Showtime for Del Rio and Merced County all-stars

There will be plenty of talent on the field during the sixth annual Merced County All-Star Baseball Game on Saturday night at Merced College.

Players like Atwater shortstop Derek Molina, who is headed to Cal State Northridge on a baseball scholarship, will be playing for the North.

Merced High’s Mitchell Miller, who was the Central California Conference Pitcher of the Year and will be a walk-on at UC Irvine, will suit up for the South.

However, if you’re looking for that one player with the “wow” factor, it’s Dos Palos’ Efrain Del Rio. The Broncos’ 6-foot-7, 295-pound star has put on a show in the past.

Del Rio was named the South MVP in the past two all-star games after hitting a home run in each game. He hit .505 with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs this spring for Dos Palos and was named the West Sierra League MVP.

“I play travel ball with him, and he’s a really good ballplayer,” El Capitan’s Tyler Skelton said. “He can change the game with one swing of the bat. Every game we play, everyone stops to watch every swing he takes because we want to watch him hit a home run.”

This will be the fourth time Del Rio has played in the Merced County game, joining former Le Grand star Carlo Del Real as the only four-time participants.

“I’ve learned that it’s always a good game,” Del Rio said. “I like it because you get to mess around with players from the other teams. Getting to know so many other players is a great experience.”

The North will be have players from Buhach Colony, Atwater, Livingston, Los Banos, Pacheco, Gustine and Hilmar.

It includes Molina, who hit a home run in last year’s game and hit .459 with two home runs and 19 RBIs this spring for the Falcons.

Omar Sanchez and Jesus Duran will also represent Atwater on the North along with Buhach Colony’s Andrew Mitchel, Kory Woods, Julian Sandoval and Mike Casso.

The South will have players from Merced, Golden Valley, El Capitan, Mariposa, Le Grand, Dos Palos and Sonora.

The Bears have five representatives in Miller, Armando Flores, Nick Camper, Evan Hanneman and Lawrence Anderson. Also suiting up for the South will be Golden Valley’s Tanner Browning and the El Capitan trio of Skelton, Braiden Ward and Sammy Mora.

This is the first time the Gauchos will have players in the game after their first varsity season.

“Hopefully we can create a foundation for the future years,” Skelton said.

The offense dominated in last year’s game with the North winning 11-9. The teams combined for 22 hits.

“Hopefully the pitchers will get their revenge because that’s what side I’m on,” Miller said. “Both sides have pretty good lineups with good hitters scattered throughout. It should be a fun game.”

A group of players will be selected from the game to represent Merced County in a contest next Saturday against Stanislaus County’s all-stars at Merced College.

This story was originally published June 12, 2015 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Showtime for Del Rio and Merced County all-stars."