Gatorade 2019 - 2020: Player of the Year

Baseball - North Carolina

athletes playing Baseball
The POY Logo
BASEBALL

Ryan Clifford

Outfielder/first baseman
LEESVILLE ROAD HS
RALEIGH , NORTH CAROLINA
SOPHOMORE
Height: 6-FOOT-3
Press Release

Peak Performance

0.692

2020 batting average

12

RBI

1.692

Slugging percentage

0.526

2019 on-base percentage
“Even with all the hype about him, Ryan goes out and works every single day. At practice, I hit him fly balls and ground balls until he hardly can’t breathe anymore. After that he goes and hits. He stops practice sometimes (with his long drives). People walking by the field stop and watch him take batting practice.”
Jake Jones
Head Coach - Head coach of Leesville Road High
excellence star

Athletic Excellence

The 6-foot-3, 210-pound sophomore outfielder and first baseman is ranked as the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2022 by Prep Baseball Report and No. 2 by Baseball America. The lone member of the USA Baseball 17U National Development Team from the Class of 2022, Clifford is a two-time gold medalist with USA Baseball youth teams. In four games this spring with Leesville Road, Clifford posted a .692 batting average with 10 runs scored, 12 RBI, three home runs and a 1.692 slugging percentage before the season was cancelled. As a freshman, he hit four home runs, drew 23 walks in 21 games and posted a .526 on-base percentage.

a graduation cap

Academic Achievement

Clifford has maintained a 3.95 GPA in the classroom. He will begin his junior year of high school this fall.

first place ribbon

Exemplary Character

Clifford has volunteered locally as part of community beautification projects and as a youth baseball coach. He has also donated his time at WakeMed Children’s Hospital.