The final Orange County high school baseball rankings of the 2024 season.
Notable this week: Orange Lutheran started the season at No. 1 in the rankings and finishes at No. 1, having won the Trinity League championship and advancing to the CIF Southern Section Division 1 semifinals. … Huntington Beach finishes at No. 2 after beating Santa Margarita in the Division 1 quarterfinals. … Beckman reaches the Top 10 after beating St. John Bosco to win the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship. … Some county teams will continue their seasons in the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs that begin May 28. The pairings will be released Sunday.
ORANGE COUNTY BASEBALL FINAL TOP 25
1. Orange Lutheran 25-6: The Trinity League-champions lost to Harvard-Westlake in the CIF-SS Division 1 semifinals. The Lancers will continue the season in the regional playoffs. Among their many standout players are senior shortstop Gabe Fraser and sophomore catcher Brady Murrietta.
Previous ranking: 1
2. Huntington Beach 23-9: The Oilers, led by a strong corps of juniors, including outfielders Ethan Porter and Trevor Goldenetz, and ace senior pitcher Nathan Aceves, won the Surf League championship. They advanced to the Division 1 semifinals and will play in the CIF SoCal Regional.
Previous ranking: 2
Santa Margarita starting pitcher Cade Townsend (11) pitches against Huntington Beach in the quarterfinals of the CIF-SS Division 1 playoffs at Huntington Beach High School in Huntington Beach on Friday, May 10, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
3. Santa Margarita 22-9-1: The Eagles finished second in the Trinity League and lost to Huntington Beach in the Division 1 quarterfinals. They will continue their season in the CIF SoCal Regional as the replacement for Division 1 champion Corona, which opted out of the regional playoffs. Senior right-hander Cade Townsend was among the county’s top pitchers.
Previous ranking: 3
4. JSerra 15-13-1: The Lions finished third in the Trinity League and lost to Bonita in the CIF-SS Division 1 first round. They had strong pitching much of the season, led by Matt Champion and Josh Hollis.
Previous ranking: 4
5. Cypress 19-10-1: The Centurions won another Empire League championship and went 1-1 in the Division 1 playoffs. Nick Montgomery and John Short led a formidable offense and Aidan Franco was a productive pitcher.
Pervious ranking: 5
6. Mater Dei 17-13: The Monarchs were one of three teams to beat Corona this season, beating the Panthers in the Boras Classic South championship game. Mater Dei lost to Corona 3-1 in eight innings in the Division 1 playoffs. Wylan Moss, a senior, was an outstanding pitcher for Mater Dei.
Previous ranking: 6
Servite bench looks on against St. John Bosco in the first inning of a prep baseball game at St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower on Friday, March 22, 2024. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)
7. Servite 15-13: The Friars tied St. John Bosco for fourth place in the Trinity League but did not make the Division 2 playoffs. They concluded the regular season with a three-game sweep of JSerra. Friars outfielders Avery Jones, a junior, and senior Miles Scott were excellent all season.
Previous ranking: 7
8. Foothill 21-9: The Knights shared the Crestview League championship with El Modena and Villa Park and went 1-1 in the Division 1 playoffs. Senior outfielder Garrett Davidson led the team in hits and RBIs. A pitching staff paced by Brian Harbour, Tyler Hawkins and Gavin Lauridsen was as strong as usual.
Previous ranking: 8
9. Pacifica 18-4: The Mariners finished second in the Empire League and lost to Aquinas in the first round of the Division 1 playoffs. Senior Matthew Futami was a standout pitcher for Pacifica and senior outfielder Jacob Zanaboni was among the Mariners’ top hitters.
Previous ranking: 9
Beckman players rush the field after beating St. John Bosco in the championship game of the CIF-SS Division 3 baseball playoffs in Lake Elsinore on Saturday, May 18, 2024. Beckman won the game 2-1. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
10. Beckman 25-6-1: The Patriots played their best in the playoffs. They won the CIF-SS Division 3 championship with a 2-1 win over St. John Bosco in eight innings. Jordan Snitko had the winning hit in the final. Senior pitcher Zach Ireland and Rex Jarcy were great in the playoffs, as was senior third Ken Tomitaka. Beckman declined an invitation to play in the CIF SoCal Regional.
Previous ranking: 18
11. Fountain Valley 19-10
Previous ranking: 10
12. Los Alamitos 24-8
Previous ranking: 11
13. Tesoro 17-10
Previous ranking: 12
14. Villa Park 18-12-1
Previous ranking: 15
15. Aliso Niguel 18-8
Previous ranking: 13
16. San Juan Hills 21-8
Previous ranking: 14
17. El Modena 19-9-1
Previous ranking: 16
Diego Gonzalez (8) of El Dorado rounds third base as he heads to home plate after hitting a home run on a fly ball to right field in the third inning against Gahr in the semifinals of the National Classic baseball tournament at El Dorado High School in Placentia on Thursday, April 4, 2024. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
18. El Dorado 14-15
Previous ranking: 17
19. Corona del Mar 19-10
Previous ranking: 19
20. Trabuco Hills 17-11
Previous ranking: 20
21. Mission Viejo 17-14
Previous ranking: 21
22. Fullerton 18-10-1
Previous ranking: 22
23. Buena Park 24-7
Previous ranking: 23
24. La Habra 21-9
Previous ranking: 25
25. Newport Harbor 15-14
Previous ranking: Not ranked