The ABD Academy Recognizes Top Prospects at their 20th Anniversary Awards Banquet
Wayne Williams January 15, 2012
There was a packed house at the ABD Academy 20th Anniversary and Awards Banquet held in San Bernadino, California.The ABD Academy has a strong history of developing baseball players. More than two hundred former players have been drafted to date and ABD boasts several notable alumni including Reed Johnson, Xavier Paul, Allen Craig, Tommy Hanson and Anthony Rizzo, to name but a few. Many were in attendance at the banquet and rubbed shoulders with legendary former Dodger Steve Garvey whose son Ryan played in the program.
Steve Garvey |
Carlos Martinez, Tanner Rahier, Daniel Robertson |
Some of the notable 2012 D1 Prospects and ABD Alumni that received awards on the night.
| Player |
High School |
College/Pro |
Award Name |
Category |
| Daniel Robertson |
Upland |
UCLA |
Tony Garcia Award |
Defensive Player of the Year |
| Tanner Rahier |
Palm Desert |
San Diego |
Greg Dobbs Award |
Hitter of the Year |
| RJ Ybarra |
Riverside Poly |
Arizona State |
Allen Craig Award |
Clutch Hitter of the Year |
| Andre Real |
Orange Lutheran |
Hawaii |
Joe Spiers Award |
Baserunner of the Year |
| Jayson Balades |
Oxnard |
Pepperdine |
Tommy Hanson Award |
Pitcher of the Year |
| Tanner Rahier |
Palm Desert |
San Diego |
Lee Gronkiewicz Award |
Relief Pitcher of the Year |
| David Olmedo-Barrero |
Saint Francis |
Cal State Fullerton |
Jose Ortega Award |
Coaches Award |
| Kaeo Alivado |
St Louis |
Hawaii |
Tony Wolters Award |
Baller of the Year |
| Kieran Lovegrove |
Mission Viejo |
Arizona State |
Greg Kish Award |
Special Achievement |
| Matt Bui |
Orange Lutheran |
Uncommitted |
Rocky Collis Award |
Scholar of the Year |
| Travis Harrison |
Tustin |
Minnesota Twins |
Xavier Paul Award |
Player of the Year |
| Jonathan Meyer |
Cathedral Catholic |
Clemson |
2011 College Player of the Year |
| Nolan Arenado |
El Toro |
Colorado Rockies |
2011Minor League Player of the Year |
| |
Devin Carter, Andre Real, Jayson Balades
|
RJ Ybarra being interviewed by Tony Machado |
Special Achievement Award
Kieran Lovegrove (Mission Viejo High School) received the 2011 Greg Kish Award for Special Achievement. The award is named for ABD Alumni Greg Kish because he epitomizes the type of person that does not allow anything to distract him from the relentless pursuit of success. Greg proves that if you stay focused and keep your composure during adversity, you can achieve greatness at any age.
Lovegrove was honored not only for his prowess and achievements on the baseball diamond, which included winning two national titles on the mound and being selected to the USA 18U Trials team for 2012 (he was also nominated for 2012 Pitcher of the Year) but also for his philanthropic work with the Going To Bat Foundation, a charity he started in 2009 with two team mates, Kyle Candalla (Mission Viejo High School) and Adam Salcido (Laguna Hills High School).
Kieran Lovegrove and Mike Spiers |
The mission of the Going to Bat Foundation is to improve the lives of youth by providing any child who wishes to play baseball or softball with the means and the opportunity, providing a viable alternative to other destructive options. Lovegrove, Candalla and Salcido with the help of support and donations from individuals and corporations like New Balance, ESPN High School, Area Codes Baseball and Full Circle Sports Management have collected and distributed baseball equipment to needy programs from Alaska to Africa. Lovegrove recognized the valuable contribution of co-founder Kyle Candalla who also attended the event and was also nominated for an award. Check out this worthwhile cause at www.goingtobat.org.
ABD Academy: @abdbulldogs; Daniel Robertson: @Daniel_Rob28;
RJ Ybarra: @ybar20; Tanner Rahier: @trahierss;
Jayson Balades: @Ayo_Jay_ ; Travis Harrison: @trav17harrison;
Kieran Lovegrove: @Lovegrove19; Steve Garvey: @SteveGarvey6
Carlos Martinez: @carlos3bate |
