Austin Voth was selected for the Area Code Baseball Washington Nationals team playing at Blair Field in Long Beach, California.  This year's eight Area Code teams -- with rosters that include players from around the nation -- marked the 23rd year of the Area Code Games. 

What started out in 1985 as small regional event in Lodi, Calif., has grown into one of the the highest regarded high school talent tournaments in the country.   The premise is to have the top players compete against each other using wood bats wearing Area Code Baseball uniforms and the hats of their respective MLB teams.   This process has proven to be a winning formula for high school talent identification and evaluation.  The Area Code Games have produced more than 300 major league players -- a statistic that continues to grow.  

The main ingredient of Area Code's success is the player selection process.  In an era of high school showcases across the country that charge players a substantial fee to play in the event regardless of ability, the Area Code players, conversely, are not charged to play in the games or even to try out.  In fact, all tryouts are by invitation only and in the majority of cases, players have to be nominated by a major league scout to be considered for an invitation.  With these stringent requirements to participate in the Area Code Games the level of talent that is assembled each year is staggering.  Every major league team is represented at the event, with some teams having as many as 12 scouts from their organization in attendance.  In addition, college coaches are allowed to attend the games.   The uniqueness of the Area Code Games separates from anything that is available to the premier high school player.

The Area Code Games are run by ESPN.