A slow roller down the third base line was all Perry Hall baseball coach Joe Carlineo needed to see.
It happened four years ago during tryouts, an intrasquad game with then-freshman AJ Mendoza on the mound.
“He slid from his knees like a catcher would and with his shoulders squared toward first base, gunned the kid out,” Carlineo said. “Right then, I’m like, ‘Oh my God, this kid is something special.'”
Ever since, Mendoza, a senior who also plays shortstop, has been proving Carlineo right.