Tellez sets modern-day record in Majors debut

Rowdy Tellez did something Thursday no one in modern-day baseball has ever done - hit an extra base hit in each of his first three Major League at-bats. That's according to the Bleacher Report who claims that the Toronto Blue Jay rookie slugger made the mark by stroking the first pitch he'd ever seen in a MLB game to right center field Wednesday night for a pinch hit RBI double, then followed that with back-to-back doubles in his first two at-bats Thursday in Toronto's 9-4 loss to Cleveland.


   Greg Tellez, who missed his son's first MLB at-bat Wednesday, was in the stands
Thursday in Toronto to see Rowdy set a modern-day baseball record.

To add to the emotion of the event, Rowdy pointed to the sky after his second at-bat of the game to honor his mother, Lori, who passed away just a month ago due to brain cancer.

(Watch Tellez make MLB History)

The 23-year-old's father, Greg, unfortunately missed his son's MLB debut Wednesday because of airline delays, but was in the crowd Thursday to watch Rowdy make history. Uniquely, the television announcer calling Tellez' feat was Buck Martinez, also a former Elk Grove H.S. baseball player.

Tellez has spent the past two seasons with Triple-A Buffalo and was called up last weekend to the parent Blue Jays. He graduated from EGHS in 2013. Tellez signed with Toronto right out of high school.

Larson 'dominant' in Southern 500, but finishes third

Elk Grove NASCAR driver Kyle Larson has had a great 2018 with three wins on the Xfinity series and a handful of wins on the dirt tracks driving sprint cars. But, he is still looking for win number one this year on the Monster Energy Cup series.

Late Sunday, though, it appeared as though Larson would be driving into the winner's circle with his performance in the Southern 500 in Darlington, S.C. He led 284 laps, taking first in both of the initial two stages of the race. But, a late caution light sent Larson and the leaders into the pits and in the race out onto the track he was edged out by Brad Keslowski. The driver of the No. 2 racer jumped on the pack on the restart and drove away with the checkered flag.

“We didn’t get beat off pit road by much, but it was enough,” Larson said. “Being the control car at any race track is huge, and we just didn’t have that. I was just really loose that last run, trying to run hard to stay with him.”

NASCAR now moves onto the famed track in Indianapolis this weekend for the Brickyard 400.

Davis, Freitas, Tellez called up to MLB

Three Elk Grove-area baseball players got the September call-up to their respective Major League teams this weekend. J.D. Davis (Astros), David Freitas (Mariners) and Rowdy Tellez (Blue Jays) joined David Hernandez (Reds) giving our city four of its own playing at the highest level of pro baseball at once.

All of them were students of Jeff Carlson at Elk Grove High School.

Davis and Freitas have been making the trip between Triple-A and MLB all season because of injuries on their respective clubs. This will be Tellez' first appearance in the Bigs during the regular season.

David Freitas

It's actually bittersweet for Davis who ended his Triple-A season Monday with a Pacific Coast League-leading .342 for the Fresno Grizzlies. That's also the best batting average in all AAA baseball. Instead of helping the Grizzlies run for a PCL championship, Davis will likely be a fill-in for the defending World Champion Astros this month. Houston's regulars are now all back in the lineup after several of them spent time on the disabled list.

Freitas has also seen some time this year in Seattle when Mariners' starting catcher Mike Zunino was suffering from some injuries, but most of the year he's been with the Tacoma Rainiers. He, too, will likely do some filling in as Seattle has a pretty good chance at making the playoffs, battling with the A's and the Astros in the American League West.

After two seasons with the Buffalo Bisons in the International League, Tellez will likely get an opportunity for a few starts, especially because the Blue Jays are out of the post-season race. He had a good year in Buffalo, batting .270 with 13 homers, playing a solid first base.

Madrigal goes 4-for-4 in season finale

(from MiLB.com)

Nick Madrigal (a 2015 graduate of Elk Grove H.S.) had already won a title in 2018, helping lead Oregon State to its third College World Series crown in June. So it shouldn't have been much of a surprise that with another one on the line Monday afternoon, the former Beaver stood tall.

The No. 4 White Sox prospect went 4-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and two stolen bases to lead Class A Advanced Winston-Salem to a 5-3 win over Down East at Grainger Stadium. With the win on the final day of the season, the Dash (43-25) finished with the same second-half record as Carolina League Southern Division rival Buies Creek but took home the second-half division title with a superior overall record (84-54 vs. 80-57). After securing the first-half crown, this marks the first time since 2012 that the Dash have won the division in both halves of a season.

"Everyone's really happy over here," Madrigal said. "We were trying to do it yesterday, but it just didn't work out. But overall, it's a great feeling, especially for the guys who have been around all season. It's a relief for them to set a goal like this and actually achieve it. I'm just really happy we could come together and pull this out for everyone on this team. 

Read More...

Nick Madrigal ends his first minor league season Monday
by going four-for-four. He struck out only five times in
156 plate appearances this season.

Notebook: MLB Trade deadline nears

By John Hull,  jrhull1004@gmail.com

I regularly follow Major League Baseball's "At-Bat" app and I've been watching intently for any familiar names that may prop up on the app notifications, especially since the trading deadline is less than 24 hours away. Locals like the Astros' J.D. Davis, the Mariners' David Freitas and the Reds' David Hernandez are all possible trade material as each one of their clubs position themselves for the remaining 55 to 60 games this season.

Davis may be needed badly in the Houston lineup now that Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa are both on the injured list. He's been starting the past few games at third base while Astro All-Star Alex Bregman has shifted over to shortstop in Correa's spot. Though he was leading most of Triple-A baseball in several offensive categories this year in Fresno, Davis has struggled a bit while in Houston. Going into tonight's game at Seattle he's batting .190 with a homer and five RBIs.

With a talent log-jam in Houston, Davis may be better off in the long run elsewhere, but he's been a good fill-in this year and proved the same at the end of last season when the Astros made their run to the World Series.

Hernandez on Sunday posted on Twitter he hoped teammate Matt Harvey would NOT be making his last start in a Reds uniform that afternoon. Though his team sits at the bottom of the National League Central Division, Cincinnati is really playing some good baseball right now and Hernandez is in the middle of a very good bullpen. 

The Reds' David Hernandez

And, he's having his best year statistically in the bigs. Hernandez is 4-0 in 34 games for Cincinnati with a 1.79 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 40.1 innings. His WHIP is a very impressive 0.99.

Seattle has recently been very active in the trade market acquiring RHP Sam Tuivailala from St. Louis and LHP Zach Duke from Minnesota to help make a run at the playoffs. They are doing quite well in second place in the American League West behind Houston, yet battling with the A's for that spot in their division. Freitas has been making the run between Seattle and Triple-A Tacoma all year. Since July 22 he's been with the Rainiers and has done quite well at the plate and behind the plate in 2018. He's batting .351 in Triple-A and just .192 in his 29 games with the Mariners.

Freitas is no newcomer to trades, having been shipped by the Nationals to the A's, and a couple years later, from the A's to the Orioles. He may be stick with the Mariners' organization because he may be insurance. Regular catcher Mike Zunino has been on the DL twice this season which caused the Mariners to ship in Freitas from Tacoma.

Another former Elk Grove H.S. player that is awaiting at the MLB doorstep in Rowdy Tellez. In 85 games this season with Buffalo, the Triple-A affiliate of Toronto, Tellez is batting .262 with 10 homers. Toronto has been shopping some of its players, since at 48-56 and well behind Boston and New York in the American League East, the Blue Jays may be looking for more prospects. That may give Tellez a chance to come up to the big club before the end of this season.

On Monday, Toronto sent RHP Roberto Osuna to Houston for pitchers Ken Giles, David Paulino and Hector Perez.

Madrigal yet to K?

Someone tweeted a couple days ago quite an amazing stat - that the Chicago White Sox' top draft choice in June, Elk Grove H.S.'s Nick Madrigal, has yet to strike out in his first 53 plate appearances as a pro.

My reply: "He may not strike out this year unless he runs across a near-sighted ump."

Watch Rowdy hit a homer in Toronto

Susac Key To Giants' Win/ Larson Has Strong Race In CT.

The San Francisco Giants are looking for help to get the defending World Champions out of an early-season funk.

Their first call-up from Triple-A Sacramento last week was former Jesuit catcher Andrew Susac.

Local baseball fans will remember Susac quite well when he was leading the Marauders to back-to-back Sac-Joaquin Section championships in 2008 and 2009.  Teamed with current Cardinals’ farmhand Jimmy Bosco and Danny Hayes, an Elk Grove resident now playing in the White Sox organization, Susac was instrumental in a 6-5 playoff win on May 17, 2008 over Elk Grove.

That Jesuit win ended the Herd’s 18-game playoff win streak that stretched from 2005 through 2007.

Three times in the North Division I playoffs that year the Marauders defeated Pleasant Grove and then Jesuit beat Buhach Colony for the 2008 Section title.

In his senior season in 2009, Susac batted .445 with eight homers, nine doubles and three triples. He also drove in a team-high 34 runs. That year Jesuit swept St. Mary’s for the 2009 Division I Section championship.

Susac went on to Oregon State University where he became a teammate of Elk Grove graduate Jake Rodriguez. He was taken by the Giants in the second round of the 2011 draft.

Susac quickly moved through the Giants’ farm system and was called up to the majors on July 24, 2014. He stayed with the big club for the rest of the year and was on the World Series roster in the fall. Susac batted .273 with three home runs and 19 RBI’s as the backup to All-Star catcher Buster Posey.

He began this season with Sacramento, the Giants Triple-A club. When pitcher Jake Peavy went on the disabled list, it was Susac who got the call to take his place on the 25-man roster.

Through Friday’s Susac’s already started three games and is batting .425, including a 2-for-3 night at the plate in Tuesday's 6-2 win over the Dodgers

Larson Leads Bristol Race For 90 laps, Finishes Seventh

For 90 of the 500-lap NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Bristol, Conn., Sunday Elk Grove’s Kyle Larson was in first place.

In lap 345 of the Food City 500 Sprint Cup leaders Kevin Harvick and Jimmy Johnson got into a multi-car crash that sent cars scurrying into the pits during the yellow flag. Larson’s crew chief, Chris Heroy, decided to keep the #42 Target Chevrolet on the track so when the race went back green Larson was in the front of the pack.

He was quite impressive for the next 90 laps fighting off several cars on the .5-mile oval, betting that a caution flag might come out so that he could pit and perhaps keep the lead. That didn’t happen so Larson had to pit under a green light and dropped back in the pack. 

Matt Kenseth eventually won the race with Larson finishing in seventh place.

He’s still waiting for win number one on NASCAR’s top circuit and last Sunday in Bristol was about as close as he’s gotten.

In 2014, he did finish second at the Auto Club 500 in Fontana.

Larson will give it another try this Saturday at the Toyota Owners 400 at the Richmond (VA.) International Raceway.

He says he is doing much better following a fainting spell in late March during an autograph session prior to a race at Martinsville, VA.

The morning he fainted the 22-year-old had overslept and was in hurry. He didn’t eat breakfast and paid for it. Going forward, Larson was instructed to be more mindful of his eating habits and take better care of himself.

"I hate breakfast, so I've got to find something that I like to eat in the morning and just make sure I drink enough fluids," Larson told reporters at Texas Motor Speedway. "I feel like I take decent care of myself. That morning was a little bit different because I overslept and had to rush out to the car, but we should be good.”

"When you are young, you think you are bulletproof and that is just one little instance that shows you that you aren't. You've got to take care of yourself as you get older, definitely going to try and do a better job of that."

Larson tweeted a photo of himself eating a chicken wrap and holding a sports drink for lunch Friday, which he directed towards car owner Chip Ganassi, who jokingly told Larson to "lay off the pizza and tacos diet."

Quick Hits …

Tellez Promoted To Class-A Lansing

Toronto Blue Jays' farmhand Rowdy Tellez has been promoted to the Lansing Lugnuts of the Class-A Midwest League. This comes after Tellez helped his Bluefield (W.Va.) Blue Jays (Appalachian League) win the Mercer Cup in a dramatic fashion.

Tellez drilled a three-run homer late in the game that was the difference as Bluefield went on to defeat the Princeton Rays, 5-3.

Rowdy Tellez, promoted to Class A Lansing

"It was a great feeling," Tellez told WVVA-TV. "I can't say it was all me. We started off with our nine-hitter, our eight-hitter. They did their jobs. They got on for me and they got it to me. I got the opportunity to do what I do."

"The game's made to make heroes every night," Blue Jays' manager Dennis Holmberg told WVVA. "[Tellez] is a highly touted ball player and he's the guy you want up in that situation."

In Lansing he's joining another Elk Grove resident, Brady Dragmire, a relief pitcher for the Lugnuts who attended Bradshaw Christian H.S. 

In his 53 games in Bluefield this summer, Tellez batted .293 with four homers and 19 RBI's.

The minor league season will wind down this week across all of professional baseball.

Tellez Preps For First Full Season In The Minors

Rowdy Tellez has spent much of April in extended spring training with other up and coming Toronto Blue Jays’ prospects. In the next few days he’ll be assigned to one of the Jays’ minor league franchises, barely a year removed from the season in which he powered Elk Grove High School to a Sac-Joaquin Section championship.

Tellez told the Canadian Baseball Network last week that what helped him prepare for professional ball was the time with some of the high school area code and elite squads the summer prior to his senior year at Elk Grove.

“You realize you’re not the best, but you’re not the worse, either,” he said. “There are guys with different skill sets than you. I got to play with Austin Meadows who was the ninth overall pick by the Pirates and Clint Frazier who was the fifth overall pick by the Indians and felt right with them.” 

Rowdy Tellez, now in the Blue Jay's minor league organization

The Blue Jays were one of many organizations wanting to draft Tellez. The fact Tellez was already inked with the University of Southern California may have kept some clubs from selecting him higher in last June’s draft.

He ended up being drafted by Toronto in the 30^th round because he told the Jays he would willing to forego college as long as he got the signing bonus he wanted. That ended up being $850,000.

Now, he’s showing the Toronto organization and its fans it’s been a wise investment to this point

“It’s huge to be a well-rounded player,” he said. “I’m working being a better overall hitter and the most important thing is to become a better defender at first base so I can hold down the first base job so I am not pegged at being just a D.H. I need to more solid at the bag so that my infielders are more confident in throwing to me.”

He’s been working in extended spring training with the Blue Jays’ infield coordinator Danny Mordecai at having better “feet” around the first base bag. Tellez says he’s been working much of the time working on timing and to be faster. He says he’s lost weight over the winter to be faster.

“I’ve been working on the little things that will be huge when it comes to my defense,” he added.

Definitely Tellez has been challenged by the rapid upgrade in pitching, yet he’s wowed the Jays’ fans with some bursts of power, not only this spring but also at the end of last summer where he ended up in Class A with Bluefield.

“You just don’t face these kind of (pitchers) in high school,” he said. “You may get one or two a year.”

Right after inking last June with Toronto he arrived in Dunedin, Florida and had a bit of a rough start in the Gulf Coast League.

“It kind of messed with my mind,” Tellez said. “So, I had to make some minor adjustments. I got rid of a huge leg kick. I had to stay confident every day, never getting down on myself.”

Nunez Playing Catcher In Rockies’ Organization

Tellez’ Elk Grove teammate, Dom Nunez, who also was drafted last summer, has spent extended spring training behind the plate, much like he did most of his senior year with the Herd.

Nunez played at Grand Junction in the Pioneer League after being selected by the Colorado Rockies, but he was a second baseman.

Nunez father, Manuel, said last week that Dom thinks he may end up with Grand Junction once again when the Pioneer League starts up in June.

Matthias Signs Letter With Sac State

Sacramento State head softball coach Lori Perez announced last Wednesday that Pleasant Grove High School pitcher Celina Matthias has signed a National Letter of Intent.

She joins three other players who inked letters with the Hornets last fall - Sheldon High School second baseman Zamari Hinton, Pleasant Grove High School shortstop/outfielder Marissa Maligad and Center High School corner infielder Cassidy Martin.



 

Celina Matthias inks with the Hornets

Maligad and Matthias are currently in their fourth season as teammates on the varsity squad at Pleasant Grove.
Matthias is currently 8-4 with a 1.45 ERA for the Eagles. The right-hander has struck out 88 batters in 82.1 innings pitched. Her strikeout total currently leads the league and the ERA is the Delta River League's second best mark.

Last year she led the Eagles to a runner-up finish in the Section’s Division I playoffs. That season, she was 15-8 with a 2.51 ERA, and posted a league-best 161 strikeouts in 153.2 innings.

Batson Wins 100 Meters at Mt. SAC Relays

University of Alabama sprinter Diondre Batson was back in California this past weekend and shined brightly in his home state, winning the 100 meters in the Mt. SAC Relays, hosted by Mount San Antonio College in Walnut.

What raised everyone’s eyebrows was that Batson, the NCAA indoors champion at 200 meters, ran the fifth-fastest 100 meters in Alabama history with a clocking of 10.06 seconds.

Batson, a former Laguna Creek High School sprinter,  and his Crimson Tide teammates are now preparing for the Southeastern Conference meet which starts May 15^th in Lexington, KY.  

Diondre Batson

DVC Track Meet Wednesday

The second Delta Valley Conference track meet of the season will be run Wednesday at Davis High School. Davis, Franklin, Elk Grove and Monterey Trail will all vie for the top team score.

Top performers this season have included Elk Grove’s Jazmine Smith who has the best times thus far this year in the DVC in the 200 and 400 meters and the second-best time in the 100 meters along with Monterey Trail’s Ciara Levy who has the fastest marks in the 100 meter hurdles and the 300 meter hurdles.

In the boys’ competition, Monterey Trail’s Jahmar Sexton has the top time in both the 400 meters and in the 300 meter hurdles.

In the jumps Franklin’s Jorden O’Neal has the longest mark, 18 ft., eight inches, in the long jump by more than a foot. Tiara Webb of Monterey Trail likewise leads her closest competitor by more than a foot in the triple jump.

Notebook: Opening Day Win For CRC Baseball/Softball

After one of the most dreadful Super Bowls on the field and with only about three decent commercials (the puppy and the Clydesdales, the little kid turns cowboy - Doritos, and GoDaddy.Com's Tan Spraying) it's time to re-cap the weekend and look ahead....

Kyle Von Ruden (Franklin H.S.) and David Smith (Elk Grove H.S.) combined on a  four-hitter to lead the Cosumnes River College Hawks to a 6-2 win over Shasta College Saturday to open the community college baseball season.

Drake Atlee, who graduated from Foothill High School in Tustin, has returned to the Elk Grove-area where he attended high school his freshman year at Pleasant Grove. He led the Hawks by going two-for-four with a double.

CRC will face Skyline College Tuesday afternoon on the road.

Coach Tony Bloomfield has a roster this season loaded with area players including three from Pleasant Grove (Zack Stilwell, Austin Friello and Ian Chandler), three from Franklin (Von Ruden, Tyler Blake and Josh Pigg) and two from Elk Grove (Smith and Jordan Koch). Bloomfield is now in his 15th season at CRC.

Former Oakland A's farmhand and Laguna Creek graduate Brad Kilby is the pitching coach. Rejoining the Hawks' coaching staff is former Sheldon head coach John Misplay.

The Hawks won the California State Community College Championship in 2012.

CRC Softball Grabs Twinbill

Cosumnes River College's softball squad also opened its season Saturday and did so in a big way by taking a doubleheader win over Shasta College, 8-0 in six innings and 6-2.

Four EGUSD Teams Make Football Playoffs

Four area football squads (and local private school, Bradshaw Christian) qualified for the football post-season. In brackets released Saturday by Sac-Joaquin Section officials, Franklin and Pleasant Grove both were inserted in the Division I playoffs, while Elk Grove and Cosumnes Oaks qualified as Division II contenders.

Pleasant Grove (8-2, 3-2 Delta River League) ended the year with loses to Oak Ridge and Folsom but hope to keep their season alive by opening the playoffs Friday at Downey High School when they take on Modesto (7-3).

Franklin (7-3, 4-1 Delta Valley Conference) ended in a three-way tie for the conference championship with Elk Grove and Grant thanks to last Friday's win over Monterey Trail. The Wildcats will play Pitman (7-3). The game was originally scheduled for Saturday at Cosumnes Oaks H.S., but it has now been switched to Friday at 7 p.m. at Sheldon's stadium.

In Division II, Elk Grove (9-1, 4-1 DVC) earned a three-seed and will open at home against Atwater (6-4). The No. 8-seeded Wolfpack open the post-season at home Friday against Whitney, another 7-3 club.

Franklin's 35-24 win over Monterey Trail eliminated the Mustangs (5-5, 2-3 DVC) from post-season contention.

Also failing to make the post-season was Sheldon (4-6, 1-4 DRL) who ended the year with a 34-21 win over Ponderosa.

Laguna Creek (1-9) concluded its Delta Valley Conference competition last Friday by losing to Grant. Next season the Cardinals will switch to the Metro Conference and join Florin and Valley and the Sacramento City School District high schools. The Vikings with its two wins (2-8, 2-5 Metro) had its biggest success on the football field since 2006.

The Panthers (3-7, 2-5 Metro) finished a disappointing year on a high note by defeating Valley, 52-16, Friday.

Bradshaw (8-2, 6-0) won the Sierra Delta League championship and has drawn a first-round bye this weekend in the Division VI playoffs. They will face the winner of Foresthill and Brookside Christian on Nov. 22 at home.

Intriguing Second Round Games

Let's assume all our area teams win this weekend (very likely.) Who will they face in the second round?

For Franklin it is probably going to be top-seeded Folsom. However, if there's a team with the athletes to stay with the high-octane Bulldogs, it's the Wildcats. Should be a fun game for the fans, at least.

Pleasant Grove will likely take on 9-1 Stagg, the second-seed in Division I. For a school named after one of the game's innovators (Amos Alonzo Stagg), it's good to see this Stockton school have great success this season.

In Division II, Elk Grove will probably see Luther Burbank, the Metro Conference champions, who has four players committed to Division I colleges, including the top defensive tackle in the area, Ngalu Tapa, and Calvin Green, one of the fastest runners around. Both are headed to Washington State next year.

Cosumnes Oaks will likely take on Del Oro, the top seed in D-II.

Tellez Earns High Praise For First Pro Season

Former Elk Grove slugger Rowdy Tellez has already caught the attention of many people inside the game of baseball.

Baseball America, considered to be one of the most reputable and thorough baseball publications, in its Oct. 29 issue ranked Tellez as the best late-round pick in its 2013 draft report card. The 6-4, 220-pound first baseman held out for a large signing bonus but was picked up by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 30th round of the June draft.

"(Tellez) has the ability to become an above-average hitter because of his sound approach, ability to drive the ball to all fields and strong hand-eye coordination," the publication wrote in its Toronto team summary. "The left-handed-hitting Tellez could because an above average power hitter at the major league level and has unparalleled raw power in this class, especially to his pull side."

He played much of the summer following the draft with the Blue Jays' rookie league team in Dundein, Fla.

Fifteen Locals To Ink NLI Wednesday

This week marks a seven-day period in which current high school seniors in several sports can sign a National Letter-of-Intent with a college program.  At least fifteen EGUSD student-athletes will be signing their letters Wednesday morning, the first day of this earning signing period, at one big ceremony at the Trigg Building beginning at 7 a.m.

Five athletes from Pleasant Grove and four from Elk Grove lead the pack of future college prospects.  Two Sheldon athletes will also be signing letters as well as one each from Cosumnes Oaks, Florin, Monterey Trail and Laguna Creek.

The Pleasant Grove signees are Sarah Debnekoff (Golf - Morehead State), Martin Gonzalez (Soccer - Dominican University), Marissa Maligad (softball - Sacramento State), Vanessa Washington (softball - Delaware State University) and Aaliyah Pena (basketball - Cal/Riverside).

Representing Elk Grove are Derek Hill (baseball - Oregon), Kaitlin Pires (softball - Menlo College), Kimberly Wilburn (softball - Menlo College) and Morgan Evangelista (softball - Bowling Green University).

The pair from Sheldon are both softball players - Anessa Kaylor (San Jose State) and Zamari Hinton (Sacramento State).

Also inking a letter of intent Wednesday will be Julia Morales (softball - Oakland University) of Cosumnes Oaks, Dalayna Sampton (basketball - University of Hawaii) of Florin, Malik Pope (basketball - San Diego State) of Laguna Creek and Jasmine Redmon (basketball - University of Hawaii) of Monterey Trail.

According to the NCAA website,  high school seniors may sign a National Letter-of-Intent to play football between Feb. 5 and Apr. 1, 2014. The regular signing period for basketball players will open April 16, 2014, but close May 21, 2014 for Division I schools, Aug. 1, 2014 for Division II.

The regular signing period for field hockey, soccer, track and field, cross country and men's water polo is Feb. 5 through Aug. 1, 2014. For the other sports, it's Apr. 16 through Aug. 1, 2014.

Tellez Signs With Blue Jays

After initially saying he looks forward to helping USC win a NCAA baseball championship, Elk Grove slugger Rowdy Tellez has accepted an offer to play professionally in the Toronto Blue Jays’ organization.

Tellez made the decision to go pro rather than play baseball collegiately on Friday, the deadline day for Major League Baseball clubs to sign their draftees from the early June selection process.

According to his father, Greg, the 6-5, 220-pound first baseman agreed to a signing bonus of $850,000 along with an additional $270,000 to pay for a college education during the off-season or at some future date.

Tellez was drafted in the 30^th round, far after most baseball experts thought he would be selected. Baseball America had ranked him as the 59^th best prospect in the draft, the third-best first baseman. MLB.Com’s draft preview ranked him the 99^th best prospect overall.

But, Tellez told the Citizen on June 8 that early on in the draft that began on June 6 he knew things couldn’t be worked out between him and any baseball club. That’s why he dropped so far down in the draft.

“I was contacted by quite a few teams, but the timing wasn’t right (to be drafted),” he said. “They didn’t have the things to offer us and as a family we decided that education was the way to go.”

Tellez had already signed a NCAA National Letter-of-Intent to play collegiately for Southern Cal. He said he had resigned himself at that time to getting ready to play for the Trojans. 

Rowdy Tellez, now a member of the Toronto Blue Jays

The past few weeks since leading Elk Grove to the Sac-Joaquin Section’s Division I championship, Tellez had been playing out-of-state in college summer leagues.

“The last three or four days, talks between the Blue Jays, Greg and Rowdy began to heat up,” Tellez’ mother, Lori, said.

Tellez went to the Tampa Bay, Fla., area where the Jays have its spring training facility for a physical and some initial talks early last week. The final agreement was arrived at early Friday.

Tellez will report to Dundien, Fla., and begin play for the Blue Jays’ rookie league team in the Gulf Coast League this week.

He joins Herd teammate Dom Nunez in the minor leagues just weeks after graduating from Elk Grove. The pair led the Thundering Herd to a 29-5 record and its first Section title since 2007.

Tellez batted .500 with nine home runs, 16 doubles and 46 RBI’s. He reportedly finished his high school career as the Section’s all-time RBI leader. 

Gary Dreher Tourney Starts Today

The first day of the Gary Dreher Memorial Summer Classic is today with three games slated at Elk Grove High School.

At 11:30 a.m. the host Herd will take on Laguna Creek. At 2:30 p.m. the Cardinals will take on Woodland and in tonight's nightcap Elk Grove will play Woodland at 5:30 p.m.

On Friday the tournament gets into full swing with games also at Laguna Creek and Franklin High Schools as well as Hornet Field at Sacramento State Univ. Some interesting games you might want to watch are all at 5:30 p.m. Friday: Elk Grove plays Harvard-Westlake on the varsity field while on the JV diamond Valley Christian will face De La Salle. At Hornet Field Simi Valley will take on Bellarmine. Rocklin will take on Archbishop Mitty at Franklin H.S.

Some of the state's top players are in town this weekend and it's worth dropping in for a game or two. Admission will be charged at all sites.

Lee Feature

BaseballSacramento.Com has a great story about Leon Lee, father of long-time major leaguer Derek Lee, brother of Leron Lee, the area's very first first-round draft pick.

Site editor Rick Cabral also reports that Elk Grove outfielder Derek Hill has been selected to play for the Oakland A's "Area Code" all-star team. There will be seven other MLB Area Code teams playing Aug. 5-10 in Long Beach.

Interesting that Grant's ace pitcher Cameron Avila-Leeper will also selected to the squad along with Davis' Matt Trask. Avila-Leeper sat out much of last season because of poor grades.

Tellez: Signing or Not?

Former Elk Grove H.S. slugger Rowdy Tellez wasn't drafted until the 30th round of the June 9 Amateur Draft. That came after several national publications, including MLB.Com and Baseball America, ranked him as one of the top two or three first basemen available for the draft.

Tellez told me on June 11 that none of the teams were offering what he was asking and thus he dropped down in the draft before the Toronto Blue Jays finally selected him.

"I'm going to USC and win some championships," Tellez said that day. Last November he inked a letter-of-intent to play for and attend Southern California.

But, now there's a report Tellez may reconsider.

Cabral is reporting on his website that the Blue Jays have been signing their earlier draft picks for less money that what MLB allows as a signing bonus. It could, according to Cabral, mean the Jays might be able to offer Tellez a signing bonus and contract he wants.

Cabral also quoted local scout D. Brown, who works for the Jays and is a man Tellez called one of his mentors, as saying whatever round a player is drafted doesn't really matter when it comes to signing bonus or contract offers.

"I think it is fair to say that we're going to do everything we can to make a legitimate run at getting the 'Latino Bambino' in a Blue Jays' uniform," Brown told Cabral.

Rowdy Drafted - Finally

Maybe the most surprising angle to this year's Major League Baseball Amateur Draft was that Elk Grove slugger Rowdy Tellez was still on the board going into the third and final day of the draft Saturday. 

Baseball America had ranked the 6-5, 220-pounder as the 59^th best prospect in the draft, the third-best first baseman. MLB.Com’s draft preview ranked him the 99^th best prospect overall. 

EGHS' Rowdy Tellez, drafted in the 30th round
by the Blue Jays Saturday

But, Tellez said early on in the draft he knew things couldn’t be worked out between him and any baseball club.

“I was contacted by quite a few teams, but the timing wasn’t right (to be drafted),” he said. “They didn’t have the things to offer us and as a family we decided that education was the way to go.”

Tellez has already signed a NCAA National Letter-of-Intent to play collegiately for Southern Cal.

“I’m now going to USC and help them win a couple national championships,” he said. “Getting the opportunity to play for a great program in the biggest media market and hit home runs for them is something I can look forward to.”

On its website, MLB wrote an impressive summary about Tellez prior to the draft: “Big, strong, left-handed-hitting first baseman don't come through the Draft all that often these days. Tellez fits that mold, and his ability to do damage with the bat was generating some buzz this spring.”

But, the big first baseman wasn’t selected by any club on the first two days. Finally, just past 2 p.m. local time Saturday, the Blue Jays took him in the 30^th round, the 895^th pick overall.

“That’s just another day, another game in the life of a baseball player,” Tellez said of the Blue Jays selection of him. “I am looking forward to playing three years at USC, get better and then be a first-rounder.”

Tellez says his plans for the summer are a bit up in the air, but may join some USC teammates playing in the Northwoods League for the St. Cloud franchise. Tellez’ mother is from New Hope, Minn.

His Elk Grove teammate, Dom Nunez, apparently has committed to sign with the Rockies. He told the Sacramento Bee that prior to his selection in the sixth round the Rockies phoned him.

EG Takes Game One, 9-1

Elk Grove took advantage of four St. Mary's errors and starting pitcher Dave Smith threw a complete game four-hitter as the Herd took game one of the Sac-Joaquin Section's Division I championship series, 9-1, at Sacramento City College Friday night.

The Rams' top pitcher, Joey Caffese, walked five and hit three Herd batters in four innings in taking the loss.

Elk Grove coach Jeff Carlson knows in a best two-out-of-three series, it's very important to win game one and win it convincingly, like the Herd did Friday.

Rowdy Tellez, who was 3-for-3 with a pair of RBI's, led
Elk Grove to a 9-1 win over St. Mary's Friday

"The first game is huge," Carlson said. "I remember the first Section title as a head coach we gave up game one after having a lead and it made it tough on us to come back. Winning game one takes a little bit of the pressure off. We need to come out and compete tomorrow. They will be ready to go."

After giving up an unearned run in the top of the first inning, Smith settled down to retire the next eight batters before giving up a hit to open the fourth inning. He was helped with a pair of double plays turned by shortstop Nick Madrigal and second baseman Carlos Moseley.

Rowdy Tellez had three singles and a pair of RBI's to lead the Herd attack. He also scored from first base in the third inning on a bit of a fluke play. He stole second base and when the throw to the bag sailed into centerfield, Tellez took off for third. The throw to third was also airmailed and went into the St. Mary's dugout, allowing Tellez to score on the over throw.

Dom Nunez drilled an RBI triple in the third inning.

Smith (9-2) struck out the side in the seventh inning to finish with eight K's and walked two.

Mikey Wright (5-0, 1.58 ERA) will start on the mound for Elk Grove in game two Saturday. First pitch is scheduled at noon.

Game Notes:

Elk Grove (28-5) has now won seven games in a row, six of them in the post-season.

St. Mary's must win both games Saturday in order to keep their Section championship string alive. They've won the past three Section D-I banners.

Four members of Elk Grove's last championship team, in 2007, were in attendance at Friday's game: Justin Charles, who has another year remaining at Cal State - Stanislaus, Zach Miller, who has one more year left at Long Beach State, Joel Hull, who graduated from Menlo College in 2011 where he played four years in centerfield for the Oaks, and Brian Oien.

The Second Season Starts Today

The baseball post-season gets underway this afternoon with several single-elimination "play-in" games around the area. I'll be tweeting updates from Vintage vs. Elk Grove this afternoon.

There's a couple good stories worth reading. Joe Davidson wrote a good story this morning about Elk Grove's senior duo of Rowdy Tellez and Dom Nunez. The pair have been close to a Section championship a couple times in their previous three years at EGHS. They'd like to go out on top.

Matt Barrows has a note on former Herd offensive tackle and current 49er Kenny Wiggins. He's been on the practice roster the last couple seasons. He's hoping for a full roster spot this fall in San Francisco.

Softball playoffs get started tomorrow around the area. More on those games tomorrow.

On the collegiate side, congrats to the Cal Bears for being selected to participate in the Michigan regional this week in Ann Arbor. Besides the host Wolverines, the Bears will also see Valapraiso and Central Michigan in this regional.

Nunez/Tellez Talk About Upcoming Season

It was picture day at Elk Grove High School and the Thundering Herd can't wait for the baseball season to get underway. They'll be on the odds-on favorites to win the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I championship this season with a pair of excellent players now entering their senior seasons, Dom Nunez and Rowdy Tellez.

Today I caught up with the pair and talked about their prospects for the coming campaign.

Several Ink College Letters Today

Several local student/athletes signed a National Letter of Intent with a college Wednesday at four Elk Grove-area schools.

At Pleasant Grove High School, baseball standout Josh Adams inked with UC-Santa Barbara while softball players Megan Carter (Utah State) and Amber Murray (Eastern Kentucky) will sign. One of the area's top basketball players, Dejza James, signed a letter-of-intent to play at Arizona.

At Elk Grove High School Herd baseball players Rowdy Tellez and Dom Nunez both inked their long-awaited letters. Tellez will attend Southern California while Nunez is heading to UCLA.

A Pleasant Grove transfer, Taryn Renowden, who is now at Elk Grove signed a letter to play softball at Loyola Marymount.


Sheldon High School basketball players D'Erryl Williams and Dakarai Allen both inked letters to play together at San Diego State next season. The pair averaged 14 points a game last season in leading the Huskies to the Delta River League championship and were also the state division I runner-ups.

On Thursday, Franklin High School's big first baseman Tyler Blake will sign his letter of intent to play baseball for Sacramento State.

Tellez Wins National HR Hitting Contest

Elk Grove High School slugger Rowdy Tellez won the home run hitting contest Saturday at the Perfect Game National High School baseball event in Minneapolis. He and teammate Dom Nunez attended the showcase event and impressed many people in the process.

Rowdy Tellez at Perfect Game National Baseball event

The video of the contest is quite long, but if you forward in about an hour and 55 minutes, you'll watch Tellez stroking the long shots in the Metrodome, site of the event.

The Herd teammates will be a part of the USA Baseball Age 18U team selection process that gets underway this week in Cary, N.C.