Burbank, Harlandale, McCollum all playoff-bound

By Mike Considine

Harlandale has already crossed the biggest goal for this season off its list. Now, the Indians are setting their sights a little higher.

After a two-year absence from the postseason, Harlandale (12-11, 8-4) guaranteed itself of an extended season Tuesday with a victory over Memorial. Far from being satisfied, the Indians battled for an 8-4 win over a determined Southside squad Friday at the Frank Tejeda Complex.

“It was a big relief,” Harlandale senior Michael Agis said of making the playoffs. “It made me feel like a freshman again. It was a big weight off our shoulders.

“We’re going to try to win out. If we can do that, we’ll be in second place by ourselves, and not have to play a higher seed in the playoffs.”

Burbank, Harlandale and McCollum are the only are teams that have clinched playoff berths heading into the final week of the season, although several local teams still have a chance to qualify.

The schedule is lining up for the Indians to have a chance to improve on its current district placing. The two wins this week tied Harlandale for third place with Uvalde (12-9-1, 8-4).

The Indians were originally scheduled to play at Uvalde next Tuesday, but that game had to be moved because of testing. They’ll finish the 29-4A season at the Coyotes’ field next Saturday at noon. Their next game will be against archrival and second-place McCollum (20-4, 9-3) 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Tejeda complex.

“We were very fortunate to clinch (the playoffs),” Harlandale coach Eric Forestier said. “I think this is the first time we’ve clinched that early since I’ve been here – seven years. We’re attacking each game like it’s a playoff game.

“We have to beat Uvalde, and then we’d be in third by ourselves. If we win out, we’ll be in second place by ourselves. If we lose both, we’ll be in fourth.”

Southside (7-18-1, 3-9) was officially eliminated from playoff consideration Tuesday. The Cardinals are part of a three-way tie for fifth in 29-4A, along with Kennedy (8-15, 3-9) and Floresville (8-17-1, 3-9).

“(Agis) is definitely the type of pitcher we want to work the count against,” Southside coach Fernando Garcia said. “For the most part, we were able to put the ball in play fairly well. We were being disciplined at the plate.”

Agis (8-1, 0.56 ERA) struck out 21 Cardinals batters in the Indians’ 3-2 win March 26 at Southside. So, he knew they’d be out for revenge Friday.

Then he was hit by a curve ball between the shoulders while batting in the first inning. Agis admitted that the injury affected his throwing during the game.

“I started off slow,” he said. “I got hit in the back, by the shoulder blade. The main thing is we got the win. It doesn’t matter how we got it.”

In the rematch, Agis struck out 10 – bringing his season total to 112 in 62 innings – while walking four. Two of the Cardinals’ runs were unearned, but they mustered nine hits to Harlandale’s seven.

“You can’t strike out everybody or pitch a no-hitter every game,” Forestier said. “We talked about how he needed to pitch. About how he needed to be a pitcher, not a thrower, and throw his breaking ball for strikes.

“I’m sure he was a little sore, but he was all right. He won’t pitch again until Thursday, against McCollum.”

The Cardinals reached Agis for four hits in the early going, but the game remained scoreless until Harlandale’s half of the fourth.

“It was a pretty good pitcher’s duel between Noe (Garza, Southside’s starter) and Agis,” Garcia said. “Noe, for us, was hitting his spots. He was changing things up and keeping them off-balance. He was in control for the portion he was in the game, and that was good to see for him.”

Agis (2-for-3) circled the bases with one out in the inning. He belted a triple that hugged the right-field line. The senior standout came home on the play when the relay throw was errant. Agis also collected the first of his three RBIs, as his hit brought home senior Jonathan Rodriguez, who had singled.

Southside threatened to score in its half of the fourth. Junior shortstop Ryan Cortez slammed a double and took third on a wild pitch. However, Agis got Southside’s third out on a pop up, stranding two runners.

“(Southside) had some crucial baserunning mistakes,” Forestier said, referring to the early innings. “We were able to capitalize on that.”

The lost offensive opportunity soon came back to haunt the Cardinals. Harlandale essentially won the game with six runs in its half of the fourth.

“We started executing a little better and putting the ball in play,” Forestier said. “We got key hits when we had men on base. It came down to execution.”

A Southside error, a sacrifice bunt from Harlandale designated hitter Zach Perez, a hit by Kinkaid Gonzales and a walk to junior Brandon Ramon opened the flood gates. The Indians had loaded the bases with one out. Rodriguez walked to force in a run ahead of Agis’ two-run single, which increased Harlandale’s lead to 5-0.

Senior Nick Martinez drove home two more runs with a base hit. Another Cardinals error made it 8-0.

“Without a doubt against Harlandale, you don’t want to give them any opportunities they can take advantage of,” Garcia said. “That was heads-up on their part. We had eliminated that, prior to that inning.

“But they’ll take advantage of things, just like we did in the seventh.”

Southside broke the ice in the fifth, after freshman Ryan Ramirez led off with a double. Jake Ramos drew a walk and Gabriel Botello brought home the run with a two-out single to center field.

Botello also sparked a Southside rally in the seventh.

He delivered a base hit and Christian Garza, who entered the game with a pinch-hit single in the fifth, walked. Second baseman Luis Salazar then sent a bases-clearing triple to the gap in left-center field, bringing the Cardinals within 8-3. Salazar scored on a grounder from Cortez before Agis was able to put out the fire.

In Harlandale’s win over Memorial Tuesday, Martinez limited the Minutemen to two hits and was the winning pitcher. Junior Rogelio Gutierrez led the offense with a 3-for-4 performance that included a double and six RBIs.

Richard Acosta, Gonzales, Martinez and Agis all contributed two hits. Gonzales, Martinez and Agis drove in runs as the Indians scored nine runs in the third inning and eight in the fourth.

“It’s just been hard work and executing,” Agis said of Harlandale’s growth to become a playoff team. “Getting the job done. We’ve done the little things, like getting bunts down and moving runners.”

Southside was coming off a tough, 5-3 loss to Kennedy Tuesday on its home field. The Rockets led 2-0 after an inning, but the Cardinals cut the lead in half in the fourth and won with a two-run rally in the fifth.

Kennedy regained the lead for good with three runs in the top of the sixth to make freshman Fabian Del Toro the winning pitcher for the second time this season versus the Cardinals.

Southside will close out its regular season with a 6:30 p.m. game against Floresville Thursday and a game against McCollum Saturday, which is tentatively scheduled for noon.

“What I talked about is, what they want to leave, for the baseball program and for themselves,” Garcia said. “For the seniors, especially, we want them to keep moving and stay focused. We want them to respect the game and show discipline. If they respect the game, they’ll finish strong, with no regrets and leave everything on the field.”