Week Seven Power Rankings: Crawdads Climb, Saints Make Late-Season Push
by Micah Rodriguez
1| Santa Barbara Foresters (––)
The Foresters capped off their regular season with a 26–6–1 record. While no other program in the CCL had a winning percentage that starts with a seven, the Santa Barbara club posted an .803 winning percentage as they prepare to head to Wichita.
This past week, the Foresters went 4–1, including taking two or three from the Blues.
In yesterday's 9–2 triumph, the Foresters pitching staff limited the Blues to five hits while the offense mustered ten hits and ten walks.
Brody Berlowitz made his first start of the summer on the mound and worked an efficient three innings, allowing one run and striking out five. It was the right-hander's longest appearance of the summer, and he now has a 1.17 ERA through 7.2 innings.
Corner infielders Joshua Woodworth and Wylan Nelson paced the Foresters at the plate, each recording two hits with Nelson adding three RBIs.
Infielder Chris Newstrom holds the CCL batting title with a .451 average through 19 games. Fellow infielders Nick Salmon and Cole Chamberlain have both launched five home runs, tied for the second-most in the CCL.
At the end of their regular season, the Foresters hold the highest team average and OPS and the lowest team ERA in the CCL. It was another dominant summer on both sides of the ball for Head Coach Bill Pintard and company.
2| San Luis Obispo Blues (––)
For the first time all summer, the Blues do not find themselves seated at the top of the Northern Division. The Crawdads ascended into the top spot this week, thanks to a higher winning percentage. However, the Blues have played eight more games than the Crawdads, and are 4–0 against the Walnut Creek club. That's good enough to keep the Blues in this week's two-hole.
The Blues' depth has been tested all summer. The program has played 41 games while most teams haven't played more than 35. In a 3–3 week seven, the Blues defeated the Crawdads 1–0 and took down the Foresters 10–8.
Tre LaGrone III was electric in his first start of the summer against the 'Dads. The left-hander allowed just two baserunners through five scoreless innings. He hasn't given up a run through 15 innings of work and holds a .53 WHIP.
Michael Rodriques followed LaGrone, working 2.2 scoreless innings with three strikeouts before handing the ball to Caron Boyer. The left-hander came on with two outs and two runners on in the eighth and delivered a clutch strikeout. He worked a clean top of the ninth as the Blues held on and remained undefeated against the Crawdads.
In their big win over the Foresters, the Blues offense exploded for seven runs in the top of the fifth inning to take a 7–3 lead. Johnny Rodriguez, Miles Mador, Kosei Suzuki, Dominick Najar, and Diego Gonzalez all recorded two hits days at the dish.
And cumulatively, outfielder Cesar Chavez is second in the CCL with 31 RBIs through 33 games.
Now, with one week of regular season play remaining, the Blues will need a dominant week to chase down the Crawdads to earn an automatic slot in the Northern Division Championship.
3| Walnut Creek Crawdads (up 3)
The Crawdads wrapped up week seven with a 4–2 record. Despite falling to the Blues, the 'Dads have overtaken them at the top of the Northern Division. With one week remaining in the regular season, the club only had to outlast the Blues for five games.
This past Saturday, the Crawdads defeated the Stompers 16–7 in a very strong offensive showing. Infielder Aiden Robles finished 3-for-5 with a walk and an RBI. Catcher Riley Winchell ended the day 4-for-6 with three RBIs.
Right-hander Alex Gomez earned his first save of the summer in relief. Gomez worked 3.1 scoreless innings and struck out seven batters. He now has a 1.42 ERA through 19 innings with 26 strikeouts.
In the outfield, Bryden Bull is still tied for the second-most long balls in the CCL with five.
4| Conejo Oaks (down 1)
The Oaks have been in a dogfight all summer with the Riptide for the top spot in the Southern Division – minus the Foresters. After ballooning up to the third spot last week, the Oaks had a difficult week going 2–3. However, they did open week seven with a massive 7–4 victory over the Riptide.
Offensively, the Oaks only registered five hits but took advantage of some poor Riptide defense and did enough in the margins to eke out a win.
Catcher Aiden Voyles had a massive two-out, two-RBI single up the middle, and outfielder Owen Meli had two big RBIs.
Tyson Reis continues to be hot at the plate. The catcher is fifth in the CCL with 24 RBIs and is now hitting .330 with four home runs.
A staple in the leadoff spot, Brandon Contreras is hitting .417 – third-highest mark in the CCL – with 17 RBIs.
The Oaks handed the ball to Pierson Howe to close out the final two innings against the Riptide. In what has been an elite summer for the right-hander, Howe picked up his first save thanks to two scoreless frames and four strikeouts. He now has a 4.32 ERA over 16.2 innings with 24 punch outs.
Currently, the Oaks marginally trail the Riptide for the top seed in the playoffs. And although the two clubs do not meet again, the Oaks have a big back-to-back with the Blues that will likely determine their seed come next week.
5| Orange County Riptide (down 1)
The Riptide leapfrogged the Oaks back into the top seed in the Southern Division playoff picture. However, after falling to the Oaks this week and holding a 2–4 record against the Oaks this summer, I gave the Oaks a slight edge.
The Riptide won back-to-back games this past weekend. They defeated the Waves 8–3 and the Philippines Baseball Group 2–1.
In their win over the Waves, outfielder Bradley Navarro had a big day in the leadoff spot. Navarro finished the day 2-for-4 with three RBIs and a double.
On the mound, Alexander Umland delivered one of his best outings of the summer when the Riptide needed it. The right-hander tossed six scoreless innings with five strikeouts in the victory.
Looking ahead this week, the Riptide have three big games against the Arroyo Seco Saints, who are sneakily putting together a strong push towards the final playoff spot. With six games in their schedule, they will have to play well to hold off the Oaks and secure a spot in the championship.
6| Academy Barons (down 1)
As it currently sits, the Barons are comfortably in the third and final playoff spot in the South. With a 16–13 record, their winning percentage is a full .100 points higher than the Saints, the next closest club.
All summer long, the Riptide, Barons, and Oaks have been playing good baseball. It explains why only a few games separate them in the standings.
The Barons picked up a big 6–4 victory over the Oaks. The pitching staff struck out 11, and the offense scored all six of their runs in the seventh.
In the seventh, catcher Nigel Buckley and infielder Elijah Clayton both had big RBI singles. Buckley ended play 2-for-4; he was the only Baron with multiple hits.
This week, the Barons have games against the Oaks and the Riptide; both will have a large impact on playoff seedings.
7| Arroyo Seco Saints (up 1)
The Saints have been on a tear. In their last ten games, the club is 7–3. Their offense has continued to rake, and the club is seeing more consistency from their pitching staff. This past week, the club defeated the Barons and took down the Oaks twice.
In a shutout 4–0 win against the Oaks, left-hander Joe O'Regan spun six scoreless frames with five strikeouts. It was O'Regan's third consecutive start giving the Saints at least six innings, and he now holds a 2.97 ERA in 33.1 innings.
Outfielder Canon King led the way at the plate, finishing 3-for-3 with a double and two RBIs. In yesterday's 5–3 win over the Oaks, King launched a solo shot in the bottom of the second to put the Saints up 1–0 early. It was King's sixth home run of the summer, the most in the CCL.
The Saints have six games left on their schedule. They likely need to win out and have some dominoes fall their way to claim the final playoff spot. But if their performance over the past two weeks is any indication, the Saints are well positioned for a strong final week.
8| Sonoma Stompers (down 1)
The Stompers dropped in this weeks rankings but it wasn't of their own doing – the Saints simply had a great week. The club holds a 21–16 record and is slotted comfortably in the third seed in the North. In their last ten games, the Stompers are also 7–3 highlighted by a 9–7 win over the Crawdads this past week.
In that game, eight different Stompers drove in a run and seven starters collected hits. With the game knotted at seven in the ninth, infielder Michael Uriepero worked a bases loaded walk and outfielder Chase Taylor drove in a run on a fielder's choice, giving the Stompers a 9–7 lead they did not surrender.
Infielder Tino Vasell, fresh off being named Week 6 Hitter of the Week, is the league-leader with 32 RBIs. His teammate, catcher Hunter Carlson, is tied for second with 31 RBIs.
As the Stompers head into their final week, all signs are leading toward a Wild Card matchup with either the Blues or the Crawdads.
9| Menlo Park Legends (––)
The Legends finished week 7 with a 1–3 record. On the summer, they are 13–19 and have gone 4–6 in their last ten games.
Their one win came against the Alameda Merchants, 10–5, on Saturday.
Outfielder Mason Griffin led the way offesnviely in the leadoff spot. Griffin had three hits and is hitting .278 with 17 runs scored on the summer. The infield trio of Ryder Kelly, Casy Leavitt-McGee, and Isaac Fendel all recorded multi-hit games in the win.
On the mound, Vinicnet Barga only allowed two baserunners in his four scorless innings of work. In the right-handers sixth start of the summer – eight appearance – he struck out two and now has a 3.74 ERA through 21.2 innings with 25 strikeouts.
10| San Francisco Seagulls (––)
Heading into the final week of play, the Seagulls are 6–26. It was obviously not the summer the club wanted, but they did end this past week with a big 7–6 win over the Stompers.
Trailing 5–4 entering the bottom of the eighth inning, the Seagulls scored three to earn arguably their best win of the summer.
With the bases loaded and nobody out, a wild pitch scored the first run of the inning and then Brandon Swanson knocked a single through the right side, scoring another and giving them a 6–5 lead. Following a hit batter, infielder Jake Brewer delivered an RBI groundout to give the Seagulls a much needed insurance run.
Outfielder Caid Heflin finished the game 3-for-4. It was Heflin's first three-hit game of the summer. In the leadoff spot, utility man Armando Hurtado ended the day 2-for-3 with a walk. The righty is hitting .266 with one week of play left.