Hollywood High Baseball Routs Contreras

Saying the is a place of haves and have nots doesn't do the situation justice — it's actually more like a land of kings and jesters.

Maywood Academy and Los Angeles High sit high on the throne, combining to go 17-0 in league before Wednesday. Teams like Contreras, Santee, Torres, Belmont and Jefferson all languish with skill sets that suggest each is in for a long season.

And then there's .

The Sheiks are the one team that hasn't clearly defined itself. Jesters? Hardly. They typically overpower that secondary group — Wednesday's 14-1 mercy-rule win over Contreras being a prime example. But kings? Not so fast. They were unable to hang with Maywood in a home-and-home series two weeks ago, getting swept by a combined score of 19-3.

It's entirely possible that Hollywood is a team without a country. Way too good for the jesters, not nearly good enough for the kings.

doesn't see it that way, however. Now in his sixth-year, Hollywood's head coach looked at the Maywood blowouts as an anomaly for a team that's only beginning to hit its stride.

Next week, he'll find out just how far Hollywood has come when the Sheiks play a home-and-home series with first place Los Angeles, which is 8-0 in league.

"I think those Maywood games made them realize where they were and where they need to be," Cauley said. "I think both losses were good for us in the long run. It's a character builder, 'Hey, we're not ready yet.' Hopefully they learn from that."

Cauley thinks his team has turned the corner after an impressive tournament showing over spring break. There wasn't much to learn from the game against Contreras (3-7), other than how to be patient.

The Sheiks managed just two hits, but scored 14 runs in five innings thanks to 14 walks. Hollywood improved to 10-5 with the win, 5-2 in league.

Starting pitcher was the benefactor of all that patience, cruising to the win with four innings of one-hit ball. He walked one and struck out six.

"I just go out and throw strikes and try not to walk or hit anyone," Torres said. "I trust my defense, let them go to work on ground balls and pop flys."

Junior catcher is the heart of this Hollywood team, and his fourth-inning grand slam home run capped the scoring. The Sheiks' co-captain roped a line drive down the left field line and legged out the inside-the-park homer, scoring standing up. It was his first four-bagger of the season.

"I'm just trying to lead the way," Chavez said. "I try to pump everyone up, and hopefully they also follow driving in runs and putting in the work."

Hollywood completes its two-game set with a road game at 3 p.m. Friday at Contreras. That sets the stage for two games against Los Angeles, which has traditionally been the Sheiks' biggest rival.

"Maywood was the moment when we were like, 'Okay, what are we doing? We're not where we need to be,'" Cauley said. "We rise up against LA and we'll be like, 'Okay, we're there. We're ready for this.'"