Baseball player of the year: Nannini finishes with a flourish

Spencer Patterson

Friday, June 5, 1998 | 11:17 a.m.

The phrase "living a dream" doesn't even begin to describe the way things have been going for Mike Nannini the past few weeks.

First, the Green Valley senior helped his club to its sixth consecutive state title, getting mobbed by his Gator teammates after closing out the championship game against Carson.

Then on Tuesday, Nannini became the first area player selected in the Major League Baseball amateur draft, going 37th overall to the Houston Astros.

So what's left for an encore? How about a cap and gown for next Tuesday's Green Valley graduation?

"A lot's been happening the last two weeks with winning state, the draft and graduation," said Nannini, the Sun's 1998 Nevada Baseball Player of the Year. "It finally all hit me this morning."

In a year that featured one of the most talented crops of local high school pitchers in history, the 5-11 Nannini stood above the rest.

Nannini's numbers -- a 10-1 record, 0.58 ERA and 97 strikeouts in 73 innings -- tell part of the story of his remarkable spring. But they don't say anything about the way his performances consistently got better as the pressure became more intense.

"We had a lot of pressure games, and we always tried to make sure he was on the mound for the biggest ones," Green Valley coach Rodger Fairless said.

And the 17-year-old with the 90-plus mile-per-hour fastball always rose to the challenge. Beginning with his final start of the regular season, Nannini put together a month-long string of outings that won't soon be forgotten.

After tossing a five-inning no-hitter against Basic on April 28, the senior opened the Gators' playoff run the following week with a six-inning no-hitter against Bonanza in the Southern Zone tournament.

In his next start, Nannini allowed just one hit in a zone semifinal shutout against Bishop Gorman, running his scoreless inning streak to 21 and setting the stage for his state tournament heroics.

"I'm a guy that likes pressure put on me, and there was a lot of pressure put on me and Joe this year," Nannini said, referring to fellow Green Valley pitcher Joe Orloski.

Nannini opened the state tournament with four shutout innings against Douglas, allowing just one hit. The next day, he returned to the mound to pitch the final inning of his team's semifinal win over Carson.

And when day three of the tournament rolled around and the Gators found themselves in a tight championship game against those same Senators, Nannini calmly entered the fray and fired two hitless innings to slam the door.

Nannini's totals from April 21 to May 23: Twenty-eight innings. No runs. Two hits. Four wins. Two saves. One state title.

It's hard to think of a more fitting way to close out a sensational high school career.