Second to none

Anthony Ortiz blasted a team-high four home runs and drove in 23 for the Gila Valley Region champion Kofa Kings this year.

Not bad for a leadoff hitter.

Ortiz batted leadoff all season, and it didn't rob him of RBI chances or any other chance to shine as the senior shorstop was named the 2008 The Sun/Yuma Rotary Club Baseball Player of the Year.

In his third year on the varsity team, Ortiz hit .422, third on the team, up from around .290 a year ago.

"I really stepped it up this year," Ortiz said. "The past few years, I haven't hit as well as I wanted to. It was more my defense. My hitting was most improved, and that was the strong point of my game this year."

Only Mark Wright drove in more runs for the Kings - and he batted third or fourth most of the year. Coach Richy Leon said he was impressed that Ortiz could drive in that many runs from the leadoff spot and that there was "never a thought" to drop him down.

"He did get his RBIs there, guys were getting on base for him down in the order," Leon said. "There is a thought, not many agree with it, that you play your hottest hitter at the top of the lineup becuase he's going to get the msot at-bats."

Ortiz said if he had his choice, he wouldn't have been the leadoff hitter, but said he wasn't going to question his manager, never brining the issue up to Leon.

"Personally, I kind of don't like it because I don't like being the first guy," Ortiz said. "The first guy determines the way the game is going to go, and if I don't get it going the right way, we have to step it up.

"I really don't like it, but I did it this year, and I think I did alright."

Ortiz spent practically the entire season with the same batting average without much fluxuation up or down.

"In the back of your mind when he started off hot, you go 'I wonder how long this rides,'" Leon said. "And he never got cold. It got to the point if he wasnt getting two, three, four hits in a game it was like 'What's wrong with Anthony now.' But he kept it up the whole year and you can't stress enough how much he contributed to our succesful season."

Regardless of where he batted, Leon said the coaching staff came to rely on his consitency.

"He was basically a guy that by the middle of the season, we said 'He's going to get a base hit and drive in a bunch or runs,'" Leon said. "It was a great shot in the arm for us."

The Kings, despite winning the region thanks to an explosive offense, earned a No. 5 seed but lost their two playoff games, as they did last year in the same position. Ortiz said he worked hard over the offseason to help himself help the team.

"I jsut started swining and started seeing the ball better, I guess," said Ortiz, who is weighing playing for Palomar or Phoenix College next season. "I really hit a lot over the summer, and that helped."

And Leon said any success the Kings had, Ortiz contributed to majorly.

"He's been a great player for us for three years," Leon siad. "Last year he was a steady ballplayer, but I'm very proud of the way he went about his business in the offseason. He played a ton, put a lot of work in and made himself not a good high school ballplayer but a great high school player."

2008 THE SUN/YUMA ROTARY CLUB ALL-REGION BASEBALL TEAM

P- Heriberto Ron, San Luis
P- Brock Jacobo, Yuma High
P- Josh Contreras, Cibola
C- Mark Wright, Kofa
1B - Ed Celaya, Cibola
2B - Alvaro Palomares, San Luis
SS - Anthony Ortiz, Kofa (Player of the Year)
3B - Tyler Owl, Kofa
OF - Erick Martinez, Yuma Catholic
OF – Joel Gamez, San Luis
OF – Sergio Sanchez, Kofa
DH- Chance Mixon, Antelope
Util. – Victor Robles, San Pasqual