Palma"s Creecy shuts out Gilroy
PUBLISHED: March 21, 2012 at 12:00 a.m. | UPDATED: September 11, 2018 at 12:00 a.m.
GILROY — Before Palma starting pitcher Brandon Creecy takes to the mound, the senior left-hander is always thinking one thing: "I want to go complete game every time. That"s all I"m thinking about."
And that"s exactly what he did Tuesday against Gilroy — throwing a four-hit shutout in the Chieftains" 5-0 road victory.
"He"s just got great command of the strike zone, mixes speeds well and holds runners," said Palma coach Phil Giammanco. "If we play good defense behind him, it"s going to be pretty tough to score. He"s been pretty solid so far."
Creecy"s second shutout of the season was backed by a pair of run-scoring singles from senior second baseman Alec Irwin in the second and fourth innings, as well as a three-run rally in the sixth to put the game out of reach.
Palma (6-1, 4-0) remained undefeated in the Tri-County Athletic League, keeping pace with in-town rival Salinas (7-3, 5-0), which handed San Benito (8-3, 6-1) its first league loss on Tuesday as well. Up next, the Chieftains host Gilroy on Thursday to finish up their two-game set and then host Alvarez on Friday.
"We"re trying to focus on the game we"ve got," said Giammanco, who believes almost every team in the TCAL has a chance to win on any given day. "We"re focusing on the pony we"re playing that day."
On Tuesday, it was Gilroy — and the Chieftains took care of business.
In the second inning, senior first baseman Marcus House"s two-out double that dropped just fair down the right-field line got things started. Then, Irwin poked a run-scoring single to right as Palma broke the scoreless tie for a 1-0 edge.
Two innings later, sophomore third baseman Anthony Payan was hit by a pitch to reach base; House singled to put two runners on; a wild pitch advanced them both into scoring position; and Irwin went opposite field again for his second RBI single of the game.
"I was just looking for a pitch to hit. Anything ? even fly balls to the outfield — just get the run in. I don"t care how," said Irwin. "He was keeping it outside and low, so I figured I"d put my approach "Op-o", not try to pull anything."
After threatening for more in the fourth but settling for a 2-0 advantage, the Chieftains finally broke the game open with a three-run sixth. Senior shortstop Joey Schulman"s two-run single was the finishing touch and more than enough for Creecy — who struck out seven and walked only one over seven frames.
"Coach does it all. I usually like calling my own game, but he did a perfect job. A lot of change-ups, a lot of curves, that"s how I like to throw," said Creecy, who allowed four singles the entire game and never more than one in an inning. "My fastball is never really up, so it"s always change-up, curveball to keep them off-balance."
Creecy only got into a bit of trouble in the first inning when Gilroy put two runners on with no outs and then advanced to second and third with only one out. But the senior hurler caught one batter looking for the second out and then ended the threat by forcing a groundout to second.
Gilroy did not have another runner reach second base for the remainder of the game. Junior catcher Charles Byers erased one base runner in the second when he caught a pop-up off a bunt attempt and doubled the runner off first to end the inning. Creecy then picked off another base runner in the fourth before striking out the next two batters.
"There"s always room for improvement," said Irwin. "We"re a young team, but we"re together all the time, so that helps."
Police seeking community's help in locating suspect, considered to be armed and dangerous
Police seeking community's help in locating suspect, considered to be armed and dangerous