Baseball: West Valley League begins play on Monday

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The top league in the City Section, the West Valley League, starts play on Monday, and while Chatsworth (7-1-1) starts out as the favorite, there appears to be good balance among the six teams.

Chatsworth will host Taft (7-5), Granada Hills (7-2) will host El Camino Real (5-5-1) and Birmingham (7-3) will play at Cleveland (7-5-1).

The opening games should reveal plenty, because each team will likely use No. 1 pitchers.

Granada Hills has Nathaniel Pyle, a returning starter who has the grades to apply to Harvard and has lost some 30 pounds since November by running and cutting down his calorie count. He’ll be opposed by El Camino Real’s surprising junior pitcher, Owen Perry, who hasn’t lost this season.

Cleveland has Jack Hartman, who used to play at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame and has been solid on the mound this season. Birmigham has Steven Rodriguez, who has faced good competition and made major contributions.

-- Eric Sondheimer