By Pete Borello

Having coached the Palo Alto Oaks since 1954, Tony Makjavich knows what it takes to win in baseball.

“The name of the game is pitching,” the 88-year-old said. “It’s as simple as that.”

The hard part is finding good pitchers. Yet the Oaks - a summer league team comprising of Bay Area college players - usually attract enough pitching talent to contend for the title of their 12-team Stan Musial League.

This summer is no exception.

“This is the best pitching we’ve had in awhile,” Makjavich said. “If the pitching holds up, we’ve got a great chance to go all the way and win the league.”

Thus far, all signs point to the Oaks doing just that. The team is off to an 8-0 start after sweeping a double-header against the San Jose Aztecs last Sunday at Baylands Park in Palo Alto.

Both games ended early on the 10-run rule, with the Oaks prevailing by scores of 15-4 and 17-2.

Pitching has been the key to the fast start, according to Makjavich. The Oaks appear to be blessed with pitching depth - they list seven hurlers on their 16-man roster - and talent.

Makjavich said he has three capable starters in Ben Lewis (San Jose State), Mike Gillen (Fresno City) and Jacob Thiel (Cañada).

Lewis, who pitched in the College World Series last year, already has five starts for the Oaks and earned the win in Sunday’s opener. Gillen is “a good lefty with a lot going for him,” Makjavich said, and Thiel is a “big, hard-throwing righty.”

Makjavich’s group of relievers includes Grant Feichtmeir, a 1998 graduate of St. Francis High now playing for Santa Clara University. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound sidearmer “has good tools,” said Makjavich, who also uses him in the outfield.

Feichtmeir made his Oaks’ pitching debut last weekend. After closing the final two innings of the initial game, in which he allowed two hits, Feichtmeir won the second contest with five innings of one-hit ball.

Another pitcher to watch is Menlo College’s Jerrell Taylor, also an infielder. Makjavich said Taylor “can fire the ball.”

The Oaks don’t rely solely on pitching, however.

“We have a good hitting ball club,” said Makjavich, who watched his team pound out 40 hits in just 12 innings Sunday.

The coach lists Ray Guerra (Menlo), Matt Mueller (De Anza), Mike Nuckles (Cañada), Artist Battle (De Anza) and Taylor as his top hitters. The team’s best all-around player may be shortstop Gabe Duran (West Valley), whom Makjavich calls “my little Jeter” - as in New York Yankees’ star Derek Jeter.

Duran slugged two homers Sunday, with Boucher and Battle each contributing six hits and Taylor four.

The Oaks recently lost some punch from their lineup when Los Altos High grad Victor Ambruso (class of 1996) quit the team. The outfielder, who concluded his career at Azusa Pacific University in the spring, played in the Oaks’ first four games.

The Oaks host Richmond N.A.C. at 11:30 a.m., Sunday, at Baylands Park.