2015 Perfect Game College Baseball Preview Index | 2015 NCAA Division II Preview
A
handful of schools dominate the college baseball landscape in
Southern California. UCLA, UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton
are among them, as all three rank among Perfect
Game's Preseason College Top 25.
High
school players across the region dedicate hundreds of hours during
their springs and summers, hoping the hard work will pay off in the
form of a college scholarship. But when offers from those prestigious
Division I schools don't come, the alternative becomes reality.
The
crowds are smaller, but the competition is just as fierce. And
Division II programs are producing first-round draft talent, too.
Such is the case with Cal Poly Pomona and Azusa Pacific – two
Southern California school separated by just 12 miles – as each
program boasts one of the top college juniors eligible for the 2015
draft: Cody Ponce and Josh Staumont.
The
righthanded Ponce had zero offers out of high school. So when his
pitching coach – former MLB pitcher Dave Coggin – put him in
front of Cal Poly Pomona's recruiting coordinator Bret Lachemann,
Ponce seized the opportunity.
“You
better get him,” Coggin told Lachemann. “He might be something
one day.”
Staumont
had two offers out of high school. And although he led the Golden
State Athletic Conference with 109 strikeouts as a true freshman for
Biola University, Staumont ended the season with thoughts of leaving.
After head coach John Verhoeven retired and several recruits
de-committed, Staumont transferred to Azusa Pacific. And as it turned
out, Coach Verhoeven was leaving Biola for Azusa as well.
“That
was pretty coincidental that Verhoeven happened to coach here,”
Staumont said. “I knew that he was leaving (from Biola). It wasn't
planned. But when I found out, knowing that he'd be here made the
decision easier.”
After
successful freshman and sophomore seasons, both Ponce and Staumont
spent their summers in 2014 playing in the Cape Code League. But the
level of competition proved to be difficult. After two disappointing
starts, Ponce called his dad, Joe Ponce, seeking encouragement.
“I
was giving them my best stuff, throwing as hard as I could and giving
them my dirtiest pitches,” Ponce recalled telling his dad. “I was
insecure about myself at the time.”
“Cody,
everyone is up there to play baseball just like you,” Joe told his
son. “You're still 60 feet, six inches away. They still have to hit
the ball, and you still have to pitch it. Trust yourself, you're up
there for a reason. And next time, just go have fun.”
“That
little phone call, I won't ever forget it,” Cody said. “It
changed me forever because then I started to see every batter not as
a D-I batter, but just as a baseball player, and that's the way I
needed to see it.
“Coach
Coggin told me one day things would click, and I'd have something I
never knew I had before. And he was right.”
In
his final eight outings for the Brewster Whitecaps, including an
appearance in the Cape Cod All-Star Game and the playoffs, Ponce went
4-1 with a 2.72 ERA and 30 strikeouts to just eight walks in 33
innings. Ponce's showing in the Cape was so impressive that, in
October, PG's Frankie Piliere ranked Ponce as the second-best
prospect in the league.
Josh Staumont is ranked the 74th overall prospect eligible for the 2015 MLB Draft.
Staumont's
summer in the Cape pitching for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox was
equally as gratifying for him.
“The
Cape was by far the best time of my life,” he said. “It was great
baseball with great guys. Going to a place where baseball is the main
focus every day and all you're doing is honing your skills, it
completely changed the way I look at baseball. It just really opened
my eyes.”
After
summers that saw their stocks skyrocket, Ponce and Staumont now enter
their junior seasons ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively in Perfect
Game's Division
II prospect rankings. But the praise doesn't stop there. On Allan
Simpson's list of the top
juniors in all of college baseball, Ponce ranks No. 7, with
Staumont not far behind at No. 36.
The
top ranked righthanders are expected to face off when Cal Poly Pomona
and Azusa Pacific meet in a Friday night matchup on February 13. The
highly-anticipated duel is the talk of the town, and has even ignited
some trash talk between the friendly rivals.
“I'd
love to throw against Josh,” Ponce said of the possible matchup.
“He's my buddy and my workout partner in the offseason. We're
always pushing each other. But everything changes when the lights
come on and we step between those white lines. It's a competition. No
matter what, I'm coming for him.”
“Cody
is the type of guy that if he can't do you one better, he's going to
put in the work so that he can do it,” Staumont added. “And I'm
the exact same way. So putting it all on the table that night is
going to be fun.”
To
prepare for the matchup – and for the rest of 2015 – Ponce has
spent his offseason refining all four of his pitches: a fastball in
the 93-96 mph range, a 78-82 mph curve, an 82-84 mph changeup and
86-88 mph slider. His goal is to be able to throw any pitch in any
count, something that was suggested to him by Tampa Bay Rays'
prospect Daniel Robertson.
“He's
always told me that the guys in pro ball aren't afraid to throw any
pitch in any count,” Ponce said. “I want to be a ballplayer at
the next level, so I might as well work on that now to keep my game
pushing me towards the next level.”
Staumont
used the offseason to improve his split-change and refine his
command. With a newfound confidence in his changeup, Staumont wants
to induce more weak contact to keep his pitch count down.
“I've
been working on those things and putting in the extra hours in
between homework and practice,” he said. “And I can already tell
those extra hours have made a difference.”
With
elevated expectations and the First-Year Player Draft on the horizon,
the next few months will go a long way in determining the futures of
Ponce and Staumont. They've both overcome mountains of obstacles
since being lightly recruited out of high school. But if you ask
them, neither wouldn't change a thing.
“I've
earned everything I have,” Ponce said. “I was never the main
attraction that everyone looked to, but I've never let that stop me.
I love my school and I'm very happy here. I'm very grateful that
Lachemann saw me and put his faith in me and trusted me. I've got
some great relationships here and I wouldn't go anywhere else. I
wouldn't give this up for anything, I love this school too much.”
“I
didn't come out of high school angry about only having two offers,”
Staumont added. “I just knew that somebody would see the talent I
have, and same with Cody. And we've put in the work to get to where
we are now.”