MaxPreps 2016 Southern Section preseason high school baseball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard

Note: JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano), Huntington Beach and Orange Lutheran (Orange) are featured in the California overall Fab 5 and thus not in the Southern Section article.

1. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City)
Head coach: Jared Halpert
2015 record: 24-6

The Wolverines have produced three of the top pitchers in the nation over the past few years in Lucas Giolito, Max Fried and Jack Flaherty. This year, Cameron Deere and Gabe Golob will be the aces on the mound for Harvard-Westlake. Deere went 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA and 52 strikeouts while Golob was 6-2 with a 1.17 ERA and 50 strikeouts. Deere is also one of the top returning hitters with a .440 average. The Wolverines will have a new head coach this year, as longtime assistant Jared Halpert replaces Matt LaCour, who stepped down to become the school's athletic director.

See last season's Southern Section baseball computer rankings



2. Hart (Newhall)
Head coach: James Ozella
2015 record: 20-10-1

Hart knocked off one of the top teams in the nation in JSerra Catholic during the Division 1 playoffs last year and eventually finished second in the division to Huntington Beach. Although Hart loses a number of players from that team, it returns several other key players, including shortstop Nick Plaia (.350), catcher Robert Reeves (.325) and first baseman Jake Lewis (.286, 4 HR).

See Southern Section baseball pro photo galleries

3. Redondo Union (Redondo Beach)
Head coach: Jeff Baumback
2015 record: 29-7

The Division 3 champions return seven starters from last year, including three-year varsity starter Danny Zimmerman (Jr., .302, 30 RBIs, 6 HR, 8-2 pitching record), who has committed to Michigan. Other top returning players include all-state pick Cooper Gallion (.420, 21 doubles, 46 RBIs, 3 HR, 8-1 pitching record), Connor Riley (P, 4-0), Sean Reynolds (.292), Jason Dicochea (6-1), Marco Valenzuela (.359) and Jacob Springman (.357).

See last season's Southern Section baseball playoff brackets



4. Mater Dei (Santa Ana)
Head coach: Burt Call
2015 record: 17-13

While the Monarchs may have lost one of the Southern Section's top players in Nick Pratto to Huntington Beach, the cupboard is hardly bare at Mater Dei. Coach Burt Call still has eight players committed to D-1 schools, led by outfielders Josh Stephen (USC) and Grant Burton (Stanford), catcher Blake Hunt (Pepperdine) and third baseman Jonathan Schiffer (Washington).

See last season's Southern Section baseball stat leaders

5. Agoura
Head coach: Anthony Chevrier
2015 record: 23-5

The Chargers return four all-league players in Ben Baird (.340, 25 RBIs), who is regarded by Perfect Game as one of the top 10 players in the state, Jonny Deluca (Jr., CF, .333), Michael Weisberg (Jr., P/OF, 8-1, 45 Ks), and Joey Dawes (Sr., 3B/1B, .385). Agoura also has Hayden Luff, a transfer from Westlake, who is expected to add some pop at the plate and a strong arm in relief.