One of the hardest working young men in baseball that I know is Mitchell Kranson. A somewhat quiet and humble young man lets his bat do the talking. And Oh yeah! It speaks often and loudly. So much so CAL and many others came knocking. A GS athlete for four years and counting he is in the mold of some of the areas great hitters like De La Salle alum Chris Carter and San Ramon’s James Darnell both major leaguers. I’m glad I’ll have the opportunity to continue to work with and watch this exceptional young man in his collegiate career.  He joins other GS athletes Max Dutto and Grant Diede as incoming freshmen next year.  They will join GS alum Darrell Matthews who is a sophomore.

 

 Kranson Goes Local

Douglas Benton

NorCalPreps.com

De La Salle infielder Mitchell Kranson is among the best hitters, if not the best, in the class of 2012. He helped lead the Spartans to the NCS Division I finals as a junior and after playing against top competition throughout the summer, he ended his recruitment on Monday night by staying home in the Pac-12. The 5-foot-10, 190 pound Kranson verbally committed to the Cal coaching staff on Monday night after considering San Diego, Santa Clara, USC, Cal State Fullerton and St. Mary’s. In talking with assistant coach Tony Arnerich, Kranson credited a new identity with the Golden Bears program following the reinstatement bid this past season of a close team that expects to be in the College World Series as a key selling point.

He joins Acalanes’ Grant Diede and San Ramon Valley’s Max Dutto, who he is good friends with, as local

commits to Berkeley.

Kranson plays third base in high school and saw time at third base, first base, second base and catcher

this summer. Concerning where Cal sees him, Kranson said, “they recruited me as a guy who can come in

and hit. (They) said my bat plays.”

Here is what we wrote about Kranson at the Rawlings NorCal World Series:

“One of the best hitters at the event overall, Kranson generates good power and hit numerous home runs

during his batting practice session. He had two hits in the win for Team Sacramento over Team East Bay,

including one knock to the opposite field. Kranson has some position versatility as the top returner for the

NCS Division I runner-ups.”

After participating in the Rawlings NorCal World Series, he traveled to the Perfect Game National

Showcase, the Area Code Games with the Oakland A’s and numerous summer tournaments.

“The whole experience was awesome. I loved all of the coaches,” Kranson said of the Area Code Games.

“The summer was awesome. I felt I fared well against all of the (competition).” He hit roughly .400 for the

summer.

“It’s great to see Mitchell’s hard work and dedication to baseball pay off with a commitment to Cal,”

NorCal Baseball coach Tony Crivello said. “Cal is getting what we at NorCal have known about Mitchell for

a long time. A great person, teammate, and a flat out winner on the baseball field.”