{"id":330030,"date":"2026-05-24T02:23:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T02:23:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/330030\/"},"modified":"2026-05-24T02:23:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T02:23:16","slug":"masen-ruiz-lifts-birmingham-over-el-camino-real-in-city-open-final-with-bases-clearing-triple-daily-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/330030\/","title":{"rendered":"Masen Ruiz lifts Birmingham over El Camino Real in City Open final with bases-clearing triple \u2013 Daily News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham players surround coach Matt Mowry as he raises the...\" class=\"size-article_inline\"   src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH25.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham players surround coach Matt Mowry as he raises the championship trophy following a victory over El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham celebrates their victory over El Camino Real in the...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH19.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH19.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham celebrates their victory over El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham players celebrate their victory over El Camino Real in...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH21-1.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH21-1.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham players celebrate their victory over El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham reacts after hitting a three-run...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH24.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH24.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham reacts after hitting a three-run triple against El Camino Real during the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham hits a three-run triple against...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH23.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH23.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham hits a three-run triple against El Camino Real during the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham players celebrate their victory over El Camino Real in...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH20.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH20.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham players celebrate their victory over El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham pitcher Nathan Soto (1) reacts after recording an out...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH26.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH26.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham pitcher Nathan Soto (1) reacts after recording an out against El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Birmingham\u00e2\u0080\u0099s Masen Ruiz (41) celebrates after hitting a three-run triple...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH22.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH22.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham\u2019s Masen Ruiz (41) celebrates after hitting a three-run triple  against El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"El Camino Real players console one another after a loss...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH27.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH27.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>El Camino Real players console one another after a loss to Birmingham in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p>Show Caption<\/p>\n<p>1 of 9<\/p>\n<p>Birmingham players surround coach Matt Mowry as he raises the championship trophy following a victory over El Camino Real in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#\" class=\"icon-enlarge mng-gallery-fullscreen-expand\" aria-label=\"Expand fullscreen slideshow\">Expand<\/a><\/p>\n<p>LOS ANGELES \u2014 There wasn\u2019t even a name on the back of the jersey to help identify Birmingham junior Masen Ruiz when he stepped up to bat in the bottom fifth inning.<\/p>\n<p>The bases were loaded and coach Matt Mowry called upon Ruiz to deliver during the climax of the CIF LA City Section Open Division Championship at Dodger Stadium on Saturday with the scored tied against West Valley League rival El Camino Real.<\/p>\n<p>Ruiz got the pitch he wanted \u2014 a fastball belt high. Ruiz pulled his hands through with the bat to generate a line drive beyond the reach of El Camino Real right fielder Ryan Glassman.<\/p>\n<p>All three base runners scored and Ruiz came away with the deciding hit that elevated No. 1 seed Birmingham over No. 2 seed El Camino Real for a 4-2 victory that gave the Patriots their sixth CIF LA City Section title.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynews.com\/2026\/05\/22\/granada-hills-charter-boys-captures-5th-cif-l-a-city-section-track-title\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Granada Hills excels at CIF LA City Section Track and Field Championships<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynews.com\/2026\/05\/21\/birmingham-pitcher-honors-late-grandfather-in-win-to-reach-dodger-stadium\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Birmingham pitcher honors late grandfather<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Birmingham finished 27-4, including 14 straight wins to end the season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought about the dream I had when I was a kid,\u201d Ruiz said. \u201cThe dream was always to come over to Dodger Stadium and win it for the high school I was playing for. I transferred here and all I wanted to do was just win (for the team) I was playing for and that was Birmingham.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A dark No. 41 was attached to the jersey for Ruiz, who had barely played for half the season since transferring from Chatsworth. Ruiz himself couldn\u2019t have imagined his title would come in a Birmingham uniform.<\/p>\n<p>Ruiz is the nephew of former Kennedy and Chatsworth coach Marcus Alvarado and grandson of Manny Alvarado, a longtime educator and baseball coach at Kennedy.<\/p>\n<p>Alvarado resigned from Chatsworth before the beginning of the season and Ruiz, who played at Chatsworth, wasn\u2019t eligible to join the Patriots until the first week of April.<\/p>\n<p>It was a journey that ended in the championship ring.<\/p>\n<p>The first five innings were rigid, and the scored was tied 1-1 after the first inning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c(Ruiz) comes from a long line of champions so that kid being put in a pressure situation is nothing for him,\u201d Mowry said.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham reacts after hitting a three-run triple against El Camino Real during the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\" width=\"2559\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779589395_553_LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH24.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"6871142\" \/>Masen Ruiz (41) of Birmingham reacts after hitting a three-run triple against El Camino Real during the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)<\/p>\n<p>Senior pitcher Nathan Soto went five innings and allowed just one run with one hit batter and two walks. Aidan Martinez finished with the save and had an RBI single in the bottom of the first.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy heart\u2019s bumping,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cIt hasn\u2019t hit yet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>El Camino Real (21-10) will return 14 players from this season\u2019s team and will restart its quest for its 11th LA City Section title. A win on Saturday would\u2019ve pushed El Camino Real past Chatsworth for the most titles in CIF LA City Section history.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"El Camino Real players console one another after a loss to Birmingham in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)\" width=\"2916\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779589396_984_LDN-L-PREP-CITYBB-0524-AH27.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"6871147\" \/>El Camino Real players console one another after a loss to Birmingham in the City Section Open Division championship game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Los Angeles.(Photo by Andy Holzman, Contributing Photographer)<\/p>\n<p>The Royals got four hits and a quality outing from pitcher Hudson December, who threw a complete game.<\/p>\n<p>El Camino Real just didn\u2019t get hits with runners in scoring position to match Birmingham.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can\u2019t duplicate the environment of Dodger Stadium on the field,\u201d El Camino Real coach Josh Lienhard said. \u201cYou have to have experienced it before. Today we just didn\u2019t get the big hit. Hats off to Birmingham.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Birmingham players surround coach Matt Mowry as he raises the championship trophy following a victory over El Camino&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":330031,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[7,5479,85021,2044,48,52,51,47,137,50,49,127,136],"class_list":["post-330030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-california","tag-high-school-all-sports","tag-high-school-baseball","tag-high-school-sports","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-sports","tag-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=330030"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330030\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/330031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=330030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=330030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=330030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}