Prep Baseball Report’s Shooter Hunt and Nathan Rode are in Southern California to cover the 2017 Boras Classic. Rode will primarily focus on draft prospects while Hunt will mostly highlight underclassmen with On The Hunt.

By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA—With the second day of the 2017 Boras Classic complete, the semi-finals are set. Mira Costa HS, CA, and Orange Lutheran HS, CA, will square off while Corona Santiago HS, CA, gets Huntington Beach HS, CA. The winners of each game will play Friday at 6 p.m. PST for the championship and a matchup against the Northern California champion Bellarmine Prep.

The main event for me on Wednesday was the 3 p.m. game at JSerra Catholic HS, CA. Huntington Beach and Notre Dame HS, CA, were matched up and Huntington Beach sent RHP Hagen Danner to the hill. We saw a solid start from Danner at the National High School Invitational and he reportedly had one of his best starts last week. In front of a large crowd of scouts that included several scouting directors and at least one general manager, Danner was on point again. He started out at 91-94 mph with his fastball and settled into the 90-92 range for most of the game.

Things were a little rocky for Danner in the first inning, as a couple batters squared him up, a strikeout reached first base on a wild pitch and he walked a batter. However, he was able to escape unscathed and he went into cruise control for the next five innings. Over six innings pitched, he struck out 10, walked two and allowed just one hit. His curveball was its usual self Wednesday, showing sharp break with 11/5 shape and depth. He got a lot of swings and misses on it, especially in the dirt. He also flashed a changeup at 82-83.

Matching up against Notre Dame meant Danner squared off against Hunter Greene. Danner won this round, as Greene went 0-for-3 with a fielder’s choice, groundout and strikeout. Danner added some insurance for himself by unloading on an inside pitch to lead off the sixth, sending a home run deep over the fence in left field. He also added an RBI single in the seventh.

SS Trevor Windisch (Huntington Beach HS, CA) also had a home run, though it wasn’t exactly standard. He smoked a ball in the left-center field gap that many thought went off the light pole, but the umpires ruled that it was in play. Windisch never really let up and circled the bases relatively easily for an inside-the-park home run.

Before the Huntington Beach game, JSerra Catholic HS, CA, lost to Chatsworth HS, CA, in extra innings. SS Royce Lewis (JSerra Catholic HS, CA) was 0-for-2 with a couple flyouts, but walked twice, stole two bases and scored two runs. Despite being on the losing end, RHP Michael Curialle (JSerra Catholic HS, CA) stood out. He has a projectable frame and pitches from an over-the-top slot, creating some downhill angle on his fastball. He touched 91 in his first inning of work and ranged from 84-89 in his second. He finished with 1.1 innings pitched, allowing a run on two hits and two walks.

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