‘Unbelievable’ defense, elite pitching power Gig Harbor’s 20-1 season
Gig Harbor High School’s baseball team has four pitchers sporting sub-1.00 earned run averages this spring, a defense their coach calls “unbelievable” and the kind of chemistry that only comes from years of growing up together.
The Tides aren’t just winning — they’re making it look easy. And for first-year head coach Ben Sleeter, who has known many of these players since they were little leaguers, the secret is simple.
“Go out, play hard, have fun, pick each other up,” he told The News Tribune after a 7-1 home win over Timberline on April 30. “This group is special.”
Sleeter, who coached the past four seasons at Peninsula — his two sons still play for the crosstown rival Seahawks — wanted to inject some fun into Gig Harbor’s baseball program again.
“The last few years, for whatever reason, they seemed to play tight and not really relaxed,” he said.
The Tides are having fun now. Gig Harbor is 20-1, the lone loss coming against Central Kitsap in late April. They’ve allowed just 19 runs (14 earned) in 21 games and have posted nine shutouts. Four pitchers with sub-1.00 ERA’s? That’s almost unheard of, at any level.
“You don’t want to take anything away from the hitters but the pitching and defense has been unbelievable,” Sleeter said. “Absolutely unbelievable.”
There have been a few games in which Gig Harbor’s opponents haven’t even reached third base. Pitching and defense has been the recipe all season — a recipe that plays well in the postseason, too.
Quentin Bockhorn, a 6-foot-1 hard-throwing junior, has been the best of the bunch, posting a 0.21 ERA with 39 strikeouts and 12 walks in 34 innings pitched, as of May 1. He has allowed just one earned run this season.
“We all worked super hard in the offseason, we’ve all trained,” Bockhorn said. “We all play for the same team in the summer. Training together, throwing bullpens, getting lifts in, just training together.
“It feels great. I personally believe we have the best defense in the state. I trust every single one of our defenders.”
Against Timberline on April 30, Gig Harbor shortstop Jayce Corley made a couple rangy highlight-reel plays on defense. Finding holes in Gig Harbor’s infield has proven nearly impossible for opponents in the 3A Puget Sound League this spring.
“Our pitching and defense, they’re as good as anybody I’ve ever seen,” Sleeter said.
Jake Cuda, Logan Pedersen and Nathan Cheek all have sub-1.00 ERA’s, too. Could it lead to a Class 3A state title this year? Gig Harbor last won it all in 2017 and has had some great players over the years, like Michael Toglia, who now plays for the Colorado Rockies.
“It would be awesome,” said center fielder Daniel Porras, who is batting .393 for the Tides this season as of May 1 and collected a pair of doubles in the April 30 win over Timberline. “The playoffs coming up, we’re rolling pretty good. We’ve just gotta keep it going.”
This story was originally published May 1, 2025 at 9:33 AM.
