The 411 For June 2007

Gatorade National Baseball Player Of The Year: Rick Porcello New Jersey Standout Named Nation's Top High School Performer Past Winners Included Gary Sheffield And Alex Rodriguez

WEST ORANGE, N.J., May 31,2007 /PRNewswire/ -- In its third decade of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, Gatorade(R) Thirst Quencher, in partnership with RISE Magazine, today announced senior pitcher Rick Porcello of Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, New Jersey) as its 2006-07 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.

The award, which recognizes not only athletic performance, but also meeting high standards of academic achievement while demonstrating exemplary personal character on and off the field, distinguishes Porcello as the nation's best high school baseball player. A national advisory board comprised of sportswriters and sport-specific experts from around the country selected Porcello from more than 470,000 high school baseball players nationwide. Porcello is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Male High School Athlete of the Year Award, to be presented at a special ceremony the afternoon prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

At the time of his selection, the 6-foot-5, 200-pound senior right-hander with a mid 90s fastball and late-breaking curve was 8-0 with a 0.50 ERA, 96 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 56 innings. A 2006 Aflac All-American and a projected first-round pick in next month's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, Porcello has thrown five complete games in 2007, including a 77-pitch perfect game this season on May 12 against Newark Academy. Porcello helped lead the Pirates to a 28-1 record and the top spot in USA TODAY's Super 25 baseball rankings entering the New Jersey State Non-Public A postseason tournament, which began on May 29, 2007.

Porcello recently led the Pirates to a 5-1 victory over East Side High School in the Greater Newark Tournament championship game, limiting East Side to just five hits and one unearned run, and striking out 10 to give Seton Hall Prep its seventh GNT title since 1997. No slouch at the plate, Porcello has 38 hits, 10 doubles, 10 home runs, 46 RBIs, and a .470 average this season.

Porcello has maintained a 3.94 GPA in the classroom. He is a member of both the National Honor Society and the Spanish National Honor Society and serves as a volunteer youth coach at local baseball camps and clinics.

"Rick has such a high level of poise and maturity on the mound," said Seton Hall Prep head coach Mike Sheppard. "He doesn't get rattled, no matter who he's facing and no matter what the situation is. He's the consummate hard-worker and his greatest attribute, honestly, is his personal makeup. He possesses tremendous integrity and humility."

Porcello will attend the University of North Carolina on a baseball scholarship this fall, pending the outcome of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft next month.

"Without question, Rick is deserving of recognition as the nation's best high school boys baseball player based on his statistics on the field and the impact his play had on Seton Hall Prep's success," said Gatorade Senior Vice President of Sports Marketing Jeff Urban. "But he is also a shining example to peers and aspiring young players of what a leader and a student-athlete should be. He represents everything we hope for in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

The Gatorade Player of the Year program recognizes one winner in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in football, girls volleyball, boys and girls soccer, boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field. The selection process is administered by RISE Magazine, which works with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information and lists of past winners and future announcement dates, visit http://www.gatorade.com/playeroftheyear.

     ALL-TIME GATORADE NATIONAL BASEBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR HONOREES

   Year       Name        High School/Location       Status


  2006-07 Rick Porcello     Seton Hall Prep/West Orange,NJ  High School Senior
                            
  2005-06 Clayton Kershaw   Highland Park/Dallas,TX   Los Angeles Dodgers Org.
                           
  2004-05 Justin Upton   Great Bridge/Chesapeake,VA  Arizona Diamondbacks Org.
                            
  2003-04 Mark Rogers       Mt. Ararat/Topsham, ME  Milwaukee Brewers Org.
                            
  2002-03 Chris Lubanski  Kennedy-Kenrick Catholic/Norristown,PA  KC Royals Org.
                             
  2001-02 Zack Greinke      Apopka/Apoka, FL    Kansas City Royals
                             
  2000-01 Casey Kotchman    Seminole/Seminole, FL    Anaheim Angels
                            
  1999-00 Jason Stokes      Coppell/Coppell,TX     Florida Marlins Org.
                            
  1998-99 B.J. Garbe    Moses Lake/Moses Lake, WA  Minnesota Twins Org.
                             
  1997-98 Drew Henson      Brighton/Brighton, MI    Dallas Cowboys
                            
  1996-97 Darnell McDonald  Cherry Creek/Englewood,CO   Tampa Bay Devil Rays Org.
                           
  1995-96 Matt White    Waynesboro/Waynesboro, PA    Tampa Bay Devil Rays Org.

  1994-95 Chad Hutchinson   Torrey Pines/San Diego,CA      Retired

  1993-94 Doug Million      Sarasota/Sarasota,FL     Deceased

  1992-93 Alex Rodriguez    Westminster Christian/Miami,FL   NY Yankees

  1991-92 A.J. Hinch  Midwest City/Midwest City,OK  Arizona Diamondbacks Mgmt.
                            
  1990-91 Brian Barber      Dr. Phillips/Orlando,FL       Retired
                            
  1989-90 Todd VanPoppel    James Martin/Arlington,TX       Retired

  1988-89 Jeff Jackson      Simeon/Chicago,IL        Retired
                            
  1987-88 Mark Lewis        Hamilton/Hamilton,OH          Retired

  1986-87 Willie Banks      St. Anthony's/Jersey City,NJ     Retired

  1985-86 Gary Sheffield    Hillsborough/Tampa,FL       Detroit Tigers