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Baseball brackets released, multiple teams to host first round playoff games
Kayleb Amaya and Ian Kohen Hilmar
Hilmar's Kayleb Amaya (#2) and Ian Kohen (#5) celebrated after the Yellowjackets extended their lead over Hughson in an eventual 7-6 win on Tuesday, April 17, 2025 (ALEX MORALES/The Journal).
Christopher Correa
Turlock Journal
Published: May 5, 2025, 12:33 AM

Five baseball teams from the Turlock Journal’s coverage area are bound for the postseason, which gets underway this week. 

On Saturday afternoon, the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section released brackets for all seven divisions, revealing that two local squads will open the first round at home, while another pair will pack their bags for road games. One, meanwhile, has the early half of the week off with a first-round bye.

The action begins Tuesday, with Trans-Valley League foes Hughson and Hilmar each hosting first round games in the Division V bracket.

Near the top of the bracket are the Huskies, who went 11-1 in the TVL to claim their second straight title. They went 23-5 overall to earn the second seed, and will host No. 15 Ben Holt College Prep Academy, a program out of Stockton who went 9-7 overall, including a 5-5 record in the Central California Athletic Alliance.

Handing Hughson their lone league loss was that aforementioned Hilmar team, who will enter the playoffs as the division’s No. 6 seed. The Yellowjackets went 17-4 overall and tied for second in the TVL standings at 9-3 alongside Escalon, whom they split with in mid-March. The first round will bring in Sacramento’s Destiny Christian Academy to town. The No. 11 Lions achieved a 16-13-1 record in the regular season, and finished fifth in the Golden Empire League at 10-11.

Wednesday is when the higher divisions will kick off their tournaments.

Up in Division I, a dominant 14-1 run en route to their second consecutive Central California Athletic League championship was not enough for Turlock to earn a home game. After a 19-6-1 overall record, the Bulldogs were given the tenth seed, meaning they’ll open on the road in Sacramento against No. 7 McClatchy. These Lions were 13-2 against opponents in the Metropolitan Conference and 22-6 overall.

Division II is where Pitman landed, securing an at-large berth despite a tough season in the CCAL in which they finished fifth at 6-9. Two spots out from an automatic bid to the postseason, the Pride, 11-15 overall, maintained their No. 15 spot in the MaxPreps’s divisional rankings to qualify. Also 15th in their bracket, the Pride will now take the long trip to Rockling to face No. 2 Whitney. The Wildcats sported a 19-8 overall record in the regular season, and were a runner-up to Rocklin High in the Sierra Foothill League at 12-5.

Afforded the opportunity to relax and reset in the first half of the week is Turlock Christian, who are the top seed in Division VII. With a 7-3 record in the Central California Athletic Alliance and an overall record of 13-5, the Eagles will sit out Tuesday’s first round and will instead open their playoff run in the quarterfinals on Thursday at Pedretti Park. They will await the winner of Tuesday’s contest between No. 8 Big Valley Christian of Modesto (5-15-1 overall, 3-12 Mother Lode League) and No. 9 Sacramento Country Day (3-9 overall, 2-8 Sacramento Metropolitan Athletic League).

All games this week are scheduled for a 4 p.m first pitch, though the time of Turlock Christian’s game on Thursday at Pedretti Park remains subject to change.