The smallest turned into the mightiest of the heavyweights who were ticketed to anchor the lineups in Sunday’s seventh annual Aflac All-American High School Baseball Classic at San Diego’s Petco Park.
Rancho Buena Vista’s 5-foot-10, 165-pound middle infielder Tony Wolters was the pivotal performer that carried the hammer for the West All-Stars, helping to pound out a 4-4 tie that was called after 10 innings by mutual agreement.
Wolters, who was 2-for-4 with an RBI triple, a run and a walk, was the only player among the 40 participants to garner two hits in a game that attracted 8,027 fans.
“I already knew he was the most improved player in San Diego County,” said West coach Steve Vickery of El Capitan High. “I think he’s probably the most improved player in America.”
Wolters forced the game into extra innings when he laced a two-out triple into the right field corner in the bottom of the ninth inning to score Matt Lipka (McKinley High in Frisco, Texas) from first base.
“This guy (Wolters) has been the cog of every team he’s played on this summer,” Vickery said.
Vickery was not surprised that Wolters came up with arguably the biggest hit in the game.
“I wouldn’t say I was expecting it, but I was sure he would give us a quality at-bat,” said the coach, who has counted 562 victories in 30 years. “I had no doubt about it that he was going to put the bat on the ball and do something with it.”
Speaking of impressive records, Wolters helped Team USA Under-16 capture an international tournament with a 15-0 record in Vera Cruz, Mexico last year. He batted .636 (14-for-22) with one home run and six RBI in that run.
With his senior season remaining at RBV and a scholarship to the University of San Diego in hand, Wolters hopes to earn a berth on the Team USA 18-Under national team.
“Considering the way he has been playing this summer, I’d be surprised if he doesn’t make the team,” Vickery said.
After being named MVP of the Aflac Classic, Wolters had his photo taken with Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith, honorary chairman of the event for the third year.
“You’re a big-time player,” Smith said to Wolters during the postgame presentation.
No doubt the most publicized player in the game was Las Vegas High’s Bryce Harper, who spent most of the evening behind the plate. Although he just finished his sophomore year, Harper, who will be 17 in mid-October, plans to forgo his final two years of high school and enroll at Community College of Southern Nevada. His plans include obtaining his GED next month.
After completion of one year at the JC level, he will be eligible for the 2010 major league baseball draft.
Harper is being heavily recruited by the major colleges in the nation but in order to become eligible for a scholarship, needs to complete his Associated Arts degree from CCSN.
The 6-foot-3, 195 pound left-hand hitting catcher finished second in the home run derby contest but had a rough night during the Aflac game. Although he did drive in the tying run in the bottom of the tenth, he finished 0-for-5 with three strikeouts.
Yordy Cabrera (Lakeland Senior High, Fla.) of the East team won the longball contest with 16 home runs – eight in the prelims and eight in the finals.
Six-foot-7, 230-pound Jameson Taillon (The Woodlands High, Texas) made an impressive start for the West, striking out four of the six batters he faced. He was dinged for a two-out single by Chevez Clarke (Marietta High, Marietta, Ga.).
When Clarke took off in an attempt to steal second, he was cut down on a throw from Harper to Wolters. Wolters made the play a success as he made a flying catch on the throw and applied the tag for an inning-ending out.
“Playing with these guys – the 40 best in the country – makes you a better player,” Wolters noted, recalling one of the plays that stuck out in his mind.
“The batter (Reggie Golden of Wetumpka High, Alabama) swung (and missed) so I came up to cover second base and I slipped, so I couldn’t get there right away. But fortunately Bryce threw a perfect throw and I just got my glove down there and got the tag. I don’t know how I got there but Bryce throws the ball about 100 miles per hour. He’s that good.”
Even on a bad day at the plate Harper proved that he can still make an impact.
