COMPTON — Third-year Santa Barbara Forester Vinnie St. John scored a big personal victory in the MLB Draft on Wednesday, but the Foresters went on to lose their third consecutive game, 5-3, against the Academy Barons in South Los Angeles.
After giving up a four-run lead in the ninth inning on Tuesday, the Foresters gave up a 3-1 lead on four runs in the eighth on Wednesday.
“We’re just not getting it done. We’re not getting anyone who wants the ball at the end of the game to close it out. I still think this is a very good club,” said manager Bill Pintard.
Shane Kroker had a pair of singles and an RBI, while Graham Saiko had an RBI double for the second straight day.
Vinnie St. John, far right, enjoys some quality time in the Foresters dugout during last season.
St. John, who was cut by USC this season, ended up being drafted by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 45th round on Wednesday morning. A former outfielder, he had made the transition to pitching in the offseason and was planning to finish up his career as a bullpen option for the Trojans. He was called into a meeting with the coaches one day and got some very different news.
“Coming into the meeting I had been told that I was going to be either an eighth-inning pitcher or the closer, but when they told me they didn’t want me on the team I was really surprised,” said the soft-spoken, straight-A student.
The first person to call him was Pintard, a scout for the Angels.
“He told me not to worry and keep my head up, and that he’d stay in contact with me and help out if he could. I really appreciated that,” said the Newport Beach native.
The St. John family had the computer on in the kitchen on Wednesday morning to follow the draft. Vinnie ran up to his room to grab his shoes for the evening game, and then he heard it.
“As soon as I got my shoes I just heard my mom start to scream, so I ran downstairs and she was just crying. She was crying for like an hour,” he said.
The best part is that he will be able to stay with his beloved Foresters for the summer in order to continue developing as a pitcher before signing as a pro.
“He didn’t quit the game. He went out and pitched with the USC club team and did pretty good. He’s just a really good person, so it’s a great story. We were in the draft room today and kind of said ‘Hey, why not?’… It’s a win-win situation, and it shows you that you never know what’s going to happen,” said Pintard. “He really deserves it, and I really feel warm and fuzzy about it because baseball rewarded a good person today.”
St. John pitched two scoreless innings in the Foresters opener last week against the San Diego Waves, his only appearance thus far this season. While he’s happy to stay with the Foresters to continue developing as a player, he said that the best part is getting to do more work with the team’s foundation, Hugs for Cubs, which works with young cancer patients.
“I love this. Probably the biggest thing is the Hugs for Cubs and the (DP Little League) Challengers camp,” said St. John. “I love being in this environment because it always makes you feels good. Plus, Pinner’s gonna be here with me and he’ll be the one to tell me when I’m ready to go.”
The Foresters (2-3, 0-2 CCL) will try again for their first league win in the series finale against the host Barons on Thursday at 6 p.m. All games are broadcast on AM 1490 KIST and www.sbforesters.org.
