FULLERTON, Calif. - Head coach Rick Vanderhook announced that seven high school seniors have signed National Letters of Intent to play baseball at Cal State Fullerton. Phil Bickford, Taylor Bryant, Adrian De Horta, Chad Hockin, Ryan Kayoda, Timmy Richards and Marcus Vidales will join the Titans for competition beginning in the 2013-14 season.
The Titans open the 2013 season at Goodwin Field on Friday, Feb. 15, hosting USC. Fullerton's current freshman class received top-25 rankings from both Baseball America (23) and Collegiate Baseball (17) earlier in the fall.
Phil Bickford • RHP • 6-4 • 200 • R-R • Ventura, Calif. • Oaks Christian HS
Currently ranked 35th in the state of California and 179th nationally by Perfect Game for the class of 2013...was named of one the top 20 pitchers at the 2012 Area Code games by Louisville Slugger (13)…played for the 2012 Milwaukee Brewers Area Code Team…as a junior at Oaks Christian was named the Tri Valley League Most Valuable Pitcher after finishing 2012 with a 2.42 ERA and an 8-3 record with seven complete games, one shutout and two saves…in 72 and 1/3 innings struck out 107 and held opposing batters to a .201 clip…the Lions finished second in the Tri-Valley league (12-14, 7-5).
Coach Vanderhook: Phil is a big and physical right-hander who will fit right in with our pitching staff. He has an above average fastball that touches 94. He has the ability and the stuff to make a major impact.
Taylor Bryant • SS • 5-11 • 185 • R-R • Indio, Calif. • La Quinta HS
As a junior at La Quinta High School in 2012, batted .315 with 21 runs scored, 20 RBIs and six extra-base hits…was walked 21 times and struck out on only nine occasions… was named to the Desert Valley League First Team…the Blackhawks finished second in the Desert Valley League with a record of 9-3 (18-9 overall)…was selected to the SoCal vs. NorCal all-star showcase team.
Coach Vanderhook: Taylor is a solid middle infielder who has the ability to play all infield positions. He reminds me of former Titan All-American Jeff Ferguson.
Adrian De Horta • RHP • 6-4 • 185 • R-R • Covina, Calif. • South Hills HS
Currently ranked 33rd in the state of California and 155th nationally by Perfect Game for the class of 2013…led South Hills High School to the Sierra League championship in 2012 with a conference record of 11-4 (20-8 overall)…the Huskies advanced to the CIF Southern Section Division II playoff semifinals after a 10-0 win over Rancho Verde in the quarterfinals…against Rancho Verde, De Horta threw a complete-game, four-hit shutout…was also named to the Sierra League First Team.
Coach Vanderhook: Adrian is another big right-hander who has ability to mix right into the staff. He has command of three pitches right now with a 90-plus fastball. Adrian was the only pitcher to beat current Cal State Fullerton freshman Justin Garza in his high school career (24-1), and that happened last year in a 2-1 game.
Chad Hockin • RHP • 6-3 • 200 • R-R • Upland, Calif. • Bonita HS
Currently ranked 85th in the state of California by Perfect Game for the class of 2013…in 2012 as a junior, finished the season with a 3.07 ERA pitching for Damien High School…posted a 1-0 record and two saves and in 13 and 2/3 innings struck out 17… grandson of Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew.
Coach Vanderhook: Chad is a right-hander from the same high school as current Titan freshman Justin Garza. Chad has a big physical body, and has a fastball in the 90's with a great slider. He projects to be the closer of the future.
Currently ranked 116th in the state of California by Perfect Game for the class of 2013…finished 2012 with a 4.57 ERA, record of 0-1 and six strikeouts in seven and 2/3 innings…won the South Coast League championship with a 9-3 record (25-7 overall)…the Chargers advanced to the second round of the CIF Southern Section playoffs…as a sophomore in 2011, managed a 1.59 ERA with a 1-2 record and 17 strikeouts in 22 innings…attended the same high school as current Titan Matt Chapman.
Coach Vanderhook: Ryan is a right-hander with above average command of three pitches. We see him as a strike machine with the ability to throw any pitch any time. He comes from one of the top high schools in Orange County that wins games and turns out great college players.
Timmy Richards • SS • 5-10 • 182 • R-R • Long Beach, Calif. • Wilson HS
Currently ranked 39th in the state of California and 187th nationally by Perfect Game for the class of 2013...ranked 35th nationally for the class of 2013 by ESPN…batted .233 at the plate in 2012 with 20 hits and eight stolen bases…the Bruins lost in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs and ended the year 23-8 (9-3 Moore League)…was named second team all-Moore League in 2011 as a sophomore after batting .455 with a .530 on-base percentage, .636 slugging percentage, 18 RBIs, four doubles and three triples.
Coach Vanderhook: Timmy is a middle infielder who has very advanced skills with the glove. His experience of playing in the Moore League the last three years will help with his transition into the Big West.
Marcus Vidales • 6-1 • 190 • R-R • Woodland Calif. • Pioneer HS
Ranked 106th in the state of California by Perfect Game for the class of 2013…the Patriots finished third in the Tri-County League with a record of 9-6 (16-13 overall)…batted .295 with 14 RBIs and 32 runs scored...played for the Oakland A's 2012 Area Code team.
Coach Vanderhook: Marcus is an athletic and physical outfielder who should fit right into our program. He has the ability to play any of the three outfield positions. We are excited to have an athlete like Marcus in this recruiting class.