Murphy really likes this team
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Although 10th-year Rio Rancho High School baseball coach Ron Murphy was understandably unhappy with the late start of practice this year and the condition of the Real Turf surface at his baseball stadium, he has been happy lately with spring like temperatures and being able to get three games under his belt this weekend.
The Rams (19-8) saw their 2006 season end after a 4-1 loss to Mayfield in a "Round of 16" game here. Trojans ace Gera Sanchez threw a four-hitter that day.
Murphy, heading into his 10th season at the helm, doesn't think his team will be able to manufacture a lot of runs this year, either, but Rio Rancho can probably still play "small ball," as long as the pitching meets its expectations and the defense is strong.
"I'm worried, even though we did really well at the scrimmage, with our hitting," Murphy said. "We don't expect many guys to hit the ball out of the park. ... There are two things I'm worried about: The catching spot being solidified, somebody winning that position and proving it; and I'm worried about hitting on a consistent basis."
Toward that end, the Rams are deep on the mound and sound in the field.
"I think this is a really strong team this year, not only talent-wise but I think, as far as playing together, this is one of the strongest teams we've had," he said. "That's what we've been missing the last couple of years.
"The real key is we've got to do the little things right," he said.
Pitching: "On the mound, we're very strong. We can go four, five pitchers deep - that's unheard on the high school level," he said. "So we feel real comfortable on the mound."
Co-aces Joey Garcia and Kyle Hammond return, along with Michael Gilligan, Patrick "Bubs" Montano, Ethan Gill and Alex Wehner, who pitched the first game in Clovis Thursday against Levelland (Texas).
Catching: "Behind the plate, believe it or not, we have a battle with Micah Martinez, a junior, and Chris Wallis, a freshman," Murphy said, explaining Wallis got a golden opportunity to strut his stuff "a couple weeks ago when our varsity catcher and our JV catcher were home sick.
"(On Feb. 10) in the scrimmage game he went 4 for 5 at the plate ... Our pitchers really like the way he blocks the ball," he said. "Whoever plays better is going to be behind the plate."
Infield: Garcia or Gavin Purvis at first base; David Waid ("great athlete," Murphy said)at second base; Ethan Gill ("great athlete," Murphy echoed) at shortstop; Josh Capello at third base. "He's been one of our big leaders out there," he said.
"Our middle's going to be as solid as we've had in a long time," Murphy said, happy with the opportunity to have juniors Waid and Gill as his keystone combination for two years.
Outfield: Montano in left field; Zach Martinez, "steady and all over the place," Murphy lauded, in center field; Trevor Purvis in right field. "We hope when Trevor's not able to play right, Kyle Hammond might be out there," Murphy said.
Also, Murphy said, "We've got some great role players in Colby Curry, Pedro Duran ... Mike Gilligan can play some outfield, come in and give us some minutes on the mound," Murphy said.
Designated hitter: That role will probably come down to who's not pitching on that particular day. "That's probably going to rotate around ... and who's hitting and not hitting at the time," Murphy said. "That's a role Gavin Purvis might fill; he's only a sophomore. Colby Curry's a big ol' strong kid for us; he benches about 240, 250. He's as strong as an ox.
"He's kind of behind on the baseball scene, hasn't been playing much, but when he hits the ball, he'll hit it on the other side of the street."
The pitching depth should be a plus.
"When it came down to the district race at the end and the playoffs, we don't have to throw anybody too much," he said.
Also on the roster that traveled to Clovis for this weekend's tournament areOctavio Grajeda, Anthony Haase, Cameron Fafard and Josh Walker.
District title aspir-ations: "Cibola won it last year and I would say they have to be favored ... West Mesa has (Adam) Pacheco back; Pacheco's a tough little player. West Mesa has Chris Gallegos. Gallup is the unknown, but they were tough, they were competitive, last year.
"Our goal is to win district by far," Murphy said. "We're planning to go out and give it our best shot and I don't think we would be happy with anything less than winning the district."
The schedule: "It's awesome: Go down to Clovis, play some great games. The Roswell tournament has Hobbs and La Cueva in it; if we meet La Cueva, it would be for the championship if we both advance that far. So we could possibly play La Cueva on Saturday and then Tuesday, which would be kind of neat.
"We play La Cueva and Eldorado in the pre-season; at our tournament, we have Farmington here, Highland, Clovis, Del Norte, Pius. We've got a great pre-season schedule.
"It's going to be a great year."
Statewide compet-ition: "I think until somebody beats (four-time defending state champ La Cueva), they're the team to catch," he said. "Eldorado's going to be pretty darn good with some great pitchers this year. Carlsbad's as tough as nails. Las Cruces High is going to be good. I hear Onate's got a good team this year. Put Alamogordo up there; Alamogrdo's always got a good team. Mayfield's got Dera Sanchez back - that guy can beat anybody on a given day."
The Rams may get a real feel for how good they are on March 20, when they play at perennial state champ La Cueva.
The Rams open their home slate Saturday with a doubleheader against Sandia, with the first pitch scheduled for 10 a.m.
The Rams swept a twinbill at Sandia last season, 12-6 and 8-3. The last time the teams played at RRHS, the Matadors swept the games, 7-2 and 8-3. The Rams also swept the two games at Sandia in 2004, and the teams divided the twinbill here in 2003.
Extra innings: Wehner and Gilligan combined on a one-hitter at Clovis Thursday as the Rams beat Levelland 9-0. Garcia clouted a three-run homer, as the Rams scored seven runs in the first two innings.
... As you can see by the schedule, the Rams have three-day tournament action here (March 8-10) and in Roswell (March 15-17). Rio Rancho won its Alstate Steel event in 2006, but lost to Hobbs in the Roswell championship game.
... Several former Rams are still playing college baseball: Justin Esquibel (Class of 2005) is in his final season at Eastern Arizona College; Tim Crafton (2002) is at Eastern New Mexico University; Ben Frye (2001) and Nathan Sisneros (2002) are teammates at Missouri Baptist University in Missouri.
... The Rams will be without longtime assistant coach Ruben Lardizabal this season; he retired recently. Dave Bency returns as the pitching coach, Anthony Martinez works with the outfielders, and Wisconsin native Adam Peterson will help. Jeff Wallis coaches the junior varsity team.
... The Class 5A state championship games will again be played at Isotopes Park May 16-19. The Rams have yet to play there.
