Five Sign With UC Irvine Baseball In Early Period
November 30, 2012 | Baseball
IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine Baseball continues to stock up on pitching with three right-handers highlighting a talented group of five in the early signing period, announced head coach Mike Gillespie.
"These five players are advanced in their skills and will be outstanding college players," said Gillespie. "This group will address our most immediate needs, and we are confident that they each will play a pivotal role as freshmen. Additionally, each of these young men have been high achievers in the classroom and will be great academic fits at UCI," commented Gillespie.
Pitcher Michael Martin was recently named a Collegiate Baseball Louisville Slugger All-American and is a two-time Perfect Game preseason All-American. A prep at Cathedral Catholic High School, the 6-2 righty garnered Western League and Cathedral Catholic Most Valuable Player honors. He helped the team capture Western League and CIF crowns in 2011 and 2012 as well as the Lions tournament title as a junior. The team went 30-5 last year with Martin owning a 7-2 record on the mound. He boasted a 0.90 ERA and hurled seven complete-games as well as three shutouts. Martin struck out 72 batters in 62 innings and walked just eight. At the plate he batted a team-leading .374. His sophomore season the team was 30-4 with Martin posting a perfect 7-0 mark and striking out 64 batters in 59 innings. Martin recorded a 1.17 ERA and batted .300 en route to earning a spot on the all-league second team.
Pitcher Jordan Scheftz is a local product out of University High School in Irvine, Calif. Last season Scheftz was voted the Most Valuable Player of the Pacific Coast League and garnered All-CIF, all-county and all-league honors. As a sophomore the 6-3 right-hander was an All-CIF and All-Pacific Coast League second-team choice and won Lions Club MVP honors at the San Diego 61st Annual Mike Morrow Baseball Tournament. Scheftz also was a standout as a freshman, earning a spot on the All-Express League first team.
Chris Vargas also will add his talents to the Anteater pitching staff next year. Vargas, a 5-11 prep out from Villa Park High School, was voted the 2012 Pitcher of the Year. The righty picked up the Offensive Player of the Year award as a junior and named the Defensive Player of the Year in his freshman campaign. Named to the All-Century League second-team his last two years, Vargas picked up first-team honors as a freshman and is also a three-time scholar-athlete.
Catcher Alex Guenette also joins UC Irvine in the early period. The 5-10 talent is a two-time team Most Valuable Player. He was voted an Area Code finalist in 2012 as well as a first-team all-league honoree. Guenette secured a spot on the North-South Team and was selected as the school's Athlete of the Month this year. He was an all-league second-team selection his sophomore season after helping his team win a CIF title in 2011.
Rounding out the list of signees is John Brontsema. Son of former UC Santa Barbara head coach, Bob Brontsema, John hails from Santa Barbara and prepped at Santa Barbara High School. Winner of the team's Top Offensive Award, Brontsema was voted to the All-Channel League and Anaheim Lions All-Tournament Teams. The team captain helped Santa Barbara High School win a league championship his sophomore year. As a junior, the 6-2 shortstop batted .386 and slugged .653 while posting 27 hits and 20 RBI. He competed for the South Team in the North-South game and played on the So Cal Cardinals Scout team both his junior and senior years.
John Brontsema............... SS........... 6-2....... 175........... Santa Barbara/Santa Barbara HS
Alex Guenette................. C............ 5-10..... 200........... San Diego/La Jolla Country Day HS
Michael Martin................. RHP........ 6-2....... 200........... San Diego/Cathedral Catholic HS
Jordan Scheftz.................. RHP........ 6-3....... 185........... Irvine/University HS
Chris Vargas..................... RHP........ 5-11..... 180........... Villa Park/HS
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