High school baseball rankings: Franklin opens atop Preseason Sac-Joaquin Section MaxPreps Top 25

The following 25 teams are based on who we see as the top-ranked teams at the end of the season, not necessarily those who get off to the best start. MaxPreps will also maintain computer rankings throughout the regular season. 1. Franklin (Elk Grove), 30-5 (2023 record)
The Wildcats return several key players from a squad that won the Division 1 section title before making a run to the D1 NorCal semifinals. The pitching staff returns Tennessee commit Nic Abraham, who had a 0.61 ERA, and Cal commit Jordan Lopez, who had a 2.19 ERA. Lopez is also the leading returning hitter with a .349 average. Dylan Minnatee and Jason Harris join them after stellar freshman seasons in the starting lineup.

2. Whitney (Rocklin), 26-9
The Division 1 section runner-up returns three of its top four hitters, including 2024 SJS Player of the Year Jax Gimenez who hit .400 and is signed to play at Oregon. Sacramento State commit Luke Oyler hit .414 and won five games last season. Corden Pettey is one of the top juniors in the section after allowing two earned runs in 20.2 innings. The Texas commit also struck out 38 batters in that span.

3. St. Mary's (Stockton), 24-8
The Rams bring back their top four hitters from a team that was within one game of reaching the D1 section finals. Michigan pledge Michael Quedens is a senior who hit .394 and averaged 1.5 strikeouts per inning. Senior Beckett Bo and Class of 2025 SJS Player of the Year Tanner Grove round out perhaps the best stable of pitchers in the section.

4. Central Catholic (Modesto), 24-8-1
The Raiders return all but two innings from their 2023 pitching staff that won the D3 section crown. Clemson pledge T.P. Wentworth hit .383 with nine wins on the mound while Fresno State commit Adrian Garcia tallied a .311 average to go with seven victories as a pitcher.

5. Lincoln (Stockton), 23-9
The Trojans ran into eventual D1 section champion Franklin in the semifinals and finished the season ranked No. 4. Returning is ace UCSB pledge Raymond Olivas, who chalked up seven wins with a 1.21 ERA. Fellow senior Diego Davis hit .355 while junior Brady Dobson could emerge as a top player in the section after hitting .305 as a sophomore.

6. Granite Bay, 15-19
The D2 section champs bring back all five pitchers that saw at least 20 innings, including senior Jack Ghufran. The San Jose State commit had a game for the ages with 10 strikeouts in a 4-0 complete-game shutout win over Rio Americano in the section finals. The Grizzlies also return four players who hit over .300 in 2023, including Jace Bystrowski and Tim Reed.

7. Woodcreek (Roseville), 22-10-1
Conner Barth (Mississippi State), Dylan Green (Cal) and John Handy all bring fire power on offensively. Handy is  one of the best catchers in the section and will call games for two pitchers who completed 2023 with sub-2.00 ERAs in Aiden Purvis and Vanderbilt commit Austin Nye.

8. Oakmont (Roseville) , 21-14
Tony Lira and Jayden Perkins lead a stacked lineup for the reigning D4 SJS champs. Pitchers Ayden Dringenberg and Trevor Wilson will step into big roles after combining for 70 innings last season.

9. Elk Grove, 18-11
Chase Groves is one of the best sophomores in the section after hitting .323 for the Thundering Herd, who earned the No. 4 seed in D1 last season. Senior pitchers Russell Pettis and Ned Frutchey each turned in sub-3 ERAs.

10. Sutter, 26-5-1
The Huskies won the D5 section title and D4 NorCal crown and return one of the best pitchers in the area, Hawaii pledge Jagger Beck. In 67.1 innings, Beck struck out 123, won 10 games and had a 0.73 ERA.

11. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills), 15-13-1
The Trojans graduated a lot of talent but return pitcher Brady Rea, along with hitters Andrew Del Pizzo, Dylan Westbrook and Connor Poelking.

12. Davis, 18-11
The Blue Devils return ace UC Davis commit Bryson Schelp, who had a 0.85 ERA with 50 strikeouts. Davis also returns Selassie Campos and Gizaw Baker, who both hit over .300 last season.

13. Rio Americano (Sacramento), 27-7
The Raiders graduated a lot, including their entire pitching staff from the D2 SJS runner-up team a season ago. Offensively, Rio returns starters Sam Marr, who hit .469 with 15 extra-base hits, and Reese Christiansen.

14. El Capitan (Merced), 18-4-1
The Gauchos return three stellar players from the class of 2025. Jarrett Blake hit .410 last season while Brennen Centeno and Camden Peterson each tallied up averages over .300. Peterson is also in line for the No. 1 starter's spot after a 1.70 ERA a season ago.

15. Jesuit (Carmichael), 14-16-1
Drew Vassar is one of the top seniors in the area and is coming off a .400 season. The Marauders also bring back Sammy Kane, a sophomore committed to LSU who hit .344 as a freshman. Jesuit also brings back 78 innings of experience on the mound in Max Wiesner and Garrett Valdez.

16. Bradshaw Christian (Sacramento), 22-6
Saint Mary's commit Micah Nicholson returns after hitting .500 as a junior for the D5 SJS runner-up. The Pride also return one of the best pitching staffs in the section as David Wiser, Ethan Rickert and Alex Crosno combine for 18 wins with more than 130 innings as sophomores.

17. Lodi, 16-13
The Flames fell to section runner-up Rio Americano in the second round of the D2 playoffs last season. Fresno State commit Vance Haskins, Luke Leggitt and Caiden Andes all hit over .350 last season as juniors. Haskins and Brent Godina could see a heavy workload on the mound.

18. Pioneer (Woodland), 23-6
The Patriots roared through the playoffs and reached the D3 SJS finals before falling to powerhouse Central Catholic in extra innings. Luke Ferreira and Landon Dahler headline a loaded lineup after hitting over .400 as sophomores. Matias Michel and TCU commit Drew Van Court will be counted on to pitch the lion's share of innings.

19. Del Oro (Loomis), 13-13
Ben Brown brings veteran experience as a hitter and pitcher for the Golden Eagles. Jack Tews could emerge as a force after recording a 3.35 ERA and a .444 average in 18 at-bats as a sophomore.

20. Vacaville, 18-11
Brenden Murphy and Tyler Chalk are back for their senior seasons after hitting above .390. Jaiden Oldwin leads the rotation after pacing Vacaville in innings and wins as a sophomore in 2023.

21. Folsom, 12-15-2
The Bulldogs fell to St. Mary's in the second round of the D1 SJS playoffs and return several key players. Colin Gallagher, Logan Hutton and Luke Williams all hit over .300. Williams also pitched 39 innings as a sophomore with a 2.51 ERA.

22. Lincoln, 16-11
Kenny Winters, Jackson Cook, Kade Spomer and Jake Redding all return for 2024. The four combined for 41 extra-base hits. Cook and Spomer also led the pitching staff in innings last season and combined for eight wins.

23. Pitman (Turlock), 21-8-1
The Pride graduated every hitter with at least 10 hits last season as well as their top four innings leaders on the mound. Daniel Mazon and Alex Trujillo could lead the pitching staff while Aiden Sanchez could find a big role offensively after hitting .273 in 33 at-bats.

24. Turlock, 15-12-1
Joshua Ramirez is back for the Bulldogs after hitting .395 as a sophomore while playing lockdown defense. Turlock returns its top seven hitters for a squad that fell in the postseason to an Oak Ridge team that finished fifth in the section. Carson Gonzales and Andrew Lujan are both back after throwing more than 40 innings each with ERAs below 1.50.

25. Christian Brothers (Sacramento), 22-8-1
The Falcons won the Capital Athletic League before falling to eventual section champ Central Catholic D3 SJS semifinals. Josh Lewis returns after hitting .406 as a sophomore. Pitchers Isaac Holland and Liam Golden look for bigger roles on the mound with two seniors graduating.