Baseball season in the Sac-Joaquin Section is nearly underway.
Whitney (Rocklin) starts the season No. 1 and is looking to defend its Division I Sac-Joaquin Section title with nearly everybody returning, including seven of the eight players who had at least 20 hits in 2022. On the mound, every arm that threw at least 10 innings is back led by
Jace Gillmore,
Gavin McLendon and
Luke Oyler.
Coming in at No. 2 is
Woodcreek (Roseville), which is stacked with Division 1 collegiate talent in
Conner Barth (Oregon State),
Dylan Green (Oregon),
Austin Nye (Vanderbilt) and
Noah Madsen (Nebraska).
Franklin (Elk Grove) jumps into the No. 3 spot and is paced by three dual-threats in juniors
Jordan Lopez,
Nic Abraham and All-American senior
Nolan Stevens. Lopez hit .413 and had a 1.35 ERA. Abraham sat at .259 with a 1.11 ERA while Stevens hit .385 and recorded a 0.55 ERA.
Preseason Sac-Joaquin Section MaxPreps Top 25 baseball rankings1. Whitney (Rocklin)
2022 record: 28-6
The defending Division 1 section champions return seven top hitters and every pitcher, led by Santa Clara commit
Jace Gillmore who went 11-0 with a 1.55 earned run average while hitting .337, and San Diego State commit
Gavin McLendon who hit .326 and went 9-1 with a 0.91 ERA.
2. Woodcreek (Roseville)2022 record: 25-3
The Timberwolves won the Capital Athletic Conference and return big bats
Conner Barth and
Ethan Louie, and talented arms in
Noah Madsen and
Cody Cooper. Vanderbilt junior commit
Austin Nye to be key cog with bat and arm.
3. Franklin (Elk Grove)2022 record: 24-7
The Delta League champs return eight of their top hitters and their four top pitchers, including two-way studs
Jordan Lopez and
Nolan Stevens from a team that went to the Division 1 section semifinals. they added sophomore
Dylan Wood who had a 1.78 ERA as a freshman for Bradshaw Christian last season.
4. Granite Bay 2022 record: 21-14
Division II section champs return infielder
Cody Ferrante who hit .342 last season and a pair of proven arms in
Nolan Lawrie and
Chase Bentley. Bentley was a MaxPreps Underclass All-American as a freshman last season who went 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA.
5. McClatchy (Sacramento) 2022 record: 29-5
Senior
Shon Lor who hit .308 with six doubles and three home runs in 78 at-bats leads the Division 1 section finalists. On the mound, Lor was 7-1 with 2.16 ERA while striking out 58 batters in 45.1 innings for the Metro Conference champs.
6. Del Campo (Fair Oaks)2022 record: 29-6
Top hitters
Anthony Martinez (.343) and
Matt Moses (.405)are back from the Capital Athletic League champs and a Division III section champion squad. Oregon State pitching commit
Jake McKowen looks to return after missing his sophomore season.
7. Rodriguez (Fairfield) 2022 record: 26-4
Landon Troutt and
Kaden Wilde both hit over .400 and return to a Mustangs squad that went to the Division II section semifinals. Senior
Nathan Schikore went 8-3 on the mound.
8. Vanden (Fairfield) 2022 record: 29-6
The Vikings bring back two of their top pitchers in
Trevor Morse and
D.J. Andersen after going to the Division III section championship game last season. Strong bats
Cody Buckley,
Aidan Robles and
Dalen Shipp are also back for their senior seasons.
9. Pitman (Turlock)2022 record: 21-6-1
Senior
Andrew Balentine is back for the Pride after hitting a team best .439 and going 6-0 with a 2.35 ERA.
Brandon Leon brings a wealth of experience to the pitching and won five games last year for a squad that advanced to the Division II section quarterfinals.
10. Central Catholic (Modesto) 2022 record: 22-10-1
The Valley Oak League victors return seven of their top eight hitters from a Division III section semifinal squad, including
Braxton Thomas ,
T.P. Wentworth and
Fernando Alaniz. Wentworth and junior
Adrian Garcia (9-1, 0.96 ERA) look to pace the pitching staff.
11. Rio Americano (Sacramento)2022 record: 21-13
After a trip to the Division II section finals, the Raiders bring back
Chase Christenson who won seven games and their top four innings leaders. Offensively, .434 hitter
Brady Wilson is back after hitting four home runs during his junior season.
12. Buhach Colony (Atwater) 2022 record: 24-9
Spencer Lanz and
Erik Munoz are back after recording ERAs under 2.00. Senior
Landon Laplante added a 0.93 ERA and he hit .359 as the Thunder went to the Division III section semifinals.
13. St. Mary's (Stockton)2022 record: 17-13
The Rams return four hitters and are led on the mound by junior Michigan commit
Michael Quedens who had a 2.13 ERA for the reigning Tri-City Athletic League champs.
14. Jesuit (Carmichael)2022 record: 18-12
Baseball factory is coming off Division II section quarterfinals and has veterans and youth including incoming freshman LSU commit
Sammy Kane.
15. Ponderosa (Shingle Springs)2022 record: 18-13
Bruins add
Matthew Gallant (1.77 ERA) to a staff already featuring senior
Ricky Larson who had a 1.98 ERA in 35.1 innings. Offensively, the Bruins have several big bats including senior slugger
Nick Zuccaro who bashed seven home runs last season.
16. Rocklin 2022 record: 15-14
Junior
Jesse Cuthill is coming off a sophomore year where he had a 1.85 ERA for a Thunder team that made the playoffs. Five contributing hitters are back from last year led by senior
Jack Peterson who hit .318 and drove in 16 runs.
17. Vacaville 2022 record: 15-15
The Bulldogs return many pieces from a .500 season, including starting pitchers
Nick Vierra and
Eli Blurton. Senior
Drew Carrington could be a big piece after allowing one earned run in 12.2 innings.
18. Elk Grove2022 record: 20-9
Senior
Eddie Fines (.314) leads a rebooted Thundering Herd offense while junior pitchers
Russell Pettis (1.70 ERA) and
Ned Frutchey (3.56 ERA) could be counted on to throw a bulk of the innings.
19. River City (West Sacramento)2022 record: 21-7
Junior
Bryce Sabatke and seniors
J.J. Torrente and
Tyson Mayberry all hit at least .392 last season and pack a punch for the Raiders. Sabatke could also be the ace of the pitching staff.
20. Turlock2022 record: 20-9
Senior
Payton Hawkinson throws heat and struck out 79 batters in 53 innings a year ago. The Bulldogs also return four key hitters, including senior
Gannon Evans who hit .427 with nine extra-base hits.
21. Lincoln (Stockton)2022 record: 16-12
The Trojans bring back all three of their starting pitchers in
Ray Olivas,
Dom Samford and
Aden Bowman.
2022 record: 17-15
The Trojans used a senior heavy lineup to reach the Division 1 section semifinals but still have Long Beach State commit
Jake Fields who throws hard and recorded a 2.39 ERA.
23. Oakmont (Roseville) 2022 record: 20-9
Starting pitchers
Kurt Marton (1.77 ERA) and
Tony Lira (2.31 ERA) are back after helping lead the Vikings to the Foothill Valley League title.
24. Pioneer (Woodland)2022 record: 15-8The Patriots won the Golden Empire League and return their top five pitchers and four of their top five batters including senior
Carson Timothy. The UC Santa Barbara commit hit .418 with 10 extra-base hits while twirling four victories from the mound with a 1.75 ERA.
On the Bubble: Bear Creek (Stockton), 22-7;
Calaveras (San Andreas), 28-4;
Colfax, 18-11;
Downey (Modesto), 19-11;
Lincoln, 18-11;
Lodi, 18-14;
Placer (Auburn), 18-12;
Vista del Lago (Folsom), 23-7.
