We now have another measuring stick that we can use in determining the top teams in Southern California, as the
MaxPreps Freeman Rankings are out. Taken in tandem with local newspaper rankings and our own research, it's all giving a clearer picture of who belongs where.
The San Diego Section got a pair of new teams into the rankings this week and Cathedral Catholic may be vulnerable, so there is a chance to move up. Also, we welcome Loyola, which has a healthy lead in the Mission League. Also, Buchanan of the Central Section is back in the rankings with just two losses.
MaxPreps Southern California Baseball Rankings
Orange Lutheran is on a rampage, and if it can take two games from Santa Margarita this week, the Lancers would face Mater Dei for what could be the Trinity League title.
Photo by Heston Quan
1 state, 1 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Monarchs, second in the
Xcellent 25, were challenged both times by Santa Margarita, winning 4-3 and 2-1 in nine innings.
And they were down to their last strike on Friday, trailing after the Eagles scored in the top of the ninth to break a scoreless tie. But Brian Soper scored on a high throw to first and the Monarchs maintained their 19-game winning streak. A pair against St. John Bosco await this week before next week's showdown with Orange Lutheran.
2. (2) Harvard-Westlake (Studio City), 18-3 (4-2 Mission League)Freeman Ranking: 6 state, 11 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Wolverines, third in the Xcellent 25, are known for pitching. Well they also showed the big bats in two triumphs over Alemany last week, emerging victorious 10-3 and 12-5. That 12-5 win was only the third time all season they allowed five or more. The Mission League is hardly Harvard-Westlake's, though. They trail Loyola in the league standings and are barely above Alemany and Chaminade, next week's opponent for two games. It's time to separate themselves or the league will be wide open.
3. (3) Fountain Valley, 21-1 (10-0 Sunset League)Freeman Ranking: 3 state, 3 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Barons climbed to 15th in the Xcellent 25 and moved their winning streak to 15 by taking three from Newport Harbor (13-3, 8-5 and 8-5). They lead by 3.5 games over Marina with seven left to play on the Sunset League schedule. Two games with Los Alamitos await this week.
4. (7) Orange Lutheran, 16-4 (7-2 Trinity League)Freeman Ranking: 5 state, 7 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Lancers are coming on strong. Really strong. They average exactly two runs allowed per game this season, and nobody has scored more than two against Orange Lutheran in its last seven games. The Lancers bested Servite 5-2 and 4-2, and if they can take two from Santa Margarita this week (a team that gave Mater Dei all it could handle), then it sets up an amazing week next week with two against Mater Dei.
5. (6) Bonita (La Verne), 19-2-1 (6-0 Hacienda League)Freeman Ranking: 25 state, 109 national
Division: Southern Section III
The
Bearcats moved their winning streak to eight in a row with a pair of league victories over West Covina (10-2 and 7-2) and a weekend win over Centennial (Corona) in the Redondo Tournament. That Freeman Rankings number reflects the weak schedule, but you can't knock a team with a record like that.
Justin Row was 3-for-4 with a double in the win over Centennial. Next up is a pair with Los Altos.
6. (8) Oaks Christian (Westlake Village), 17-3-1 (4-0 Tri Valley League)Freeman Ranking: 16 state, 61 national
Division: Southern Section IV
The Lions have won 15 of 16, with that only loss coming to Mater Dei in the Boras Classic regional final. They're featuring on the TVL schedule so far, and they beat Nordhoff (Ojai) 12-0 and 12-3 last week in addition to a 9-0 triumph over North (Torrance) in the Redondo Tournament. Two games with St. Bonaventure await this week as well as a Redondo Tournament contest.
7. (9) El Toro (Lake Forest), 15-5 (7-0 South Coast League)
Gavin Collins, El Toro
File photo by Terry Jack
7 state, 12 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Chargers have won 13 of 14, and that one loss was to Oaks Christian. So even though the Freeman Rankings say otherwise, we are keeping the Lions ahead of El Toro. The Chargers took a pair of games from Mission Viejo, 9-1 and 7-4 (eight innings), to continue an unbeaten league schedule.
Nick Paglialonga and
Gavin Collins each knocked in a pair in the 7-4 victory. Two games with Trabuco Hills are on the schedule this week.
8. (10) Rancho Bernardo (San Diego), 18-3 (6-0 Palomar League)Freeman Ranking: 8 state, 14 national
Division: San Diego Section Open
The Broncos just beat up on Canyon Crest Academy, winning 8-0, 19-0 and 8-1.
Alex Jackson knocked in five runs in the 19-0 triumph. Mt. Carmel is the opponent for the next three games and that team is 0-6 in league play, so Rancho Bernardo looks to be in a great position to move up higher in the rankings.
9. (12) Granite Hills (El Cajon), 16-4 (5-0 Grossmont Hills League)Freeman Ranking: 10 state, 23 national
Division: San Diego Section Open
The Eagles whacked West Hills 17-4 and then defeated Helix 7-4. A second game with Helix is not reported as of writing this, so we'll save that for next week. So aside from that Helix game, there are two with Grossmont. This San Diego Section Open Division is going to be a spectacular postseason spectacle.
10. (13) Redlands, 15-3 (8-1 Citrus Belt League)Freeman Ranking: 35 state, 150 national
Division: Southern Section II
The Terriers are like Bonita in that they just keep on winning despite a Freeman Rankings number that pales in comparison with some other squads. But like we said, they know how to win, as they took 3-1 and 3-0 victories over Cajon in league play.
Angel Landazuri threw a five-hit shutout in the 3-0 win. Two games with Redlands East Valley come up this week, and at one point earlier this season, REV was ranked and was considered an equal, though two Terriers victories changed that.
11. (5) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego), 15-5 (4-1 Eastern League)Freeman Ranking: 19 state, 73 national
Division: San Diego Section I
The Dons dropped a 2-1 decision to St. Augustine in a game played at Petco Park, yielding runs in the sixth and seventh innings of a game that featured five total hits.
Brady Aiken knocked an RBI double for the Dons. They beat Mira Mesa, 3-2 with three runs in the top of the seventh, as
Toru Sugiura knocked a two-run triple. Next up is one more with Mira Mesa and one with Patrick Henry. Trouble is on the horizon, though, as five players were suspended.
12. (4) Canyon (Anaheim), 15-4 (7-3 Century League)Freeman Ranking: 9 state, 18 national
Division: Southern Section I
A tough week for the Comanches, as they dropped two in a row. The overall resume keeps them this high, and other teams also dropped contests. El Dorado nipped Canyon 2-1 in a league contest and that was excusable, as El Dorado was a highly ranked team earlier this season. But then came a 3-0 loss to Esperanza in the next game and that hurt because Esperanza is far from a winning record. The Comanches did fight back with a 15-3 win over Esperanza in the rematch, and face Foothill once and El Modena twice this week.
13. (15) Serra (Gardena), 17-5 (4-0 Del Rey League)Freeman Ranking: 32 state, 130 national
Division: Southern Section III
The
Cavaliers have now won seven in a row, hitting the streak we
anticipated at some point. They beat La Salle 5-0 and 7-5, using a
triple and homer from
Dominic Smith in the second contest of the week.
Now comes two games with Bishop Montgomery.
14. (14) Quartz Hill, 16-5 (8-0 Golden League)Freeman Ranking: 89 state, 508 national
Division: Southern Section III
The Rebels aren't getting a ton of respect in the Freeman Rankings despite wins over Mission League leader Loyola and Agoura. They also have close losses to two teams in the Xcellent 50. But the local schedule is pretty weak, we must acknowledge. Last week, the Rebels pounced on Lancaster 10-1 and 15-2. That makes seven of eight games scoring in double digits and they've allowed just six runs over that span. Next up is two games with Knight (Palmdale).
15. (21) Northview (Covina), 16-4 (4-1 Valle Vista League)Freeman Ranking: 43 state, 213 national
Division: Southern Section IV
The Vikings beat Wilson 3-0 and Los Alamitos 12-6. A game with Wilson was not reported as well. Two games with Baldwin Park are on the schedule as well as a Redondo Tournament matchup with West (Torrance).
16. (11) San Clemente, 19-5 (6-2 Sea View League)Freeman Ranking: 12 state, 34 national
Division: Southern Section II
The
Tritons had a disappointing week with a pair of losses. The joy of a
4-0 win over San Juan Hills was erased in a 6-3 loss, and the joy of a
5-4 win over Great Oak faded when they lost 2-1 despite yielding only
three hits.
17. (NR) Loyola (Los Angeles), 15-8 (7-1 Mission League)
Stephen Dubb, Loyola
Photo by Vince Pugliese
73 state, 398 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Cubs make their entrance with an eight-game winning streak and own a victory over Harvard-Westlake. More importantly, they lead the Mission League right now, and by a pair of games. They beat Notre Dame twice last week and Woodrow Wilson. Two tough games with Alemany await this week.
18. (NR) Buchanan (Clovis), 20-2-1 (8-1 Tri-Rivers League)Freeman Ranking: 11 state, 26 national
Division: Central Section I
The Bears were a hot topic and we dropped them after losing to Clovis North. Now it's time to give recognition to the Central Section once again, as Buchanan has a great Freeman Rankings number and has played consistent ball. Their two losses are to good teams, though the record certainly can't be compared with the Southern Section big boys. Two games with Clovis West await this week.
19. (16) Cypress, 16-6 (4-2 Empire League)Freeman Ranking: 17 state, 63 national
Division: Southern Section II
The Centurions lost to 8-11 Tustin by a 9-5 score and have definitely hit a rough spot. But their early-season success can't be denied. They beat Tustin 8-2 and Palos Verdes 6-3 last week and have a pair with Yorba Linda this week.
20. (19) Agoura, 16-8 (8-2 Marmonte League)Freeman Ranking: 80 state, 444 national
Division: Southern Section I
The Chargers lost 4-1 to Moorpark (which has a great record) then rebounded and won 6-5 in the rematch behind
Kyle London and
Albee Weiss, who each knocked in two runs. They also beat South (Torrance) 4-0 on a three-hitter from
Nick Shur. Two games with Westlake and a Redondo Tournament matchup come calling this week.
21. (25) San Fernando, 23-2 (8-0 Valley Mission League)Freeman Ranking: 138 state, 875 national
Division: Los Angeles City Section I
The Tigers continue to impress, as they took 5-0 and 6-5 wins from Sylmar before beating Venice, 12-1. The 6-5 win over Sylmar featured two runs in the top of the seventh to steal a win, and in the other win they yielded just five hits. Two games with Canoga Park and one with Narbonne are on the schedule this week.
22. (20) Temecula Valley (Temecula), 14-4 (7-2 Southwestern League)Freeman Ranking: 20 state, 76 national
Division: Southern Section II
The Golden Bears have lost three of six but you can't deny that this is one of the best teams in Division II, especially with such a high Freeman Rankings number. They still hold a comfortable two-game lead in the Southwestern League and will face one of three challengers this week, with two games against Murrieta Mesa.
23. (NR) Carlsbad, 16-4 (6-0 Avocado West League)
Chase Grant, Carlsbad
Photo by Steven Silva
22 state, 78 national
Division: San Diego Section I
We welcome the Lancers to the rankings. They are ranked fourth by the San Diego U-T and are rolling through the league so far. They took three from Fallbrook (11-3, 9-1 and 7-5) last week and will face Rancho Buena Vista this week for three contests.
Nick Anderson has 21 RBIs and is hitting .382.
24. (NR) St. Augustine (San Diego), 14-5 (2-2 Eastern League)Freeman Ranking: 37 state, 163 national
Division: San Diego Section I
The
Saints beat Cathedral Catholic in a great low-scoring game, getting the
2-1 walk-off win at Petco Park. They lost to Patrick Henry 6-3. There
is a lot of parity in the SDS and this is certainly a fluid situation.
25. (NR) Warren (Downey), 17-3 (8-1 San Gabriel Valley League)Freeman Ranking: 162 state, 1,045 national
Division: Southern Section III
The LA Times definitely has given the Bears a boost. The Freeman Rankings? Not so much. We're willing to give them a shot, considering they are 17-1 since dropping a pair to begin the campaign. They have 11 wins in a row, have scored in double digits in four of the last five and face Lynwood in their only game this week.
