With a very full weekend of action and rosters filled with talent, there were numerous players that stood out between both the Upperclass and Underclass portions of the California World Series.
TCU commit Tristan Hanoian (2017, Costa Mesa, Calif.) impressed up the middle for Trosky Baseball with very polished defensive actions. He moves quickly and effortlessly with good range to both sides. He was sure picking the ball to his backhand and showed the ability to change arm angles and throw from all points with good arm strength across the diamond. His defensive actions are well above his swing at present, but he has room to continue to add strength to a short, compact swing to the ball.
Another shortstop with highly athletic actions was California commit Emilio Rosas (2018, Yorba Linda, Calif.). Rosas has a very lean, athletic frame listed at 6-foot-1, 175-pounds with room to continue to fill out. Rosas has always shown the ability to pick it well at short and was equally as smooth this weekend with sure, soft hands and a very quick release. Rosas is an all-around player and as he continues to add strength he’ll develop in-game power. His swing is fluid with good bat and hand speed working quickly to the ball. He homered for Team California in their first game on Sunday morning.
Teammate of Rosas on Team California was righthander Isaac Esqueda (2017, Pomona, Calif.). Esqueda started the first game against CBA. Esqueda stands with a medium build and frame at 6-foot, 178-pounds with present strength. He has a very slow, deliberate delivery with a slight hip turn and higher leg lift. He lands online and works over his front side with slight recoil at landing. He pitches with a very short, compact arm action and threw from a three-quarters arm slot. His fastball showed mostly true action with slight cut at 84-86 mph and hit 87 mph. What was most impressive about Esqueda was his ability to spin his curveball. It showed 11-to-5 shape at 74 mph with good shape and got the pitch over for strikes and used it for his swing and miss pitch. His fastball was hitable, but when worked off his curveball it was most effective. Esqueda also showed a harder breaking ball in the form of a 10-to-4 shaped slider at 77 mph.
Highly athletic outfielder Coleman Brigman (2019, San Jose, Calif.), another California commit, impressed leading off for CCB Elite. Brigman starts with an open stance and a slight hunch at the plate with a high hand set. His swing gets a little inside-out at times, but when he extends he shows the ability to drive the ball. Brigman has very real bat speed at the plate and once he begins to match plane and drive the ball consistently. In the field, he moves well to the ball in center with a quick first step and range to track balls down easily in the gaps.
In a matchup against CCB and Brigman, the EJ Sports Warriors showed a pair of promising underclass outfielders in Michael Dixon (2019, Oakland, Calif.) and Glenallen Hill Jr (2019, San Jose, Calif.). Dixon hit at the top of the order for EJ showing impressive bat speed and the ability to generate carry off the barrel. His swing worked well to the ball with a clean hand path after a deeper hand load. He smoked a triple to the opposite field with good extension and backspin ability on the ball, collapsing his backside slightly into the swing. He also turned in a 6.07 hang time on a fly out later in the game.
Hill, the son of former major leaguer Glenallen Hill, does not quite have his father’s size, listed at 5-foot-10, 170-pounds with some strength already in his frame and room to keep filling out. Hill has tremendous bat speed for his size, working through the zone with intent in each and every swing. His path and plane are a bit wild at present, but you can see the potential. His timing at the plate needs refinement, but the bat speed stands out. He turned in a pair of hang times that were each >6.2 seconds. In the field, he was athletic enough to move all over the diamond in their first game on Sunday. He started in right field, moved to center, and then finished the game at shortstop. He moves well wherever he played and showed off a strong arm from right field.
Righthanded pitcher Jake Turner (2017, Riverside, Calif.) took the mound for the Southern California Bombers in their first game at Hickman Field. The uncommitted Turner stands at 6-foot, 165-pounds with a lean, slender frame and room to continue to fill out physically. He showed a longer arm action with looseness through the back. He started closed and used a drop-and-drive element to his delivery with a moderate stride down the mound, landing closed. He had some finish through the ball and generated good extension down the mound. His fastball worked in the mid-80s and topped out at 88 mph with short arm side life. He showed a 12-to-6 curveball on the mound with developing sharpness and depth up to 74 mph. He repeated well enough and held his velocity throughout his start. He pitched five strong innings and struck out five batters allowing just one run.
Cade Brown (2018, Cardiff, Calif.) of the San Diego Show showed some of the best power potential in the Underclass portion of the event. Brown stands at a physically imposing 6-foot-4, 200-pounds with room to even continue to add strength. He generated good bat speed and showed an elastic hand load. He consistently got to the same spot at the point of contact and almost always found the barrel with a pull side approach. He clubbed a home run that got near the houses behind the leftfield wall at Mater Dei and then doubled when back over at Helix High School.
For the EJ Sports Warriors Upperclass team, Jackson Ertz (2018, Danville, Calif.) showed promise with an exceptionally large frame, listed at 6-foot-8. Ertz is incredibly long and lean and raw on the mound. He pitched in a pair of the Warriors games showing a long arm action and threw from an over the top arm slot. His fastball worked up to 88 mph consistently with a short stride down the mound. He had great difficulty repeating his arm action, but he has the size and arm strength to project well on the mound.
BPA Rawlings Upperclass roster put together loud contact all weekend, leading their team through pool play with an average margin of victory of seven and a half runs. Their offense was led by PG All-American, Jayson Gonzalez (2017, Covina, Calif.). Gonzalez has an immensely physical frame, listed at 6-foot-2, 205 pounds with good strength throughout his frame. His barrel is very active pre-swing and generates very impressive bat speed, tilting the knob of the barrel towards the catcher. He will look to sell out for power at times, but swings with a leveraged swing out front with big impact off the barrel. He delivered likely the biggest hit for BPA in their final pool play game to help top the Sothern California Bombers with a two-run single. Though I think his future position will likely be third base, he showed a strong arm playing shortstop this past weekend with sound footwork and balanced actions while on the move.
Hitting behind Gonzalez in the order was Mississippi State commit, Tyler Lasch (2017, Lake Forrest, Calif.). Lasch has consistently shown the ability to hit at any event he’s participated in. He stands with a filled out 5-foot-9, 170-pound frame with strength throughout and a compact lower half. He has a bigger leg lift timing mechanism with a line drive swing plane and strength at the point of contact. He connected for a deep home run to right field at San Diego Mesa college and consistently found the barrel all weekend, working all fields. Lasch swings with an impressive amount of intent and does so consistently. Behind the plate, he showed sound receiving skills and a quicker transfer on throws.
Pitching for SGV Arsenal against BPA was USC commit, Carson Lambert (2018, Thousand Oaks, Calif.). Lambert has an athletic, projectable frame listed at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds with broad shoulders, long limbs, and room to continue to fill out. He started with a leg lift up past his waist and a hand raise in sync past his head. There was good tempo to Lambert’s delivery with a medium arm action through the back into a hook. He landed online and pitched with intent through release. Lambert worked over his front side with effort, but a very quick arm. His fastball worked 85-88 mph with good arm side run to the pitch. He was very aggressive with his fastball and looked to work inside on hitters. His command of the pitch was spotty and he found the barrel of several BPA hitters when leaving his fastball over the middle of the plate. Lambert showed a sharp curveball with 11-to-5 shape and good bend. He used the pitch sparingly and should look to incorporate it into his arsenal more.
Santino Rivera (2017, Chula Vista, Calif.) committed to Long Beach State after having a very strong weekend, especially on the defensive end. His actions were on display in their final game on Saturday night showing quick, clean transfer skills and an arm that can remain on the left side. Rivera stayed short to the ball at the plate with a quick swing at the point of contact. Another player whose defensive actions are a bit ahead of his skills at the plate, but players who can remain up the middle are immensely valuable.
In the matchup against Rivera’s San Diego Show, Anthony Desantis (2017, Salinas, Calif.) showed out defensively for CCB Elite. Desantis had some of the most advanced actions up the middle of any player this weekend. The shortstop moved quickly and easily to the ball and did so best ranging to his right. His hands were sure when picking the ball and got it out of his glove with ease. He had a very strong arm from the left side and liked to show it off either on routine plays or on relay plays at the plate. He was accurate and decisive with good balance and accuracy.
A pair of hard throwing arms closed out the action on Saturday night in relief. Aidan Goicovich (2017, Gilroy, Calif.) took the mound for CCB Elite standing at a projectable 6-foot-3, 205-pounds. The uncommitted righthander pitched with a long, slightly rigid arm action with good extension down the mound. There was a crossfire element to his delivery with a shorter stride down the mound and recoil over his front side. His arm did work quickly through release with his fastball sitting 87-90 mph and turning out a 91 mph as well. The pitch showed good arm side life with occasional angle. Goicovich showed a changeup that he choked with good replication of arm speed at 80 mph and short fade. He also worked in a slider that flashed two-plane break with 10-to-4 shape at 75 mph. He didn’t show consistent feel for either secondary and will need refinement to make either pitch a weapon. Goicovich is uncommitted at present and that shouldn’t last long with the combination of arm strength and physical projection.
Coming in for the Show in the same game was San Diego State commit, Casey Schmitt (2017, Chula Vista, Calif.). Schmitt is listed as a primary third basemen and has plenty of arm strength as he showed on the mound. He threw from an extended three-quarters arm slot with a closed, short stride down the mound. He was hooked through the back of his arm action, drawing his arm straight back. He was deliberate into a rocker step on the mound, with several pauses in his delivery. He showed a very quick arm with good arm strength and a fastball that worked 88-90 mph and got several swings and misses on the pitch up in the zone. The pitch showed good arm side life and attacked hitters. He also showed a very hard, sharp slider at 81 mph with tight break and 10-to-4 shape. The pitch offered a legitimate swing-and-miss option on the mound and back-footed a lefthanded hitter on an absurd swinging strikeout.
Moving into Sunday’s action, Sothern California Bombers second basemen, Daniel Cervantes (2017, Santa Clarita, Calif.) stood out over both of their games. Cervantes has a strong, filled out 5-foot-11, 180-pound frame with good strength and broad shoulders. He starts with a higher hand set and a deeper hand load, but gets on plane well and matches it. He looks to elevate and drive the ball with a patient approach at the plate. Cervantes in the field showed clean actions at second with good footwork around the bag. He throws from a lower slot and picks it well with clean defensive actions.
A fellow infielder on that Bombers team was UCLA commit, Zachary Pettway (2017, Long Beach, Calif.). Committed to the Bruins as a pitcher, Pettaway only played the field this weekend, but still looked the part. He has a large, physical build with good strength throughout. He showed impressive instincts at third base with a quick, clean release. His backhand actions were solid, moving well to both sides and being confident and accurate with a strong arm across. At the plate he showed a slightly uppercut swing plane with very loud barrel at impact. His swing worked fluid to the ball after a still hand load with good bat speed through the swing.
CBA’s Underclass team took the title for that division in part thanks to the offensive contributions from Matthew Brumbaugh (2018, Chula Vista, Calif.). Brumbaugh has an extra-large, physical frame listed at 6-foot, 200-pounds with tremendous strength and size. He has an elastic hand load with a simple, fluid swing to the ball. Without top-notch bat speed, his strength allows him to drive the ball off the barrel with ease, matching his line drive swing plane well. He had a pair of singles in their championship game while using a pull side approach.
Starting CBA’s second game on Sunday was lefthander Randy Abshier (2018, Chula Vista, Calif.). Abshier is an Arizona commit with a tremendously projectable frame. He stands at 6-foot-4, 160-pounds with very long limbs and a wiry, slender frame with lots of room to continue to fill out and add strength. He showed a medium arm action with a soft hook through the back and threw from an extended three-quarters arm slot. Abshier showed a deeper hip turn at the top of his leg lift and incorporated a crossfire element down the mound. His fastball showed heavy life with good arm side wiggle at 84-87 mph and topped out at 88 mph early on in his four innings. He landed online down the mound with good extension and effort at release. His curveball showed big depth with 1-to-7 shape at 66 mph. He slowed his arm for the pitch, but worked it over for strikes. Abshier was aggressive with his fastball, looking to work it hard inside on righthanded hitters to induce groundball contact. He missed up in the zone occasionally and ran into trouble, but when he found his release point he stayed in on the hands of hitters with tempo. He threw a changeup as well at 77 mph that showed fade.
Vanderbilt commit Tony Jacob (2019, Acton, Cali.) took the mound for BPA’s upperclass team in an all-important matchup against the Sothern California Bombers. Jacob has a younger look on the mound with a 5-foot-10, 155-pound slender frame with room to continue to add strength. He showed a very long arm action through the back with a stab at the end of his arm circle. He also utilized a deeper hip turn at the start with crossfire element down the mound working over his front side. He landed on a stiff front leg and threw from a three-quarters arm slot. Jacob’s fastball worked only 78-81 mph on the mound, but missed plenty of bats with his changeup. Jacob has advanced feel for the changeup which he threw at 75 mph from the same arm slot and tremendous late tumble out of the zone. The pitch had a stout lineup guessing, often pitching them backwards and locating when and where he wanted to throughout his start. He threw a curveball as well with 1-to-7 shape and big depth out of his hand with limited sharpness. He garnered 24 swings and misses in 5 2/3 innings on the mound, yielding 11 strikeouts in that span. It was a masterful performance for a player pitching two age divisions up.
Pitching against Jacob in that game for the Bombers was St. Mary’s commit, righthander Carlos Lomeli (2017, La Habra, Cali.). Lomei has a large, projectable frame listed at 6-foot-2, 175-pounds and is a little more filled out than his listing would suggest. He has long limbs and present strength throughout. He starts with a medium leg raise to his belt with a short, quick arm action through the back. He stayed online through his landing with a slight crossfire element and worked over a stiff front leg. His fastball showed good arm side life working 88-91 mph and holding that velocity very well through his four innings. He repeated his arm action and worked around the zone with the pitch. There was fairly limited effort through release, landing balanced after loading his weight up and driving to the plate. There could be additional lower half incorporation, allowing his fastball to tick up further. He showed an impressive 10-to-4 shaped slider on the mound with tight spin and something that gave him a swing and miss offering. For the most part he just pitched to contact, letting the heaviness of his fastball work in on the hands of hitters.
Preston Hartsell (2018, Newport Coast, Cali.) was yet another projectable outfielder at the event and should off loud bat speed and barrel ability. He helped protect the lead for BPA driving a loud double to the right field wall with good carry after impact. He has a very strong, athletic build listed at 6-foot, 180-pounds with room to continue to add strength. His swing incorporates natural leverage, through long at times, but he has the ability to consistently impact the ball in the air.
Washington commit, Jonathan Schiffer (2017, Irvine, Cali.) impressed through CBA’s last pool play game against the EJ Sports Warriors. Schiffer has a filled out frame with broad shoulders and impressive physicality listed at 6-foot-1, 185-pounds. The third basemen showed clean actions at the hot corner, making routine plays with ease and good instincts. He released the ball quickly and was accurate with throws both to the plate and to first. At the plate he started with a higher hand set and a quick leg lift timing mechanism. He swung with intent to drive the ball with an elastic hand load and showed the ability to match plane. He doubled in his only official at-bat that day and collected a pair of other hits in the tournament.
In the championship game for the underclass portion, BPA sent out an impressive uncommitted lefthanded arm in Joshua Hahn (2019, Huntington Beach, Cali.). Hahn worked over his front side and threw from a three-quarters arm slot. He utilized a medium arm action through the back and was hooked through his arm circle. His fastball worked 84-87 mph and topped out at 88 mph in the first of his four innings on the mound. Hahn has a smaller build listed at 5-foot-10, 156-pounds, but has room to continue to add strength and fill out. His breaking ball showed softer spin, but big break out of his hand with 2-to-8 shape. The curveball offered a change of speeds at 65 mph and he slowed his arm for the pitch. He had troubled keeping his fastball out of the middle of the zone, but did induce a fair amount of weak contact that kept his fielders busy. Hahn varied his arm slot as well, often raising it to close to high three-quarters as well. He’s an interesting young arm that will be one to watch in the future.