The Modesto Bee’s Stanislaus District baseball rankings
Stanislaus District Baseball Rankings
Note: Records and statistics indicated are those reported to MaxPreps.
Large schools
Comprised of teams from the Modesto Metro Conference, Central California Conference, Valley Oak League and Western Athletic Conference.
1. (1) Manteca (15-4, 7-0 VOL): The Buffaloes rallied from a 4-0 deficit and pounded Central Catholic late in an 11-8 victory. Tyler Graves-Kelso has blossomed into an ace while playing through a knee injury. Manteca also won despite losing its top player, center fielder Ronaldo Tijero, to an ejection. Next: vs. Central Catholic on Tuesday.
2. (2) Beyer (14-3, 11-1 MMC): Coach Dom Duran is confident his team can swing the bats against anybody, and the Patriots have proven that during a five-game winning streak. Beyer has scored 11 or more runs in four of those games. Jordan Walls (.500, 22 hits) and Jack Large (.438, 21 hits) are leading the charge. Next: at Modesto on Monday.
3. (3) Turlock (13-8, 9-0 CCC): The Bulldogs recorded an impressive three-game sweep of Merced to increase their winning streak to 10 games. Starters Blaine Weber, Landon Curtis and Damon Treadwell have been virtually unhittable in the last month. Next: at Pitman on Tuesday.
4. (5) Gregori (15-6, 9-3 MMC): The Jaguars remain in the hunt mathematically for a third consecutive Modesto Metro Conference title with two weeks left in the regular season, and a lot rides on this week’s series with Enochs. Gregori has won 11 straight games. Next: vs. Enochs on Monday.
5. (nr) El Capitan (14-6, 7-1 WAC): The Gauchos swept Central Valley, outscoring the Hawks 24-5 in two games, and are closing in on a Western Athletic Conference title. El Capitan will close against Pacheco and Ceres, teams collectively 3-10 in conference play. Next: vs. Pacheco on Wednesday.
Others to watch: Buhach Colony (10-11, 7-2 CCC); Pitman (13-8, 5-4 CCC); Los Banos (12-6, 5-3 WAC); Patterson (14-4-1, 4-1 WAC); Oakdale (14-6, 5-3 VOL); Central Catholic (10-9, 4-3 VOL).
Small schools
Comprised of teams from the Trans-Valley League, Southern League, Mother Lode League and Central California Athletic Alliance.
1. (1) Ripon (16-3, 6-0 TVL): The hot Indians completed a two-game sweep of Modesto Christian with a 13-1 victory, with Sammy Souza and Matthew DeDonatis driving in three runs each. Next: vs. Hilmar on Tuesday.
2. (2) Escalon (9-10, 4-2 TVL): The Cougars survived a scare from a Mountain House team that has won just two games, needing nine innings to complete the two-game sweep. Justice Naraghi scored the only run in the ninth. Next: vs. Modesto Christian on Tuesday.
3. (4) Hilmar (10-9, 5-1 TVL): Have a week, Jarrod Willis! The Yellowjackets’ star capped a six-run, seventh-inning rally with the winning single as Hilmar completed a two-game sweep of Ceres with an 11-10 win. Earlier in the week, Willis was named one of two Clarke Coover scholarship award winners in the Sac-Joaquin Section. Next: at Ripon on Tuesday.
4. (5) Ripon Christian (12-5, 5-1 SL): The Southern League leader has won three straight games and will take that momentum into a pivotal series with Gustine. The Knights feature a tough 1-2 punch with left-hander Connor McGovern and right-hander Travis VanderMolen. Next: at Gustine on Wednesday.
5. (3) Hughson (8-7-1, 4-4 TVL): After splitting their last two series, including last week’s set with Riverbank, the Huskies need to start stringing together victories. Hughson has two winnable games against Mountain House this week before closing the regular season with Escalon. Next: at Mountain House on Tuesday.
Others to watch: Gustine (12-4, 6-2 SL); Mariposa (9-5, 6-2 SL); Summerville (8-5, 7-4 MLL); Big Valley Christian (8-5, 7-2 CCAA); Turlock Christian (8-4, 7-3 CCAA).
James Burns
This story was originally published April 24, 2016 at 11:14 AM with the headline "The Modesto Bee’s Stanislaus District baseball rankings."