Sondheimer: Colin Moore battles type 1 diabetes on the mound

There’s one important thing that teenage athletes never forget when they leave home. mobile phone. wallet. bottle of water.

Collin Moore, a junior pitcher at Crescenta Valley High School who has Type 1 diabetes, has one more necessity.

“I keep a jar of Skittles in my baseball bag every game,” he said.

It’s your emergency go-to item if your blood sugar drops too low.

He wears a glucose monitor and insulin pump on his arm. He monitors everything on his cell phone.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin.

Moore is 6-foot-3, 230 pounds and has come a long way since being diagnosed at age 12, just before the pandemic.

“It took me a lot of time to get used to it and adapt to the new lifestyle,” he said.

He entered high school as a freshman with few problems, but during his sophomore season, “my blood sugar started to drop a lot,” he said. “It was very confusing. Something was wrong.”

He ended up getting an insulin pump to help stabilize his blood sugar levels. It came in handy during practices and games when he was playing on the junior varsity team.

Coach Phil Torres also put him in touch with alumnus Nick Padula, a nutritionist. Moore, pitching for the varsity team for the first time this season, has an 8-1 pitching record for the Falcons, who are 17-5.

“He’s throwing strikes,” Torres said. “He’s really good at self-monitoring. He’s a big guy. He’s taking care of himself a lot better.”

“I’m very proud of how I was able to adapt,” Moore said.

Padula said, “It’s all up to the athletes. They live with it and have to stay on top of it.”

Padula looked at what Moore was eating four hours, two hours, and an hour before a game, and what he was drinking before and during the game. Moore needs to monitor what works to keep blood sugar levels consistent.

“It’s fuel for all of us,” Padula said. “He has to maintain it externally.”

Athletes playing with type 1 diabetes is nothing new.Milwaukee Brewers outfielder garrett mitchell He attended Orange Lutheran High School and UCLA and has been playing since he was diagnosed at age 9.

Moore said staying in shape is important for health and baseball development.

“I put in the extra effort,” he said. “I had the most fun playing baseball after a long time.”

Now, Moore wants to use his experience to help others. His message is to not let diabetes be a barrier to participating in sports.

“If someone says no, don’t listen to them,” he said. “Just play. I want to be an inspiration to all her type 1 diabetics around the world.”

And yes, his teammates and coaches know about his Skittles stash.

“We’re giving him a hard time,” Torres said. “We call him ‘Mr.’ Big Skittles.”

Padura endorses Moore’s hidden treats.

“It’s perfect,” he said. “Think of it like a small amount of rocket fuel when the levels drop too low.”

No.1 in America

After Corona High School won the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament in Cary, North Carolina on Saturday, they can now call themselves the best high school baseball team in California, if not the nation.

The Panthers (19-2) relied on standout junior pitcher Seth Hernandez, who allowed just four hits and had five strikeouts in a 3-0 victory over Orange Lutheran in the championship game.

Hernandez, backed by great defense from third baseman Brady Ebel and first baseman David Rivera, turned around the Lancers, who had handed the Panthers one of their two losses this season.

There is little time to celebrate Corona. The Panthers will face rival Corona Centennial on Monday in the first of a three-game series to decide the Big VIII League championship.