2023 Team Preview: West Ranch Wildcats

The Road to the California State Games begins with the 2023 California high school baseball season. With the season just around the corner, our staff has begun putting out team previews from all around the state, getting you prepared for another year of exciting coverage.

Today we focus on the West Ranch Wildcats who are coming off of a 2022 that included a 9-3 finish in the Foothill League and a berth in the SS D1 playoffs. Although pitching and defense is expected to be the backbone of this Wildcats team, their offense is ready to make some noise and help push for a run at the league title and into the sections.

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Team:

West Ranch Wildcats

Head Coach (years at school):

Ryan Lindgreen (13)

Twitter Handle:

@wrbaseball

CIF Section & Division:

CIF SS D2

Conference/League Name:

Foothill

Last Year’s Record:

15-14

9-3 (League)

2022 Playoff Run:

Lost in first round of CIF SS D1 playoffs vs JSerra

# of Returning Starters:

7

# of Returning Pitchers:

2

Team Expectations:

"Our expectations are to compete for a Foothill League title and make a deep CIF playoff run. We believe we have strong pitching and defense, which will be the backbone of our team. Our offense is feisty and I'm excited to see us compete."

Team Strengths:

"Our team strengths will begin with our pitching. We have a talented mix of guys who are hungry to compete each day."

Areas of Improvement:

"Last season we were inconsistent on defense and this year's team is looking to improve in that area."

College Commitments:

Ty DePerno - UC Davis, catcher, 2023, 6'0" 180 lbs, R/R. "Ty is a tremendous competitor who is very athletic. He can play multiple positions and will anchor our defense at catcher. Ty looks to build off an All Foothill League season and hit in the middle of our order."

Top Uncommitted 23s:

Josef Brosche- infielder, 6'0", 180 lbs, R/R. "Josef is a returning starter for us and made the All Foothill League team a year ago. He has become more physical and will make an impact on defense and hitting in the top part of our order."

Drew Greenberg- pitcher, 6'2", 185 lbs, R/R. "Drew has a dynamic arm and has shown flashes of being dominant. We have high expectations for Drew to pitch well for us this season."

Brett Potter- outfielder, 6'2", 185 lbs, R/R. "Bret will patrol center field for us and is a great athlete. He runs well and has a great arm. Bret is a 3 year starter for us and we will need his experience and leadership to win games. He will hit in the top of our order to pace our offense."

Top Uncommitted 24s:

Jackson Banuelos- pitcher, 5'11" 170 lbs, L/L. "Jackson is the reigning Foothill League Pitcher of the Year and we will rely on him to lead the pitching staff. He has a great baseball IQ to go along with a great feel for multiple pitches."

Aidan Buntich- infielder/outfielder, 2024, 6'0"" 175 lbs. "Aidan has an advance feel for hitting and uses all fields well.  He's very athletic and can play multiple positions on the field."

Ben Cushnie- pitcher, 2024, 6'3"", 180 lbs, L/L. "Ben has great potential this season and beyond. We are looking for him to be a major factor on the mound for us. "

Brett Ishikawa- infielder, 2024, 5'11"", 170 lbs.  "Brett has a classic, left-handed swing with good power already. We're looking for Brett to hit in the middle of our lineup. He will also anchor a position up the middle on defense. He is a smooth defender with a quick release."

Top Uncommitted 25s:

Landon Hu- infielder, 5'11" 160lbs, S/R. "Landon is a great defender who is athletic. He plays with urgency and has very good range up the middle. Landon is a switch hitter that has great feel from both sides. He's a gap-to-gap hitter that runs well."

Hunter Manning- pitcher, infielder, 6'4" 180lbs, L/R. "Hunter is big and physical with room to grow. On the mound he is in the upper-80s and has a good feel for his off speed pitches. At the plate he has developing power with a good competitive approach."

UPCOMING EVENTS