Six Bobcats named to All-OEC squad

The Saddleback baseball team is preparing for the upcoming 3C2A Regional Playoffs and the coaches from the conference convened on Monday to determine an All-Orange Empire Conference Team.   Six different players were named all-conference with one earning a Gold Glove at his position.

Saddleback had a solid regular season, finishing in second place in the Orange Empire Conference.   The Bobcats were rewarded appropriately at the coaches meeting, with a half-dozen earning all-conference recognition.

Jack Wade, Dylan Blakey, Rodrigo Barajas, J.C. Allen and Makani Tanaka were all named to the All-Orange Empire Conference First Team while Ben Castelli was named to the second team.  In addition, Castelli was given the Infielder Gold Glove for his work at second base. 

Wade finished the regular season 4-3 with a save.  He had a 2.09 ERA in 51.2 innings of work, striking out a team-high 71 batters. 

Blakey finished 5-2 with a save and was second on the team with 16 appearances.  He led the team in k's-per-9 innings (13.94) while finishing with a 4.57 ERA.

Barajas was hot down the stretch, hitting safely in nine of the last 10 games of the season.  His most memorable day came on April 9 at Golden West when he hit for the cycle, going 5-for-6 with two home runs and eight RBI.

Allen was a pillar of consistency for Saddleback, leading the Bobcats in three separate categories.  He hit .323 for the year, leading the team with 12 home runs, 56 RBI and a .609 slugging percentage.  Allen tied a team record on opening day when he hit three home runs against College of the Canyons.

Tanaka was arguably the most consistent bat in the lineup.  He led the team in batting average (.380), on-base percentage (.474), hits (60), stolen bases (11) and doubles (16).  Tanaka also did the unthinkable in putting together a 35-game hitting streak during the season. 

Castelli was a constant thorn in the opposing pitchers, finishing with a .325 batting average and .441 on-base percentage.  He was second on the team in doubles (10) and third in walks (23) and hits (49).  Castelli also boasted a .974 fielding percentage while helping turn 18 double plays in earning the conference Gold Glove for an infielder.

Saddleback baseball opens up the 3C2A Regional Playoffs on Friday (2PM) at home against Orange Coast College.