Saddleback College student Devin Sutorius throwing smoke

Saddleback sophomore pitcher Devin Sutorius continues spoiling opponent’s timespent at home.

Devin Sutorius ready to pitch a fast one on the plate. Photo courtesy Miguel A. Muñoz Jr.

If given the option between spending a day sitting on a sunny beach or working on a miniature dirt island, it’s likely many may take the sun and sand as an easy choice. Yet for Saddleback sophomore pitcher Devin Sutorius, there’s no place he’d rather be than on a small dirt island, one where gravel meets rubber right on the pitchers mound.

“There’s something genuinely special about throwing a baseball,” Sutorius said. “Even as a kid feeling that ball roll off my fingertips, it made me happy. It’s this weird, indescribable pleasure the game gives me.”

Although business and pleasure typically don’t mix well, Sutorius seems to have found the exception. Making more appearances than any other Saddleback pitcher during the 2017 season, Sutorius was featured in 20 out of their 43 games. Pitching 50 innings totaling 43 strikeouts and only 18 walks, earning a season ERA of 3.42.

In his first year as a Guacho, Sutorius made four starts within his 20 appearances, crediting him with two wins, one loss and one saved game (pitching a six out save against Long Beach in post-season play).

“If I had to be honest, before coming to Saddleback, I was very wild still,” Sutorius said. “In fact, I wasn’t even a pitcher for most of my baseball career.”

Enrolling at Capistrano Valley Christian High School after transferring from Capistrano Valley High School after his freshman year, Sutorius played outfield due to his speed.

“It wasn’t until my sophomore year at Capo Christian when I first started pitching,” Sutorius said. “It’s funny because everyone started working out around this time, getting stronger and that didn’t interest me. I somewhat lost my speed and hitting power because guys were catching up. After that, I decided to give pitching a try.”

Trying turned to triumph, as Sutorius earned an All-League selection his junior year, as well as another All-League selection after being awarded “Pitcher of the Year” for the San Joaquin league his senior year.

After graduating in 2015, Sutorius had sightings on playing college baseball, deciding to take his talents to Coppin State University in Baltimore, Maryland.

“Honestly I just wanted to go D-1. I was good at Capo and could hit my spots, yet I didn’t have much speed, topping out around 83-84 mph,” Sutorius said. “They (Coppin State) were the worst ranked D-1 school, but I didn’t care. I just wanted to be there. I ended up being their ace. It was a strange but pretty great developing year for me.”

Returning to Orange County after his freshman year in Maryland, Sutorius believes most fine-tuning came from Saddleback pitching coach J.P. Glascock.

“I owe everything to him,” Sutorius said. “J.P. helped me understand the mental side of the game, and within a week after learning that, I was able to slow down and correct issues that would otherwise take me months to fix.”

With his first and final season completed at Saddleback, Sutorius is looking to commit to one of the multiple schools whom offered athletic scholarships, such as U.C. Davis and Vanguard University.

“As excited as I am to move onward, I’m heartbroken I’m only playing one season here,” Sutorius said. “It’s an incredible group of guys, and although they’re young, they’re going to be a great team next season.”

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