When a high school baseball team graduates eight senior starters—all of whom are either playing at four-year or two-year programs—the cupboard is usually bare the following season.
At tradition-rich Los Gatos High, however, there’s really no such thing as a rebuilding process—it’s more like a reload. Despite graduating eight senior starters off a team that advanced to the semifinals of the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs last year, the Wildcats—who started the season 3-2—are still a formidable unit.
It’s just going to take time for the team to hit its peak this season since it doesn’t have much in the way of significant varsity experience.
“Kaito Haake, our No. 1 pitcher, is one of the most experienced players coming back and he had one start in league last year and five at-bats,” Wildcats coach Justin Oliver said. “It’s a totally different look from what we had last year. But our sophomore class is extremely talented. And we are fortunate at Los Gatos because we have a ton of talent and the pipeline is strong.”
Interestingly enough, Oliver said purely on talent alone, this year’s team might be superior to last year’s group. However, the experience is lacking and at the high school level being seasoned is paramount.
“We’re extremely young, so we’ll take some growing pains this year,” Oliver said. “But I honestly think there’s a little more talent—maybe—on this year’s team. But to compare this team to what last year’s team did and accomplished is not fair. Will it get there? Oh, 100 percent. But we’re young and it takes time to get to that point.”
Oliver said he’s been proud of seniors like Jaden Mena, Nick Temple and Haake, who have emerged as pacesetters.
“They’ve shown tremendous leadership from a position of inexperience,” Oliver said.
Temple is a relief pitcher and first baseman who hit fifth in the order in the Wildcats’ 8-3 win over Santa Cruz on March 5. Haake had a quality start in the season-opener against Palma and followed that up with six terrific innings of one-run ball against CCS power Serra of San Mateo.
“When he’s on the mound, Kaito is a leader and continues to impress,” Oliver said.
Mena plays in the outfield and provides a solid bat with strong defense. Junior catcher Drew Dillehay is one of the vocal leaders and led the team with eight hits through the first five games. Another junior, Massimo Richiuso, is the team’s No. 2 starter and a threat offensively as well.
“Massimo is a big piece for us and he’ll definitely be a player at the next level,” Oliver said.
Sophomores expected to shine include Carter Johnstone, Anthony Andrews and Spencer Berg.
Johnstone, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound shortstop, entered the week hitting over .500 with a team-best seven RBI and has been “phenomenal for us,” Oliver said. Andrews, a versatile utility player, has tremendous potential with Division I programs eyeing him.
“Anthony is so athletic and gifted he can play anywhere,” Oliver said. “He’s got a 54-inch vertical (leap), which is really crazy.”
Berg has been the team’s No. 1 relief pitcher, while senior left fielder Alejandro Quijada is off to a hot start this season with a .538 average.
Richiuso was on his game against Santa Cruz. He allowed no earned runs over five superb innings while going 2 for 3 at the plate. Dillehay went 4 for 5 with three doubles and two RBI, and Quijada went 2 for 2 with three runs scored and three walks, reaching base in all five of his plate appearances.
Johnstone, Mena and Dillehay had two RBI each. Oliver and his coaching staff continue to preach plate discipline offensively and for the pitchers to attack the zone. It’s no coincidence Los Gatos tends to have a superior walk to strikeout ratio in both batting and pitching compared to most teams.
“It’s understanding who you are, your strengths and weaknesses, and really honing in on that and understanding your identity at the plate,” Oliver said.
Oliver has liked how his team has responded in losses to CCS powers St. Francis and Serra. Against the Lancers, the Wildcats fell behind 6-1 after the first inning but continued to battle and outscored St. Francis from the second inning on.
Despite graduating basically its entire starting lineup from a year ago, Los Gatos has reloaded and is poised for another strong season. Oliver continually reaches out and has a strong relationship with the community, which constantly supports the baseball program.
“It’s definitely a unique situation being a coach at Los Gatos,” he said. “It’s not like everywhere else and it’s great to be a part of it.”
Sports editor Emanuel Lee can be reached at [email protected]
