Orange County Player of the Week : Rolish Is On a Roll

Jason Rolish, a Servite High School senior, didn’t exactly struggle last season. He hit .378. But hitting more than .300 in high school is not all that uncommon.

So, Rolish set his goal for this season at .450.

To reach it, he decided to cut down his swing. The idea was to make more contact to put the ball in play.

So this season, Rolish--The Times Player of the Week--is using a shorter, lighter bat and he chokes up when he has two strikes.

The results thus far have been good.

He has been among the county’s leading hitters since the season’s second week. Rolish, who is hitting .532, has had at least one hit in 16 of the Friars’ 18 games.

“I wanted to hit. 450 at the start, but now I just want to hit as high as I can,� Rolish said.

Though Rolish has shortened his swing, he has retained his power. His two home runs last week gave him three for the season, matching his junior season.

“Last year, I would swing for the long ball,� Rolish said. “I had more extra base hits, but I knew that really wasn’t going to help me as a hitter in the long run. This season, I’ve become a better hitter, especially on the curveball. Last season, I had trouble with that pitch.�

Monday, he homered and was 2 for 3 in the Friars’ 4-0 victory over No. 6 El Dorado. He had two more hits in Servite’s 8-2 victory over Pius X on Wednesday.

Thursday, he hit another home run and was 2 for 3 in the Friars’ 6-1 victory over Pius.

“At the start of the season he (Rolish) was a little impatient at the plate,� said Mike McNary, first-year Servite coach. “After the first couple of games, I talked with him about what he should be doing at the plate as far as looking for his pitch.�

Rolish also is one of the county’s top defensive catchers after only two full seasons at that position. He caught for the first time in high school as a sophomore on the junior varsity team and made the move to varsity as a junior.

Rolish, All-Angelus League last season, threw out three runners attempting to steal last week.

Jason Rolish

Servite High School

Position: Catcher.

Height, Class: 5-11, Sr.

Last Week: Was 6 for 10, hit two home runs in team’s three victories.

Season: Is among the leading hitters in the county at .532 (33-62), has four home runs and leads the team with 21 RBIs and has scored 19 runs.