Atwater/Merced Yammers will lean on pitching as they head to American Legion state tournament
Robby Sanchez didn’t hesitate when asked what will be the key to the Atwater/Merced Yammers success at the American Legion State Tournament.
“Pitching will be No. 1 for us,” said the Yammers manager.
The Yammers (11-1) will open the state tournament on Saturday at noon against Wilson of Long Beach at Buchanan High in Clovis.
The Atwater/Merced team is made up primarily of players from Atwater, Buhach Colony and El Capitan high schools.
The Yammers receive some clutch pitching performances to get through the Clovis Nighthawks in the Area 3 championship series on July 15.
Kadon Floro pitched a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 victory in game one. The Yammers then had guys come in out of the bullpen to pitch out jams in the second game to win 8-6.
“We put the ball in play on offense, but we rely on our pitching more than our offense,” Sanchez said.
The Yammers will have pitchers like Floro, Bo Valladao, Mitch Hunter, Cooper Lantz, Andrew Bakken and Garret Sanchez.
“What sets us apart from other teams is we have a lot of pitching,” Robbie Sanchez said. “If one guy has a rough start we can put another guy in.”
The tournament gets underway at 9 a.m. on Saturday with Petaluma facing Oceanside. The late game features Napa against Patrick Henry from San Diego.
The entry fee is $10 per day and a $5 parking fee. Seniors and Veterans are $8. Children five-and-under are free.
The Yammers will compete with five other teams for the state title and a berth in the West Regional that will be held in Fairfield Aug. 4-8.
Sanchez knows what it’s like to play on the big stage that is the American Legion State Tournament. He played on the Merced Volunteers at the state tournament in 1988.
“Our guys are excited,” Sanchez said. “They have a group chat that they jump on. For almost every player on our team, this is probably the biggest tournament they’ve played in except for some of our travel ball players.”
This story was originally published July 23, 2021 at 12:17 PM.
