudy Rojas (Glendale College).

“Clay has got a good sized body and has tremendous potential, and I think he is going to be a pretty good power pitcher for us,” being Su’a, while “Matt is a crafty lefthander with an outstanding move to first base, -- in fact he has got about five or six different moves to first and they are all very good.”

“Jeff is going to be another workhorse for us, while Rojas will add depth to the bullpen,” concludes Su’a

Laying the foundation for the future of Toros baseball will be a group of six talented freshman in, Xavier Muñoz, Brian Sturgis, Brett Halstead, Brandon Hayes, Pascual Olmos, and Danny Torres.

Real Expectations From A Realist
Looking at his roster and the rest of the teams in the CCAA, coach Su’a believes that his first real year as head coach will be a successful one.

“I am a realist,” begins Su’a, “and looking at the club we have I know that we are going to compete. I think in my heart we have a club that can match what we did last year. It is going to take some work and some luck, but I think that we have the makeup to do so. There is no question that Chico has set the stanrd in our conference and our goal is to beat them. With that said, I believe that the CCAA Championship will have to go through Carson once again.”