Prep baseball team capsules, players to watch

ALBUQUERQUE ACADEMY

Coach: Andy Williams (5th year)

Last season: 13-15-1; lost in 5A quarterfinals to Goddard

Key players: Thomas Braybrooks, sr., RHP; Jon Saiz, sr., SS/2B; Sebastian Baca, jr., LHP/1B; Nick Williams, jr., OF: Derek Purcella, sr., P/INF.

Outlook: Health will be a primary focus for Williams with these Chargers, who have six starters back but perhaps not a whole lot of depth. Braybrooks is a solid No. 1 starting pitcher, and fifthyear varsity player Saiz, at the top of the lineup, is a dynamic presence for Academy, which has a big group of juniors on the roster.

ALBUQUERQUE HIGH

Coach: Robert Padilla (5th year)

Last season: 10-14

Key players: Ryan Romero, soph., CF; Robert Herrera, sr., P/ SS; Luke Wilson, jr., 1B; Benito Castillo, jr., RHP/OF; Graham Glasgow, sr., C/P.

Outlook: The Bulldogs had a crushing late-season collapse against Rio Grande last season that almost certainly cost them a playoff berth. This team ought to score some runs, and Padilla hopes the new pitch-count rule will benefit AHS in the second half of the season. Castillo and Herrera headline the pitching staff. The key? AHS must learn how to close games.

ATRISCO HERITAGE

Coach: Chris Trujillo (4th year)

Last season: 15-11; lost in 6A first round to Cleveland

Key players: Vicente Trujillo, sr., RHP/SS; Steven Barboa, jr., SS/ RHP; Andres Quintana, jr., C; Trent Dewyer, jr., CF/RHP; Ethan Harden, jr., OF.

Outlook: The Jaguars lost their three main pitchers and several important bats to graduation, so discussion about their season must begin there. Trujillo, Barboa, Dewyer and Quintana all will need to step up their games for Atrisco Heritage to contend in 4-6A. Dewyer in particular had a huge summer for the Jags. Can the newcomers in the lineup hit varsity pitching?

BELEN

Coach: Steve Contreras (10th year)

Last season: 13-13; lost in 5A first round to Centennial

Key players: Jadrian Martinez, soph., 1B/LHP; Tanner Parnell, sr., 1B/RHP; Javin Herron, jr., MIF; Carlos Espinoza, jr., utility; Thomas Wisneski, jr., OF/RHP.

Outlook: While the Eagles start the year without the versatile and talented Wisneski, he is expected back. Belen has eight starters returning, so there is experience, and yet it remains a junior-heavy starting lineup. Like most teams, the Eagles are working to develop pitching as Belen hopes to push into the second week of the playoffs this season.

BERNALILLO

Coach: Brandon Gilliard (1st year)

Last season: 15-11

Key players: Carlos Duran, sr., 1B/RHP; Andre Bethea, jr., C/3B; Isaiah Chavez, jr., SS/P; Daniel Gutierrez, jr., 2B; Troy Reano, sr., OF.

Outlook: The Spartans are starting over, in a way, having lost nine starters to graduation, and having a new head coach. Bethea could prove to be a promising player; Chavez is perhaps this team’s best pitcher; Reano is a La Cueva transfer. It’s primarily a young and scrappy team, reports Gilliard, who was promoted from JV head coach.

CIBOLA

Coach: Ray Gonzales (7th year) Last season: 13-12-1; lost in 6A first round to Volcano Vista Key players: Nick Monk, jr., utility/P; Reese Maez, soph., C/3B; Jack White, sr., RHP/1B; Jonah Ortega, jr., U/P; Skyler Sedillo, sr., CF/RHP.

Outlook: With seven starters back, Gonzales said this team should not be taken lightly, even in District 1-6A, which is usually so top-heavy with powerhouse programs. If there’s a downside, it’s a lack of depth, and Gonzales expects some freshmen to have to play some innings. White is the clear No. 1 starting pitcher on this team.

CLEVELAND

Coach: Shane Shallenberger (8th year)

Last season: 22-8; lost in 6A semifinals to Rio Rancho

Key players: Treson Shallenberger, soph., SS/P; Jason Herrera, sr., OF; Avry Ybarra, sr., CF; Jack Murano, jr., RHP; Ezra Acosta, sr., RHP.

Outlook: The Storm has seven starters returning from a semifinal team, and it has its entire outfield back. Like many teams, there were some key graduation losses (including at catcher), but Cleveland has an abundance of team speed, a terrific young SS in Shallenberger, a top front-line starter in Murano and a team that certainly looks playoff-worthy once again.

DEL NORTE

Coach: Ben White (8th year)

Last season: 11-15; lost in 5A first round to Goddard

Key players: Andrew Gonzales, sr., 3B; Maurice LaFon, jr., OF; Jacob Saavedra, soph., OF/ LHP; Shade White, jr., OF; Ryan Torres, jr., SS/RHP.

Outlook: The Knights broke through with a playoff berth last year, and now they look to find a way to inch forward some more. Gonzales will play at the next level, and he’s part of a stout outfield that returns intact from last year. Torres is the staff ace. Del Norte has just one senior starter (Gonzales) and is relatively young on the mound, but shows some promise at the plate.

EAST MOUNTAIN

Coach: David Naylor (13th year)

Last season: 2-20

Key players: John Spanjers, sr., P/C/IF; Anthony McKenna, sr., OF/LHP; Alejandro Taylor-Wright, jr., SS/P/C; Dominik Chavez, fresh., utility; Logan Harlan, fresh., utility.

Outlook: The Timberwolves return eight starters, so they definitely figure to be much better than last season. This year, East Mountain is adding a JV for just the second time as the program looks to regain some of the depth that helped make it a state champion as recently as 2012 and might make it a contender again in the next couple of seasons.

ELDORADO

Coach: Reid Figiel (1st year)

Last season: 18-8-1; lost in 6A quarterfinals to Carlsbad

Key players: Cole Schoepke, sr., LHP/1B; Tomas Martinez, sr., C; Sonny Choneska, jr., 1B/3B; Richard Gallegos, jr., OF; Gavin Hertrich, sr., SS.

Outlook: For the first time since the late 1980s, the Eagles have a new head coach. This will be a relatively young team with above average starting pitching. The offense will be a blend of power and speed; the speed coming from Gallegos and second baseman Kobe Parra. The big question is how Eldorado transitions to Figiel.

HIGHLAND

Coach: Jesus Villareal (5th year) Last season: 3-21

Key players: David Arnot, sr., MIF/RP; John White, sr., P/SS; Aiden Swanson, jr., OF/RHP; Dominick Apodaca, jr., 3B/C; Anthony Gutierrez, jr., C/P. Outlook: This is an extremely young team with just two seniors. Villareal will need this team to thrive on small ball and play as mistake-free as possible if the Hornets are to win more games. Their new district (4-6A) is far more friendly than their previous one (2-6A), which should help. Highland focused on cultivating its pitching staff in the offseason. Arnot is the leader of this team.

HOPE CHRISTIAN

Coach: Glen Copeland (3rd year)

Last season: 19-9; lost in 4A quarterfinals to Cobre

Key players: Estevan DeLaO, sr., CF/P/1B; Tyler Fickel, sr., C/P; Aidan McNichol, jr., 3B/1B/P; Evan Torres, jr., SS/P/C. Outlook: The Huskies have four players (the four mentioned above) who all hit at least .340 last season. They’re in a new district, but even having lost a couple of key senior pitchers, Hope Christian should still be a playoff team by season’s end.

LA CUEVA

Coach: Gerard Pineda (8th year)

Last season: 18-10; lost in 6A quarterfinals to Cleveland

Key players: Jonathan Stroman, sr., RHP/DH; Richard Ware, sr., 3B; Ryan Phillips, sr., OF/RHP; Isaac Standridge, sr., OF/RHP; Ryan Johnson, jr., OF/C.

Outlook: The Bears, led by the power arm of Stroman, should certainly be in the mix into the middle of May. The offense should be stout, with few easy outs from 1-9; to that end, Phillips and Standridge, while right-handed throwers, swing from the left, which is a rarity — and a bonus for that Bear lineup. It’s a versatile lineup that could hit for average and power. La Cueva also features some strong infield defense, Pineda said.

LOS LUNAS

Coach: Shaun Reed (2nd year)

Last season: 9-14

Key players: Thai Ewing, sr., MIF; Rico Montoya, sr., 3B; Jared Gonzales, sr., RHP/MIF/OF; Bryce Gallegos, sr., C; Estevan Chavez, sr., RHP/OF.

Outlook: The Tigers are far more experienced than they were last year, which should help them in close games, where they lost six one-run decisions last season. So Los Lunas’ offense must be more clutch in those key moments. Gonzales and Chavez lead the pitching staff. This team is angry about not qualifying for state last year and wants to change that.

MANZANO

Coach: Tim Campos (1st year)

Last season: 6-18

Key players: Mitchell Parker, jr., LHP/OF; Eric “Blue” Culp, sr., SS/OF; Mikey Griffin, sr., SS/2B; Blaize Tenorio, sr., 3B; Adam Fasulo, sr., 1B.

Outlook: Campos is a former head coach at Gallup and a former assistant at Eastern New Mexico. He has a team with plenty of seniors, but not much varsity experience. Fortunately, he does have Parker, one of the state’s top pitchers, and Parker gives Manzano a chance against anybody. This team has five lefthanded pitchers. Offensively, Manzano must be efficient in manufacturing runs.

MORIARTY

Coach: Denny Young (4th year)

Last season: 16-12; lost in 5A first round to Los Alamos

Key players: Elijah Tapia, sr., SS/P; Julius Giron, sr., 2B; Nazareth Garcia, sr., 3B/RHP; Matt Soto, jr., 1B/RHP.

Outlook: The Pintos were a playoff team in 5A last year and drop down to 4A (along with Bernalillo) for this season, where Moriarty should be even better off. Might be a slow-starting team with so many athletes still in basketball, but that could help Young establish some depth with younger players. Tapia is probably the Pintos’ best allaround player.

NACA

Coach: Darin Kee

Last season: N/A

Key players: Clint Marmon, sr., P/C; Johnathan Meza, sr., SS; Clarence Sanchez, fresh., 3B; Mallika Saiz, fresh., P.

Outlook: NACA has only about seven athletes that actually have played baseball, so this is probably not a team built to win right now. Kee said his focus is to stick to basics and fundamentals in his hope to mold an inexperienced team into a solid unit.

RIO GRANDE

Coach: Orlando Griego (22nd year)

Last season: 19-9; lost in 6A quarterfinals to Volcano Vista

Key players: Daniel Salas, sr., CF; Ever Muñoz, sr., 2B/P; David Hernandez, sr., P/1B; Josh Lopez, sr., LF/P; Joey Colmenero, sr., 2B.

Outlook: With Jim Johns retired, no metro coach has been at one school longer than Griego, who will have the fastest team of his career. And with lots of contact guys in the lineup, this is a team that should do damage in the base-running department. But Rio Grande did lose both of its top pitchers, so that is a question mark as Griego gives the ball in big games to some newcomers.

RIO RANCHO

Coach: Ron Murphy (20th year)

Last season: 25-6; lost in 6A championship game to Carlsbad

Key players: Garrett Gouldsmith, sr., SS; Teriz Levesque, sr., 1B; Bohdi Bolen, jr., RHP; Nick Silcox, jr., RHP; Jacob Cook, sr., OF.

Outlook: The Rams have two future Lobos in this lineup in Gouldsmith and Silcox, and Murphy believes this team has tremendous upside coming off a near title last May. Having said that, it’s a very young team that expects to start multiple freshmen, all of whom Murphy expects to contribute. Bolen is one of New Mexico’s best No. 1 starters and was outstanding last year. Pitching and defense are strengths.

SANDIA

Coach: John Gunther (6th year)

Last season: 18-9; lost in 6A first round to Las Cruces

Key players: Ricky Apodaca, jr., OF/LHP; Chris Hamilton, jr., C; Erik Neal, sr., C; Garrett Palacios, sr., 2B; Tyler Scheler, jr., OF/LHP.

Outlook: The Matadors only have two starters back in Apodaca and Scheler, although they are deep in left-handed pitching, and that, at this level, is never a bad thing. The defense figures to be a strength, as is team chemistry. But is this team experienced enough to contend with La Cueva and Eldorado for a district championship?

SANDIA PREP

Coach: Paul Huitt (18th year)

Last season: 27-4; Class 4A state champions

Key players: Joe Martinez, sr., LHP/OF; Zech Vick, sr., OF/RHP; Armando Trujillo, sr., SS; Treyjan Felipe, sr., P/OF; Josh Kelley, fresh., RHP/IF.

Outlook: Aside from Martinez, who is one of 4A’s most outstanding talents, the Sundevils graduated most everyone off their starting lineup from 2016, so this is a rebuilding season for Huitt. This will be a super young team, with some eighth- and ninthgraders filling key spots. Sandia Prep’s success may depend on how quickly the young players develop. Former Sundevil Chris Eaton is a co-head coach with Huitt.

ST. PIUS

Coach: Marc Hilton (17th year)

Last season: 19-9; lost in 5A semifinals to Centennial

Key players: Dylan DiLorenzo, sr., OF; Ryan McGaha, jr., LHP/ OF; Mitch Buffett, sr., RHP/ corner IF; C.J. Bachechi, sr., MIF; Matt Moleres, sr., P/MIF.

Outlook: The Sartans already have opened with a strong win over Sandia Prep, and this should easily be one of 5A’s best rosters this spring. The hard-throwing Buffett has signed with New Mexico State, and this team is strong and deep on the mound, including McGaha, who finished last season as the No. 1 starter. If there’s a question, it’s the bottom third of the lineup and how newcomers will produce.

VALENCIA

Coach: Carlos Carrasco (9th year)

Last season: 14-14; lost in 5A first round to Aztec

Key players: Obed Galaviz, sr., P/3B; Brent Thompson, sr., SS; Garrett Clayton, sr., OF; Adolfo Iturralde, jr., 2B/P; Dalton Moya, jr., OH/RHP.

Outlook: The Jaguars remain young, relatively speaking, with only five seniors, but it’s an experienced group. Galaviz (Eastern N.M.) and Thompson (College of the SW) have signed with colleges. Pitching, with Galaviz and Iturralde, is a strength up front, but depth might be a concern. Carrasco is optimistic about this team’s ability to score.

VALLEY

Coach: Chad Kuhn (12th year)

Last season: 6-17-1

Key players: Adrian Sanchez, sr., C; Daniel Romero-Martinez, sr., LHP; Isaiah Chavez, sr., P/2B; Nolan Kuhn, soph., 1B; Ross Montoya, jr., 3B.

Outlook: The Vikings are coming off one of the worst seasons in school history, but they’ve got a top-flight No. 1 starter in Romero-Martinez (who can reach 90 on the gun), a consistent and accurate thrower in Chavez, and Kuhn’s son Nolan who led the team in hitting last season. Valley has six starters back. This team lost eight games by one run last year and hit only .260.

VOLCANO VISTA

Coach: Kevin Andersh (9th year)

Last season: 20-8; lost in 6A semifinals to Carlsbad

Key players: Josiah Armijo, sr., RHP; Zack Santoru, sr., SS; Jacob Jacome, sr., IF; Jarrod Potter, sr., RHP; Evan Ruiz, sr., OF.

Outlook: The Hawks, with 13 seniors and six returning starters, almost certainly deserve 6A contender status. Armijo was a No. 3 starter last year but is expected to move into the No. 1 slot vacated by Tanner West. Pitching depth is one of the few areas where Andersh might have a concern, but Volcano Vista looks strong most everywhere else.

WEST MESA

Coach: Robert Erp (3rd year)

Last season: 7-17

Key players: Gabe Ramirez, jr., SS/P; Jonathan Lujan, sr., OF/LHP; Adrian Ortega, sr., C; Adrian Deal, sr., OF: Diego Armijo, sr., 3B/P.

Outlook: Ortega and Armijo are three-year starters for the Mustangs, who are hoping those two can make them more relevant in the chase for a playoff berth. It is a senior-laded team, but not one with much experience, with lots of thenjuniors up from the JV. Pitching is a question mark for West Mesa.