Kennedy Still King

GRANADA HILLS â€”  George Kassis, Kevin Serr and Terrmel Sledge helped pave the way to Kennedy High’s City Section 4-A Division baseball championship last year.

But after the Golden Cougars’ 3-1 victory over Carson at Dodger Stadium, Kassis, Serr and Sledge traded in their uniforms for high school diplomas, leaving doubt that the team would travel the same road this season.

Kassis batted. 427, Sledge .422 and Serr .340 last season, and Kennedy finished 26-4 and ranked No. 1 in the area by The Times.

Serr hit the game-winning home run against Carson, a three-run shot. Kassis, the area leader in runs batted in with 42, combined with Serr for 72 RBIs and 10 home runs. Between them, Kassis and Sledge had 22 doubles.

How would Coach Manny Alvarado be able to replace such firepower? He didn’t have to worry.

During the fall semester, three standout players from other City schools, Fernando Centeno of Birmingham and Josh Miranda and David Lusk of Monroe, transferred to Kennedy.

Lusk batted .360 and drove in 30 runs for a Monroe team that finished 19-9 and figured to be one of the top teams in the Valley Pac-8 Conference this season before he and Miranda transferred.

Kennedy would have been good without these newcomers. With them, the Golden Cougars pick up where they left off in The Times’ Valley rankings: No. 1.

Miranda led area players in stolen bases with 28 and was fourth in the City in batting with a .451 average. Centeno was sixth with a .429 average and led area players in doubles with 14.

“I kind of always wanted to go to Kennedy,� said Lusk, a junior catcher. “Because of open enrollment, I decided I [had] better do it.�

Lusk and Miranda, in fact, shared the dream of playing for Cougars since junior high. But when they became eligible to transfer last year, neither divulged his decision to the other.

“I wanted a little change,� said Miranda, a junior outfielder. “I wanted to develop more and become a better ballplayer while playing against more-challenging opponents.�

Centeno, a senior outfielder, did not intend to leave Birmingham--he would have returned as the team’s best player. But section officials forced him to transfer to Kennedy last fall when they discovered Centeno, then a second-semester exchange student from Ecuador, was living in Granada Hills with Birmingham boys’ soccer Coach Jose Freire.

“I had good times at Birmingham,� Centeno said. “But I didn’t know at the beginning how good Kennedy was. . I like being ranked No. 1.�

Kennedy’s lineup includes three standout pitchers and six .300 hitters.

Jon Garland, who figures to be the team’s ace, was 7-0 with an earned-run average of 2.26 last season. David Soto was 6-1 and had the second-best ERA in the area at 1.10. Derek Morse, who went the distance in Kennedy’s title game, was 8-3 with a 2.25 ERA.

Any one of the three could emerge as the City’s top pitcher, which would make Lusk feel at home.

In each of the past two seasons Lusk, a junior, has been the battery mate of a pitcher who signed a pro contract after the season: Joel Zamudio and Wayne Nix.

Soto also played shortstop last season and batted .375 and had 24 RBIs. Also returning are third baseman Aldo Pinto (.367, 24 RBIs) and outfielder Christian Bartlett (.373). Garland, Pinto and Bartlett combined for nine home runs.

Kennedy probably didn’t need the extra talent. Former Monroe Coach Kevin Campbell, who resigned last spring before his players transferred, will be the first to agree. Campbell said Miranda and Lusk might have been influenced by Kennedy players or parents with whom they were associated in youth baseball.

But it doesn’t matter as long as the section allows open enrollment.

“I told Lusk he’s selling his teammates out,� Campbell said.

Said Lusk: “[Campbell] thought I was abandoning my school and was doing it for the wrong reasons. I think he thought I just wanted to go off and play for a championship team.�

It was a difficult decision for Lusk because Campbell put him in the lineup as an unproven freshman. But when the opportunity to go to a different school arose, he jumped at it.

THE REST OF THE TOP 10:

2. Royal (19-10 in 1995): The Highlanders play in the area’s toughest league, but Royal is the team coaches mention first when talking about the Marmonte League. Good pitching, solid hitting and experience.

Key returnees are shortstop Brent Egan (.376, 16 stolen bases), pitcher-first baseman Matt Pitstick (four triples), outfielder Kevin Mellinger (.381, 28 RBIs) and pitcher Adrian Mendoza (9-0, 2.32 ERA).

3. Crespi (11-16): The Celts are not accustomed to losing seasons and they expect to return to form with 11 returnees.

Shortstop Brian Luderer (.471, 28 RBIs) is one of four players who batted better than .300 last season. If there is a concern, it is pitching, where reliever John Cuccias becomes the ace.

4. Thousand Oaks (18-10): Seven players return from the 1995 Marmonte championship team, headed by second baseman Jack Wilson and brothers Ryan and Tyler Holmes.

Wilson led area Southern Section players with a .581 batting average. Ryan, an outfielder, batted .441 and stole 17 bases. Third baseman Tyler hit .391 with 27 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. Pitcher Santos Mummey (7-2, 0.56 ERA) was tops in the league last year, but doubts linger over defense and how the team will adapt to new Coach Bill Sizemore.

5. El Camino Real (19-9-1): If Kennedy blinks, Coach Mike Maio’s Conquistadores could make their third trip to the final in four years. Five starters--led by pitchers Mike Conn (8-2, 1.14 ERA) and Shaun Fishman (7-4, 2.67)--return from a team that reached the semifinals last season,

6. Calabasas (25-1): The Coyotes might not have as good a team as the one that went 25-0 before falling in the quarterfinals, but several talented players return. Pitcher-center fielder Tanner Trosper (25 stolen bases) will be the pitching ace. He and second baseman Darin Reisman (.326) have signed letters of intent to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Junior catcher Josh Goldfield and senior shortstop Josh Harris return as all-league selections.

7. Hart (19-7): A slew of promising players transferred to Hart before the 1995 season, but the Indians had an up-and-down year with a slow start, a long winning streak and a first-round loss in the playoffs. Sluggers Brian Baron (.412, 35 RBIs), Eric Horvat and Mike Bland combined for nine home runs. Speedy outfielder Cody Joyce should be an exciting newcomer. Pitching could also be strong if junior left-hander Bobby Graves comes back from an arm injury.

8. Camarillo (17-8): The Scorpions finished fourth in the Marmonte but were excluded from the playoffs. They should be explosive this year with two of the league’s most-talented players: pitcher-third baseman Nathan Kaup (.356, 26 RBIs; 6-1 on the mound) and center fielder Joe Borchard (.351, five home runs).

9. Crescenta Valley (19-4): The Falcons, ranked fifth at the end of ‘95, like Kennedy received an off-season windfall. Outfielder Nathan Sinning and infielder Jake Willis, each returning from a one-year hiatus, join an experienced team led by four-year starting shortstop Jesse Mitchell (.410) and catcher Jesse Daggett (.353, 26 RBIs).

10. Sylmar (19-8): The Spartans always have good pitching, and this season will be no exception with Rafael Velazco (7-2, 1.42 ERA), Albert Palma and a healthy Javier Ruelas. Chris Ruley (.365, four home runs, 28 RBIs) also is back.