Monte Vista Christian’s baseball team continues to run on all cylinders following an 11-1 crushing victory over Rancho San Juan in Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division action Thursday afternoon.
Mustangs sophomore pitcher Chris Bautista allowed one run on six hits and one walk while tallying nine strikeouts in six innings pitched to record the win for MVC, which improved to 8-2 in league play this season.
Teammate senior Brady Cortez had three hits, three stolen bases, two RBIs and scored three runs, while senior catcher Carter Wright had two hits, including one double, one RBI and scored one run for MVC, which was coming off an important 8-1 victory against Stevenson in league action on April 25.
The Mustangs (18-4, 8-2) and Pirates (11-6, 7-2) are currently battling for first place in what is turning out to be a challenging Mission Division.
“Winning the second game of the series gives us momentum going into Rancho, and we know we can keep up,” Wright said. “We know we should win these upcoming games so we can take care of business.”
Not far behind in the league standings is Alisal, Pacific Grove and North Monterey County each with a 5-4 record, followed by Greenfield (12-5, 4-5), Rancho San Juan (8-14, 2-7) and Alvarez (7-13, 1-8).
“The parity is there,” MVC head coach Johnny Ramirez said. “If you’re three games out of the playoffs, you’re still in the game. There’s five good teams…I love it because the ‘B’ Division is very competitive.”
MVC finished with an impressive 8-2 record in April, and split the Mission Division season series with both Greenfield and Stevenson. Prior to that, the Mustangs came storming out of the gates with seven consecutive wins to begin the 2025 spring campaign.
It’s been a major turnaround for Ramirez, who in his first year with the Mustangs led the program to its first Central Coast Section Division VI and California Interscholastic Federation D-V titles in 2022.
This past season’s group struggled in the PCAL’s top-tier Gabilan Division as they placed eighth with a 2-19 record in league play, and finished with a 3-23 overall record in 2024.
“There were a ton of injuries that messed us up, we had a bunch of new players coming in, only had one senior [Bryce Brogan] and he got hurt mid-season,” MVC senior Tyson Shaw said. “It was basically a great developing year if you’re seeing how the young guys are balling out this year. The transformation of it is crazy.”
Ramirez said the camaraderie began last year as they took their share of lumps on the head in the “A” division of the PCAL, followed by an intense season of summer ball.
“We didn’t break up as a team, they wanted to stay together and team bond,” Ramirez said. “They have such great chemistry and are having fun.”
MVC uses the term “hold the rope”, which Ramirez said means having each other’s back whether a batter is down two strikes in the count or any other sticky situation.
“If you don’t get a hit, pass the rope to the next guy,” he said. “I think they bought into the hold the rope, and they fight for each other. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that. They really are a unit, they really are a team.”
Both Shaw and Wright are putting up some all-league numbers at the plate this season.
Shaw is batting a .392 average (29-for-74) with four doubles, one triple, 11 RBIs, 23 runs scored and 30 stolen bases, while Wright is batting a .491 average (27-for-55) with nine doubles, one home run, 21 RBIs, 27 runs scored and 22 stolen bases.
The Mustangs have a solid lineup with players that can hit the ball such as sophomore Evan Vessey with 22 base hits, including three triples, 15 RBIs and 12 runs scored. Cortez has 26 total hits, 23 RBIs and 19 runs scored, while sophomore Mikie Melenudo has 26 base hits, including four doubles, two triples, 15 RBIs, 19 runs scored and 23 stolen bases.
Bautista has also been able to bounce back after he was thrown into the belly of the beast of the Gabilan Division in 2024. His record is 6-0 with a 2.08 ERA and 69 total strikeouts in eight appearances on the mound this season.
He tossed a gem in the win against Stevenson, looking just as smooth as the baby blue Kansas City Royals-style jerseys they were sporting that afternoon. He allowed just one run on two hits and four walks while tallying five strikeouts.
“We kept the energy up the whole time and we had Chris Bautista on the mound,” Wright said after the game. “We had a really good pitching performance yesterday, but I think being at home with our home fans and our nice baby blue jerseys on, we just played different.”
Ramirez noted that Bautista fully understands the strike zone and what the coaches will call in terms of pitch selection. Plus, the young ace pitcher has a veteran catcher in Wright.
“Chris is a special player,” Ramirez said. “He worked hard all summer getting his secondary pitches. He’s gonna be a special pitcher his senior year, but I think he’s made tremendous leaps and bounds.”
Other standout hurlers include sophomore Aidan Miller and junior Jackson Haddad, who currently owns a 4-1 record with a 1.46 ERA and 38 total strikeouts. Miller’s record is 3-1 with a 0.78 ERA and 25 total strikeouts.
“[Let’s] take care of business, win the ones we should win and we’re gonna be in a good spot,” Wright said.
Next up, MVC will host Alvarez in PCAL Mission Division play on May 7 at 4pm.
Editor’s note: This is an updated version of a story that was published in The Pajaronian’s May 2-8 print edition.
