Posted on
June 06, 2008 by
Mookie
Aaron Hicks is arguably the most electrifying athlete in the nation, a two-way star that makes a difference as a hitter, on the base-paths and on the mound. He is a switch hitter with five-tool potential across the board, showing very good speed, bat speed and power and offers a style of play that is similar to the Mets Jose Reyes. Hicks is an outfielder that projects to play centerfield given his speed, range and very good arm strength. On the mound he uses and extremely quick and electric arm to pump his fastball consistently in the mid-90s with an impressive amount of natural movement you don’t see from a high school pitcher very often. His breaking ball is also a plus-plus pitch, although he struggles with his command and is more often than not his own worse enemy. He profiles better as an outfielder at this point in time, but that could change quickly if things start to click for him on the mound next spring.
Webster’s Dictionary defines “pest” as “a person or thing that causes trouble, annoyance, discomfort, etc.”
In baseball, a pest is a good thing if your team is lucky enough to have one. And the best pests are often leadoff hitters, who drive pitchers batty and fielders to distraction by getting on base and running wild. Aaron Hicks of Long Beach Wilson fits the description.
The Bruins (28-3), who meet Simi Valley on Tuesday in the second round of the Southern Section Division I playoffs, have several impressive hitters in Ryan Dent, Elliot Glynn, Richard Hansen and Zach Wilson. But Hicks, a 6-foot-2, 164-pound junior, sparks the offense with his speed.
He has stolen 39 bases in 41 tries this season to lead the Moore League. That’s fourth-best in the section, according to MaxPreps.com.
“I see [base stealing] as a statement, that if I get on, our team is coming to get you,” said Hicks, 17. “I do it basically for the team, not me, so we have a chance.
“If a pitcher throws real hard or has a good slide step, I won’t go. But I believe I’m making them change what they do if they have to worry about me.” But baserunning is only part of Hicks’ game.
He’s batting .353 (30 for 85) and has driven in 20 runs, making him one of seven Wilson players with 20 or more runs batted in. Hicks leads the Bruins in runs scored with 40.
He has thrown out seven runners from right field, including two at first base. He has even done some relief pitching, sporting a 2-0 record with two saves.
It’s on the basepaths, however, where Hicks creates havoc.
“I don’t know where our record books are,” Coach Andy Hall said. “But I’m sure those 39 steals are some kind of record for us, at least in modern times.
“Aaron’s got the green light when he has a jump and will take a base when he can get it.”Those who have been victimized by Hicks also speak highly of him.
“A phenomenal athlete,” said Coach Moon Cordero, who saw Hicks steal three bases during a doubleheader against his Bellflower St. John Bosco team early in the season.
“He does have a high ceiling. He can do everything. He is one of those guys that once he gets on with a single, he can turn it into a double or triple with his running.”
Long Beach Jordan Coach Mark Prager has two excellent baserunners in Alfredo Lopez and Abraham Alarcon, who have 31 and 30 stolen bases, respectively, this season, but Prager has no problem lauding Hicks.
“He has the tools ? an arm, speed, athletic ability,” Prager said. “Get someone to work on his hitting, and you won’t stop him.”
Hicks inherited his athletic talent from his father Joe, who was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 1975 and spent four years in the minor leagues before a detached retina ended his pro career.
But Joe, now a longshoreman, didn’t push baseball. In fact, he saw a promising future in golf, a sport his son started playing at 7.
“I was training him,” Joe said. “We’d go down to the course at dusk and he’d practice hitting the ball down the middle of the fairway. Sometimes we’d still be there at night. Aaron, if he does something, he does it all the way.”
But when Hicks became interested in playing baseball at 12, his father relented. “I gave up my dream of retiring early and watching him on the PGA Tour,” Joe said with a laugh.
However, his father insisted on one thing: “I wanted him to be a switch-hitter. So if he wanted to play, he had do that.”
Hicks, who is right-handed, initially resisted learning to hit from the left side, but now he is grateful for his father’s demands.
“Now it feels more natural,” Hicks said. “And it is easier to see curveballs that more often break into you rather than away.”
Hicks has a busy summer planned. Besides playing on a travel team, he is one of two Southland players, along with Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos outfielder Isaac Galloway, already selected among 38 juniors nationwide to play in the fifth Aflac All-American High School Baseball Classic on Aug. 11 at San Diego State.
While Hicks expects to be considered among the top players in the nation as a senior, he said there is always room for improvement.
“I think the best part of my game is my defense. I take the most pride in that,” he said. “But I can do better handling the bat and trying to hit it where I want to.”
His coach agreed.
“There’s no doubt he is a college Division I-level player. And from what I’m hearing he could be the No. 1 high school player in the country next year,” Hill said.
“For that to happen, he has to make some adjustments in his swing. He should be a .400 to .450 high school hitter. He can take too many pitches and sometimes wants to hit every ball out of the park.”
That, so far, has been the only thing slowing down Hicks.
. In fact, he saw a promising future in golf, a sport his son started playing at 7.
LATimes.com
Did you know that Tommy Mason Minnesota Viking’s first ever draft pick from 1961, was a productive NFL All-Pro who married an Olympic gymnast and was later traded for the draft rights to a future NFL Hall of Famer?
