California: MLB Draft, College Await Steele Canyon Pitcher

Steele Canyon pitcher Andrew Bellatti is one of those guys who is on the bubble. That is, he has a baseball scholarship to Cal State Fullerton in hand and is considered a prospect in professional baseball’s June draft.

Although Bellatti’s tale of the tape hints otherwise, the 6-foot-1 hard-throwing right-hander has traits of a left-hander’s personality.

“I always wear a rubber band on my right wrist,” Bellatti said. “But before every game I switch the rubber band to my left wrist.”

Superstitious? No doubt.

On the mound, though, Bellatti is all business.

“If there is a guy better than Bellatti, I don’t want to face him,” said El Capitan’s Steve Vickery, who has posted more than 547 coaching wins in 25 seasons.

Vickery compares Bellatti to Valhalla High’s O’Sullivan brothers – Sean who figures to pitch at the Double-A level for the Los Angeles Angels this season and San Diego State freshman standout Ryan.

“Bellatti is up in that O’Sullivan category,” Vickery said.  “Maybe not at the top, but he is smooth like the O’Sullivans.”

Smooth?

“It’s tough to pick up his pitches,” said one major league scout, who elected to remain anonymous. “He throws a tight slider and a great changeup. On top of that he’s effectively wild.”

The same scout compared Bellatti to Arizona State junior Mike Leake, a graduate of Fallbrook. Leake is 6-1 with a 1.31 ERA for the Sun Devils, and is considered a prime draft prospect come June.

“I see similarities between the two,” the same National League scout said. “As far as the O’Sullivans go, I don’t see Bellatti as being as polished.”

Bellatti owns a 3-1 record with a 2.33 ERA this season. He’s struck out 22 and walked six in 21 innings. A year ago Bellatti posted a 7-4 mark with a 2.92 ERA. More impressive in his roll of numbers is his 97 strikeouts in 74 1/3 innings.

Whether Bellatti takes the college route or waits to hear his name called in the free agent draft remains a dilemma for the 17-year-old right-hander.

The fact that 24 clubs have made contact with Bellatti makes turning pro even more inviting.

“Right now, I’m just keeping my options open,” he said.

Sometimes when a high school ace signs a national letter of intent as a junior, the pro baseball community turns its focus elsewhere. When that happens, the pro scouts realize they will have to include the value of a scholarship in the signing bonus if they elect to draft the player in question.

Bellatti almost recognizes the faces behind the radar guns pointed at his every pitch. So he knows there is pro interest.

“I see myself as a power pitcher,” said Bellatti, who has topped out at 93 mph and consistently throws in the 89-90 range.

There are those that will argue that neither his four-seam nor his two-seam fastball is his best pitch. Many believe his changeup, which is somewhat unorthodox, is the serve that makes him different from other pitchers.

“Everything that comes out of his hand looks the same,” said Steele Canyon coach Todd Snyder. “A lot of people measure his ability by how hard he throws and that’s a good thing. But sometimes they forget about how good his off-speed stuff is. I think that’s what makes him special.”

Bellatti is a solid hitter as well. He’s batting at a .450 clip this season with three home runs and 11 RBI.

“He’s freakishly strong when it comes to swinging the bat,” Snyder said. “People underestimate the tremendous bat speed that he produces with his frame. They think he’s too small. But I’m not one of those guys who measures everything by putting a guy in a box. He doesn’t fit the stereotype – either as a pitcher or a hitter.”

Snyder admits he doesn’t know which way Bellatti will go coming out of high school: college or pro.

“I suppose if the opportunity presents itself because he’s selected in a prominent position in the draft, he’ll sign,” Snyder said. “By the same token I know he’s smart enough to know his value.”

According to Snyder there are still a handful of scouts that attend every Steele Canyon game when Bellatti is on the mound.

“That was even during winter ball,” Snyder said.

Bellatti admits that his lifelong dream is “to play pro baseball.” He also said if he has to wait until after his junior year at CSUF, so be it.

The majority of scouts believe Bellatti will have to go the college route if he hopes to collect the signing bonus he so desires.