XCEL
BASEBALL & SOFTBALL
10714 Reagan Street Unit A Los Alamitos, CA 90720
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INDOOR BATTING & PRACTICE FACILITY
INSTRUCTORS
Casey Snow
Casey Snow played for the Dirtbags of Long Beach State from 1994 to 1996. In 1996, Casey was a 15th round draft pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers. During his professional career, he played five seasons with the Dodgers and Cleveland Indians organizations advancing as high as triple-A. Casey has a Bachelor's Degree in Kinesiology. In addition to co-owning and operating XCEL Baseball, Casey is a Long Beach local and a Battalion Chief for a municipal Fire Department.
Neil Sauerheber
Neil Sauerheber is a Long Beach local, former Lakewood Lancer, Long Beach City College Viking (1992 to 1994), Cal State Dominguez Hills Toro (1994 to 1995), and Long Beach State Dirtbag (1995 to 1996). Since 2004, Neil has been coaching varsity softball at Lakewood High School. In addition to being a baseball and softball hitting instructor at XCEL Baseball, Neil is a physical education and math teacher at Newcomb Academy.
Joe McGrath
Joe McGrath graduated from Wilson high school with 3 years of varsity experience as a catcher and utility player. He graduated in 2021 as the valedictorian of his class, and is currently enrolled at Golden West College. Joe started training players at XCEL under the direction of XCEL instructor, Rodney Davis, and now specializes in teaching all baseball fundamentals. Joe is looking forward to sharing his knowledge, and helping players achieve their goals.
JJ Newkirk
JJ Newkirk was a 19th round draft pick of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1994 but opted to go to Long Beach State. He played for the Dirtbags from 1995 to 1997. In 1997 he was the Big West scholar athlete of the year and then went on to get drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 49th round. JJ spent 3 seasons in the White Sox organization. In addition to co-owning and operating XCEL Baseball, JJ is a physical education teacher and department chair at Will Rogers Middle School.
Rodney Davis
Rodney Davis has over 3 decades of experience coaching at the professional, collegiate, high school, amateur and youth levels. He has 20 years scouting and coaching in major league baseball. He also coached a season of softball at UCLA helping them to a national semi-final appearance at the WCWS. He played professionally in the LA Dodgers organization and collegiately at Fresno State. He is a graduate of Paramount High School.
Tyler Tran
Tyler Tran attended Pacifica high school where he was a two-year varsity baseball player as a catcher. He graduated in 2021 and was an Empire League champion in 2021. Tyler is currently a student-athlete at Occidental College where he is studying economics looking to earn his bachelor's degree. He has over 5 years of coaching knowledge as he worked with baseball athletes in 1 on 1 sessions before attending college. Tyler looks forward to working with young baseball athletes in teaching them the fundamentals of hitting and catching.
Dylan Taguiam
Dylan Taguiam is a local product out of St John Bosco High School where he was a four-year varsity player, and an All Trinity League selection twice. He has continued his baseball career at Golden West College where he is earning his Associate’s Degree. Dylan spent the past seven years training at XCEL and developing as a player, and is now part of our instructional staff. He specializes in teaching hitting, catching, and fielding to players who are ready to XCEL.
James Acuna
James Acuna is a graduate of Cypress High School where he was a three time all Empire League selection and was named Empire League Pitcher of the Year in 2016. He pitched for the University of Oregon from 2016-2018, and pitched in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2018. James transferred to Azusa Pacific University, and was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 2019 draft. He is currently in the Brave’s Minor League System and is working towards his Bachelor’s Degree in Leadership. He is excited to use his knowledge and experience to develop pitchers at XCEL!
Iyari Ramirez
Iyari Ramirez attended Godinez High School where she was the varsity catcher for four years. At Godinez, she was first team all-league, a scholar athlete, and CIF Champion. Yari then attended Santa Ana College where she was the starting catcher while obtaining her AA Degree. She is currently the catcher at Westcliffe University where she is working towards her Bachelor’s Degree in Education. Her career goal is to become a high school math teacher, and her goal at XCEL is to help girls become strong and confident softball players.
Gannon Delacruz
Gannon Delacruz attended Millikan High School where he was a three-year varsity baseball player. During his high school career he was a CIF Champion, an all Moore League selection, and was also a member of the Press Telegram’s “Dream Team.” Gannon is currently a student-athlete at Long Beach City College where he is studying business. He specializes in teaching hitting and fielding fundamentals, and is looking forward to sharing his knowledge of the game with players who are ready to XCEL.
Isaak Gutierrez
Isaak attended St. John Bosco High School out of Bellflower, CA for 3 years and then transferred to Cypress High School for his final year, where he was a 4-year varsity player. He represented the USA national Team from 2011-2013, with a record of 20-0 in national play. Isaak attended Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, FL, where he graduated with a degree in Business administration. Isaak is excited to bring his knowledge and experience to help develop pitchers and hitters at XCEL.
Rainer Gahagan
Rainer Gahagan attended Heritage Christian Academy where he was a three year varsity baseball player. During his highschool career he was a two time state finalist, 2021 & 2022 All State Team, 2021 & 2022 1st Team All State, 2021 & 2022 Team MVP, 2021 & 2022 All State Game MVP, and 2021 TCAF Player of the year. Rainer is currently a student athlete at East Los Angeles College where he is studying Kinesiology. He specializes in hitting, and fielding fundamentals both in the infield and outfield. He is looking forward to sharing his knowledge and experience to every player.
