LA DAILY NEWS ALL-AREA BASEBALL 2023
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Diego Velazquez, Crespi, So.
This spring, perhaps no player in the area impacted winning more than Diego Velazquez.
The sophomore hit, pitched and fielded when called on. He helped Crespi win its first CIF Southern Section title since 2009 by erasing a three-run deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat South Hills 6-5 in the Division 2 final on May 20 at Blair Field in Long Beach.
“He’s done just about everything for us this season,” Crespi coach Mike Glendenning said of Velazquez.
Velazquez was the leadoff hitter in the final and delivered an RBI single to start things in the dramatic seventh inning before Ethan Kodama’s two-run hit tied the game and Chris Arce later scampered home on a South Hills error to win the game in walk-off fashion.
“I want to do anything that helps put my team in the best position to win,” Velazquez said.
Crespi finished the season 23-8-3 overall and 11-7-3 in the Mission League (third place). Velazquez hit .354 with 35 hits, 15 RBIs, eight doubles, two triples and two home runs. He scored 28 runs, drew 21 walks, had an OPS of 1.027 and stole 18 bases. He led his team in hits, doubles, triples, homers, walks and stolen bases.
The USC commit was stellar from the mound, too. That’s where Velazquez sets himself apart from any other player in the area when it came to the impact he had on his team. He was 5-0 in 11 appearances with an ERA of 1.39 and struck out a team-high 47 batters in 50 1/3 innings. He earned wins over Birmingham, Chaminade, Loyola, Harvard-Westlake and Simi Valley.
Velaszquez, who’s a lanky 6-foot-2, played the role of designated hitter quite a bit this season. But when he played in the field (if he wasn’t pitching) he was in the middle infield. He played a lot of second base while senior Chris Arce played shortstop. Velazquez had a 91% fielding percentage, helped to turn three double plays and recorded 55 putouts in 64 chances.
“It’s possible he’s our starting shortstop next year,” Glendenning said. “We’ll see.”
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Justin Lee, Notre Dame, Sr.
High expectations surrounded Lee coming into the 2023 season, and he delivered.
The UCLA-bound righty went 9-0 in 12 starts this spring with an ERA of 1.24, which helped to anchor a stellar campaign for Notre Dame. The Knights won the Mission League title by going 19-2 – including a sweep over rival Harvard-Westlake– and clinched the title with three games left on the schedule.
“That’s rare,” Notre Dame coach Tom Dill said. “The Mission League almost always comes down to the last week, even the last game sometimes. Our pitching and defense had a lot to do with that accomplishment.”
Lee pitched 67 2/3 innings this season, allowed just 34 hits, 16 runs (12 earned), walked 32 and struck out 102 batters. Lee had a stretch from March 15 to May 4 when he started and won seven straight games, allowing just seven runs total and striking out 55 including a 13-strikeout performance against Loyola.
Lee is the second straight Notre Dame player to be selected the Daily News Pitcher of the Year. Cole Clark earned the honor in 2022.
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
James Tronstein, Harvard-Westlake
Nothing seemed to faze Tronstein this season.
The rookie finished third on the team in hits (32), second in doubles (5), third in RBI (17), first in stolen bases (10), and only struck out 10 times in 93 at-bats while hitting .344 on the year.
Not only did Tronstein perform well in his first varsity season but did it in arguably the most competitive high school league in California. The Stanford commit was selected to the All-Mission League second team and was the only freshman selected in the league.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Darrell Davis, Castaic
It was a storybook season for Castaic.
In just the second year of varsity baseball since the school opened its doors in the fall of 2019, Davis led the Coyotes (27-7-1) to an automatic playoff berth by finishing third in a very competitive Foothill League (8-4). Castaic then went on to win the CIF Southern Section Division 6 title by beating Hesperia Christian 7-0 at Blair Field in Long Beach before capturing the CIF State SoCal Division V Regional crown with a dramatic 7-6 comeback victory over Ganesha.
Castaic baseball became the first team sport to earn a playoff berth in the school’s history and became just the second Foothill League program to win a CIF title joining Hart’s 1999 team.
ALL-AREA TEAM
(Name, school, year, college)
PITCHERS
Tommy Bridges, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. (TCU)
7-1, 0.59, 87 K; All-Mission League selection
Matthew Cuccias, Simi Valley, Sr.
4-1, 0.39 ERA, 84 K; Coastal Canyon League Pitcher of the Year
Andrew Cuervo, Granada Hills, Sr.
7-0, 1.30 ERA; West Valley League Pitcher of the Year
Daniel Flores, Birmingham, Sr. (CS Monterey Bay)
8-1 (one no hitter), 1.92 ERA, 60 K; West Valley League Pitcher of the Year; Open Division City champion
Ricardo Ojeda, Valencia, Sr. (UC Irvine)
8-2 (one perfect game), 0.53 ERA, 89 K; Foothill League Pitcher of the Year
Logan Reddemann, Quartz Hill, Sr. (San Diego)
5-1, 0.18 ERA, 56 K; All-Golden League selection
FIELD PLAYERS
Finley Buckner, Oaks Christian, Sr. (Cal)
.360 BA, 27 hits, 15 RBI, 6 doubles, HR, .571 SLG, 14 SB; All-Marmonte League selection
Colin Brown, Notre Dame, Sr.
.333 BA, 31 hits, 20 RBI; Mission League MVP
Victor Carrera, Sylmar, Jr.
.347 BA, 33 hits, 15 RBI, 30 runs, 29 SB; All-Valley Mission League selection; Division I City champion
Nate Castellon, Calabasas, Jr. (Pacific)
.314 BA, 33 hits, 16 RBI, 32 runs, 4 HR, 21 BB; All-Marmonte League selection; CIF State SoCal Regional Division II champion
Ty DePerno, West Ranch, Sr. (Navy)
.376 BA, 35 hits, 14 RBI, 33 runs, 9 doubles, 4 HR; All-Foothill League selection
Kyler Freude, Castaic, Sr.
.327 BA, 16 hits, 14 RBI; 13-2, 1.39 ERA, 84 K; All-Foothill League selection; CIF-SS Division 6, CIF State SoCal Regional Division V champion
Kehden Hettiger, Sierra Canyon, Sr. (Oregon)
.341 BA, 28 hits, 21 RBI, 28 runs, 6 HR, 1.150 OPS; All-Mission League selection
Nate Johnson, Westlake, Jr. (Tulane)
.330 BA, 35 hits, 24 RBI, 17 runs; All-Marmonte League selection; CIF State SoCal Regional Division III champion
Ethan Kodama, Crespi, Sr. (Cal)
.347 BA, 35 hits, 18 RBI, 16 runs, 4 doubles, HR, 1.000 field % *(62 chances); All-Mission League selection; CIF-SS Division 2 champion
Tanner Mahon, Campbell Hall, Sr. (Wesleyan)
.407 BA, 33 hits, 43 RBI, 6 HR; 8-1, 0.00 ERA, 80 K; Gold Coast League MVP
Lance Mittelman, Valencia, Sr. (San Francisco)
.452 BA, 33 hits, 15 RBI, 12 doubles, .684 SLG, 11 SB; Foothill League MVP
Zach Plasschaert, Saugus, Sr. (Arizona)
.314 BA, 22 hits, 19 RBI, 5 HR, 17 BB, 7 SB; All-Foothill Leage selection
Bryce Rainer, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. (Texas)
.436 BA, 34 hits, 19 RBI, 9 doubles, 3 HR, .692 SLG; All-Mission League selection
Gavin Taylor, Birmingham, Sr (BYU)
.350 BA, 28 hits, 18 RBI, 8 doubles, 29 runs, 3 HR, 30 BB; West Valley League MVP; Open Division City champion
Derek Turner, Newbury Park, Sr. (USC)
.346 BA, 28 hits, only four Ks; 5-1 (one no-hitter), 0.88 ERA, 66 K; Marmonte League MVP
Vincent Van der Wel, Chaminade, Jr. (Cal Poly)
.449 BA, 40 hits, 18 RBI, 8 doubles, 5 HR, .707 SLG; All-Mission League selection
Dean West, Notre Dame, Sr. (UCLA)
.333 BA, 28 hits, 18 RBI, 6 doubles, 34 runs, 2 HR, 20 SB; All-Mission League selection
