Had a great season with @CPFalconsBBall 19-6, unfortunately fell short in playoffs. 25G, 25/68, 11BB, 5HBP, 368/471/500/971. Our team had the second highest strength of schedule in all of the San Francisco metro for the regular season behind St.Ignatius. Here are my four favorite hits off of D1 commits this spring. Excited for summer with @FTB_PhilliesDB9 and @DVBaseballClub@beinbrink28@SportsForceBB@DiamondKidsBall@DigsPitcher@BayAreaWS
‘29 SS Brandon Manivong of @DLSBaseball
Great piece of 2 strike hitting here with a line drive to LF for a knock. Sets up 1st and 2nd with one out in the second inning.
@HankLoForte | @LesLukach
‘27 LHP Cooper Barnes of @DLSBaseball
FB: 86-87
CH: 79-80
SL: 73-76
Premium @PB_Uncommitted arms for the Spartans has scattered four hits through 5IP. Battling through some traffic allowing two runs with 3 K’s and no walks.
@HankLoForte | @LesLukach
‘26 OF Sam Lakey of @DLSBaseball
Hit the winning homer in B6 yesterday and take the fist pitch you see today off the wall for a double.
Really good week Lakey in SoCal.
@LesLukach | @HankLoForte
Good week @NationalClassic going 4-0. Appreciate the three hosts schools and all the hard work getting the fields ready. Thanks for the great weather and baseball. 💯💯💯
This guy caught all three games of DLS that I saw, and I’m certain he caught the one I didn’t, to say he was one of the best defensive catchers in the tourney is not an overstatement.
‘26 C Zach Tchejeyan of @DLSBaseball
Premium defender with a cannon behind the dish. Has had multiple CS this week and stolen at least a half dozen strikes for the Spartans.
@HankLoForte | @LesLukach
‘26 SS Sam Lakey of @DLSBaseball
Has been on the barrel all week and cashed in with a no doubt BOMB to left field to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead in T7.
@HankLoForte | @LesLukach
‘29 SS Brandon Manivong of @DLSBaseball
FB: 82-83
CH: 72-75
CB: 69-72
The freshman starting SS is thrown in to close things out, and while it wasn’t without drama, he got it done.
Spartans move on the Title Game of the @NationalClassic with a 1-0 win over ND.
@LesLukach | @HankLoForte
Notre Dame Game Final:
Spartans 1-0
Scoreless through the first 6, Sam Lakey hits a home run in the 7th to put the Spartans in the lead! 🔥🔥🔥
Graham Schlicht goes 6 innings scoreless ➡️ Brandon Manivong closes it out in his first outing of the season
Let’s go Spartans!! 💯💯💯
‘26 RHP Graham Schlict of @DLSBaseball
FB: 90-92
CH: 83-84
SL: 79-83
#Stanford signee is rolling through 2IP. Full 2nd inning look
Here. SL is unhittable; working FB to all quadrants of zone. CH flashes + potential.
@ShooterHunt | @LesLukach
Great start to the season with @CPFalconsBBall . 8-1 as a team. 391/517/1.126 slash line in the 9 games. 63/63 on defense as well. Here is a double and lineout on two D1 commits. Other two are fielding plays. @SportsForceBB@calebcox303
Got off the phone with a mid-major D1 coach and this one is worth sharing...
We were talking about a few players and discussing the quality of baseball across the board in D1. He mentioned that high school and JC players need to open their eyes to how good the talent is.
I'll paraphrase what he said:
"We faced two teams this season that are projected last in their conferences (below average conferences), and both of them were good! We faced a Sunday guy who was up to 95, Saturday guy was 90-93 with multiple pitches... they were old and physical. There are too many players on the west coast that close off the idea of going to mid-major out of state programs and the funny thing is they probably wouldn't even play at those schools!"
Straight from the horses mouth. Do with this what you may.
Let me break it down for you... 🔽
There are ~43 west coast D1's. Only 15% of D1 baseball programs are on the west coast.
Then you decide to eliminate 10 of those programs because they "aren't very good" and you "really want to play at a winning program".
You're now down to 33 schools.
15-20 of them are Power 5 or top mid-major caliber programs and they can get high end JC players, proven transfer portal guys, & big time high school prospects. You're not good enough, or not proven enough yet.
Now you're down to 13-18 schools.
Of those 13-18 schools, 7 of them don't have a need for your position. They're returning multiple starters.
Now you're down to 6-11 schools.
Let's say, in a miracle, ALL 6-11 of these schools know about you, have seen you, and like you...
They still have to like you MORE than the other guys they are also currently recruiting at your position.
You play a corner INF/OF spot or profile as a relief pitcher. There are A TON of quality JC, portal, and HS players around the country that play non-premium positions. They are fighting for the same opportunities as you and may even be willing to come with no scholarship money.
Does it make sense now?
You're likely not as good as you think you are - in reference to every other player that is also available. There are guys just like you, or better, all over the country. Some of them have 3 more years of experience than you do.
I know this is a very general hypothetical... and it doesn't apply to all. But I've seen this play out in real time, on MANY occasions.
So what is my final point here?
Sit down with your family and think long and hard about what is important. If baseball is the #1 priority and you're not a legitimate 1% type player, then you better start expanding your list of target schools, conferences, divisions, etc.
If baseball is not the #1 priority (very smart decision for most players), then you better start prioritizing the other factors that matter most to you in your college search. ROI of the degree, cost of attendance, do they offer your intended major, etc...
And yes, this is referencing D1, but every level of college baseball has talent right now. There are old, physical, experienced players at every level. The same concept applies across the board.