Summer collegiate baseball has been described as the diamond equivalent of major-junior hockey.
There鈥檚 a bit of a difference, however. Major-junior circuits such as the Western Hockey League begin roster intake at 16 years of age, even allowing limited appearances by 15-year-olds. Those kids, including the 17-year-olds, are still in high school.
Summer baseball features collegians, meaning first roster intake involves 18-year-olds at minimum, making the maturity level much higher.
The Victoria HarbourCats feature a West Coast League rarity in Timmy Richards 鈥� one of only five spring high school graduates in the summer ball league. He鈥檚 been thrown right into the fire in the WCL, a league that had 56 current or past players selected in the recent 2013 MLB draft.
That the HarbourCats are expecting big things from the native of Long Beach, Calif., says a lot about the shortstop who is headed to his NCAA freshman season in the fall at Cal State-Fullerton.
鈥淚'm learning a lot, mostly about the speed of the game at this level,鈥� Richards said before the HarbourCats departed for a six-game road trip beginning tonight against the Cowlitz Black Bears in Kelso/Longview, Wash.
Richards鈥檚 biggest rookie mistake so far happened during the weekend in a game against Bend at Royal Athletic Park when he rushed to the dugout after just a second out, thinking it was the third. That has been the source of endless ribbing by his amused teammates.
Richards made an immediate impact upon joining the HarbourCats last week in Bellingham after high school exams, banging out two hits in his first WCL game.
鈥淗e's our only high school player, and he鈥檚 going to have a legitimate college career and, down the road, a pro career,鈥� Victoria head coach Dennis Rogers said following that debut.
That鈥檚 high praise from a veteran coach who has been around the game a long time.
鈥淚鈥檓 honoured that he said that,鈥� said Richards, who is batting .300 in 10 plate appearances over three games, and who has also looked seamless in the infield with naturally fluid movement.
鈥淚鈥檓 just going to keep my head down, keep playing hard and have fun.鈥�
Rogers isn鈥檛 alone in his assessment. Richards was recently ranked second on ESPN鈥檚 list of top graduating high school middle-infield prospects.
Richards was invited to the United States U-18 national team camp recently in North Carolina, making it to the second cut 鈥� no easy feat in a nation in which baseball talent runs deep.
鈥淕etting to wear the 鈥楿SA鈥� on my chest, even if in camp, was one of my proudest moments,鈥� he said.
His other sporting love, being a true child of Southern California, is skateboarding. He is deft on the board, but he didn鈥檛 bring it with him to Victoria.
鈥淚鈥檓 pretty good at street skating, but I didn't think coach [Rogers] would like me doing that, so I left my board at home,鈥� Richards said with a smile.
The HarbourCats (10-4) are in Kelso/Longview for three games against the Black Bears (7-8) before opening a three-game set Tuesday in Wenatchee against the AppleSox (10-9 heading into Friday). The HarbourCats will play 12 consecutive games, returning Friday to begin a six-game homestand against the Kelowna Falcons and Walla Walla Sweets.
AROUND THE BASES: The WCL on Friday appointed former Keizer, Ore., mayor Dennis Koho as the new league president. Koho replaces Seattle Mariners play-by-play radio announcer Ken Wilson, who is stepping down as WCL president.
