Notebook: SportsCenter Stassi: Brock goes No. 1
The video was grainy and choppy.
The play was vintage Stassi.
As Yuba-Sutter sports fans, we've known for a long time that if you take one of the Stassi boys and mix in baseball, the end product is amazement.
For a day, at least, the entire country saw the potential we've seen on display for years at Yuba City High and Appeal-Democrat Park.
Brock Stassi, the oldest of the trio that also contains Max (touted A's prospect, 7-figure signing bonus) and Jake (dominant prep pitcher, Long Beach State product), now has a trump card over his brothers.
He's been the No. 1 play on "SportsCenter." Yeah, sorry Torii Hunter, who came in at No. 2 with his home-run robbing catch, this former Gold Sox's grab couldn't be topped.
Playing in his final game of the season on Wednesday for the Wisconsin Woodchucks, Stassi got high jumper-esque height while playing the outfield. He nearly leapt over the fence to bring back a ball that looked destined for round-trip status.
I'd try to explain it in more detail, but it really needs to be seen to be appreciated. And you can't go to go to YouTube, because the ABC affiliate that made this all possible by sending it up to the folks at ESPN are also hoarding the footage. They do have it on their website (Google "Brock Stassi catch WSAW" — it's way faster than me putting some URL on here for you print readers) and it's worth the view.
Just don't expect IMAX quality. It seriously looks like it was shot with a circa-2004 cell phone. But that's what makes this play so special. It reached No. 1 despite the sloppy footage.
Though ESPN mispronounced his name, they got it right with the ranking. It's a heck of a catch. Enough so that it garnered additional talk on the network's increasingly popular "SportsNation" program.
Not a bad day's work for a pitcher.
Brock was a machine at University of Nevada Reno last season, earning the Western Athletic Conference's Pitcher of the Year honors with a 7-4 record and a 3.43 ERA. When he wasn't on the mound, he hit .346 with 42 RBIs.
That earned him an All-WAC utility selection and a spot on the All-Ping All-America third team.
My guess, though: The talk among the Wolfpack will be all about seeing their teammate on the "Worldwide Leader In Sports."
