The Bee’s Top 20 baseball rankings: 30 of the Sacramento area’s best high school players
The real fun starts May 7 on the regional baseball circuit.
That’s when the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs start, and it will take pitching, defense and poise to survive and advance. The region includes a host of college-committed players.
Here are 30 players to keep an eye as the regular season winds down and the playoffs approach.
Nic Abraham, Franklin
The 6-foot-5 senior pitcher headed to Tennessee did not allow a single earned run in Delta League play and is 8-0 with an 0.98 ERA. He is as ferocious as his fastball and is the team’s top cheerleader when not on the mound for the defending Division I champions.
Mason Belding, Del Oro
The sophomore catcher with a verbal commitment to play at Texas A&M leads the Golden Eagles with a .457 on-base percentage, five home runs and a .315 batting average while impressing amid a brutal Sierra Foothill League schedule.
Chase Bentley, Granite Bay
The junior pitcher bound for Texas A&M is 4-1 with a 2.17 ERA, four complete games and 54 strikeouts to just eight walks for a Grizzlies program seeking a section D-II repeat.
Tyler Bolyard, Vista del Lago
The junior who can play catcher, infield and pitch leads the Eagles with a .527 average, 17 stolen bases, 49 hits, 33 RBI, a .698 slugging percentage and 37 runs scored.
Cash Brennan, Rocklin
The junior infielder headed to Arizona has a team-best 32 hits and eight doubles to go with 18 runs, a .405 average and eight doubles for the tradition-rich Thunder.
Ben Brown, Del Oro
The senior pitcher leads the Golden Eagles with a 1.58 ERA, a 5-2 record and 48 strikeouts in 44.1 innings and has shown well in the wildly competitive Sierra Foothill League.
Cade Colombara, Jesuit
The junior pitcher committed to Arizona State leads Big Red with a 6-0 record, a 2.04 ERA and has 64 strikeouts in 48 innings in having hung tough in the tough Delta League.
Andrew Del Pizzo, Oak Ridge
The senior infielder leads the Trojans with a .349 average and has 29 hits, eight doubles and 11 RBI for the battle-tested school from El Dorado Hills.
Ayden Dringenberg, Oakmont
The junior third baseman/pitcher is batting .379 and has a 1.11 ERA and a 6-1 record for a team that seeks a section title repeat in D-II after playing an ambitious nonleague schedule.
Nathan Erickson, Valley Christian
Never mind the small-school status. This guy can hit. The senior has a .568 average, a .597 on-base percentage, a 1.068 slugging percentage, five triples, nine doubles and 31 RBI for a program seeking another championship.
Eric Erdmann, Jesuit
The junior infielder leads the storied Marauders with a .458 average, a .529 on-base percentage, three home runs, 10 doubles, 28 RBI and a .750 slugging percentage and will be one tough out in the playoffs.
Brady Estes, Whitney
The junior lefty who towers at 6-4 can pitch and play infield or outfield. He has 20 RBI and six doubles for the powerhouse Placer County program that won the D-I section title in 2022 and nearly repeated in 2023
Ned Frutchey, Elk Grove
The 6-4 senior pitcher headed to UC Davis is a team-best 7-1 on the mound with an 0.85 ERA and 59 strikeouts with just five earned runs. He has gone from solid to superb in one season.
Jack Ghufran, Granite Bay
A key cog for the Grizzlies on their march to the D-II championship last season, the senior pitcher headed to San Jose State is 4-2 with six complete games, a 3.02 ERA and 35 strikeouts.
Jax Gimenez, Whitney
The senior infielder headed to Oregon has been an anchor, and he leads the 2023 D-I champions with a .448 average, four home runs, 35 stolen bases, 39 hits, 35 runs and a 0.758 slugging percentage. He has four homers and is a leader.
Ethan Groves, Elk Grove
The senior outfielder leads the tradition-rich Thundering Herd with a .405 average, a .462 on-base percentage and 32 hits in a big breakout season.
Jacob Klapper, Folsom
The Bulldogs have struggled in the power-packed Sierra Foothill League, though the games are tight, and the junior catcher has done his part. He leads the Bulldogs with a .385 average, a .467 on-base percentage and a .538 slugging percentage.
Ethan Lamb, Oak Ridge
The junior pitcher has a 3-1 record with two saves and a team-best 1.87 ERA. It takes ace arms to survive in the playoffs.
Tony Lira, Oakmont
The Arizona-bound senior first baseman leads the defending D-II section champions with a .403 average, a .511 on-base percentage, six home runs, 21 RBI, nine doubles and a .777 slugging percentage.
Jordy Lopez, Franklin
The senior outfielder is headed to Cal and leads the Delta League champions in batting (.459), on-base percentage (.576), stolen bases (18) and ERA (0.40) as a pitcher while sporting a 6-1 record.
Grant Munoz, Rocklin
The senior outfielder headed to Pacific has flourished in the middle of the lineup as the team captain has a .385 average, 15 RBI and six doubles for the Sierra Foothill League champions.
Michah Nicholson, Bradshaw Christian
The senior shortstop bound for Saint Mary’s is batting .465 with 27 stolen bases, 33 hits, 35 runs and 24 RBI for the small-school powerhouse.
Dylan Nusz, Rocklin
The junior infielder is batting .414 with 19 RBI for a team that seeks a deep playoff run and another section banner.
Levi Nyberg, Cordova
After impressing as a freshman in 2023, Nyberg is even better, boasting a .681 batting average, a .745 on-base percentage, 45 stolen bases, 34 runs, 49 hits and 33 RBI for the storied Lancers. Oh, he also leads the team with a 0.34 ERA to go with four wins.
Daniel Panteloglow, Rocklin
The junior pitcher headed to San Diego State went 4-0 with a 0.43 ERA a year ago. He is 5-0 this season with a 1.05 ERA with 41 strikeouts and just six earned runs allowed.
Corden Pettey, Whitney
The junior pitcher headed to Texas leads the powerhouse Wildcats with a 6-3 record, a 1.82 ERA and all manner of big-game cool. He pitches beyond his years.
Russell Pettis, Elk Grove
The San Marcos-bound senior pitcher is warmed up for the postseason after a strong Delta League showing with a 5-1 record and a 1.74 ERA.
Trajan Rogowski, Whitney
The senior do-all star with a 4.1 GPA can play in the outfield or behind the plate, and he can hit. He has a .432 average with 31 hits, 32 runs scored and 23 RBI for the Wildcats.
Kade Spooner, Lincoln
The senior pitcher committed to Concordia in New England is batting .352 with a .416 on-base percentage. He also has a 6-1 record as the team’s ace with a 1.24 ERA and 55 strikeouts.
Troy Ueltzen, Rocklin
The junior pitcher headed to Arizona is 2-0 and is batting .294 with four doubles for the Thunder, which won the SFL this week.
Trevor Wilson, Oakmont
The UC Riverside commit can pitch and play shortstop for the defending section D-III champion Vikings. He is 6-1 with 50 strikeouts and had a nonleague no-hitter against Whitney, and he’s batting .366 with stellar defense in the infield. On Wednesday, he struck out 10 and walked one to beat Placer 3-0 to win the Foothill Valley League championship.
Kenny Winters, Lincoln
The senior infielder headed to California Baptist leads the Zebras of Placer County with a .392 average, a .520 on-base percentage, 14 stolen bases and 30 runs.
▪ Who’d we miss? We can’t name everyone in a 30-player list, but we do invite input on players to keep an eye on. Email jdavidson@sacbee.com.
THE BEE’S TOP 20
Baseball
Records entering Wednesday
1. Whitney (18-9)
2. Rocklin (18-8)
3. Franklin (21-5)
4. Granite Bay (19-7)
5. Elk Grove (15-10-1)
6. Oakmont (20-6)
7. Woodcreek (19-7)
8. Jesuit (16-10-1)
9. Oak Ridge (13-13)
10. Bradshaw Christian (23-1)
11. Vacaville (19-7)
12. Laguna Creek (19-5)
13. Vista del Lago (21-4-1)
14 Lincoln (19-6-1)
15. Del Oro (11-16)
16. West Park (14-12)
17. Bella Vista (15-8-1)
18. Sutter (19-6-1)
19. Rio Americano (18-8)
20. Roseville (15-9-1)
Bubble: Casa Roble (18-8), Christian Brothers (13-12), Cordova (14-11-1), Davis (11-14-1), Del Campo (13-13), Florin (15-8), Folsom (10-13), Inderkum (14-10), McClatchy (17-9), Pioneer (20-5), Pleasant Grove (14-12), River City (19-8).
This story was originally published May 2, 2024 at 5:00 AM.