Sebastian Kessay is a sophomore starting pitcher for the Scottsdale Community College Fighting Artichokes. Some might say Sebastian’s last name should be pronounced “K-say” for his ability to strike out opponents.
Kessay is a graduate of Blue Ridge High School in Arizona’s White Mountains where he put together a solid 14-2 record as a two-year starter and notched nearly 180 strikeouts. His senior year was as close to perfect as you might expect for a pitcher living in an area where baseball is only played four months out of the year. Kessay went 12-0 and struck out 149 batters with a 1.21 ERA in 71 innings. He had one game where he struck out 19 and another where he put down 18 as a senior Yellow Jacket hurler.
It was an adjustment in climate from the often cold White Mountains compared to the Valley.
“It is a lot easier to get warm down here and I find it is easier to prepare my game plan,” he said. “At Blue Ridge a lot of my throwing sessions took place in the gym. Here all of my throwing is done outside. It has helped me get tuned up that much faster.”
He is a White Mountain Apache and a stoic left handed technician on the mound.
“I use 4 pitches, fastball, curve, split –finger and a change- up,” he said. “My go to pitch is my change.”
As a freshman at SCCC, Kessay put together a solid season going 7-4 with 75 K’s in 84 innings and a 3.96 ERA for the ‘Chokes. But that wasn’t good enough for the 6’ 3” pitcher.
“I really worked on my mechanics this year,” he said. “I came out committed to get better this fall. I had to improve my location.”
“Sea Bass”, as his Artichoke teammates affectionately call him, staying commited to getting better is paying off. He has a record of 3-1 with 71 strikeouts over 55.2 innings and an ERA of 0.81. The Artichokes are currently in 5th place overall in the Arizona Community College Conference standings with a 21-12 record.
Sebastian’s future in baseball looks pretty bright he has offers to play for the Northwood University Knights in Cedar Hill, Texas and Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida.
