PRESEASON PRIME: 7-5

7. Aaron Minton

Serra - centerfield - junior

The Skinny: Mired in a 2-for-27 slump to start the season, sophomore Aaron Minton needed to do something to prove that he belonged, that he wasn’t just the little brother of one of Serra’s team captains and best players. The Duke University commit had gone four games without a hit and Matt Keplinger benched him for a game. He came back in the second game of the series against St. Ignatius Prep and was surprised to get a bunt sign. He did as he was told and dropped a perfect drag bunt down the third-base line that he legged out for a base hit that met the approval of his teammates, who applauded the execution. “It was a small moment, but I was on base for the first time in a while,” he said. “That was the start of my turnaround.” He had a couple of barrels in the next series against Mitty and then took over the following week. Over the second half of the WCAL season, Aaron Minton was unstoppable. He had finally adjusted to WCAL pitching – “It’s different in this league,” he said. “You’re seeing fastballs with movement and you’re adjusting to the overall pace of the game.” – and became more than Davis Minton’s little brother. This progression reached its pinnacle in the CCS-Division I championship game against Valley Christian when he lined a game-tying two-run double off Brock Ketelsen, the WCAL pitcher of the year who’s now at Stanford, and scored three batters later on an infield chopper as the Padres beat the Warriors, 3-2, to capture their first CCS crown in 16 years. “Without question, that is the greatest baseball moment of my life,” Minton says.

He Said It: “This game is mental. It’s way deeper than most people think it is. If you think it’s simple, then you don’t know enough.”

The Numbers Tell the Story: Minton’s .240 batting average includes the lengthy slump to start the year. However, consider that he hit .367 in WCAL play and finished the season with 17 runs scored and 16 RBI while stealing nine bases.

Eye-Popping Stat: Minton will move to centerfield, his natural position in 2026. He played an errorless right field, making good on each of his 48 chances, including one outfield assist.

6. Jack Freehill

Menlo School - shortstop - senior

The Skinny: Jack Freehill played his last year of football in November in quarterbacking Menlo School the CCS playoffs and officially turned the page on that chapter of his life. Yes, he’ll miss football, but he’s smart enough to know his future is at baseball, where an Ivy League education at Columbia University awaits him in the fall. “It’s sad because I love football, but football is done,” he said. “Baseball is the best thing for me and my future. For the first time in my life I am going to be able to just focus on baseball.” That’s saying something. Without another sport sharing his attention, he will have the chance to excel on the diamond. Not that the reigning PAL-Ocean Division has the chance to be the first player ever to win the Ocean and Bay Division MVP awards in consecutive years after the Knights were promoted to the PAL’s highest division. “That would be sick,” he said. “That’s cool and all, but I’m not really thinking about things like that. I don’t like to set numbers like hitting .400 or hitting a certain number of bombs. Swinging for home runs takes me out of my game. Personally, I just want to help my team win again. The numbers will take care of themselves.” Menlo has the chance to win a third straight CCS crown for the first time in school history and repeat as NorCal champions. “There’s no change in our expectations,” Freehill said. “We want both of those championships again. Going to the Bay Division isn’t going to change that.

He Said It: “Under the right circumstances, I was considering playing football and baseball at the next level. But in the end, it just didn’t work out and I’m happy with the decision I’ve made.”

The Numbers Tell the Story: Freehill hit .354 with 35 hits, including two home runs, 31 runs scored and 20 RBI. He also stole a PAL-Ocean Division-leading 24 bases.

Eye-Popping Stat: Batting in the leadoff spot, he had 12 extra-base hits, including eight doubles and two triples.

5. DJ Delaney

St. Ignatius Prep - right field - senior

The Skinny: DJ Delaney has his eyes on the prize. With a baseball scholarship locked in to attend Nevada-Reno, he can focus his attention of his final season of high school baseball with three goals, or “chips” as he refers to them: the WCAL, CCS-Division I and NorCal tournament championships. “Anything less than all three ‘chips’ would be a disappointment in my eyes,” he says. “I’ve seen the work we have all put in and I know what we are capable of.” Delaney might be the best power hitter on the Peninsula. He might get an argument from teammate Archer Horn and Sequoia senior Morgan Winfield, but he is in the conversation. Anyone who saw his home run over the scoreboard in right-center field at Serra High’s Dan Frisella Field last April is aware of Delaney’s power to drive a baseball. Imagine what he might do while hitting in altitude next year in Reno. “That might have played a part in my decision,” he says only half-jokingly. But there’s work to be done before heading off to college. “I want to do anything I can to help my team win,” he says. “Whatever that role may be that day.” And if winning the WCAL player of the year awards is in the cards, he wouldn’t mind that, either. “It is definitely on my mind, although we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

He Said It: “The WCAL always finds a way to produce pitchers like no one’s business. I’m sure there will be some guys who definitely step up all around the league. … Preparing like I’ll be facing the best will get me most ready for the season.”

The Numbers Tell the Story: Delaney hit .314 with 27 hits, 22 runs scored and 27 RBI.

Eye-Popping Stat: He had three doubles, two triples and four home runs to finish with a slugging percentage of .535, which was second only to Horn.