Silverado upended in Legion final

It took 14 games and three innings, but Chatsworth, Calif., finally proved the age-old adage that good pitching does indeed beat good hitting in Monday night's American Legion Baseball Western Regional final.

After scoring 140 runs in its previous 10 contests, Nevada state Legion champion Silverado appeared well on its way to another lopsided affair in the title game, posting an 8-4 lead after three innings.

But Chatsworth ace Michael Kunes, a UCLA-bound left-hander, came on in the third and silenced the Skyhawks' mighty batting order, allowing no runs and two hits over his final five innings of work.

His teammates did the rest, scoring nine unanswered runs in a 13-8 win to advance to the upcoming American Legion World Series in Middletown, Conn., and end Silverado's storybook summer.

"He was a good pitcher, and for some reason we couldn't hit him," said Silverado coach Art Besser, whose club finishes with a 53-9 mark.

Kunes (6-1), who tossed four shutout innings for the save in his club's semifinal win over Greeley, Colo., on Sunday, came back with no ill effects just 24 hours later for his third appearance of the tournament.

"I thought I might throw one or two innings tonight," Kunes said afterward. "I never thought I'd go five. Physically, maybe I was a little bit tired, but my arm wasn't really tired."

After relieving Scott Sellz in the third with no outs and runners on the corners, Kunes surrendered three run-scoring singles to Vincent Valiente, Mike Eshragh and Jeremy West to make the score 8-4.

Once he got out of that jam, however, the 6-2, 190-pound Kunes was virtually untouchable, retiring 17 of the 20 batters he faced during the final five innings. He finished with nine strikeouts and just one walk.

"He was running the ball in and out, hitting his spots well," said Valiente, one of five graduated seniors playing his final game for Silverado. "He was the best pitcher we've seen in a long time."

Offered Kunes, "I was spotting my inside fastball, and they weren't pulling the trigger on that pitch. And I've got to say that the strike zone was a little lenient tonight."

Kunes had particular success against the bottom half of the Skyhawks' lineup, as the locals' 5-through-9 hitters went 0-for-14 against the crafty southpaw.

Only West, who hit four homers in his club's win over Durango on Sunday night, had success against Kunes, going 2-for-3 against him to finish 3-for-5 on the night.

"(Kunes) was the difference, no doubt about it," said Chatsworth coach Tom Meunsborn, whose squad takes a 40-7 record into its World Series opener against Brooklawn, N.J. "This is his senior year, and he's pitched in some big games over the last three years for us."

Kunes' effort may have gone for naught had it not been for a crucial three-run homer by Chatsworth second baseman Jason Spector that pulled the Californians to within a run, 8-7, in the fifth.

Moments later, leadoff hitter Matthew Fisher (4-6) smacked a double to center field, scoring two runs to give his team the lead and chase Silverado left-hander Robbie Van (12-3) from the contest.

Chatsworth would go on to add a pair of insurance runs in the sixth, one in the seventh and another in the ninth off Skyhawk reliever James Wickman for the final five-run cushion.

Despite the loss, Besser said his team had nothing to hang its heads over after a season that saw itwin Nevada's regular season and tournament state titles -- the first baseball championships in the school's five-year history.

"They achieved everything we asked of them," Besser said. "It was their expectation to win a state championship and to win the league, and they did that. You can't ask for anything more."

Added Valiente, who will play for California's Saddleback College next year: "It was a great run with the best bunch of guys. I'll remember them all my life."

Joining Chatsworth and Brooklawn in the Legion World Series will be: Edmond, Okla., New Brighton, Minn., Gallantin, Tenn., Bloomington, Minn., Kenewick, Wash., and Portland, Maine.

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