Fresno Bee’s Best: Meet our list of All-Area baseball stars, including Player of the Year
Evan Wallace says it was clear what he needed to do prior to his senior baseball season at Buchanan High: get in tip-top shape after missing some time because of a hamstring injury in 2021.
“I know I had to eat right. I need to work out a certain way and train in a certain way with explosive movements and heavy weight lifting, as well. I just did that for the whole offseason and really got me prepared and in good shape for the season. Hitting on the side and taking fly balls with my dad, as well, also played a huge part.”
It showed for the UC Irvine-bound leadoff hitter and center fielder.
He hit .454 with a team-high 44 hits, drove in 24 runs and scored 36 times in 97 at-bats. His defense and awareness were instrumental for his team all season.
For that, Wallace is named The Bee’s Baseball Player of the Year.
“It’s really a great honor to be named The Fresno Bee Player of the Year,” he said. “All the hard work I put in this year paid off.”
Bears coach Brad Fontes praised Wallace’s hard work and described him as “our most consistent player” who helped his teammates any way he can.
“He had a great year,” he said. “He set up everything for us and the big guys drove him in. He was on base all the time.”
His on-base percentage was .545 and slugging percentage .670 — both tops for Buchanan.
Wallace didn’t make any errors as he played outfield.
He helped the Bears to another Tri-River Athletic Conference title and was named the TRAC Player of the Year.
Wallace said he relished batting leadoff.
“You want to start the game off the right way and set the tone and score early,” he said. “There is a little added pressure, but I think it’s good for you. Helps you focus on what you’re supposed to do.”
Coach of the Year: Brad Fontes, Buchanan
For a second consecutive year, Fontes is tops among coaches in the Fresno area.
Fontes put together a schedule against teams in Northern and Southern California that helped the Bears get ready for the TRAC season. They went 25-5 overall and 13-2 in the TRAC.
In three seasons at Buchanan, Fontes is 63-9, according to section historian Bob Barnett.
Other All-Area baseball honors
Large School Player of the Year: Cayden Munster, Jr. INF/OF, Clovis West: Was consistent for the Golden Eagles at the plate and counted on to deliver in clutch situations. He led the team in hitting (.488) and knocked in 33 runs. He had 39 hits including 11 doubles, three home runs and one triple.
Medium School Player of the Year: Devon Daniel, Sr., P/OF/1B, Kerman: The ace for the Lions finished 13-0 with a 0.19 ERA in 14 appearances. Daniel struck out 133 batters with just 10 walks.
Small School Player of the Year: Trever Jobinger, Sr., P/OF/INF, Minarets: Helped the Mustangs to a 20-11 record and 12-0 in the West Sequoia League after leading the team in batting average (.462). His on-base percentage was .541 and he scored 39 runs.
The Bee All-Stars
JP Acosta, Jr., SS, Buchanan
Gilbert Acosta, Soph., C/INF, Kerman
Jack Anker, Sr., P/INF, Tulare Western
Nathan Baeza, Sr., P/OF, Clovis West
Matthew Bettencourt, Jr., INF/P, El Diamante
Jakson Bucher, Sr., SS/P, Liberty-Madera Ranchos
Xavier Cantu, Jr., C/INF, Madera South
Jordan Chairez, Jr., Fresno
Chris Clement, Sr., INF/P, Hanford
A.J. Cox, Jr., INF/P, Monache
Jacob Crain, Sr., P/OF, Clovis East
Devon Daniel, Sr., P/OF/1B, Kerman
Adam Delgado, Soph., P/INF, Kerman
Jonathan Delgado, Jr., C, Porterville
Dominik Espinosa, Jr., P/INF, Fresno
Colby Evans, Sr., P/INF, San Joaquin Memorial
Will Gagnon, Sr, P, Reedley
Garrett Garfield, Sr., C, Clovis
Tristan “Murf” Gray, Sr., P/IF, Madera South
JT Guerrero, Jr., P, Mt. Whitney
Ruben Gutierrez, Sr., P/3B, Firebaugh
Houston Hirschkorn, Soph., P/SS, Kingsburg
Kyle Jimenez, Sr., P/OF, Clovis West
Trever Jobinger, Sr., P/OF/INF, Minarets
Michael Klein, Sr., P/OF, Central
Isaiah Leyva, Jr. P/INF, Firebaugh
Gabe Magallan, Sr., P/OF, Hanford
Jacob Mainer, Sr. P/INF, Sierra Pacific
Jimmy Martinez, Sr. P/INF/OF, Porterville
Derek McNary, Sr. P/INF, Hanford
Zach Milhous, Sr. INF, Monache
Charlie Monterossa, Sr., P/INF, San Joaquin Memorial
Trey Morris, Soph., P, Washington Union
Brandt Munger, Soph., P/OF, Central Valley Christian
Cayden Munster, Jr., INF/OF, Clovis West
Ayden Oliveras, Fr., P/INF/OF, Kerman
Tyler Patrick, Soph., C/P, Clovis West
Garret Perkins, Soph., INF, Kingsburg
Joey Rico, Jr., P/INF/OF, Redwood
Cameron Schneider, Jr., P/INF, Bullard
Caden Shows, Sr., INF, Minarets
Jerod Smith, Fr., P/INF, Fowler
Drew Smith, Sr., P/3B/C, Buchanan
Peyton Van Worth, Soph., C, Dos Palos
Evan Wallace, Sr., OF/3B, Buchanan
Dustin Wang, Sr., P/INF, Reedley
Ryan Warkentin, Sr., Reedley
Austin Watson, Sr., P/1B, Buchanan
Trevor Wilson, Jr. OF, Bullard
Ethan Winslow, Jr. P/OF, Kingsburg
Beckett Zavorek, Soph, OF, Bullard
This story was originally published July 14, 2022 at 2:10 PM.
