Former Norco pitcher Matt Hobgood, selected No. 5 overall by the Baltimore Orioles in last month's draft, has been patiently getting into shape and is scheduled to make his minor-league debut Saturday for the Bluefield (W.Va.) Orioles.
Hobgood was in Los Angeles on Wednesday as part of the Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year Awards. Texas-bound quarterback Garrett Gilbert was selected the male athlete of the year, with Notre Dame-bound basketball player Skylar Diggins the female athlete of the year.
But Hobgood was his usual friendly, easy-going self, once again showing why he's going to be a good professional. He hasn't changed one bit even though he received a signing bonus of $2.42 million.
Take a look at the video below when he answered some questions following Wednesday's luncheon.
The American Legion playoffs have begun in Long Beach, with games being played at Blair Field, Wilson and Paramount.
Opening scores: Paramount 3, Peninsula 0; El Segundo 13, Lakewood 7; La Mirada 7, South Torrance 1; Downey 5, Long Beach Wilson 3.
Today's schedule: At Blair, Paramount versus La Mirada, 5 p.m.; Downey versus El Segundo, 7:30 p.m. At Wilson, Lakewood versus South Torrance, 2 p.m.; Wilson versus Peninsula, 5 p.m.
Forget about St. Francis football Coach Jim Bonds. It's his son, James, who's making news as a baseball player.
The junior outfielder was named a player of the game while participating in a three-game Elite Baseball Series at UCLA. Bonds went two for three with two runs batted in.
He's also a backup quarterback for the football team.
Former Calabasas infielder Adam Landecker had seven runs batted in, former Simi Valley catcher Drew Sandler hit a three-run home run and Woodland Hills Taft infielder Jordan Berger had a two-run home run to lead the U.S. team past Israel, 29-1, at the Maccabiah Games in Israel.
Max Fried from Van Nuys Montclair Prep had two hits and two RBIs while recording the last six outs of the game, striking out five.
I went to watch a baseball game Monday afternoon. I was skeptical about how good sophomore pitcher Lucas Giolito of North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake would be. He turns 15 today, and I was stunned by how smooth and effective he is for someone who hardly pitched on varsity as a freshman and has grown close to five inches in a year's time.
Coach Matt LaCour told me that Giolito is going to be outstanding, and I agree. He has so much room for improvement, being 6-foot-5 and just learning how to use his whole body. LaCour said Giolito was clocked touching 91 mph last weekend at the Valley Invitational Baseball League All-Star Game, and I believe it.
He threw six innings against Moorpark, giving up two runs, none earned, allowing three hits, with five strikeouts and three walks. He has 29 strikeouts in 28 innings this summer.
Next spring, he'll become a starter in the pitching rotation. He'll get to face some very good hitters in the tough Mission League, but I have no doubt he's going to be the next top pitcher from the San Fernando Valley.
Here's video of Giolito pitching and talking about his summer development.
Working L.A. Jordan football games this fall is going to be challenging for officials because the Bulldogs have put together an offense that will be throwing multiple passes, using receivers that aren't normally eligible and doing just about anything and everything to confuse people.
"It was very bizarre," Gardena Serra Coach Scott Altenberg said of Jordan's offense earlier this week in a passing competition. "You didn't know who their quarterback was."
Coach Elijah Asante calls his offense ATW -- Attack The Weakness. His top player is quarterback-receiver-running back De'Shawn Beck.
There's going to be double and triple passes, balls bouncing on the ground behind the line of scrimmage and multiple quarterbacks. Asante is just hoping the officials know the rules before the game so his team doesn't get penalized on legal plays.
Jordan opens the season against Los Angeles Locke and has nonleague games against Anaheim Esperanza, Ventura St. Bonaventure and Santa Ana Mater Dei.
The Southern Section and FSN West have reached agreement on a new one-year contract, clearing the way for a full schedule of high school football games to air on Prime Ticket this fall, Southern Section Commissioner Jim Staunton said Monday.
Chase Rettig, a 6-foot-4 quarterback who transferred from Pasadena La Salle to San Clemente, has committed to Boston College.
His senior season is going to be an important one because he struggled last season at La Salle when the team wasn't particularly good, and San Clemente plays in the highly competitive South Coast League.
When it comes to girls' basketball, there's no better tournament this summer than the San Diego Classic, which starts Thursday and runs through Sunday featuring 312 teams from nine different states.
Among the Southern California teams entered are powerhouses Brea Olinda and Santa Ana Mater Dei.
Former Norco pitcher Matt Hobgood is returning to Southern California on Wednesday to participate in the Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year awards.
The male and female athletes of the year will be announced at a luncheon in downtown Los Angeles.
Hobgood, a first-round draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles who received a signing bonus of close to $2.5 million, will be joined by cross-country standout Jordan Hasay from San Luis Obispo Mission Prep as the two SoCal candidates.
All the nominees will get to walk the red carpet for the ESPY Awards.
Among the presenters at the luncheon are Matthew Stafford of the Detroit Lions, Kevin Durant of Oklahoma City Thunder, AVP star Misty-May Treanor and softball gold medalist Jessica Mendoza.
Austin Hedges, the top player for Trinity League champion JSerra last season as a sophomore, has committed to UCLA. He played second base for JSerra, which won its first league title in baseball.
Another top infielder, senior shortstop Matt Duffy from Lakewood, has committed to Long Beach State.
They played two all-star baseball games Saturday night at Birmingham in the Valley Invitational Baseball League, and the pitchers were dominant.
In the first game, the American League defeated the National League, 1-0, with North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake's Joe Cadiff driving in the game's only run with a single. One of the most impressive pitchers was sophomore Lucas Giolito of Harvard-Westlake. He threw a scoreless inning on seven pitches.
In the second game, Crespi's Kevin Williams hit a two-run home run, but he was on the losing side. The National League defeated the American League, 4-2.
Valencia West Ranch (13-1) and Chatsworth (16-3) continue to lead the league standings. Playoffs begin this month.
Gardena Serra established itself as one of the most talented teams with skill-position players on Saturday by defeating Lakewood in the championship game of the Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe tournament.
Serra also defeated Carson in the semifinals.
In other tournaments, Los Angeles Crenshaw defeated Los Angeles Cathedral to win its own tournament championship.
Mission Viejo defeated Inglewood in its own tournament championship. The Diablos also defeated Corona Santiago in the semifinals.
Oxnard Rio Mesa, Westlake Village Westlake and Simi Valley Royal all went 5-0 in the Rio Mesa tournament.
Huntington Beach Edison knocked off Westlake Village Oaks Christian for the third time this summer, defeating the Lions, 20-6, Saturday in the championship game of the Edison seven-on-seven tournament.
Say what you want about the Chargers, but their seven skill-position players have shown they are the best without pads on as a group. They didn't lose in the Dana Hills tournament and they went 6-0 on Saturday.
Quarterback Matt Viles, receiver Jeff Trojan and linebacker Jordan Zumwalt were among Edison's standouts. Oaks Christian has had trouble scoring against Edison all summer. Santa Ana Mater Dei defeated Sherman Oaks Notre Dame in the consolation final.
West Covina South Hills made it to the semifinals before losing to Oaks Christian. Receiver Ify Umodu, whose brothers Tobi and Kebin attend UCLA and Air Force, respectiively, played well for South Hills. See the video below for a look at Umodu.
Mission League rivals Alemany and St. Francis advanced to the finals of the Hart passing tournament Friday, but then the two schools decided not to play.
"It was mutual agreement," Alemany Coach Dean Herrington said.
Besides Herrington and St. Francis Coach Jim Bonds being good friends, the two schools don't want to show anything to each other with a matchup looming this fall. And it was hot, too.
But Alemany would have been the favorite, because the Warriors have won every tournament they've entered this summer except one, and that loss was to Westlake Village Oaks Christian.
St. Francis' top player was running back-defensive back Dietrich Riley.
On Saturday, there are passing tournaments throughout the Southland, with seven-on-seven tourneys at Huntington Beach Edison, Mission Viejo, Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe, L.A. Valley College, Oxnard Rio Mesa, Claremont and Los Angeles Crenshaw.
Next Friday, St. Francis is hosting a tournament. Alemany is not invited.
Anthony Brown, a 5-foot-10 cornerback-running back from Frontana Kaiser, has committed to USC. He made a big impression at a USC camp three weeks ago.
Several other players from the Inland Empire have also made commitments, including Ontario Colony receiver Kenneth Scott with Utah and Riverside North receiver Dres Andersonwith Utah.
Patrick Cantlay of Anaheim Servite, the No. 1 golfer in Southern California, has committed to UCLA. He helped lead the Friars to the Southern Section team championship last spring when he put together four consecutive rounds in the 60s.
He had a round of 8-under at Tijeras Creek. He's expected to participate later this month in the U.S. Junior Amateur championships in New Jersey in preparation for his senior season at Servite.
Among the rule changes announced by the National Federation of State High School Associations are the pitching distance in softball will move from 40 to 43 feet starting in 2010 and instant replay may be used in state championship basketball.
There are so many summer passing tournaments this weekend that a helicopter would come in handy for those interested in seeing as many tournaments as possible.
Seven-on-seven showdowns are taking place Saturday at Huntington Beach Edison, Mission Viejo, Claremont, Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe, Oxnard Rio Mesa and Los Angeles Crenshaw.
At Mission Viejo, Corona Santiago and Long Beach Poly are set to challenge the host Diablos.
At Crenshaw, the Cougars have been playing every week at Los Angeles Loyola, so it would be a big surprise if any team knocks them off on their home field.
At Edison, don't be surprised if West Covina South Hills emerges as one of the four finalists, though host Edison and Westlake Village Oaks Christian are the favorites.
After next weekend, the summer season is mostly over. Teams will begin to take breaks before entering full practice mode in early August.
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