PLAYOFF ACES: Joy Christian strikeout pitcher Quattrocchi adapts to pitch limits

By Richard Smith
West Valley Preps

Anthony Quattrocchi started piling up strikeouts from the moment he arrived on the Joy Christian campus.

So the new pitch limits implemented for Arizona high schools this season figured to affect this senior more than ground ball or off speed pitchers. Entering the playoffs, though, he said not much has changed except for his start in one game.

His strikeout and innings pitched numbers are down — from 64 1/3 to 44 innings and 108 to 79 strikeouts — but that is based on 38 games for the Eagles through the state finals last year as opposed to 28 this season.

And the averages in both categories per game is in the same ballpark.

In the first meeting with Scottsdale Christian, Quattrocchi was taken out after five innings after reaching the pitch limit. He struck out 11 of the 22 batters he faced and walked four in the 1-0 Joy Christian win.

“Since I’m a big strikeout guy it’s always in my head. But you can’t think about it too much. Coach will tell me how many pitches I have in a late inning and I try to make them useful. It doesn’t affect the way you pitch because you can’t control the stuff you have that day,” Quattrocchi said.

Coach Klenty Corley said his ace has matured each year, and exhibits better mound presence and composure, which is exactly what a coach likes to see.

The result has been Quattrocchi’s most complete season to date. Entering the playoffs he’s 8-1 with a microscopic 0.16 ERA.

“He’s an extremely competitive kid and early on that could get the best of him. But now he’s able to roll with things a lot better than he did when he was a young kid,” Corley said. “He’s not the kind of kid that will be content with the stuff he has. He’s always trying to add and mix up his delivery to the plate. He’s always looking to get better and because of that he’s always added things each year.”

Quattrocchi said it took a while for him to get the right mindframe when pitching in a big game.

He learned from starting his sophomore year against then small school powerhouse Tucson Desert Christian in the Division IV semifinal. Joy Christian lost 10-1.

“I didn’t know how to handle it. It was against Desert Christian and they were 31-1. I knew all about them. The adrenaline you get in those games is unreal,” Quattrocchi said.

In the last two year, he’s matured and his burden has been reduced. Sophomore Zach Martinez is undefeated in regular season games the last two years.

Having a pitcher that made the USA baseball 15 and under team as your No. 2 starter is a luxury for a 6A school, let alone a 2A team.

“For us it’s way easier because Zach gives us one of the most perfect 1-2 combinations you could have.

Some schools have just one guy and then you face someone who’s mediocre at best. We have such an advantage, so we don’t stress about it much,” Quattrocchi said.

That double-barreled approachis ideal for the small school baseball playoff format. To cut down on travel for smaller schools the 2A tournament (and the Division IV bracket in years past) is a 16-team single-elimination format with games in a consecutive Friday-Saturday setup.

Coaches with teams that can make a deep run face a choice. Start your ace in the first round and semifinals for a better chance of advancement, or hold him off for the quarterfinals and finals and take a chance.

Coach Corley has the advantage of almost expecting a quality start each time out. For example, Quattrocchi did not throw a pitch in last year’s extra innings Division IV finals loss to Apache Junction.

He shut down Buskeye in the semifinals. Quattrocchi said he did not mind not pitching in the final because of his confidence in Martinez.

Velocity has gone up better at attacking hitters.

Before taking over the Eagles program five years ago, Corley coached at Valley Vista, which played in a double-elimination playoff format where teams can have up to three of four games a week.

“There’s pros and cons to both formats. Being back to back days can be challenging. If you have your No. 1 set up for Friday and No. 2 set up for Saturday and Friday goes a little different, all of a sudden your No. 2 is in there and then that guy’s kind of burned too. But I do think it benefits teams with pitching depth and you can tell who the true best pitching staffs are,” Coach Corley said.

The coach said he is not anticipating any issues with the new pitch count rules. Of course, he readily admits his fortune with pitching.

“It’s good. With anything that’s put forth initially there’s going to be some tweaking to see how it plays out. But I do think it puts a premium on arm health and it forces coaches to be a little bit more creative with their pitching staffs and developing guys,” Coach Corley said.

Joy Christian enters the 2A playoffs with a 27-1 record, but has recent evidence that it is not bulletproof.

The Eagles lost 2-1 in the return game with Scottsdale Christian April 21. Before and after that showdown,

Joy Christian survived a two-day game with Phoenix Christian. The scheduled game on April 12 was tied when called for darkness, and resumed April 24 at Apollo High School, with the Eagles winning.

“I think that stretch came at a good time for us. We knew those teams were good. We’re in a really tough division, especially pitching wise,” Coach Corley said.

Indeed, Joy Christian has not beat up on patsies. Phoenix Christian is the No. 2 seed in 2A and Scottsdale Christian is No. 3.

“I’ve never seen us so ready before, especially in big games,”Quattrocchi said. “We’re all so determined to get back to the championship. We don’t want to feel what we felt last May.”