All-Tribune high school baseball team named. Find out player of the year, all-star selections
Two San Luis Obispo County high school baseball players who excelled on the mound and at the plate are the All-Tribune co-players of the year.
Seniors Morgan Codron of Morro Bay High School and Marc Byrum of Arroyo Grande HIgh School were picked by The Tribune as the top players in the county for leading their respective teams to winning seasons, and placing among the top of local players in statistical categories.
They lead a list of first team and second team All-Tribune selections chosen by the Tribune based on player stats, statistics, coach input, and game observation.
Morro Bay High School star shines
Codron, whose fastball typically ranges from 87 to 89 miles per hour, topped out at 91 mph this year. He’s heading off to play baseball at the University of Portland next year.
“I don’t care what anyone tells you, everyone we played feared Morgan at the plate and on the mound,” said John Andree, Morro Bay’s coach. “Morgan often hit the low 90s when pitching and his (earned run average) and strikeouts were impressive.”
On the mound, Codron was No. 1 in Ocean League with a 0.79 ERA and second in the league with 86 strikeouts using a fastball, changeup, and curve combo, according to MaxPreps. (Not all teams enter statistics, but many did.) He posted a 7-2 record.
“In terms of velocity, just hitting 91, I’ve never done that hard before and that was just a big for me and that’s what I dreamed of as a freshman and have been working to do so,” Codron said. “That’s really exciting.”
Codron, a 6-foot-4 right-handed pitcher and infielder, was third in the Ocean League with a .473 batting average, leading all SLO County hitters, according to MaxPreps.com, to go with three home runs, 18 doubles, and 31 runs batted in to lead the team.
The Morro Bay ace, alongside another team leader in senior pitcher and third baseman Jackson Howell, helped lead Morro Bay to a 19-11 record (10-5, Ocean League, third place).
“It was really refreshing to be back to normal and just how well last season with all the kids that I grew up playing went,” Codron said. “It was just emotional after COVID(-19) took a season away from us and then just getting to come back together and have a good season, that’s pretty special. Everyone got along really well. It was like Little League again.”
Codron said he’s focused on pitching, but in a way that helped his hitting.
“That kind of allowed me to just go out there and relax and have fun all season,” Codron said of his at-bats. “I didn’t do a lot mechanically like most of my adjustments, just the mental things. And that was a big focus.”
Codron said this year’s group of strong Morro Bay athletes helped build a culture at the school, exemplified by strong seasons in a number of sports. The football team was a California Interscholistic Federation state finalist and the girl’s basketball team had a 17-8 record.
“I just love to see my community keep doing good and keep just preaching that winning culture,” Codron said. “We had a big group of athletes come that are committed and I think that’s really contagious.”
Codron said he’s “excited” about playing at the next level and hopes to continue his baseball career as far as it takes him.
“I definitely want to play as long as I can,” Codron said. “Obviously, I have a plan B, a plan C. You know, I want to get my degree. But I want to give everything I can to the game and wherever that takes me.”
Arroyo Grande baseball standout sets tone
Senior Marc Byrum said one of his memories of high school baseball will be a game that he lost.
The Arroyo Grande High right-hander threw seven innings of no hit baseball against the first place team in the Mountain League (Righetti), but the opposing team’s pitcher also was lights out and held the Eagles scoreless (though not hitless).
Righetti (25-7) scored four in the eighth and Arroyo Grande lost 4-0, but Byrum said it was a thrill anyway.
“We probably should have won and we were right there, but it’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” Byrum said.
Byrum, like Codron, was known for his pitching prowess, but over-achieved at the plate.
“Throughout the summer, I focused on my actual mechanics and hitting the ball harder, because I’m a smaller dude,” Byrum said. “The best hope you can get is reps because I got a ton of reps last year and I know for a fact that’s what helped me in going into high school.”
Byrum, who had a .389 batting average and 24 RBI in 32 games, was second on the team behind Niko Ikenoyama (.420 in 23 games). Byrum’s pitching stats included 65 innings pitched with 90 strikeouts only gave up 29 runs and a 2.27 ERA, with a 8-2 record.
Byrum, who stands 5-foot-9 and weighs 165 pounds, played on the Santa Maria Reds Golden Coast Collegiate League team last summer. He said that because most of the Eagles team didn’t play another sport in the fall, a series of scrimmages helped improve the Arroyo Grande High squad as a whole, leading to a 21-11 (11-7 Mountain League, second place).
“I think we were the best team in the county and Marc was our best player,” Arroyo Grande coach Steve Tolley said.
Morro Bay and Arroyo Grande, two of the strongest SLO County teams with strong performances, didn’t face each other during the season.
Byrum said the camaraderie on the Eagles team made it a fun year, a chemistry developed among several of his teammates who were national champions in the Babe Ruth League before entering high school.
“A lot of us did end up winning the World Series when I was 13 in Arkansas,” Byrum said. “It was the best experience I’ve probably had in my life and entire summer.”
His Arroyo Grande team made the CIF-Central Section final last year, losing to Madera, and fell to Clovis East 6-3 after beating Clovis 6-1 in the Division 2 semifinal this year.
“We’ll have so many memories together,” Byrum said. “One of the funnest times this season was playing a high school tournament in Carmel. One of the coaches from another team owns a restaurant up there and invited all of the teams to eat as many tacos as we wanted for free. We got to hang out with players from other teams and we just had a great time.”
Byrum will play baseball at Cuesta College next season. He’s also playing on the San Luis Obispo Blues collegiate team this summer, and credits Tolley, who’s also his Blues hitting coach, for helping him as a player.
“From a man-to-man standpoint, Tolley is one of the nicest people you’ll ever be around,” Byrum said. “In terms of his coaching style, he prioritizes fun. It’s fun, but it’s also hard work. But he makes sure we have fun.”
SLO All-Tribune Team
First team
Jackson Howell — Morro Bay
Robbie Lardner — Templeton
Nate Reese — Nipomo
Wade Arkinson — Nipomo
Noah Clausen — San Luis Obispo
Bryson Hoier — Paso Robles
Ryan Tayman — Arroyo Grande
Brandom Bonham — Paso Robles
Hogan Benson — San Luis Obispo
Second Team
Kiko Barroso — Templeton
Niko Ikenoyama — Arroyo Grande
Josiah Cabreros — Arroyo Grande
Nicky Johnson — Morro Bay
Kyle Hiltbrand — Mission Prep
Connor Becker — Templeton
Lukas Ward — NIpomo
Jake Hixenbaugh — Atascadero
Hunter Wooldridge — Nipomo
Honorable mention
Victor Garibay — Nipomo
Kaden Tynes — Arroyo Grande
Elliot Hawe — Paso Robles
Isaac Townsend — Mission Prep
Kyle Bonham — Paso Robles
Skylar Silva — Atascadero
Bo Victor — San Luis Obispo
John Skaggs — Morro Bay
Connor Becker —Templeton
Blake Alspach — Templeton
This story was originally published June 13, 2022 at 11:17 AM.
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