PHOENIX — There’s a missing piece to the puzzle for the Placentia Mustangs.
Nate Alam, head coach of the California-based organization, is determined to find it.
Placentia has appeared in the championship game of the National Team Championships Arizona at the 14U, 15U, and 17U levels, which included a pair of gold-medal finishes in 2013 (14U and 17U). Reaching the final game of the 16U tournament, however, has been a bit more elusive since USA Baseball added the age group to the event in 2018.
“Pitching-wise, we have what it takes (to win gold at 16U),” Alam said. “We have a lot of arms this year. We just have to swing the bat a bit and that’s what we’re looking to do.”
The Mustangs’ rotation features a talented group of players, including past National Team Championships participant Ayden Holker. The 6-foot-4 right-hander and first baseman returns to the summer showcase in Arizona after he captured Pitcher of the Day honors on July 3, 2019, as a member of JG Juggernaut Group at the 14U National Team Championships. Holker spun a complete-game, four-hit shutout and struck out five in a 10-0 win against GBG Marucci Blue.
“That was really fun and one of my greatest baseball experiences,” Holker said. “It really drove me to keep playing this sport and it was fun to go out there and shut down a team and really be ‘that guy.’”
Holker hopes to be next in a long line of major-league and USA Baseball alumni who have passed through the Placentia Mustangs program on their way to success at the professional, national, and international levels. Texas Rangers southpaw Kolby Allard, Rangers closer Ian Kennedy and seven-year MLB veteran Hank Conger are all former first-round selections who suited up for the red, white, and blue after they donned the Mustangs’ red jersey with black and white trim.
“(The National Team Championships) are a great opportunity for exposure and getting seen,” Holker said. “I really want to test myself and get some work in.”
Placentia has won three of its four games in pool play at the 2021 National Team Championships, which included a 5-0 shutout of Beach City Prospects 16U on the first day of competition. Holker fired three scoreless frames and allowed just one hit to earn the win. He commanded his pitches well to the tune of a 76 percent strike rate and tossed another 1.1 hitless innings against undefeated Canes Arizona (4-0) two days later.
“This is a great group of guys,” Holker said of the relationships he’s developed with his teammates throughout the tournament. “I really like playing with them.”
Holker and Alam aim to win a championship with their squad and have Placentia set on the right path. The Mustangs will face San Diego Show (3-1) in the Round of 32 at 7:30 a.m. MT on Saturday and look to advance to the quarterfinals.
“We just tell our guys to come out here and compete,” Alam said. “We just let them play their game and the rest takes care of itself.”
Much like a puzzle, once you find the first handful of pieces, the rest seems to take care of itself.
