Leghorns attract the best of best

Area's top baseball players choose to play with American Legion team

June 28, 2006

By FRANK STRANZL
FOR THE ARGUS-COURIER

Drawing the best baseball players in Petaluma onto one team is a lot like trying to persuade MLB players not to sign with the glitz and glamour of the Yankees or Red Sox -- it's not easy.

Connie Mack often attracts the best players in Sonoma County, including former Casa Grande standout D.J. Gentile. But not this year.

Gentile, the Redwood Empire's High School Player of the Year, opted to join the Petaluma Leghorns, a team affiliated with the American Legion, rather than playing his third year for Santa Rosa Connie Mack.

"I was just tired of it, tired of all the traveling and decided I wanted to play for my local team," Gentile said.

The Leghorns already had a talented squad without Gentile, but the Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo-destined outfielder represents much more to the program than just another big bat in the lineup.

"We would love to keep the best players at home," business manager Rod Moore said. "D.J. making the decision that he made this year lets some of the other kids that aspire to play college baseball know that there is a quality program right in their hometown."

One player the Leghorns wish was on the roster is Casa Grande ace Kory Wallace. Gentile gave a sales pitch to his former teammate and close friend, but to no avail as Wallace chose the Sonoma County Rebels, a Connie Mack squad.

Ironically, Wallace earned a 6-4 win over the weekend against the Leghorns while pitching for the Rebels at the Bobby Goss Invitational in Eureka.

The Leghorns won't miss Wallace too much, though, as the roster is loaded with local high school stars from both the past and present.

John Cilley, a 6-foot-6 Petaluma High School graduate, posted an anemic 0.69 earned-run average in 2005 for the Trojans en route to winning the Sonoma County League Most Valuable Player and Redwood Empire Player of the Year awards.

Pitching is a strong piece of Cilley's game, but he isn't too shabby at the plate either. He hit .410 with 20 RBI and three home runs as well in 2005.

Joining Cilley in the rotation are Josh Krist, another superb starting pitcher from the PHS class of 2005, and Eric LeBaron, Casa Grande's No. 2 man late in the season. LeBaron only pitched in three games for the Gauchos, but finished 2-0 with a 2.10 ERA, and pitched the first five innings in a North Coast Section playoff win against Marin Catholic.

Josh Krist, whose brother Chadd is also playing for the Leghorns, pitched behind Cilley for the Trojans two years ago in what was a breakout season for PHS. Krist posted a 0.72 ERA and a clean slate at 8-0. Like Cilley, Krist was also a very capable hitter with a .413 batting average and 23 RBI.

The Leghorn pitching staff will also include Trojans Brandon DeLon, MJ Enochs and James Perez, as well as Gauchos Nick Frazer, Chris Jensen, Nick Marshall and Dan Thompson.

The true strength of the team, however, is the offense. Gentile is one of the better hitters in his age group in the Bay Area and Chadd Krist is quickly making a name for himself as well.

Chadd Krist hit .434 with three home runs and 19 RBI in 2006 -- as a sophomore.

"We have the talent to go as far as we want," Gentile said. "It's just a matter of putting it together on the field and performing at our best."

Coaching the Leghorns for his seventh season is Casey Gilroy.

The Petaluma High School graduate played at San Francisco State and coached 10 years at Campolindo High School in Moraga.

The Leghorns will compete against several Northern California teams, and will head to Reno for a tournament leading up to the District 5 Tournament starting July 16. There are only three teams in District 5 -- Napa, Fairfield and Petaluma.

Should the Leghorns advance from the there, they would play at the Area 1 Tournament in Yountville in a bid for a trip to the State Championships.

(Contact Frank Stranzl at acsports@arguscourier.com)