Preseason All-813Preps Watchlist: Catchers

As part of our preseason interactions with head coaches in our yearly survey, we asked each coach for one player from their team and any from outside their program for our preseason All-813Preps watchlist.

Any player that received two or more mentions earned a spot on our watchlist.

We start our coverage with one of, if not THE deepest talent-pools by position this year – those who don the tools of ignorance, the field general, the backstop – take a look at the top catchers according to area coaches for the upcoming season.

Brody Bellomo, Cambridge Christian

Class: 2025, Georgia Southwestern State signee
Breakdown: Bellomo, a 2024 All-813Preps first teamer and a 2023 second team selection, had 29 hits (.419 avg) last year for the Lancers, hitting 10 doubles and five home runs, while driving in 21 and scoring 24 times. Providing leadership for a private school team that had more 8th graders and freshmen than it did upperclassmen, Bellomo was the dependable piece that the Lancers will again rely heavily on. A Georgia Southwestern State signee, Bellomo is on pace to set multiple hitting records at CCS.

Coach’s Take: “Brody is a tremendous leader, he was one of two returning players last year and has done anything and everything to help our program. With the team being so young, he has taken our guys under his wing and has helped our program become better now and into the future. Plus, he absolutely rakes and can hit with power to all fields. A coach’s dream player to have when taking over a program.” – Lancers coach John DiBenedetto

Nicholas Brown, King

Class: 2026
Breakdown: The younger of King’s brother duo (along with senior 3B Nico Brown), Nicholas Brown paced the Lions offense last season, batting .403 (31 hits) with five doubles and 14 RBI. He did a solid job managing King’s pitching staff as a sophomore and Coach Mac expects he will take a big leap forward in his junior campaign after a strong commitment to improving his game in the summer and fall.

Coach’s Take: “Nicholas was our leading hitter last year, who took a big step in the fall to become an even better hitter. He has a world of untapped potential. We are really going to be counting on him for production this season, and expect him to continue to do a good job behind the plate.” – Lions coach Jim Macaluso

Brady Capps, Robinson

Class: 2025, Colby College (Waterville, ME) signee
Breakdown: As we mentioned above, last season’s All-813 selections at catcher were some of the hardest decisions we had to make. Capps, an All-813Preps second team selection in 2024, had a monster season for the Knights, hitting .462 (37 hits), with 17 RBI and nine doubles. We got a bit of a glimpse of his power late in the season when he belted his first home run at Plant City, and hope to see more of that this spring. He is excellent behind the plate with a strong arm.

Coach’s Take: “Brady Capps is a game-changing player on the field but what’s more impressive is his natural ability to lead our program, model championship character, and excel academically. He is truly the total package.” – Knights coach Alex Barron

Vincent DeCarlo, Jesuit

Class: 2025, North Carolina State signee
Breakdown: Jesuit was stacked last year and DeCarlo’s impact cannot be overstated. He is a natural leader with an indefatigable contagious positive attitude. He absolutely brings it every time he steps on the field. His 20 RBI last season for the state champion Tigers ranked second on the team behind All-813Preps MVP Noah Sheffield, and he hit .301 with four doubles and one home run. He also handled a stellar pitching staff that posted a team 2.33 ERA.

Coach’s Take: “Vincent is such a great leader. Our guys follow him and he leads by being one of the hardest workers we have.” – Jesuit coach Miguel Menendez

Vinny Dinzeo Jr., Bloomingdale

Class: 2025, Indian River State College signee
Breakdown: Below this blurb you’ll hear Coach Wilken call Dinzeo the most consistent catcher in his tenure at Bloomingdale. We’ll double-down on that and call Dinzeo the most consistent catcher we saw all of last season. His All-813 First Team campaign last year including 31 RBI and a .293 average, and he was a huge part of the Bulls run to the state semifinals. He will get plenty of at-bats this year, slotted into the leadoff spot right now, and we expect him to be near the top of the home run leaderboard at year’s end – with a little foreshadowing in his first preseason at-bat dinger on Monday.

Coach’s Take: “Vinny is as consistent a defensive catcher as we’ve had here and we know we can also count on him to consistently put together good at bats every night.” – Bulls coach Kris Wilken

Samuel Fernandez, Alonso

Class: 2025, Stetson commit
Breakdown: Fernandez returns behind the dish for the Ravens after leading the team with 18 RBI a season ago. He batted .299 last year with five doubles and three home runs, and is a four-year varsity player with a career .326 average in 54 games. His improvement behind the plate was noticeable from start to finish last year, and Ravens skipper Landy Faedo says he has put in the work to improve even more.

Coach’s Take: “Sammy is one of the top catchers in the state. He is an A+ character person, who is hard working and driven to be the best he can be, and he is a great teammate.” – Ravens coach Landy Faedo

Mikie Locke, Lennard

Class: 2026
Breakdown: As a sophomore a season ago, Locke’s offensive production took a dip from his solid freshman campaign. But his role behind the plate was invaluable for the Longhorns. Lennard coach Vic Martinez said he was a tireless worker this offseason and it has paid off in a big way. The Longhorns lost some significant graduates from 2024, but Locke is someone Martinez is confident in to show his teammates how to get things done.

Coach’s Take: “Mikie’s experience behind the plate as a three-year starter for us will be crucial for our success. He is a team captain and I am looking for him to have a good year at and behind the plate. He shows up every day and is probably the hardest worker on our team. He sets the example that everyone else follows.” – Lennard coach Vic Martinez