Cordeiro Dials In for Success

After being herded about a Fresno State field with other prospects at a recent Area Code Baseball Games tryout, pitcher Chris Cordeiro of Thousand Oaks High was tagged and released.

He returned to the Conejo Valley, not with a brand, but with a label: Hot Young Prospect.

Cordeiro and 19 other local high school players will compete in the Area Code Games Monday through Saturday at Blair Field in Long Beach.

Players are assigned to one of 11 teams sponsored by major league clubs and the games they compete in are considered one of the nation’s premier showcases for college coaches and professional scouts.

Cordeiro’s selection to the Cincinnati Reds’ Area Code team only validates the buzz that has built since the midpoint of the high school season.

The 6-foot-3, 175-pound junior is something special.

“With his command and presence on the mound, he’s a stud,” said Agoura High Coach Bruce Beck, a former pitcher at Pepperdine. “Cordeiro [has] an intangible that has nothing to do with how big he is or how hard he throws. It’s that he wants the ball and he wants to take charge from the first pitch.”

For the record, Cordeiro, 16, and one of four area juniors to make an Area Code team, does throw hard. His fastball was clocked at 88 mph at the Area Code tryout and he combines it with a curve, changeup and slider.

Although Cordeiro is regarded by many as Thousand Oaks’ best player, he began the high school season as a lesser-known commodity than teammates and touted pitchers Matt Rogers and Tracy Goebel.

Beginning with an impressive relief performance against Agoura on April 2 and continuing through the last six weeks of the season, Cordeiro made a name for himself and finished with a 5-1 record and a 2.18 earned-run average.

With Rogers, a member of The Times’ All-Ventura County team, announcing Thursday that he has quit baseball because of burnout, Cordeiro can be considered the Marmonte League’s top returning pitcher.

In the recently completed American Legion season, Cordeiro was 6-2 with a 1.90 ERA. He also played in the field and batted .340 with 11 doubles.

“You don’t find too many sophomores who can throw four pitches for strikes,” Thousand Oaks Coach Bill Sizemore said. “Chris is a bulldog. He loves to compete and he’s not intimidated by the surroundings.”

The last attribute came in handy at the Area Code tryout, where Cordeiro and about 200 other players were identified by number and given only the briefest of opportunities to shine.

“We showed up at 8 a.m., everybody was timed [running] and then the pitchers went and threw 10 to 15 pitches in the [bullpen],” Cordeiro said.

“They made a cut from there. I was nervous but I just wanted to see how I’d do.”

Cordeiro said he didn’t throw well in his bullpen session and figured he’d be cut. But he advanced to an afternoon drill where pitchers faced batters in simulated game situations and got to throw 25-30 pitches. At 3 p.m., his number, 119, was called by the Reds.

In the Area Code competition, Cordeiro will again be given limited time on stage. He said he has been told to expect a combined four or five innings’ work in the Reds’ four games.

“You have to be ready to go at any time but you can’t put too much pressure on yourself,” Cordeiro said. “You don’t want to be thinking that you’re pitching for someone else.”

Area Code organizers tout the attendance of several hundred college coaches and pro scouts at the games, and Cordeiro will surely show up on their radar. Sizemore said he has received requests for information on his player from such college powers as USC and Arizona State.

Gary Stephenson, pitching coach at Thousand Oaks and a former pitcher at Cal State Northridge, believes Cordeiro will continue to improve.

“Chris’ biggest attribute is that you only have to tell him things once and he’s got it forever,” Stephenson said. “I don’t want to say he’s good and he knows it, but that’s kind of how it is. I think he can dominate in the next two years.”

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Code of Honor

Baseball players from the region taking part in the Area Code Games

REDS

*--*

Player, School Pos. Yr. Jason Allec, Highland C Sr. Ryan Ayers, Newbury Park P Sr. Chris Cordeiro, Thousand Oaks P Jr. Matt Cunningham, Notre Dame C Jr. Mike Falco, Agoura OF Sr. Kevin Howard, Westlake SS Sr. Jason Kubel, Highland OF-P Jr. Kameron Loe, Granada Hills P Sr. Phil Polanco, Notre Dame P Sr. Greg Ramirez, Rio Mesa P Sr. Wes Rasmussen, Moorpark 2B Sr. Scott Rice, Royal P Sr. Jamie Shields, Hart P Jr. Adam Sperling, El Camino Real P Sr.

*--*

DODGERS

*--*

Player, School Pos. Yr. Brian Jacobsen, Agoura 1B Sr. William McGrath, Birmingham 3B Sr. Jordon Olson, Crescenta Valley P Sr. Luke Peterson, Crescenta Valley C Sr. John Puccinelli, Notre Dame SS Sr.

*--*

ROYALS

*--*

Player, School Pos. Yr. Ivan Hernandez, Sylmar P Sr.

*--*