Sports
Bay League Notebook: Moore Nabs Spot on Second Team of All-CIF
Moore is the first Panther to earn All-CIF honors under Peninsula baseball coach Dennis Gonsalves.
Peninsula senior pitcher Sam Moore was chosen on the second team of the All-CIF Division II Baseball team on Monday.
Moore was one of the top pitchers in the South Bay. Picked as the "Most Outstanding Pitcher" recently in the Bay League, Moore is the first Panther to earn All-CIF honors under Peninsula coach Dennis Gonsalves, who has guided the program for the past seven seasons.
“He had a tremendous season and had a special season his senior year,” Gonsalves said. “He was dominating on the mound. And in addition to that he had a big year hitting. He was so dominating on the mound because he was able to get ahead of hitters early in the count and spot his pitches. He’s a three-pitch guy—fastball, curveball and split-finger. Once he got ahead of hitters, he was a difficult guy to hit.”
Sometimes, Moore was almost unhittable. He compiled a 0.89 ERA and recorded eight complete games. He finished with a 9-2 mark. In 71 innings, Moore had 78 strikeouts and gave up only 38 hits. Only two players homered off him this season.
“Our pitching coach Jim Bullard should get some credit for some of his success,” Gonsalves said. “He really helped our staff. We’ve also got a great hitting coach in Sterling Roux. Sam not only had a super season on the mound, he also hit well.”
As the team’s designed hitter, Moore hit .350 with two home runs and 16 RBIs in only 60 at-bats.
But it’s his pitching that will carry him to the next level. Moore will play next season at UC Irvine, which has risen to become one of the top baseball programs on the West Coast.
“That was actually my No. 1 choice for school,” Moore said. “So when they called it was huge. I’m looking forward to it.”
“He’s going to really help them,” Gonsalves said of the Anteaters, who were an out away from advancing to this year’s College World Series before falling to top-seeded Virginia recently.
Moore, who was pretty excited about the All-CIF selection, said one of his biggest adjustments this season was staying calm on the mound.
“Some of the games I lost last year, I didn’t keep my composure as well as I did this year,” he said. “I felt more in control this year. Just having that attitude of being a winner helped, too.”
