Esperanza pitcher Gavin Lizik commits to play baseball at Cal State Northridge

Esperanza senior Gavin Lizik was the ace of the staff. (File photo Fernando M. Donado, For OC Sports Zone)

Esperanza High right-handed pitcher Gavin Lizik announced on Twitter Sunday that he has committed to play for Cal State Northridge and new head coach Dave Serrano.

“I think it’s a great spot for him, especially with Dave Serrano being at the helm there and being a great pitching coach in addition to being a great head coach that’s going to be a great landing spot for him,” said Esperanza Coach Kyle Muhlsteff.

“I think he’s going to do very well there and Coach Serrano is going to be a great mentor for him on the mound. They’re a Division 1 school and I think Serrano is gradually going to build that up to a very excellent baseball program.”

Lizik had gotten interest from other Division 1 schools, including San Jose State and Cal State Fullerton and a number of other junior college programs, Muhlsteff said.

“Gavin wanted to play at a Division 1 school, he had his sites set on it the entire year and I honestly can’t believe he lasted this long with nobody picking him up,” Muhlsteff said. “I think he’s very deserving of it and it’s going to be a great spot for him to develop as a pitcher.”

Lizik, a second team all-league player was the Aztecs’ number one starter this past season and “he had a great year,” Muhlsteff said.

Lizik had 71 strikeouts with a 1.50 ERA with five complete games and seven wins.

Lizik has great command of his pitchers, Muhlsteff said.

“He has great velocity, he’s 6-2 and about 170 pounds, so he’s got a great frame for a pitcher with room to fill out so he could easily put 25 to 30 pounds on his frame,” the coach said. “His fastball right now is probably 86 to 87 with the potential to be in the low 90s as he matures. He’s got a great change-up and a good slider and he can throw all of them for strikes and his ball moves a lot.

“He’s very composed out there and he’s also a fierce competitior. He wants to win badly and he just continues to get better. Off the field, he’s a great student and a very humble kid, he knows what he wants, he’s very goal driven. He’s a baseball player who is only going to get better. He was very fun to coach. He’s a great kid and I loved being around him and I loved coaching him.”

Muhlsteff said he believes Lizik has a bright future.

“He’s going to be a guy, who in a few years, it would not surprise me whatsoever if he gets some looks from professiomal scouts for sure.”

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com