What to expect from the 2026 Walnut Creek Crawdads

Coming off of a 2025 season that saw the Crawdads go 25-19, making the CCL North Championship, the bats will need to stay active for another run to the postseason.

Scoring 283 runs, the 2025 Crawdads went on a couple of impressive scoring runs. After starting 0-3, Walnut Creek won eight games in a row, scoring double digits in half to wipe out the unfortunate start. The Crawdads saw similar success at the back end of the year as well. Winning the final five regular-season games and the CCL North Divisional Round, the team drove in 40 runs in the six-game stretch. 

Of the 2025 team, three batters will be making their way back to Walnut Creek: Ryan Ellis, Kam Taylor and Brandon Clizbe. 

The impact of returners is without a doubt high. In the eyes of Crawdads assistant general manager Charlie Limoncelli, they'll be important both on and off the field.

"Returners are key culture setters, they know how to play the game the way Manager Brant Cummings demands of his rosters," Limoncelli said. "That includes integrity, toughness, and hustle. Returners really help gel the dugout together too, they're really invaluable because they teach the new guys how to fit in. On the diamond, returning production has been a staple of Crawdads' success."

The three driving in a 92 of the Crawdad's 228 runs in 2025, an important amount of Walnut Creek's offensive production will be back on the roster for this season. 

For Walnut Creek general manager Austin Ota, the regular season performance from the group of returners will help bring their production back to the Crawdads.

"The biggest thing for me about our two returners on the offensive end is how they parlayed their success in the Creek to the Division I level," Ota said. "In Ellis' second year with the Crawdads in 2023, he followed with an incredible season in 2024 at UT Arlington. You can say the same thing about him last season, and with Clizbe at NMSU. It's easy to kind of fall asleep during the summer ball season, but we've had a huge line of success of guys that didn't play a ton at the four year level before they played for us, then had great summers and had terrific success the following year."

Not only will the Crawdads be returning production, but they're set to bring in a group of important newcomers as well.

Of the newcomers, four players hit over .300 in their last collegiate seasons: Daniel Polasek, Shane Aldridge, Alijah Ramos and Sutter Moss.

Moss, a sophomore outfielder at Delta College, hit .366 with 10 home runs in 2025 but missed spring of 2026, looks to continue producing in the CCL. 

Meanwhile at UC Irvine, outfielder Polasek hit .330 in the 24 games he played in his junior season for the Anteaters. 

Up north, infielder Peyton Rowles played all 51 games for San Jose State, batting .332 with 39 RBIs as a freshman for the Spartans.

Ramos, a junior infielder at Cal State East Bay, hit .342 with 14 RBIs in his 22 games in 2026.

In the Big 12, sophomore outfielder Dylan Perez bat .232 for Baylor in a season that saw the Bears go 29-27, nearly upsetting Kansas in the Big 12 tournament, a game Perez recorded an RBI in.

The impact of guys who play their college ball at Division I schools is hard to ignore. For Ota, he looks to the past for evidence of their importance.  

"One of the really cool things about taking guys from the Division I level is, even if they haven't played much, they're still facing quality competition in practices and inter squads," Ota said. "I remember Kavares Tears, who played for us in 2022 and ended up being a fourth round pick in 2024 by the Padres, talking to me about facing guys like Ben Joyce and Chase Dollander at Tennessee. So you've got a guy like Bryden Bull, who hasn't played this season, but has live at-bats against guys like Hudson Calhoun and Cade Townsend and I think that will translate well." 

The Crawdads' plethora of pitching depth should help them succeed in 2026. The Crawdads posted a 4.18 team ERA in 2025. 

The California Collegiate League sees its challenges; for Walnut Creek, it's the influx of new talent gelling together quickly. Only right-handed pitchers, senior Kody Perry and junior Noah Zirkle, return for Walnut Creek. Perry will suit up for his third season with Walnut Creek while Zirkle gets ready for year four. 

Among the familiar faces of Zirkle and Perry are many new faces, some of whom will look to make immediate impacts in 2026. 

"I am really excited about our pitching staff," Walnut Creek general manager Austin Ota said. "I think it is the biggest area we have grown over the past handful of seasons … It is a part of the team that coach (Brant) Cummings has worked to address."

Sacramento State rising sophomore, right-hander Devin James, looks poised to be the Friday starter. The 6-foot-6 right-hander from Orangevale, California, has lit up the WAC conference, posting a 3.78 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. James' inning max has been three and pitch count max was 39. 

"Devin James is a guy I think could be special," Ota said. "It is not often you see 6-foot-6 guys with a good feel for the strike zone, especially as a freshman, but James has that."

James shouldn't have much issue stretching out to be a starter for the Crawdads in 2026. Despite a strong K:BB rate in high school, James has struggled to find that same consistency at the collegiate level. He has allowed 10 walks and struck out 13 across 16.2 innings. 

Current sophomore right-handed pitcher, Miles Tenscher, did not play for California this season. His funky sidearm pitch motion can be daunting for most hitters. 

The 6-foot-1 right-hander pitched much better than the numbers show as a member of the Golden Bears in 2025. The ACC pitcher recorded an 8.31 ERA, 1.846 WHIP across just 8.2 innings.

Excluding his four-run allowed performance against Santa Clara, Tenscher would have had a 4.32 ERA across 8.1 innings. 

Tenscher does not allow much contact. He surrendered just four hits, half the number of batters he struck out in 2025. As with James, Tenscher needs to limit his walks and work on his command. He allowed 12 walks, hit two batters and had four wild pitches in 2025. 

If Walnut Creek can play the matchup game and help Tenscher hone his skills command-wise, his funky motion should play in the CCL. 

Rising sophomore right-handed pitcher Hudson Aber did not pitch much for UC Santa Barbara in 2026. The 6-foot-2 righty stayed in-state after high school. 

Across 2.2 innings, Aber allowed two hits, two walks and struck out two. Aber is slated to be the Sunday starter for Walnut Creek. 

"Aber is a hometown guy who is going to start on Sundays in front of friends and families," Walnut Creek assistant general manager and director of broadcasting Charlie Limoncelli said. "He comes from a proven pitching academy, which gave us top-end starters Ray Olivas and Carson Timothy, who played crucial roles for the Crawdads."

UC Santa Barbara has produced former Cy Young award winners, such as Shane Bieber, and top draft picks such as Tyler Bremner, who went second overall to the Los Angeles Angels in the 2025 MLB Draft. Aber will look to be the next product out of UC Santa Barbara's pitching factory, starting with a great summer with the Crawdads. 

The Crawdads will face rivals Sonoma four times across June, with the first bout set on the road Friday, June 5, 2026, at 6:05 p.m. PDT. 

Other notable opponents are San Luis Obispo Blues, whom Walnut Creek defeated 10-4 in the North Division Wildcard, and the Alameda Merchants, who defeated Walnut Creek numerous times in 2025.