UCLA and USC dominate college baseball with Southern California's homegrown stars
Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I'm Eric Sondheimer. It's a big week in local college baseball with No. 1-ranked UCLA hosting USC in a three-game series that will feature lots of high school graduates from Southern California.
The West Coast doesn't seem to receive a whole lot of respect in the college baseball world, but UCLA is 25-2 and ranked No. 1. USC is 26-3 and both teams are relying on lots of Southern California high school products. They meet in a three-game series beginning Friday at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Since Orange Lutheran won the National High School Invitational on Saturday in Cary, N.C., it's about time to respect the talent high schools are producing in Southern California.
UCLA's ace pitcher for Friday's opener is Logan Reddemann, who was a standout at Quartz Hill. USC's ace pitcher is left-hander Mason Edwards, an All-City player from Palisades who's 5-0 with an 0.67 ERA. UCLA's relievers have been lights out and include Wylan Moss from Mater Dei, Zach Strickland from Maranatha, Easton Hawk from Granada Hills, Jack O'Connor from Palos Verdes, Justin Lee from Sherman Oaks Notre Dame and Chris Grothues from Servite. Freshman Angel Cervantes from Warren has been a midweek starter.
When it comes to hitting, the player with the best batting average for the Bruins is Ocean View High graduate Mulivai Levu at .378. Will Gasparino from Harvard-Westlake has 12 home runs. Roman Martin from Servite is hitting .343 and had six RBIs against Iowa on Sunday. Dean West from Sherman Oaks Notre Dame is the leadoff man. Phoenix Call from Calabasas has been surging at the plate. Freshman Dominic Cadiz from Notre Dame is at .288 with two home runs, including a grand slam.
