Posted by Andrew Drennen, ESPN RISE

Just as the in state rival Oregon State Beavers did, the Oregon Ducks signed 12 players. Unlike the Beavers, the Ducks did not sign one player from the Northwest.  They did get one player out of Nevada, and one from Pennsylvania, but other than that, the rest of the class hails from California. 

Jesse Biddle LHP Philadelphia, Pa./Germantown Friends HS
Brandon Brennan RHP San Juan Capistrano, Calif./Capistrano Valley High School
Ryon Healy 1B/3B/RHP West Hills, Calif./Crespi High School
Connor Hoffman CF San Diego, Calif./St. Augustine High School
Aaron Jones C San Clemente, Calif./ San Clemente High School
Nick Kingham RHP Las Vegas, Nev./ Sierra Vista High School
Tyler Kuresa 1B Roseville, Calif./Oakmont High School
Robby Rowland RHP Santa Rosa, Calif./Cloverdale HS
Stefan Sabol C Aliso Viejo, Calif./Aliso Niquel High School
Aaron Sanchez RHP/SS Barstow, Calif./Barstow High School
James Sherfy RHP/OF Camarillo, Calif./Newbury Park High School
Brando Tessar RHP/2B Simi Valley, Calif./Chaminade High School

Click here to read more on the Oregon class.

Posted by Andrew Drennen, ESPN RISE

The Oregon State Beavers signed a strong class of 12 high school players during the early signing period.  The Beavers were able to keep seven high schools from the Pacific Northwest at home and not allow them to leave the region.  They did sign five players from Calif., Utah and Nev.  

To check out the class CLICK HERE

Roseburg and Richland/Hanford  won Baseball Northwest's 2009 High School Fall Ball State Championships. Roseburg topped North Eugene 5-3 to win the Oregon/SW Washington League.  Hanford/Richland won the East Washington Championship  8-4 over the Baseball Northwest Tri-Cities team.  For more click here.

The 2009 Northwest Championships helps players in the Northwest be seen by college coaches and pro scouts.  There is a tryout process that leads to this final event, which includes six states (Utah, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming) and another country, Canada.  The event is complete in five days and during the first two days over 700 players SPARQ Tested.  The No. 1 SPARQ Rating went to Matt Kimmel with an 81.81 SPARQ Rating.

You can read more about the championships on BaseballNorthwest.com.  

By Andrew Drennen; ESPNRISE.com

Bellevue, Wash.-The Washington Nationals held their first and only tryout at Bellevue Community College on July1.  There were over 100 players representing the Pacific Northwest, with the hope of earning a spot in Long Beach. 

Last year, then junior to be, Josh Sale, put on a show in the second game of the week for the Nationals.  He had hit for the cycle, which was the first one that could be remembered in the recent history of the event. 

When Sale was in Long Beach, a year ago, he showed raw power potential and today he showed that he is a definite big power guy.  Last year, he played in the outfield, but this year there may be a chance that he gets a look behind the plate.  No matter where he plays in the field, he will be a big bat in the lineup for the Nationals. 

The top velocity at the tryout went to Cameron Boozer out of Fife High School in Washington.  His fastball was up to 93 on the gun and according to BaseballNorthwest.com, he is the No. 4 player in the Emerald State. 

There were a pair of 2011 kids who made an impression on Wednesday.  Spencer O'Neil out of Southridge High School in Washington plays in the outfield. He is ranked as the No. 1 player in the 2011 class for the state of Washington by BaseballNorthwest.com. 

The other 2011 player to make an impression was Dylan Davis out of Redmond High School in Washington.  This young pitcher / outfielder was up to 92 on the gun when they pitchers had their chance to throw. 

It looks like the Nationals will be solid on defense and at the plate.  Their pitching may be down from a year ago, but will still be solid.  They only had one tryout this year and their roster should be released within a week. 
 

Posted by Andrew Drennen

The Washington Nationals' Area Code Team Tryout is set for July 1, 2009 at Bellevue Community College.  This is the same facility that the tryout was held at last year.  Like the other Area Code Tryouts, the Nationals' one is invitation only, and those should go out in the spring. For more information on the 2009 Area Code Baseball Games, visit AreaCodeBaseball.com.

Posted by Andrew Drennen

BaseballNorthwest.com released its top player lists for Oregon players in the 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 classes.  In the 2009 class Tym Pearson (OF) Thurston High School is the No. 1 player, with Ben Wetzler (P) Clackamas High School the top player in the 2010 class.  The top player in the 2011 class is Derek Smith (C/P) from Pleasant Hill High School and the No. 1 in the 2011 class is Lathan Alger (1B) Pendleton High School.  

Some names jump off the list on Ryan Barnes out of West Linn High School, ranked No. 2 and Tim Keller out of North Eugene, ranked No. 5.  Both players were on the Washington Nationals Area Code Team in August of 2008.  

This past fall, Barnes signed a national letter of intent to play for the Oregon State Beavers.  As a junior, Barnes .423 as a junior, with 19 RBI  and four home runs. West Linn posted a 22-8 record last season.  

"I was extremely excited to sign my letter because I am an Oregon kid who saw the Beavers all the time so it was great to see my dream come true," Barnes said on OSUBeavers.com. "I was planning to go to Oregon State even if I did not have a scholarship. I grew up a Beaver fan because both my parents went there so I always wanted to wear black and orange.”

Click here for the top players in Oregon

2009

2010

2011

2012

By Andrew Drennen

The first full day at the Arizona Senior Fall Classic was when the teams SPARQ Tested.  Over 460 players went through the four testing elements, that comprise the SPARQ Baseball Rating (30-yard dash, shuttle, vertical jump and rotational power ball toss).

The top SPARQ Rating was set by Trevor Sanderlin of the All Star Baseball Academy.  Sanderlin stands in at 6-2, 205 pounds and is an RHP/3B out of Mingus High School in Arizona.  His marks were 3.89 (30-yard), 4.34 (shuttle), 33.5 (vertical jump) and a 62 foot power ball toss.  All those marks totaled an 81.68 rating, which was the only SPARQ Rating to crack the 80 point barrier.  His SPARQ Rating would have been the best one at last year's tournament, topping the 76.55 SPARQ Rating set by Brian Carr. 

Here are the top SPARQ Ratings from the Arizona Senior Fall Classic:

1. Trevor Sanderin RHP/3B (All Star Baseball) 81.68
2. Karl Kobler OF (NorCal Black) 78.72
3. Jon Poch INF (Baseball Northwest Washington Green) 78.30
4. Kyle Phillips OF (Baseball Northwest Washington Green) 75.90
5. Hunter Zwart RHP/OF (All Star Academy) 75.82
6. Pat Hirschberg OF/1B (Colorado Rockies) 75.48
7. Skip Spencer RHP/C (Baseball Northwest Oregon) 75.03
8. Rhett Nelson RHP (Angels Elite RM) 74.85
9. Sean Washington OF (Bellaire Off Season) 74.59
10. Ryan Bergman INF (ABD) 73.49

The rest of the SPARQ Ratings can be found at SPARQtraining.com.

The Arizona Junior Fall Classic will take place this weekend and SPARQ Testing will occur on Friday.  

By Andrew Drennen

WILSONVILLE, Ore. -- The Pacific Northwest Championships are currently going on this week in Oregon.  Teams from Idaho, Washington, Montana, Wyoming and Oregon are competeting in a tournament that features some of the top players from the Northwest in the 2009-2011 classes. 

The top SPARQ Rating this past weekend went to Tymothy Pearson, who plays on the Oregon State Class of 2009 team. Pearson posted an 82.44 SPARQ Rating, which was the only SPARQ Rating in the 80s. His above 80 SPARQ Rating would have been tops in last year's event as well, as the top SPARQ Rating was posted by Zane Norris (79.29).

There were only five SPARQ Ratings in the 70s, led by Matt Nylen's, 75.96.  Nylen this week is playing for the Oregon Metro Class of 2009 team.  

Here are the top SPARQ Ratings from the week.  For more information on the SPARQ Ratings from the Pacific Northwest Championships, visit sparqtraining.com.

By Andrew Knepper

Long Beach, Calif. --  Saturday's Area Code Games kicked off with the undefeated Milwaukee Brewers Blue squad moving to 3-0 after a come from behind victory against the Chicago White Sox, 6-5. They will be facing the Cincinnati reds that have had a rollercoaster of an event by throwing a collective no-hitter, then giving up 17 hits in their next game.

On the mound starting for the Reds was the hard throwing Josh Dahl who struck out his first batter of the day with a nice curveball that froze John Altobelli. Dahl then proceeded to induce a line to second, a HBP and end the inning with another strike out. 

On the hill for the Brewers was David Armendariz, who led of the inning with back-to-back walks that got him in trouble when he walked in one run. Jordan Van Hoosier then hit a two-run double followed by a run scoring single by Brandon Bayardi.  The bases were then loaded for Matt Ozanne, but Armendarzi struck him out to end the five run inning. 

The Brewers looked to jump on the board when they placed runners on first and second with one out, but Dahl fanned back-to-back two hitters to end the second inning. He finished his two innings tallying five strikeouts. 

The Reds attacked once again in the bottom of the second inning when Jacob Stewart hit a two-run single to give the Reds a 7-0 lead over the undefeated Brewers club.

The scoreboard for the third and fourth innings was held to zeros and one of the better match-ups of morning was tall left hander Tyler Skaggs facing 2011 standout Bryce Harper.  After a few fall balls the count went full and Skaggs struck out Harper with a late biting curveball.  That was Harpers' first strike out of the Area Code Games.

In the top of the fifth inning the Brewers got on the board when 2011 prospect Christian Lopes singled, stole second, and crossed the plate on a Jake Marisnick single to make the score to 7-1.  In the bottom of the fifth, Skaggs shut down the Reds once again to get a scoreless frame to end with 2 IP, one hit allowed and five strikeouts. In the top of the sixth the Brewers struck once again after an error was charged to Reds shortstop Michael Reynolds and Jeff Gelalich reached first. Brian Berry then knocked him in on a single to make the score, 7-2.

In the seventh, Kurt Heyer came in for the Brewers and pitched a scoreless frame while Jeff Baldwin came in and did the same thing as Heyer and ended the game with a perfect inning, striking out one in the process.

Washington Nationals 7, Milwaukee Brewers Gray 2

It was another ominous start for a team wearing a Brewers uniform on the fifth day of the Area Code Baseball Games.  In the first game, it was the Brewers Blue falling on hard times as they lost to the Reds 7-2.  This was on the heels of the Brewers Gray hammering the Reds, 14-2.

The Nationals got things rolling in the first inning when they put up a three spot on Brewers starter Nicholas Vander Tuig.  Three Nationals' hits and a Brewers' error lead to the quick strike.  It was reminiscent of the morning game when the Reds jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead after two. 

In the Nationals' half of the first Max Walla doubled, followed by a Josh Sale single.  Then Chase Anslement got on board with a single and because of an error by the Brewers, Sale and Walla both scored.  Anslement then scored making it 3-0 in favor of the Nationals.      

Nationals' starter James Robbins dazzled the Brewers.  He was in the zone and kept the California sluggers off balance.  He worked fast and did not let the Brewers get anything started. 

The action then picked up in the third when the Nationals' Josh Sale hit a majestic shot over the right field wall off of Vander Tuig to make it 6-0.  Sale has been impressive this entire week as the bomb he hit was his second homer of the week. Sale's first one came in the second Nationals' game when he hit for the cycle. 

The Brewers pushed a run across in the fourth and one more in the sixth.  That was all they could get as the Nationals continued to pitch well.  The Nationals ended their week at the 2008 Area Code Baseball Games with a 2-3 record. 

Chicago White Sox vs. Milwaukee Brewers Gray

The Milwaukee Brewers Gray team took on the Chicago White Sox in their last game at Area Code to finish the back-end of a double header.  Losing their first game of the day, 7-2, the Gray team looked to end over the .500 mark as they entered this game with a 2-2 record. 

The White Sox started left-handed Austin Kirk and the hurler gave up two runs in the first on a two-run double by Clay Cedarquist. On the other end, the Brewers started left-hander Justin Jones and he threw a scoreless inning.

In the top of the second, the Brewers scored again on a Darrell Mathews single that scored Jordan Wilder, who led off the inning with a single then advanced to second on a balk. Jones then retired the side in his second inning of work.  

In the top of the third inning, the Brewers struck again with a two-run double by Noah Perio who was then knocked in by a Jordan Wilder triple.  With Wilder on third, Quinton Perry came up and delivered a sac fly that scored the fourth run of the inning.  Jones retired the side once again in his third inning of work.

In the top of the fourth, the Brewers continued their scoring jamboree when Cedarquist once again delivered another run scoring double that scored Mathews.  Joe Lewis relieved Jones and kept alive the Brewers' no-hitter by retiring the side. 

In the fifth inning the Brewers picked up another run to make the score 9-0 as Wilder knocked in Perio after he was issued a free pass on balls.  The Brewers continued their bid for a no hit game when Lewis pitched another flawless inning in the fifth. 

In the bottom of the sixth inning the no hit bid ended on the first pitch, as the White Sox's Jarek Pritchard singled up the middle off Brewers pitcher Jonathan Meyer.

The Brewers ended their mini losing streak in grand fashion as the game ended 9-0. The Chicago White Sox committed three errors and gave up eleven hits to the Brewers Gray.

Player of the game:  Justin Jones
3 IP, 2K's, 10 batters faced, zero walks, zero hits

Oakland Athletics 7, New York Yankees 3

It was an interesting matchup when the two East Coast-oriented teams played the night cap at Blair Field on Saturday.  The nine inning affair featured the Yankees (made up of prospects from the Northeast region of the country) against the Athletics (Southeast).  The ironic part was a Californian, Aaron Wirsch (El Toro, Lake Forest, Calif.), started for the Athletics. 

Yankees' starter Kyle McKenzie had a rough start when he walked Nick Lockwood to lead the game off and then plucked Alex Glenn in the back to put the first two hitters on board.  Cody Stubbs had a chance to put the Athletics on the board first, but McKenzie was able to strike him out on a high fastball for the second out.  It was then up to Tyler Roberts and the first baseman delivered a two out two RBI single, giving the Athletics an early 2-0 lead. 

McKenzie settled down and battled the A's batters for the next two innings. 

Wirsch remained in control through the first two innings.  The lefty cruised until the third when he hit Mike Yastrzemski in the back and allowed the first hit of the game to Nelfi Zapata.  Wirsch then walked Christian Walker to load the bases for Mike Trout, who banged a RBI single.  Wirsch then got out of the bases loaded jam when he struck out Patrick Stover to limit the damage to only a single run.

Stetson Allie then came in relief for McKenzie and Alex Glenn came up with the bases loaded and dilivered a two-RBI single to left field. Stubbs then drilled a triple to right field driving in two more and pushing the A's lead to 6-1. Tyler Roberts then flied to center, off of reliever Tim Brechbuehler, but the fly ball was dropped, scoring Stubbs and making the socre 7-1. Ronnie Richardson then singled off of Brechbuehler to keep the hit parade going, but was one of two runners stranded.

The Yankees were able to push two late runs across, but it wasn't enough as the A's held on for the win.