Bonanza High School senior Ryan Pineda waits for a throw, April 24. Pineda is 4-1 on the mound this year and has a 2.77 ERA. Photo by Jim Miller/VIEW
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As the spring athletic season nears its end, the Bonanza High School Bengals are hoping one of their top players can lead them back to the baseball playoffs and beyond.
Senior infielder/pitcher Ryan Pineda is leading the way for Bonanza this year. On the mound, he is 4-1 with three saves as a closer and has a 2.77 ERA. Offensively, he has a .383 batting average, with 19 RBIs and 12 stolen bases.
Bonanza head coach Derek Stafford feels that Pineda brings confidence and a strong work ethic to the field.
"He leads by example," Stafford said. "He has a very professional approach to the game. He's a quiet leader."
Pineda first got involved in the game as a child when his mom signed him up for tee ball at age 5. Growing up, he said he looked up to Cincinnati Reds outfielder Ken Griffey Jr.
He started with the Bengals as a freshman. Baseball isn't his only sport, as he also likes to play basketball with his friends.
While Pineda enjoys pitching in general, he said he definitely prefers closing out games more than starting them.
"It gets the adrenaline going," Pineda said. "There is nothing like winning the game with the last three outs."
The Bengals are trying to repeat the success of last season, when they reached the Sunset Region finals before losing to Bishop Gorman, the eventual state champions.
Although the Bengals have gone through a minor slump, Pineda said he hopes his team can rally and make a run in the playoffs.
"It's been an up-and-down year," he said. "We're going to have to start winning out to do good, so hopefully we can do that."
Other standouts on the team include senior shortstop/pitcher Joel Hernandez, who is posting an ERA of 2.15, as well as junior lefty Chasen Shreve, who leads in innings pitched and in strikeouts with 26 strikeouts.
Stafford said it hasn't been difficult to keep his team in check and focused on the task at hand.
"The kids get along just fine," he said. "I try to always remind them that it's just a game, a fun game, too, and that if it ever becomes not fun to stop playing."
Bonanza's road is a tough one, playing in the Southwest Division with the likes of Durango, Sierra Vista, and those same Gaels that eliminated the Bengals last year. But Pineda thinks the team has the potential to challenge the top contenders in the valley.
"We're definitely as talented as the other teams," he said. "We're just not playing the way we know we can."
After this year, Pineda plans on attending Cal-State Northridge, playing for the Matadors next spring. When he gets there, he has one goal in mind.
"I hope to go in and start as a freshman," he said. "I want to go in and do it like I did in high school. I don't like to sit."
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