I received this email from the father of a player who attended BAWS last June.  If you are in the South Bay area and like pizza, take some time and help out a family.

Hi Blaine,

I am writing to practically everyone I know in the baseball community to help spread the word about a fundraiser that is being held for Chris Bush, who is a student athlete at Pioneer High School in San Jose. Please consider forwarding on this message to anyone that you know that may be able to help the Bush family with the steep medical expenses they are facing. We are also looking for items for the raffle and auction that will be held. Below is the facebook page and flyer for the event.

 Thanks.

 https://www.facebook.com/ChrisBushLukemiaFundraiser

Top 10 College Prospects from AA Games West

- Written by Matt Bomeisel, President/Founder of Prospect Wire

- Notes, evaluations, ratings, reports compiled by PW staff, which I was part of for the weekend

LAS VEGAS - The 1st Annual Underclass All-American Games West concluded on Sunday at UNLV Baseball Stadium in Las Vegas, NV.  Prospect Wire scouts and staff have been hard at work debating and agreeing over the top 10 college baseball prospects from the event.

NOTE: 3 rating = Major D1 caliber recruit / 2 rating = Mid-major (at least) D1 caliber recruit.  Defining a major and a mid-major gets tricky and it is not meant to slight any programs, so to keep it basic, consider Pac-12/SEC programs as MAJOR (obviously Fullerton, Long Beach St., USD, Fresno State, etc, should be considered MAJOR baseball programs as well) and consider most WCC/Big West programs as Mid-MAJOR (USF, UC Santa Barbara, Nevada, etc).  Obviously there are schools in the non-BCS type conferences that ARE MAJOR programs in the sport of baseball.  I tend to think of a MAJOR program as school in a BCS conference and/or a program that is consistently in the playoffs or in the Top 40 of the country year in and year out. 

1. Ryan Day, MIF, 2014 - Day was the most talented player at the event right now, with multiple tools that will excel at the college level.  His batspeed is good, he squares up a lot of balls, he has a high baseball IQ, and a very advanced approach offensively.  He also pitched a little bit (up to 87mph).  Although he doesn't have a lot of power potential on offense, he is a top of the order bat with consistent line drive/gap to gap pop.  He also showed very well against breaking balls.  He was the most well-rounded player at the event that can do a little bit of everything.  He plays hard, the game comes easy to him and he's a gamer.  Major division 1 colleges in California should all have Ryan Day high on their radar.  PW Rating - 3*

I was at the Prospect Wire showcase in Las Vegas this weekend and here are some links to some performances from some outstanding Northern California players, including Deer Valley HS CF Marcus Wise (2013), Monte Vista HS C Lucas Halstead (2014) and Enterprise HS INF Kaelan Crisosto (2014).  Deer Valley HS RHP Tyler Vistalli was also there and was a standout as well.  In fact, all four of these players were rated in the top 10 of the event. 

Here are the reports about three of those players, after their defensive workouts...

Here were the top 5 performers during I/O in no particular order:

1.  Lucas Halstead, 2014, C - Showed a plus arm during throw downs to 2B.  Showed a fairly quick transfer as a new catcher.  Already showing signs of having standout defensive skills behind the plate.

3.  Marcus Wise, 2013, CF - Graceful actions in CF.  Made a great play over the shoulder catch on a poorly hit fungo!  Accurate throws, above average range.  Plays with tempo and feel in the OF.

5. Kaelan Crisosto, 2014, MIF - Has athleticism that he transfers very well to the baseball field.  Not the strongest arm, but he has some carry to it.  Also shows a quick release.  Seems to have a good internal clock.

Crisosto and Halstead also earned praise from their BP sessions...

Kaelan Crisosto, 2014, MIF - Easy, fluid swing.  Line drives.  Can handle wood.  Projectable body with projectable power.  Easy line drive swing.

Lucas Halstead, 2014, C - Has a chance for plus power.  Great batspeed.  Has strength to handle a wood bat now.  Drives the baseball (when his body stays behind the ball)

Now is a time of year when many of the very best rising seniors have given their verbal commitments, while other very good and steadily improving players are still waiting for their shot to be recruited.  The D1 coaches are at the Area Code Games this week, looking to lock up the last few uncommitted players at that event and there will be a battle for those players.  Numerous schools will compete for the same players and yet, only one school will get each player.  That will leave opportunities for others who may not have been recruited as aggressively yet.

Players who competed at showcase events like Bay Area World Series earlier in the summer, or have been playing with competitive travel ball teams at tournaments all summer, they have been seen and noted but their time to be recruited should be coming.  Many of those kids will head to Arizona in October, for the Arizona Senior Fall Classic and from there many will get their opportunity.

So if you are a player who doesn't have a bunch of recruiting interest right now, but maybe you did hear from some schools earlier in the summer, stay patient, but be PROACTIVE.  Reach out to your top choices.  For instance, if you are a catcher and you have heard from a school, reconnect with that school.  It might be that that program is hot after a catcher at the Area Code Games, like Dominic Miroglio of O'Dowd, for instance.  Well, Miroglio is getting a lot of interest and only ONE school that needs a 2013 catcher will get him.  That will open up an opportunity for the next group of players on the recruiting lists. 

Speaking of catchers, there are quite a few good ones that are still uncommitted that I think are recruitable by D1 programs... in addition to Dominic Miroglio (Bishop O'Dowd) and Bryan Bucher (Aptos), both of whom are at the Area Code Games, here are some others: Jacob Tonascia (San Benito), Jimmy Hill (Monterey), Ray Bartolomucci (De La Salle), Dylan Isquirdo (Foothill-Pleasanton), and Daniel Jackson (Amador Valley), are those that come to mind.

Like I said, Bucher and Miroglio are at the Area Code Games and simply by being there, they are likely to leave Long Beach with offers in hand.  The next wave of players needs to pay attention to where they commit.  

Get your fingers working and get some emails and tweets and phone calls going to your schools of choice.  Find out which programs will have prospect camps in the fall and winter, especially those you have near the top of your choice list.  Good luck!

Here is the link to that post from last spring... ok, take a look... good, you're back, let's review.

Catcher Chadd Krist (Sr) Cal / 2012: .294, 4 HR, 19 2B, 36 RBI, .983 fld%

- I think he earned his spot.  Was also drafted and signed in 9th round.  Eric Smith of Stanford could be argued for, as could Trent Garrison of Fresno State.  I will stick with Krist.

1st Base Troy Channing (Sr) Saint Mary's / 2012: .349, 10 2B, 2 HR, 21 RBI

- This should have been Ragira or Mitch Delfino of Cal, who both had very strong offensive years. Great AVG for Channing, but where did the power go?  I will go with Delfino as the pick, he hit more than Ragira in the same conference.

2nd Base Tony Renda (Jr) Cal / 2012: .342, 5 HR, 16 2B, 27 RBI, 16 SB, walked more than he K'd

- Yes, nailed this one.  He was also a 2nd round pick.

Shortstop Kenny Diekroeger (Jr) Stanford / 2012: .275, 16 2B, 2 HR, 31 RBI

- Not a great year for Diekroeger.  He has already quadrupuled his homers in pro ball (8). I value the production put up in the Pac-12 but the proper pick here was Mike Miller of Cal Poly, with a case for Derrick Chung of Sacramento State.

3rd Base Patrick Wisdom (Jr) Saint Mary's / 2012: .262, 10 2B, 9 HR, 24 RBI

- Though Wisdom was a high draft pick, he didn't have a great year, mostly due to injury.  Piscotty is the right pick.  Paul Politi of UC Davis also had a very good year as a 3B.

Left Field Aaron Judge (So) Fresno State / 2012: .308, 14 2B, 2 3B, 4 HR, 27 RBI, 13 SB

- Didn't see the big power from Judge, but all told, a solid year.  However, out of nowhere came Rhys Hoskins of Sacramento state, with a MONSTER year and he was the best LF in the area, for production. He is the right pick.

Center Field Brian Ragira (So) Stanford / 2012: .329, 5 HR, 15 2B, 50 RBI, .993 fld%

- Got him right because he performed real well, but at the wrong position, he keeps playing 1B at Stanford and is doing a GREAT job.  The right pick here is Mitch Haniger of Cal Poly, who put up BIG power numbers. 

Right Field Austin Wilson (So) Stanford / 2012: .285, 12 2B, 2 3B, 10 HR, 54 RBI

- Good year for Wilson, and though Brooks Klein of Nevada had a GREAT year, I'll stick with the production from Wilson in the Pac-12, where he faced much better pitching.  Put him in the WAC and his stats go WAY up.

Designated Hitter Stephen Piscotty (Jr) Stanford / 2012: .329, 13 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 56 RBI, also pitched well.

- Good pick here, but should have put him as the primary 3B.  He did play LF too, so a UTL spot was appropriate.  Will go with Brian Ragira of Stanford here, with a strong nod to Brooks Klein of Nevada.

Starting Pitchers

Mark Appel (Jr) Stanford / 2012: 10-2, 2.56 ERA - Um, yes, got this one right. #8 overall pick.

Kyle Zimmer (Jr) USF / 2012: 5-3, 2.85 ERA, 104 K - Not a lot of wins but he was the right pick, #5 overall pick.

Martin Agosta (Jr) Saint Mary's / 2012: 9-2, 2.18 ERA, 95 K - Great year, 2nd round pick, got him right.

- RHP Braden Shipley of Nevada and Joey Wagman of Cal Poly had a GREAT years, but I chose not to penalize Zimmer for his team not hitting for LONG stretches, which limited his win total.

Reliever Zack Jones (Jr) / 2012: 3-4, 4.50 ERA, 7 SV, 60 K:54 IP - Nice year, but there were better closers, like Taylor Garrison of Fresno State.  He gets the nod, with a case being made for Chase Johnson of Cal Poly.

Just some general observations, news, etc. on this Sunday, related to our local baseball players.

The biggest news is another local product reaching the big leagues.  Today the Cubs promoted former Miramonte HS and Cal star Brett Jackson.  He started today in centerfield for the Cubs against the Dodgers, hitting in the two-hole.  Jackson burst onto the recruiting scene after his sophomore year at the very first Bay Area World Series back in 2004.

UPDATE: Jackson grounded out to 1st base in his first at-bat (hough umps ALL missed the very obvious fact that the ball went off Jackson's shin then foot first), he walked then was forced at 2nd base, and in his third at-bat he stroked a clean single into right field for his first MLB knock!

For those who follow the Little League World Series, the Bay Area has a team that has a chance to advance to Williamsport.  Petaluma National has advanced in the Western regional down in San Bernardino.  So far Petaluma National is 2-0, with wins over Hawaii and Arizona.  They will play Southern California on Monday, followed by Nevada on Tuesday.  The top four seeds advance to the regional semi-finals, which start on Friday.  

In other news, the Nationals/Marlins game on Sunday had some news and notes of local interest.  Former Stanford closer Drew Storen got the save in the 4-1 Nationals win, it was his first save of the season after he missed most of the season due to having some bone chips removed from his right elbow.  The Nationals main closer this year has been Tyler Clippard but he had pitched the last three days so Storen got his shot and at some point I think the Nationals want to get him back in the role as their primary closer.  He did save 43 games last year. 

Also in that game, former USF (and North Valleys HS in Reno) star Scott Cousins went 2-4, including a double of Nationals' starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg.  As the Marlins have held somewhat of a firesale, Cousins figures to get a pretty significant amount of playing time. 

Baseball America has posted a listing of their top 50 prospects for the 2013 MLB Draft.  Of course that is a long way off and a list like that will be quite fluid, with additions and subtractions, based on performance, injuries, newly discovered players, etc. 

We know that Stanford was well represented in the 2012 draft and guess what, it appears that the Cardinal will again be well represented in 2013.  Last year RHP Mark Appel and 3B/OF Stephen Piscotty were selected in the 1st round, Piscotty signed and Appel did not. LHP Brett Mooneyham was a 3rd rounder, SS Kenny Diekroeger was a 4th rounder,OF Jake Stewart was a 9th rounder, C Eric Smith was an 18th rounder, and OF Tyler Gaffney was a 24th rounder.  That is seven Stanford player drafted last year.

The Baseball America top 50 for 2013 has four Stanford players listed.  Appel is listed at #1, OF Austin Wilson at #13, RHP A.J. Vanegas at #30, and 1B Brian Ragira at #38.  Those rankings suggest Appel, Wilson, and Vanegas all will be 1st round selections and Ragira a supplemental 1st round selection. 

Other local/regional players in that ranking includ Fresno State OF Aaron Judge at #12 and Elk Grove HS 1B Ryan Tellez at #19.  

There are some other very talented local/regional players that could sneak into that group.  Someone from this group of high school players certainly could emerge; Tracy HS LHP Jonah Wesley, James Logan HS OF Amalani Fukofuka, Kerman HS RHP Carlos Salazar, Franklin HS 1B Tyler Blake, Davis HS RHP Trevin Haseltine, Head-Royce RHP Steven Farinaro, and Serra HS OF Jordan Parouback .  Some of those names might not be known very well or might be a surprise name, but all those players are very talented.

From the college ranks (there are other colleges/universities here other than Stanford).  Last year seven Cal Bears were drafted, with 2B Tony Renda going highest, in the 2nd round.  I don't have the sense that any Cal Bears will be top 50 players, but it wouldn't surprise me if C Andrew Knapp developed into that type of pick, he can really hit and as a switch-hitting catcher, his profile is highly valued.  USF has become a hotbed for upper round pitching and RHP Alex Balog is one of the most talented pitchers in the West.  He will steadily rise up those rankings.

In looking over the rosters of all the D1 programs in the region, there aren't any other players I feel that strongly about to suggest they could rocket up into high round draft consideration.  MAYBE USF LHP Jordan Haseltine, who has a great arm, big body, and of course, USF has produced some major LHP talent over the years.

BAWS 2012 has come and gone and it was a great event.  I always look at the event in two ways, as an organizer/director but also as a scout.  For this post I want to highlight some of the players, the players I most enjoyed watching, for one reason or another.  All scouts are drawn to talented players, those with physical gifts and tools, but we are also drawn to some players for our own specific reasons.  Maybe it is a style of play, maybe it is just a hunch that there are bigger things down the road for a player, etc.  These players caught my eye while I was also running the event...  Again, it doesn't mean I thought these were the BEST players or the only players worthy of mention.  We all have our favorite players, right? Read on...

Last weekend at Cal Poly we had Bay Area World Series (BAWS) 2012.  This was the first year that Cal Poly (SLO) was the host and it couldn't have been any better.  The weather is spectacular, the scenery is gorgeous, the playing surface is fantastic, the venue is intimate and comfortable, and the city of San Luis Obispo is a wonderful vacation destination.  Safe to say, BAWS 2013 will be back at Cal Poly.

There will be more news and reports here in the coming days and weeks about the players at BAWS 2012.  For now, I wanted to make sure I release the results and the names of the award winners from the weekend.

Contra Costa defeated North Bay 11-9 in a slugfest that featured no fewer than six triples and a grand slam.  The wind was blowing a bit and we used minor league baseballs into the game.  Why does that matter?  Well, they are harder than the high school balls we were using in the other eight games and the seams are smaller.  This was the second BAWS title for Contra Costa (2004).

Here are the major award winners:

BAWS Championship Game MVP - OF Austin Lonestar, De La Salle HS (2013)

SSK Most Outstanding Player - C Dominic Miroglio, Bishop O'Dowd HS (2013)

Spalding Most Outstanding Defensive Player - CF Marcus Wise, Deer Valley HS (2013)

Pocket Radar Most Outstanding Pitcher - RHP Ben Hughes, Valley Christian HS (2014)

Bay Area FCA Most Inspirational Player - C Cole Duerr, Fremont HS (2014)

Last Saturday I saw the South County Sun Devils in a doubleheader at Ohlone College, as part of the Zoots Tournament.  It was a sweltering day but I got a good look at the SC Sun Devils and also their opponent in game two, the younger EJ Warriors team.  The Sun Devils are a team from up north in the 530 area code, with players from Redding, Red Bluff, Palo Cedro, etc.  They will be in Peoria (AZ) for the USA West 17u Championships and should be seen, especially for any college team looking for infielders.  They have four good ones and a couple of good pitchers I saw.

I was there primarily to see a 2014 grad for SC, infielder Kaelan Crisosto (6'1" 170, R/R).  He didn't disappoint but I was also impressed with a few of his teammates.  Here is what I saw, with some information from the player packet, such as grades...

Kaelan Crisosto (2014, INF, Enterprise HS) - He's not only a very good athlete, but apparently a very good student (3.8 GPA, with college prep and honors courses).  I also found out that he is an outstanding basketball player and that explains some of what I saw in the game.  His body is lean and strong and heading into his junior year he is well on his way to being a body that draws attention on the field.  Crisosto has all-around skills for baseball.  He is going to be a good college hitter, he has good infield hands (good to the backhand too) and instincts, he can steal bases despite not being a plus runner, he is versatile enough to play in the outfield, and he played with nice pace and feel.  He also appeared to be a great teammate, always sitting at the front of the dugout entrance, greeting every player in and out of the dugout, even on a 95 degree day.  As a hitter he has a line drive swing and will develop some power.  For this team he hits lead-off and when he gets on base he goes.  Defensively I saw a quick release and that he has a good clock that allows him to know how much he needs to put on a throw across the diamond.  His throws were accurate, both across the diamond and on his relay throws.  Crisosto has good lateral agility and also showed hops as he leapt to snag a high line drive.  He will have to get faster to be able to make the slow roller plays and high choppers that get past the pitcher.  I like this player, he is going to play major college baseball and I think really develop into a good player, potentially into a professional prospect during his college years.  He will be at BAWS in San Luis Obispo.