It comes down to this, No. 1 vs. No. 2, both in the state of Texas and in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Baseball Rankings. The Moody Trojans and the Calallen Wildcats play a best of three series, starting tonight at Whataburger Field, to see which team will advance to the Texas 4A state semifinals.
Moody (34-2) is ranked No. 1 in the MaxPreps ratings while Calallen (34-3), last year’s 4A state champion, is ranked No. 2. The two teams, both of which hail from Corpus Christi, are also 1-2 in the Texas state 4A rankings.
But while the two teams are located in the same city, they play in different districts during the season. As a result, the two teams have played only sparingly against each other over the years. However that rivalry has heated up the past two seasons, especially this year with both teams in the national title hunt.
Moody holds the slight edge at this point, defeating Calallen 7-4 on March 21. The Trojans also handed the Wildcats their only loss last season during a 42-1 campaign. The lone loss belonged to Calallen ace Jordan John, who has not lost since in leading the Wildcats back toward a possible second straight state title.
John and the Wildcats have not forgotten last year’s loss. In fact Calallen coach Steve Chapman says that it has made John a better pitcher.
“He pitched well for five innings but lost,” Chapman said. “You could see how much it hurt him to lose. From then on he worked very hard to make himself better.”
Moody will once again face John during this weekend’s series, possibly tonight in the first game which is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. Over 7,500 tickets have been sold for the big matchup and John is both cautious and optimistic about his team’s chances.
“Moody plays picture perfect, errorless baseball,” John said. “They play with a lot of intensity and their fans get into the game. It is the definition of rivalry. Every time we play them we can expect a challenging fun game.
“But our goal is to return to the state tournament and win state. Determination and tradition make our team tough to beat. We practice all aspect of the game and love to win. The tradition that has been passed on from past teams pushes us to succeed.”
Over the past two seasons, John has been the unquestioned ace of the Wildcat staff. After posting an 11-1 record as a junior with 125 strikeouts and a 1.41 ERA in 85.2 innings pitched, John has been even better as a senior. This year his ERA is a miniscule 0.27 in 77.2 innings. He has struck out an amazing 140 batters and he has walked just 14 while posting a 13-0 record with nine shutouts.
“Jordan has a tremendous body for a pitcher at 6-foot-3,” Chapman said. “He throws his fastball in the 88-91 mph range and he has very good control of his slider and change.”
A member of the MaxPreps Baseball Top 100, John ranks No. 80 on the list and will play at the University of Oklahoma next year. There is also a chance that he will be selected in next week’s Major League Baseball draft.
"I am excited about the prospect of playing at the next level if the opportunity arises,” said John, whose brother Jason played three years in the St. Louis Cardinals organization. “I have a lot to consider with my schooling but either way, I get to keep playing baseball after high school.”
For now, John will focus on a potentially lethal Moody offensive lineup. After falling to Alamo Heights in last week’s series 1-0, the Trojans bounced back to win 11-0 and 12-0 and advance to tonight’s game.
The Moody lineup features potent power hitters like outfielder Rudy Flores, who has belted 10 home runs and 12 doubles while batting .462 and driving in 56 runs. Add in Marcus Villanueva with a .378 average, 13 home runs and 10 doubles. Four other Trojan players have at least five home runs to their credit this year.
The Wildcats counter with a little less power, but solid all-around hitting. Calallen’s top 10 hitters bat over .300, led by second baseman Matt Garza with a .500 average, 59 runs scored and 43 stolen bases.
Moody, which holds the all-time lead in the series between the two teams at 8-4, has a solid pitching staff as well with Justin Meza getting the start in tonight’s game. Meza is 13-1 on the year with a 0.49 ERA, 112 strikeouts and four shutouts. Alfred Cantu has also been outstanding, posting a 14-0 record with 130 Ks and a 1.06 ERA.
“Baseball is a major part of this community,” John said. “There must be at least 12 state championship baseball trophies in our area. People around here love the game.”
The series continues Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday, if needed, at 11 a.m. All games are at Whataburger Field. The winner captures the Region 4 championship and advances to the state tournament next Wednesday at Dell Diamond in Round Rock.
