Caleb Ricketts-Fightin Phils

Paul Roberts — Sat, 06 Apr 2024 10:39:00 +0000

Baseball players take different paths to reach the professional ranks. In the case of Caleb Ricketts, it meant staying in college for four years. “It helped me tremendously [to] grow as a player and a person, emotionally too. I was a totally different player than I was at 18. I’m really grateful for those four years I spent at USD,” said Ricketts. The 6’3, 225-pound catcher put up big numbers as a senior at the University of San Diego. He hit .373 with 16 home runs and 55 RBI in 56 games. The Phillies selected Ricketts in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. The left-handed hitter got off to a great start last year in Clearwater. He posted a .368 batting average while driving in 23 runs in 23 games. Unfortunately, injuries cost him about two months. Ricketts struggled after being promoted to High-A Jersey Shore. The 23-year-old hit .218 in 44 games while dealing with a wrist injury. He was able to get some more plate appearances in the Arizona Fall League. “That was an awesome experience. That was a blessing to be able to go out there and play. I definitely learned a lot from all my coaches and teammates,” remarked Ricketts. He’s ranked as the #21 prospect in the Phillies’ minor league system. Reading won its season opener 5-2 at Bowie on Friday night. The Fightin Phils scored three times in the 9th inning. Max Lazar struck out the side in the bottom half of the frame for the save. Southpaw Matt Osterberg got the start. He allowed one unearned run on two hits over 3.2 innings. Jordi Martinez picked up the win in relief. The lefty tossed 1.2 hitless innings with four strikeouts. Ricketts is confident in Reading’s pitching staff. “I think all of our guys are gonna be able to bring it to the table and help us win,” he replied.

Caleb Brewer-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Tue, 16 Aug 2022 19:59:00 +0000

There aren’t many high school football players who can pin Jven Williams in less than 15 seconds. Caleb Brewer is one of them. The 6’5, 285-pound tight end qualified for the PIAA wrestling championships as a sophomore. In case you’re wondering, Brewer believes that wrestling is a more physically demanding sport than football. Brewer and Williams are part of what could be an outstanding offensive line in the Spartans’ vaunted Wing-T attack. ESPN ranks Williams as the #2 guard in the Class of 2023 and the 53rd best player overall. The 6’4, 305-pound senior is committed to Penn State. Seniors Pacen Ziegler (6’4, 275) and Cooper Young (6’, 250) will be at offensive tackle. Ziegler has an offer from Division I Davidson. Isaac Focht (6’2, 235) is expected to start at center. Jack Gartner (5’10, 190) brings the average of Wyomissing’s front six down to 257 pounds. Yes, you read correctly that Brewer is moving to TE to help set the edge. “I’m good with the plays. It’s hard to run routes, but I’m starting to get better at it. I’m getting faster,” he said. Aiden Mack, a freshman at the University of Richmond, was a devastating blocker at TE for the Spartans a season ago. They piled up 298 rushing yards per game while averaging 7.4 /carry. Wyomissing fell to Central Valley for the second straight year in the Class 3A state championship. Brewer thinks the 2022 Spartans could be even better than that (15-1) squad which put up 42 points per game. Central Valley got bumped up to Class 4A so the Spartans won’t have to worry about the Warriors. Wyomissing is second in PennLive’s preseason statewide poll behind Belle Vernon. Brewer feels that the offensive line has improved. I asked him what makes Williams such a special player. Brewer replied, “He’s a really hard worker. He’s my role model. I strive to be like Jven. He’s everything a coach wants, just a great kid.” The Spartans lost five all-state selections to graduation including FB/LB Tommy Grabowski and HB/CB Amory Thompson. They combined for more than 2,300 rushing yards. Seniors Drew Eisenhower and Charlie McIntyre return at halfback, along with physical junior Ryker Jones. Eisenhower and McIntyre both averaged over seven yards a pop last season. 220-pound senior Matthew Kramer will take over at fullback for Grabowski (26TD). Brewer told me that Kramer would be the toughest of their running backs for him to tackle. Ben Zechman is back at quarterback. Longtime head coach Bob Wolfrum likes his leadership skills. Wolfrum has guided Wyomissing to three consecutive District 3 titles and ten overall. The Spartans are a staggering (36-3) over the past three seasons. They haven’t dropped a regular season matchup since October 27, 2018 when Berks Catholic defeated them 28-7. The Saints are on Wyomissing’s schedule once again. “I’m pretty excited for that because I know a lot of people on their team. I have a rivalry with one of their wrestlers. Yeah, I’m excited to play them,” Brewer acknowledged. Wyomissing and Berks Catholic are part of a highly competitive Section 4 in the new Lancaster-Lebanon League. Brewer excels in the classroom with a 4.2 GPA. “I’d say it’s more important than football or any other sport because education gets you farther in life than sport. Not everybody is going to make it to the NFL or WWE,” he emphasized. Brewer is a big guy who understands the big picture.

Caleb – Berks Sports Report

Caleb Ricketts-Fightin Phils

Caleb Brewer-Wyomissing