Baseball pic

Tuesday, April 2, 1996

No. 1 Bruin pitcher steps up to mound in search of

victory over Golden BearsBy Yoni Tamler

Daily Bruin Staff

Going into his next start this Thursday against California,
southpaw Jim Parque is enjoying precisely the kind of season
expected of him as the No. 1 pitcher on the UCLA baseball team.

Parque leads the Six-Pac in wins (6) and winning percentage per
games pitched (1.000). While his ERA hovers right around 3.34, he
has more innings pitched (67.1) than any of his peers, is second in
complete games (2) and trails only Stanford’s Jeff Austin in
strikeouts with 64.

In light of these numbers, it’s tempting to speculate about the
power Parque could wield were he not several inches and pounds
short of the conventional power pitcher. Fastballs clocked at 110
mph? Breaking balls with supernatural spin?

The answer, according to UCLA pitching coach Dave Schmidt, is an
emphatic "no."

"If size were the only thing that mattered, Arnold
Schwarzenegger would be able to pitch faster than anyone," Schmidt
said. "It’s doubtful that Jim would be able to throw harder if he
were six inches taller or fifty pounds heavier. He has great arm
speed and God-given ability, and that’s the reason why he’s able to
throw the way he does."

Parque, who is now a write-in candidate for the 1996 Smith
Award, acknowledged that practicing for hours on end on his
pitching motion helped more than any other factor.

"I first fooled around with my pitching motion my last year in
T-ball," he said. "I can remember doing it … I was only nine at
the time … It wasn’t until sophomore year of high school that I
started working out three or four hours every day, hucking the ball
as hard as I could at our backstop."

With his father, Richard, scrutinizing every aberrant motion he
made, Parque developed a windup that features a high, Nolan
Ryan-like leg tuck and a shortened arm stroke, resulting in
velocities that register in the low 90s.

If Parque needs any encouragement, there is a major league
precedent for sub-Dionysian physiques on the mound. Tom Gordon, a
starter for the Boston Red Sox Royals, and Ron Guidry, who racked
up a string of Hall-of-Fame-type numbers in the 1980s were both
diminutive hurlers who quieted their opponents with a blend of
heart, smarts and mechanics.

* * *

With the rash of recent injuries to the team, the Bruin lineup
has been in a state of constant flux in recent weeks. Most of the
confusion is at first base where Pete Zamora developed a strained
vertebrae several weeks ago.

The good news is that Zamora has no difficulty pitching for the
team, which is 7-1 this season when he has started on the mound.
Unfortunately, Zamora’s inability to swing a bat without pain has
put a noticeable crimp in the the Bruins’ offense.

"We need Pete to be in the lineup, especially when he’s hot,"
said Benny Craig, who has seen increased time at designated hitter
over the past several games. "He’s a huge part of the offense,
whether it’s at first or DH."

"We’ve lost so many pitchers so far ­ John (Phillips) and
mainly with (Tom) Jacquez and (Ryan) Lynch, our two lefties," Rick
Heineman said, "so we’re more concerned about Pete pitching because
right now that takes priority over his hitting. When he gets
healthy he’ll get back to doing both, hopefully."

In the meantime, 6-foot-5-inch Troy Glaus has played first base,
one of four positions the versatile sophomore has played this
season. Glaus, who survived a bean ball off his helmet in UCLA’s
9-7 victory over ASU Saturday, took batting practice Monday and is
listed as probable for today’s game against Cal State
Fullerton.

See related story:

Baseball prepares for

nation’s finest