Outcome of the Playoffs Is Crystal Clear to Him

It’s time for Swami Sondheimer to provide guidance on the teams to beat in the Southern Section baseball playoffs:

DIVISION I

Seeded teams: 1. Lakewood (24-6), 2. Huntington Beach (17-9), 3. Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley (19-6-1), 4. Riverside Poly (20-5).

Storyline: A year ago, Lakewood was one of the favorites to win the Division I title, only to be ousted in the second round because of an illegal pregame batting practice. The Lancers are seeking redemption. Pitchers Danny Johnson and Justin Wheeler have earned-run averages under 1.50. Mike Carp (.446) and Aljay Davis (.495) are the top hitters. Capistrano Valley, with Jason Corder and Kevin Stedman, and Huntington Beach, with Colin Balester and Nathan Keadle, have the necessary pitching to reach Dodger Stadium. Claremont, a second-place team, has a rising young standout in 6-foot-5 third baseman Chad Gross, a sophomore who’s batting .432.

Hot hitter: Joe Spiers of Moreno Valley Canyon Springs had a 46-game hitting streak over two seasons and is batting .495.

Hot pitcher: Junior Trevor Bell of Crescenta Valley is healthy and throwing strikes.

Upset candidate: La Puente Bishop Amat finished second in the tough Serra League. Pitcher Steve Martlaro had wins over Santa Margarita (twice), Santa Ana Mater Dei and Anaheim Servite.

Prediction: Capistrano Valley.

DIVISION II

Seeded teams: 1. Villa Park (24-2), 2. Valencia (19-7), 3. Anaheim Canyon (18-8), 4. Ventura Buena (21-4).

Storyline: This is the toughest division in the playoffs. There are so many top pitchers that extra-inning games ought to be standard fare by the quarterfinals. Phil Hughes of Santa Ana Foothill, Mark Trumbo of Villa Park, Brian Stevens of Buena, Jared Clark of Valencia, Nick Casanova of Canyon and Fred Vasquez of Santa Barbara are just a few of the exceptional pitchers. Villa Park has the easiest draw to reach the final. The Spartans got lucky when Foothill was moved out of their bracket because it finished second in the Sea View League. A Hughes-Casanova matchup is looming in the quarterfinals.

Hot hitter: Junior infielder Eddie Murray of Cerritos Gahr is batting .593.

Hot pitcher: Sophomore right-hander Jake Rodriguez of Whittier is 9-0 with 90 strikeouts and throws above 90 mph.

Upset candidate: Simi Valley was 12-2 in nonleague games, has excellent pitching depth and comes from the Marmonte League, which produced last year’s champion, Thousand Oaks.

Prediction: Villa Park.

DIVISION III

Seeded teams: 1. Encino Crespi (23-4), 2. Covina South Hills (19-5), 3. El Segundo (21-7), 4. Santa Ana Valley (20-4-1).

Storyline: There’s a small window of opportunity for teams to knock off top-seeded Crespi, but it won’t happen when Trevor Plouffe is pitching. A probable first-round draft choice, Plouffe (9-1) is prepared to pitch the maximum 10 innings each week to get the Celts to Dodger Stadium. That means opponents must focus on beating No. 2 pitcher Mike Gilmartin (8-1), who was Crespi’s playoff savior last season and will be asked to win two playoff games. Coach Scott Muckey knows Crespi’s strength is pitching and weakness is hitting. “If we throw five shutouts, we’ll go far,” he said. Cypress (18-8), the Empire League champion, has excellent hitting and a top pitcher in Zack Wesley.

Hot hitter: Sophomore Jordan Lowe of Palm Desert is batting .537.

Hot pitcher: Fresno State-bound Brandon Mozley of La Puente Nogales has 95 strikeouts in 71 innings.

Upset candidate: Westminster, a semifinalist last season, has nonleague victories over Valencia, Mission Viejo, Lakewood and Riverside Arlington. Blake Torgerson is 8-2 and might be the second-best pitcher in the division behind Plouffe.

Prediction: Crespi.

DIVISION IV

Seeded teams: 1. Westminster La Quinta (25-1-1), 2. Santa Fe Springs St. Paul (23-6), 3. Newport Harbor Corona del Mar (20-5), 4. Temple City (20-3-1).

Storyline: When Ian Kennedy and Ian Stewart graduated last year, La Quinta was supposed to become an average team. Hardly. With the one-two pitching duo of Adam Jorgenson (10-0) and Brandon Laird (9-0), La Quinta is the surest candidate to win another championship. St. Paul has pitcher Steve Salas (8-1) and football standout Dwight Tardy, who’s batting .395. Corona del Mar could be the most dangerous challenger because of USC-bound pitcher Todd Macklin.

Hot hitter: Mike Zuanich of Torrance Bishop Montgomery has 45 hits and a .577 average.

Hot pitcher: Junior right-hander Ryan Tucker of Temple City is 9-0 and has a 92-mph fastball.

Upset candidate: North Torrance, the Pioneer League champion, has a quality pitcher in Kenny Campos and could meet La Quinta in the quarterfinals.

Prediction: La Quinta.

DIVISION V

Seeded teams: 1. Pasadena Poly (18-2), 2. Vasquez (21-3), 3. Lancaster Paraclete (15-9), 4. Riverside Woodcrest Christian (18-6).

Storyline: The rumors had been coming out since the fall that Poly had a left-handed freshman pitcher ready to contribute immediately. Rob Rasmussen has exceeded expectations, compiling a 12-0 record. He and senior shortstop Bobby Bowman, the Prep League most valuable player, are a tough combination to beat. Paraclete won the Olympic League, the strongest in the division, so don’t underestimate the Spirits.

Hot hitter: Sophomore Bradley Kostopoulos of Boron, a 6-2, 240-pound first baseman, has seven home runs.

Hot pitcher: Junior Ryan McCarney of Vasquez is 7-1 with 82 strikeouts.

Upset candidate: Ontario Christian.

Prediction: Poly.

DIVISION VI

Seeded teams: 1. Joshua Springs (16-3), 2. Upland Christian (17-3), 3. Big Pine (20-2), 4. Maricopa (16-5).

Storyline: With the price of gas well above $2 a gallon, there will be lots of long, expensive bus drives for teams that keep winning in this division. Joshua Springs, 30 miles north of Palm Springs, has an excellent two-way player in senior Nathan Rynning. Big Pine has shown it’s more than a destination for skiing after 20 wins in the regular season. Freshman shortstop Zac Yancey of Fullerton Eastside Christian is batting .571 with 36 runs batted in.

Hot hitter: Donny Florer of Wildomar Cornerstone Christian is hitting .723 (34 of 47).

Hot pitcher: Freshman Andrew Carpenter of Upland Christian is 7-0.

Upset candidate: Riverside Christian.

Prediction: Joshua Springs.

Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.