Kyle Molnar has spent the past week in Northern California enjoying some well-deserved downtime with his family at Lake Almanor.
In addition to the time in the water, the Aliso Niguel senior to-be even swapped his baseball bat for a driver as he polished up his golf swing on the local links course.
Kolby Allard, meanwhile, has spent the past few days on the beach in San Clemente. The recent stretch of picturesque Southern California afternoons has produced ideal conditions for the Tritons star to do some surfing with his buddies.
For Molnar and Allard, the past seven days have seemingly been the first time this summer that baseball has not been the priority in their schedule.
While the break has been a nice change of pace, two of the county’s most highly touted baseball players are chomping at the bit to return to the diamond.
They won’t have to wait long for that opportunity. Molnar and Allard headline a group of 31 Southern California players — including eight from Orange County — participating in this year’s Area Code Games in Long Beach.
“You’re playing with a lot of great guys out there,” said Molnar, who will be appearing in his second consecutive Area Code showcase. “In Southern California, we can play all year, so that’s an advantage for us. With all the competition on the field, you feed off the other guys’ talent and advice.”
Eight MLB teams representing eight regions nationwide annually host the elite showcase, which pits the best high school prospects in the country against one another in a six-day tournament. The first games are Monday at Blair Field.
The Milwaukee Brewers — the MLB’s So Cal representative — tried out 200 players from across the Southland over the last several weeks and selected their roster, which includes Brandon Perez (Mater Dei), Nick Meyer (Santa Margarita), Nick Sprengel (El Dorado), Patrick Sandoval (Mission Viejo), Marrick Crouse (Dana Hills) and Michael Flynn (Servite).
Of those local players selected, Molnar and Allard might be the two most familiar with one another. Aliso Niguel and San Clemente have played against one another eight times over the past three seasons, although the two ace pitchers have gone head-to-head on the mound just twice.
As Molnar quickly noted, “He got me once, and I got one win against him.”
“We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well these past couple of years,” the Wolverines right-hander added. “He’s really grown into a dominant pitcher. So whenever we pitch, it’s a pretty good matchup.”
Friendly rivals in years past, the duo will finally be teammates over the next several weeks, starting with the Area Code Games.
Following the week-long showcase, Molnar and Allard will head to San Diego to represent the West Team in the Perfect Game All-American Classic on Aug. 10 at Petco Park.
“It’ll be my first time playing on a big league field,” said Allard, who was one of 54 players selected nationally. “It’s a true blessing to go down and play with and against kids from all around the country. I’m just looking forward to meeting a lot of these guys and playing against the best in our class.”
A trip to Houston in late August will be one of the last trips Molnar and Allard make this summer, as both earned invitations to try out for USA Baseball’s 18U National Team.
Of the 44 players invited, only 20 will make the final roster and travel to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for the Pan American Championships in early Septmeber.
“You can’t really put any of these events in a specific order, because they’re all amazing opportunities,” Allard said. “But wearing USA across your chest would be something special.”
Starting with the Area Code Games, Molnar and Allard will begin to be evaluated at the highest level for the foreseeable future.
Both players have committed to UCLA, but that could change depending on where their names are called in the 2015 First-Year Player Draft.
As the Area Code Games promote, the next nine months essentially serve as a professional job interview for the best high school players in the country.
Fortunately for Molnar and Allard, they’re well rested.
Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com
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AREA CODE GAMES SCHEDULE
All games at Blair Field, Long Beach
Monday, Aug. 4
8-11 a.m.: Player evaluations
12:30 p.m.: Reds vs. White Sox
3:30 p.m.: Royals vs. A’s
6:30 p.m.: Rangers vs. Brewers
Tuesday, Aug. 5
8-11 a.m.: Player evaluations
12:30 p.m.: Yankees vs. Nationals
3:30 p.m.: A’s vs. Rangers
6:30 p.m.: Reds vs. Royals
Wednesday, Aug. 6
8 a.m.: Nationals vs. White Sox
11 a.m.: Brewers vs. Yankees
2 p.m.: Rangers vs. Reds
Thursday, Aug. 7 (ESPN3)
8 a.m.: Yankees vs. White Sox
11 a.m.: Nationals vs. Royals
2 p.m.: Brewers vs. A’s
5 p.m.: Nationals vs. Reds
8 p.m.: Home Run Derby
Friday, Aug. 8
8 a.m.: Brewers vs. Royals
11 a.m.: Nationals vs. Rangers
2 p.m.: Yankees vs. Reds
5 p.m.: A’s vs. White Sox
Saturday, Aug. 9
8 a.m.: A’s vs. Yankees
11 a.m.: Royals vs. Rangers
2 p.m.: Brewers vs. White Sox
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TEAMS COMPETING (Areas players are from)
White Sox (Midwest)
Reds (Four Corners, Hawaii)
Royals (Pacific Northwest)
Brewers (Southern California)
Yankees (Northeast)
A’s (Northern California)
Rangers (Texas, Louisiana)
Nationals (Southeast, Virginia)
