Program History • Blue Devil Baseball

Baseball at Merced College has become synonymous with winning since 1972 when Butch Hughes became head coach of the Blue Devils.

Merced was 24-10 that year, and since then, the Blue Devils have had six consecutive seasons of 30 victories or more.

The 1972 Devils were led by Bill Sterling and Greg Mesa, who supplied the punch at the Plate, and Rick Williams and Steve Kohen were the main hurlers.

Merced's 1973 team was the first-ever Blue Devil club to win the state baseball championship. Leading that club were Kevin Thornhill and Kurt Knapp--both hitters, and pitchers Larry Starling. The 1973 club had a 32-6 record.

The 1974 club was by far the most powerful team in the school's history. It averaged nearly 10 runs per game as Charlie Davis, Jim Bryan, and Bob Dallas had 30 homers between them. Other standouts included Bill Morgan, Bob Grubb, and Greg Bickell. Outstanding pitchers were Larry Daily and Ben Flores. This team was also a State champ with a 36-4 record--the most wins in one season.

The Blue Devil team of 1973 was able to capture the Central Conference Title, but failed in their quest for the first time in three years as State Champion. Standouts included Doug Thiel (the older brother of Dave Thiel) and Terry Gray, who holds many of Merced's pitching records. Merced was 30-8.

Merced's 1976 team was by far the best defensive team that Butch Hughes ever coached. With Jim Newell at shortstop, Chris Pedretti at second, and Randy Self at third, not many ground balls got through the infield. The most outstanding pitchers were Gibby Valdez and Randy Wiens. Record for that year was 34-6 and a third State Championship.

The Blue Devils of 1977 were the fourth State Championship Title holders for Hughes in five years. The team was led by Jim Harskamp, Chris Pedretti, Bill Enos, and Ernie Hayden.

Most outstanding hurlers were Gene Smith and Greg Young. This team proved to be a surprising club which was not expected to do as well as it did. After winning the conference Championship, this club easily rolled to a State Championship and a 31-7 record.

The 1978 Blue Devil team, with many freshmen playing key roles, compiled an overall record of 32-8 en route to the third state championship in a row for Merced. Some of the key players included All American Matt Vejar, who is continuing to pursue a professional career at Fullerton State and Brad Lesley, a top draft pick by the Cincinnati Reds. Other players on the team playing important roles were Wayne Hague, Dave Thiel, Audie Green and Ralph Hodge. Top pitchers were Brad Lesley, Don Widlun and Mike Foster.

In the past seven seasons, the Blue Devils had a 219-49 win-loss record, making Hughes one of the coaches with one of the highest winning percentages in the state at .817.

In 1979 with Audie Green leading the way, the Blue Devils won a precedent-setting four straight State Championships. It had many highlights during the season with many fine pitching performances from Mike Foster and Mark Ashworth with Mike Freeman emerging as the team leader.

For the 5th straight time and 7 out of 9 years the Blue Devil Baseball team has won the State Championship. The 1980 team could have been one of the best teams that Butch Hughes has had at Merced.

The team had a record of 30-4 and broke a large number of offensive records. The team was led by all -league Greg Slate, Gil Souza, Dick Vitato and All American selection of 2nd baseman Mickey Williams. It also had for the first time two all-league pitchers, Bill Mooneyham and Mike Evans. Other members who had good years were 2nd team all league Russ Williamson, Allen Grubb and Kevin Carthen who were all outfielders. Howard Maynor, Randy Pimentel and Bret McAfee all had a big part in that year's success. Tom Gronotte fired a no hitter against West Hills, only the second no hitter in the school's history.

In 1981 the Blue Devils finished 16 and 8 in their first year of the new Division I Central Valley Conference. The team was led by hard-hitting shortstop Bret McAfee, outfielder Howard Maynor, and slugging 1st baseman Gilbert Souza. McAfee signed with Seattle and Maynor was picked up by the Yankees.

1982 marked the beginning of a new era for Merced College baseball. When Butch Hughes retired after the 1981 campaign, his assistant for the previous five years, Glenn Nobbe took over the reigns. Nobbe led his veteran club to a 30-10 record and to Merced's first-ever Division I Central Valley Conference crown. The Blue Devils finished fourth at the State Championships in Long Beach.

Nobbe counted heavily on the pitching of Chuck Martin and Mark Bauer, who threw to the league's premier catcher Roy Anderson. Offensive stars included Brad Arnsberg, Scott Hague, and Buzz Verduzco.

Another change in command took place in 1983 with Chris Pedretti taking over the reigns of the Blue Devils. An over-all record of 21-19 was indicative of the up-and-down season this squad had. Led by the pitching of All-American Brad Arnsberg, Tim Arnsberg, and Charlie Cash, the Devils finished in a tie for the conference crown, but lost the subsequent play-off.

Dan Truax and Bart McAfee were honored on the second-time All Northern California Team and were joined in the infield by All-Leaguers Pete Martinez and Robby Ferreria. Mike Ho and Jordan Stevens were also named to the second squad of the elite group.

Offense was the name of the game in 1984 as the Devils set a club record for home runs with 34. All-State selection Pete Martinez had 11 round-trippers and was aided offensively by Bart McAfee, Dan Truax, and Brian Machado, Freshman Pitcher Scott Solis had 11 wins for the 24-12 team.

The Blue Devils started slowly in 1985 but then put it all together in league play and cruised to the CVC title with a 19-5 record. The pitching staff, led by All-Leaguers Bob Nazabal and Blas Minor, Bruce Egloff and Scott Solis completely dominated their league opponents.

The offense was led by All Northern California Second-Team outfielder Kim Flowers, who was backed by freshman All-Leaguers Joel Faulk, Mike Mooneyham, and Vic Gallardo.

Led by new school record holder Mike Mooneyham (15) and Greg Banda (10), the 1986 squad Blue Devil History exploded for 57 home runs to obliterate the old mark of 34 set in 1984. The veteran club compiled an overall mark of 23-12 and finished with a seventh-place showing at the state championships.

CVC Pitcher of the Year Blas Minor was backed by Al-League infielders Vic Gallardo and Joel Faulk and offensively by designated hitter Mike Sexton.

The 1987 season for the Blue Devils was quite a struggle. Getting off to an 0 and 4 start in their first two tournaments, the Devils put together four wins in a row to take home the Modesto Tournament Championship. From there, the Devils struggled to a 12-24 overall record. Despite their record, the Devils enjoyed a few bright spots. During the Hancock Easter Tourney the Devils knocked off College of the Canyons, who were ranked in the top 5 of the state rankings. Other bright spots were the performances of Robbie Sapp, Jon Rattazzi, and David Cardoza. Sapp, a left-handed pitcher consistently baffled the CNC opponents and was named to the 1st Team All-League. Rattazzi and Cardoza led the Devils offensively and were among the league leaders in offensive production.

In 1988, the Devils rebounded from the previous season's disappointment and showed signs of climbing toward the upper echelon of the tough Camino Norte Conference. A 10-15 record was good enough for a fourth-place finish, with the highlight being a victory over eventual state champion Sacramento.

The explosive bat of David Minor and the consistent success of Eddie Bachman, both 1st Team All-Conference selections, led Merced to a 16-26 over-all mark. Catcher Marshall Crooks and outfielder Jeff Webber sparkled defensively and Eric Martin was the squad's top hurler.

Breaking quickly out of the blocks, the '89 Devils won eight of their first eleven contests, including the championship of the Modesto Michelob Tournament. Although their non-conference record was a sparkling 10-3, Merced continued to struggle in the tough Camino Norte Conference.

All-State infielder Jeff Ball was backed by All-CNC performers Charles Havel (catcher) and Matt Winton (outfielder) as the Blue Devils compiled an overall record of 17-21.

Pitching was the strength of the 1990 squad. Led by sophomore left-handers Steve Whitaker and Mike Dotson, and Anthony Chavez, the Devils finished 10-15 in the CNC, 18-21 overall. Sophomore Matt Winton, along with newcomers Brandon Petersen and David Zuniga, led the offense and were named to 1st Team All-Conference Squad.

The Blue Devils finished the 1991 regular season 22-22 overall and 9-15 in the tough Camino Norte Conference before losing two games in the First Round of the State Playoffs. The '91' Blue Devils were lead by All-Conference selections Catcher Brandon Petersen (.310 ave., a team leading 16 doubles and 34 RBIs, and 235 put outs), 2nd Baseman David Zuniga (team leading .331 ave. and 27 stolen bases), Pitcher Joey Chavez, and outfielder Jerry Torrez. The Blue Devil pitching staff had three aces with starters Joey Chavez (9-4, 2.26 ERA) and Danny Gonzales (6-6, 3.88 ERA), and reliever Donnie Tynon (3.95 ERA and 4 saves) who had appearances.

1992 saw the Blue Devils finish 24-24 overall and 12-12 in the Camino Norte Conference. With a quick start in '92' the Blue Devils seemed poised for a run at the CNC title, and a consecutive birth in the state playoffs.

The 1993 season was marked with some highs but many lows. The Blue Devils finished fifth in the Camino Norte Conference with a 7-17 record, and 17-27 overall record. Shortstop Jason Boesch continued the tradition by being selected to the All-CNC 1st team. He lead the team in batting with a .386, and stolen bases with 16 in 20 attempts. Dustin Caropreso was an All-CNC selection at the catcher's position becoming the second catcher and third selection in the past four years at that position. Dustin returns to the Blue Devil lineup in '94, having lead the team in fielding with a .949% average, and batting second with a .300 batting average. Ildo Martens was the Blue Devils third All-CNC selection. While pitching struggled at times last year with a team ERA of 5.28, they did begin to jell in the last weeks of the season as they knocked off league, leading Sacramento City College, American River College and Modesto JC. While the team struggled in the preseason, the Blue Devils batted .278 in conference play, and .262 for the season.

With this surge at the end of last year look for the Blue Devils to make 1994 a memorable season in their last year of play in the Camino Norte Conference. The Blue Devils will be joining the Central Valley Conference in 1995.

The 1994 season started like the previous years, but received a blast from the past when the team won nine games in a row. The Blue Devils started out 2-7 before winning their own tournament and running their record to 11-7. The Blue Devils were lead by sophomore catcher Dustin Caropresso. As other catchers in a great line Dustin was named to the 1st Team All-Camino Norte Conference, and Team MVP. Duston lead the Blue Devils in batting with a .402 average.

After the Blue Devils' nine game run and fast 8-2 start in Conference Play, things settled down into a grind. The Blue Devils would lose the next thirteen games and finish 12-11 in Conference play. The Blue Devils finished with a 19-19 overall record and narrowly missed the State Regional Playoffs.

The 1995 Blue Devils brought back visions of the 1970's championship teams. With six records broken and a school tying 34 wins, the Blue Devils came within one win of going to the State Final Four. The Blue Devils challenged for the conference championship all the way until the last week of competition, finishing second to Fresno City with a 16-9record.

The '95 Blue Devils put together one of the most potent pitching staffs lead by sophomore Richard Campbell. Campbell holds the recorded for most strike outs in a game with 18 against MJC. He along with freshman Tito Fuentes, Bryan Ballenger, Henry Warden, and Sebastian Nazabal combined for a sub 2.75 ERA.

Defensively catcher Mike Wilson broke two records for fielding against Modesto JC, he had a school record 19 put-outs, and for the season had a perfect 1.000% fielding average.

Offensively the Blue Devils batted with a 252 team average. Sophomore Aaron Cervantes batted over .300 and stole a school record 37 bases, breaking a 21 year old record of 34 set by Bill Morgan. Mike Whatley set a school record by being hit by a record 21 pitches, while the team broke the school record of 47 set in 1975 with 64 hit batters.

The 1996 Blue Devil baseball team finished the season in the second round of the State Northern California Regionals. The Blue Devils ended the season with two marathon trips first to Mendocino College and then Lassen College in the regionals. It was the third year in a row that the Blue Devils have qualified for the State Playoffs, and the second year in a row they have won 30 games or more.

With a 16-8 conference record the Blue Devils slipped a little in the standings and finished fourth. The Blue Devils broke a twenty-one year old record for turning double plays in a season with 49. The old record set in 1974 stood at 36. They also broke the record for most hit batters set the previous year with 71. Jason Fanconi tied the record set the previous year for most times hit with 21.

Individually the Blue Devils witnessed some fantastic performances. Pitcher Henry Warden became only the third Blue Devil to throw a no-hitter, and the first since 1980 when Tom Gronotte threw one against West Hills College. Henry's performance came against Porterville College. Henry was one of four Blue Devils selected to the First Team All-CVC. He finished with an outstanding 12-3 record with a 1.83 ERA, and 113 strikeouts. Kevin Nannini was named to the First Team All-CVC as a utility player. Although he usually played in the outfield. He lead the conference in pitching saves with 6, and had an ERA of 3.14. Kevin also batted .340 stole 27 of 31 attempts and had a .992 fielding average. Pitcher Bryan Ballenger and outfielder Matt Mead rounded out the first team selection.

As in 1996, 1997 was a season in which many great things happened to the Blue Devils. The Blue Devils finished fourth in the conference with a record of 15-9, and had an overall record of 29-23. They were one of four Central Valley Conference teams to qualify for the State Playoffs. The Blue Devils started with a 10-7 preseason before entering into a mid-season slump winning only four games in fourteen. An 8-7 win over Fresno City College early in April sparked the Blue Devils on a 15-6 drive that would get them into the State Regional Playoffs, and one win away from qualifying for the State Final Four.

The Blue Devils achieved many great things both on an individual, and team basis. They came one inning and one run away from making the State Final Four. Right fielder Jason Bell was selected to the California Community College All-American Team, and also received the high honor of being named the Northern California "Big Stick" award winner. Third baseman Brian Nannini and DH Nathan Neal were named to the All-Northern California Team. Four Blue Devils were selected to the 1st Team All-CVC.

The Blue Devils set or tied fifteen team or individual records. Jason Bell broke or tied five records including most home runs (16), most hits (86), most RBIs (86), and a record tying 7 at-bats in a single game. Outfielder Doug Thomas also tied the record for most at-bats in a single game, and tied the record for most triples in a single season with 6. Pitcher Toby Dart broke a 24 year old record of giving up the fewest walks per 9 innings with 1.35. The Blue Devils set three season batting records including highest batting average of .331, and most runs scored with 510. They set three single game records including most at-bats, most hits, and most doubles with 58, 31, and 9 respectively. The Blue Devils broke three defensive single game records including most put-outs, most assists, and most double plays with 44, 23, and 4 respectively.

The 1998 season saw the Blue Devils again climb back towards the top of the ladder of success. They climbed all the way to 2nd place in the Central Valley Conference. They had an overall record of 28-16, and a CVC record of 18-6. It was a season that saw many outstanding performances including SS Eddie Munoz and 2B Pat Fuentes break the school record for batting average with a .456, .425 respectively. Freshman pitcher Joey Robinson burst on the scene last year and became the ace of the pitching staff with a 5-3 record, 89 ks, 43-.83 and era. As a team, the Blue Devils again broke the record for most double plays in a game when they had 5 against Modesto J.C.

The Blue Devils made it all the way until the second round of the regional playoffs again for the third season in a row. The 1999 season saw the Blue Devils struggle losing their first eight of nine games, then winning twenty six of their last thirty six games. They finished with a 17-7 CVC record, and 27-18 overall.

As a team their ability began to show in the Hancock Tournament where they defeated the #2 Southern California seed Cuesta 18-11, #4 see Cerritos, and #9 seed Hancock before narrowly losing 301 to eventual State runner-yp Cypress College. From that time on the Blue Devils handed the then undefeated Fresno CC Rams an 8-2 loss when J.J. Durmanich pitched a complete masterful game. The Blue Devils won 10 of their last 13 games, including a 17-3 shellacking of College of the Sequoias.

When one looks back upon the season everyone will remember the complete games pitched by Joey Robinson, and J.J. Durmanich. D.J. Foster's great catch at the wall against COS saving the day, and Danny Ayala's diving catch against Reedley while playing center field for the hurt Chad Bartek.

The millenium baseball team saw many great achievements both as a team and with individuals. The Blue Devils saw the emergence of freshmen pitching sensations and twin brothers Donnie and David Bair. Donnie lead the team with a 9-2 record and 88 strikeouts, while David collected 2 saves and 41 ks as a relief pitcher. The Blue Devils showed clutch hitting, power, and speed on the bases. Jeff Schanze lead the team with 11 homeruns, and 37 RBIs, while Aaron Alexander lead the team with a .336 batting average. John Brummell stole an amazing 15 bases in 16 attempts.

As a team the Blue Devils finished with an impressive 29-17 overall, and 17-8 CVC record. During the season the Blue Devils

had three six game winning streaks. They won their last eight CVC games before entering the season ending conference tournament. They had a 18-6 home record, and won an amazing 26 out of 27 games when leading after the sixth inning.

The Blue Devils finished the 2001 season with a 27-18 overall, and 17-8 CVC record. They ended up in third place in the conference, and ranked in the top 15 of Northern California.

For the second year in a row the Blue Devils batted .276. Both put outs and assists were up from the previous year. The fielding percentage was up from the previous year (.950%), and errors were down for the second year in a row.

Jared Devine lead the team in hitting with a .412 average, and is fourth on the all-time list. he also lead the team with 12 doubles, and 2 triples. Starting pitcher Donnie Bair lead the team with a a 3.49 ERA and is the first pitcher in more than three years to have over 100 strikeouts. He held opponent batters to a mear .197 batting average. Relief pitcher Lane Cunningham had a 7-1 record and 1 save in 22 appearances.

The 2002 season saw the Blue Devils continue their climb to the top. They finished in second place in the CVC posting a 17-7 record. The team batted an outstanding .297, with a .385 on-base percentage. Jeremiah Grove lead the team in batting with a .383 average. Adam Sanchez lead the team with 2 complete games. All-Conference selection Steve Henricksen lead the team with 57 strikeouts, and a had a 3.38 ERA with 10 starts. Reliever Brad Bickford put in solid performances with an impressive 7-1 record with 2 saves, and a 2.15 ERA. Jeff Runyon broke the record for most stolen bases with 42. As a team the Blue Devils set a school record by recording 56 double plays.

The 2003 Blue Devils slipped down to 5th place in the Central Valley Conference with a 12-12 record. The season was not with out its many highs. Utility player Brandon Morris was named Co-CVC MVP. He finished the season with a team leading .380 batting average, .814 slugging average, and .452 on base average. His 13 home runs, 58 runs scored, and 48 RBIs lead the team and put him in among the leaders of the conference. Brandon was joined on the All-CVC Team with first baseman Brett Gordon, infielder Ricky Pinocchio, and second baseman Rick Acebo. While the blue Devils finished fourth in the conference on the mound with an ERA of 4.74, reliever Brendan Kruse finished 4th in ERA with a 2.10, and second with 5 saves. Freshman Jason Peters lead the team in strike outs with 55, and had a 3.26 ERA. Doug Fister had 3.60 ERA and .316 batting average. All told the Blue Devils had four named to the 1st Team All-CVC, and five named to the 2nd Team All-CVC.