San Pedro beats El Camino Real for first City baseball title since 1992

All season, Dylan Kordic handled the hot corner. However, with the game on the line Saturday in the City Section Open Division baseball championship game, he was called upon to get the final six outs.

That’s just what the San Pedro right-hander did, striking out Woodland Hills El Camino Real leadoff hitter Wyatt Babcock with the tying run on third and two outs in the top of the seventh inning to preserve the Pirates' 7-6 victory.

“It was unreal,” said Kordic, who was bear hugged by teammates amidst a wild celebration on the mound moments later. “They threw me in there and I was ready for it. I was mentally locked in.”

Kordic had thrown one inning all season — to close out a Marine League win against Carson two weeks earlier. Also the starting quarterback of the football team, Kordic decided to skip the spring season to focus on baseball and is glad he did.

“It was hard not playing football but I wanted to dedicate myself to this team, this program,” said Kordic, who will continue his baseball career at Golden West College next year. “We thought 2020 would be our year but we didn’t get a chance because the season got canceled.”

Dom Porter’s two-run homer to left field capped a four-run, fifth-inning rally for the Pirates, who survived numerous errors and misplays early to become the first team outside the San Fernando Valley to capture the City’s upper division title since San Pedro beat Sun Valley Poly 6-3 in the 4A final in 1992.

Catcher Mikey Brucelas had three hits with two doubles and five RBIs to lead the comeback. His single scored fellow senior Jake Harper to tie the score in the first inning after Babcock had scored from third on a wild pitch to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

El Camino Real, seeking its record 10th City title, added four runs in the third to go ahead 5-1, but Joseph Schneider tired late and the fourth-seeded Pirates (17-8) capitalized. Harper’s father, Tim, was a sophomore infielder on the 1992 championship squad, making him and Jake the first father-son tandem in school history to win City titles.

“Dad just told me to go out and play my best,” Harper said. “He started teaching me the game at a very early age and it all clicked from there. This has been our goal since my freshman year. We had faith we could do it no matter what.”

Although the win was not celebrated at Dodger Stadium, where the City championship game traditionally has been played, being on the Pirates’ home field was a perfect send-off for coach Steve Tedesco, who is stepping down after eight seasons to spend more time with his family.

“I have three young kids and another on the way and I want to be there for them,’ the 33-year-old coach and history teacher said. “If anything, winning it here in front of our fans and our community makes the feeling even better. I’ll be a Pirate for life.”

Softball

El Camino Real 10, Granada Hills 0: Jillian Kelly of El Camino Real performed perfectly Saturday morning to deliver City Section softball title No. 17, tying the Conquistadores with San Pedro for most ever.

Kelly retired all 15 batters she faced, including 12 by strikeout, in beating El Camino Real's West Valley League rival.

A six-run second inning featured two-run hits by Sofia Fisher and Amber Rivas. The game ended because of the 10-run mercy rule.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.