Baseball: Justin Rorick and Tommy Palomera are freshmen in the spotlight

Dodger Stadium isn’t exactly the ideal setting to unveil a freshman. There’s a lot of pressure playing in a championship game, but Birmingham and Chatsworth have big plans for their prized freshman players in Saturday’s 1 p.m. City Section Division I final.

One of Birmingham’s best hitters is freshman designated hitter Justin Rorick. He delivered a two-run single in a quarterfinal upset of Granada Hills Kennedy. He has promising power and is learning to hit the ball to the opposite field. He leads the team with 14 RBIs.

Chatsworth will use freshman pitcher Tommy Palomera to start the game. He has come through with some big-time performances in the regular season and has the poise and ability to throw strikes that will help him at Dodger Stadium. He’s 8-1 with an 0.71 ERA.

“I throw strikes and let me defense work for me,” Palomera said.

These two players are probably the best freshmen duo in the City Section, so capture the moment, because each should be a top player over the next three seasons.