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Corona's Seth Hernandez is set to become next great pitcher from Southern California

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Corona's Seth Hernandez is set to become next great pitcher from Southern California

Through 48 years of covering high school baseball in Southern California, watching so many prolific pitchers develop into legendary pro players has been one of the funnest parts of being a prep sportswriter. I’ve learned to always look for someone who can throw strikes.

There was Jack McDowell of Sherman Oaks Notre Dame and Bret Saberhagen of Cleveland in the 1980s. They became Cy Young Award winners for the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals, respectively.

In the 1990s, there was Jeff Suppan of Crespi, Russ Ortiz of Montclair Prep and Randy Wolf of El Camino Real. In the 21st century, there were Cy Young winners Gerrit Cole (Orange Lutheran), Shane Bieber (Laguna Hills) and Trevor Bauer (Hart); and standouts Paul Skenes (El Toro), Hunter Greene (Notre Dame), Jack Flaherty (Harvard-Westlake) and Max Fried (Harvard-Westlake).

Bringing up these names is to remind everyone how stunningly good Seth Hernandez of Corona has been this season as he prepares for the Southern Section Division 1 playoffs and heads off to be the next great pitcher from the Southland.

In 42 1/3 innings, he has struck out 88 batters while walking only three. Never has there been someone throwing a 98 mph fastball as a teenager with so much pinpoint control. In fact, he’s only hit one batter all season. Teenagers who throw in the 90s normally hit and walk lots of batters.

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Not Hernandez. His command is freakishly good.

“That was his goal,” coach Andy Wise said of improving over his junior season. “What are we going to do to get better and that was his No. 1 thing to do.”

Hernandez has never suffered a pitching defeat since he started playing high school baseball. He went 9-0 and had 15 walks in 56 innings last season. This season he’s 8-0 with an 0.17 ERA. Showing off his athleticism, he has also hit five home runs.

As comparison, probably the pitcher closest to having a season with this much control was Flaherty in 2013, when he walked 10 in 89 innings, struck out 112 and went 13-0 as a junior. But he didn’t come close to Hernandez’s velocity. Greene was throwing 101 mph fastballs and had 10 walks in 55 2/3 innings in 2016, his junior season.

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Greene’s coach at Notre Dame, Tom Dill, said of Hernandez, “You take an arm like that with the ability to throw strikes and the upside is fantastic.”

The Washington Nationals have the first pick in this summer’s amateur draft. Their general manager attended a Corona game to see Hernandez pitch.

Attending high school baseball games is free, so the best ticket around might be going to watch Hernandez pitch when he’s expected to be on the mound next Tuesday in Corona’s playoff opener. The pairings will be released on Monday, and Corona is expected to have a first-round bye when the playoffs begin on Thursday.

It’s not only his control and fastball that are impressive, it’s his poise and his breaking pitches. He really does have all the qualities scouts want in a pitching prospect, from work ethic to competitiveness to the ability to deal with pressure situations.

If opponents want him to autograph a ball during the playoffs, that wouldn’t be acting silly. That would be someone understanding they are in the presence of someone they’ll be watching from their living room one day pitching at a major league stadium.

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Bill Belichick-Jordon Hudson drama revealed in new emails

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Bill Belichick-Jordon Hudson drama revealed in new emails

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Emails obtained by WRAL show Bill Belichick addressing the controversy over his romantic and professional relationship with Jordon Hudson. 

The relationship between the legendary coach and the 24-year-old model has drawn national scrutiny after a controversial “CBS Sunday Morning” interview.

Hudson declared, “We’re not talking about that” when Belichick was asked about how the couple met. 

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Former cheerleader Jordon Hudson arrives at Sports Illustrated’s SI The Party at Mardi Gras World Feb. 8, 2025, in New Orleans. (Skip Bolen/Getty Images)

Belichick claimed in one email that CBS “secretly” had a camera focused on Hudson despite the model requesting to sit off camera. 

“Secretly, CBS had a camera focused on Jordon where Lead producer Gabe instructed her to sit,” Belichick reportedly wrote.

Belichick elaborated on why the question of how they met was not answered. 

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“I met Jordon randomly on a flight to Palm Beach in 2021. That is no secret. Jordon was not dodging the specific question regarding how we met, but rather was preventing the interview from continuing to probe into personal matters,” the email said. 

Belichick also addressed why Hudson was present at the interview to begin with. He believed the interview would be focused on his book, “The Art of Winning: Lessons from a Life in Football.”

Bill Belichick and girlfriend at NFL Honors

Bill Belichick and Jordon Hudson at the 14th Annual NFL Honors at Saenger Theatre Feb. 6, 2025, in New Orleans.  (Christopher Polk/Variety via Getty Images)

“Jordon was present at the CBS interview because David Kass, the Simon & Schuster publicist, was not there,” Belichick wrote, referring to the publisher of his book. “I included Jordon in the book acknowledgments because she was a creative contributor to the book, including having the idea for formatting the 4 special pages in the book.”

In another email, Belichick addressed reports that he requested to have Hudson copied on every email sent to him. 

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“Jordon and I have both a personal & professional relationship,” Belchick wrote in the email. “This is not a secret. Jordon assists me with my personal media, which is why I asked UNC to forward media requests (E.G. CBS 60 Minutes) to her. Jordon has zero involvement in the UNC football program, beyond the degree that my personal media intersects with it.”

Bill Belichick and Jordon Hudson

North Carolina Tar Heels head football coach Bill Belichick and girlfriend Jordon Hudson during the first half of a game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Duke Blue Devils at Dean E. Smith Center March 8, 2025, in Chapel Hill, N.C.  (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

Belichick released a statement saying he was “surprised” about getting the questions about his relationship and that when Hudson had stepped in, she was doing her job. He went on to accuse CBS of creating a “false narrative” with so-called “selectively edited clips.”

CBS responded, disagreeing with Belichick’s version of events. 

In a separate interview with ESPN, Belichick insisted Hudson is not involved with UNC football.

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Why do coaches coach? Commander of USS Abraham Lincoln gives reason

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Why do coaches coach? Commander of USS Abraham Lincoln gives reason

Dan Keeler, the new captain of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, called up his football coaches from his days at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High earlier this week, along with his English teacher, to give them a salute for the impact they made on a teenager now in charge of one of the Navy’s most powerful ships.

The speech by Keeler on Wednesday in Coronado at a changing of the command ceremony offered the real reason coaches coach and teachers teach — to make a difference in a student’s life.

“I learned more about hard work, grit, determination and how to handle pain, honestly, from this group,” he said.

He recalled when Notre Dame coach Kevin Rooney gave him a recommendation letter for the Naval Academy:
“Coach Rooney, when you handed me the letter, you said, ‘I think you’re going to be good at this,’ and you were right.”

Keeler added, “There were plenty of championships, but I don’t think that’s how these people measure success. I was a very mediocre backup quarterback and defensive back. If I was playing in a football game, we were winning by a lot.

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“Those metrics of winning and losing weren’t the only things that mattered. They were important. These educators took all the time to get the best out of their students and I was one of them. They saw something in me and chose to make a positive impact, and I am forever grateful.”

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Indiana Pacers blow out Thunder to set up first NBA Finals Game 7 since 2016

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Indiana Pacers blow out Thunder to set up first NBA Finals Game 7 since 2016

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It will come down to Game 7 to determine who will lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy, as the Indiana Pacers blew out the Oklahoma City Thunder, 108-91, on their home court to force a final game in the NBA Finals. 

The Pacers went into their final home game of the season in a must-win scenario – and the entire team, from the starting five to the bench, knew the assignment at hand, running away with the game and never letting Oklahoma City sniff a chance at a comeback. 

Now, for the first time since the Cleveland Cavaliers famous comeback against the Golden State Warriors in 2016, there will be a Game 7 in the NBA Finals. 

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Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) motions next to Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) during the first half of Game 6 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Heading into Game 6, the Pacers weren’t sure if their star point guard, Tyrese Haliburton, would be available after suffering a calf strain in Game 5 that noticeably hampered his performance. Haliburton was adamant he would be playing because of the situation for his Pacers, and that’s exactly what happened when it was time for tip-off. 

Haliburton looked like his normal self on the court, going 4-of-9, including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, to tally 12 points with four assists, two steals and one rebound in the first half. 

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Pascal Siakam also poured in 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the half to help Indiana run it up to a 64-42 halftime lead, creating a gap they wouldn’t relinquish. 

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Guard Andrew Nembhard was feeling it from the floor as well, going 5-of-7 with a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe to score 17 points to go along with his four assists and three steals on the night. 

But once again, the Pacers won because of their stellar depth off the bench, which included the team’s leading scorer, Obi Toppin. 

Pascal Siakam celebrates on court

Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) celebrates a basket against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first half of Game 6 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Indianapolis.  (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Toppin, the former New York Knicks first-round pick, was raining three-pointers, making four of his seven attempts and going 6-fo-12 from the field overall to score 20 points. He also tallied six rebounds and two steals for the Pacers. 

Trusty point guard T.J. McConnell also had 12 points on 6-of-12 shooting for Indiana, while Aaron Nesmith added 10 points. As a team, 11 different players scored for Indiana in a game that needed contributions from everyone to keep the season alive. 

Meanwhile, the Thunder’s ailment in this one was turnovers. While the Pacers committed 11 turnovers for the game, they had just two to the Thunder’s 12 in the first half. Oklahoma City finished with 21 for the game, and eight of them came from league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. 

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Tyrese Haliburton reacts on court

Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers celebrates during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Game Six of the 2025 NBA Finals on June 19, 2025 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

He didn’t have a bad night from the field, going 7-of-15 for 21 points with four rebounds and two assists. But he wasn’t careful with the ball, and the Pacers had 13 points off those turnovers. Indiana was also getting out in transition better than Oklahoma City with 22 fast-break points. 

In turn, the stage has been set for what’s bound to be a thrilling Game 7 in Oklahoma City on Sunday night. 

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