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On every scout's itinerary: for Prior and other Southern California products, the show started in high school. (Insider: baseball).
By almost anyone's standards, Mark Prior is having a dynamite rookie season. He has a 3.65 ERA, a better than 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and--despite playing for the lowly Cubs--winning record (4-3). Given his baseball roots, his success is no surprise.
Prior, 21, played high school baseball in southern California, a region that has produced many current major leaguers. On August 1,125 players--one out of every six--had origins in southern California.
It's been that way for years--from Ted Williams to Tony Gwynn to Nomar Garciaparra. In the last decade, the region has continued to churn out high-profile players, such as Jason Giambi, Bret Boone and Troy Claus. Prior was a teammate of the A's Barry Zito for a season at University of San Diego High School.
More than a dozen major leaguers, including Eric Chavez and Jacque Jones, grew up in the San Diego area. ...