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HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Armed with a powerful bat and stellar defense, Caleb Lomavita has made it a habit of embracing versatility and baseball’s daily grind.

“Every day you are at the field more than eight hours, you’re in the weight room at 7 a.m., conditioning at 6 and it becomes a lifestyle,” Lomavita said “So if you don’t like it, it could be gruesome and beating on your body and mentally. I’m lucky that I love the sport, so going to the field is easy for me everyday.”

The 21-year-old enters his junior season at Cal with a resume worthy of a top 25 Major League Baseball prospect — first-team all Pac-12, freshman All-American, home-run leader for the Golden Bears, and former Hawaii Gatorade player of the year.

George Gusman coached Lomavita at Saint Louis School and says he knew he was different from when he first spotted him on campus back in eighth grade.

‘He’s a kid that whenever we traveled somewhere, he would put his bags in the room, go find out where the workout room is and in the morning, he would get up about 6 and if you didn’t want to get up with him, he’d leave you and just go work out on his own,” Lomavita said.

Lomavita’s coach at Cal, Mike Neu, has also witnessed that dedication firsthand.

“The great players have that internal drive and he really, really has that,” Neu said. “You match that up with his talent and he’s got a ton of talent and athleticism and obviously, the results are probably not surprising.”

That tireless work ethic also landed Lomavita a spot in the Cape Cod League, a premier showcase for future major leagues. “I knew that the competition level was pretty high,” Lomavita said. “I got there and it was, big name here, big name on my team, it was intimidating at first.”

But nothing he couldn’t handle.

Through two summers, Lomavita left Cape Cod a two-time all-star — further sweetening his draft stock among baseball analysts.

In the latest Major League Baseball draft projections, the former Crusader is slated to go 21st overall, which would make him the highest selection out of Hawaii since Kodi Medeiros in 2014.

“I find out most things through Instagram, people tag me or I see a post,” Lomavita said.

“I seen it and I felt like a little kid. I was pretty excited, but then reality kicked in and thought, well that’s not gonna happen if I stop my hard work now.”

And the pro teams are already making their interest known as Lomavita says he’s been on 30 Zoom calls with MLB teams over the past month alone.

It’s a busy schedule, but much deserved recognition — success that Lomavita credits to enduring family support and a robust baseball foundation.

“It’s one of those things where hard work and talent is all coming together,” Gusman said. “It’s earned and I think that’s the greatest thing that is in his favor. He will succeed anywhere, at any level, any time.”