Former UCLA standout ballplayer Cody Decker will be honored by the Professional Baseball Scouts of Southern California (PBSSC) as one of two first-year minor league Player of the Year selections at the 12th Annual PBSSC Awards Banquet on Jan. 8 at Angel Stadium.

Decker, a native of Santa Monica, Calif., was named the Arizona League's Most Valuable Player in August 2009. A 22nd-round draft selection by the San Diego Padres last June, Decker led the AZL in home runs (15), RBI (63), doubles (21), extra-base hits (39) and slugging percentage (.717) in 52 games. His 15-home run total was nearly twice then next-closest competitor (teammate Rymer Liriano, 8).

Decker was promoted to the Fort Wayne TinCaps in late August. He went 2-for-18 in a backup role following his addition to the TinCaps' roster August 29.

In his senior season at UCLA, Decker led all Pac-10 hitters with 21 homers in 2009. He finished an excellent four-year Bruin career with a .288 batting average in 191 games. Decker totaled 47 career homers, 28 doubles, 153 RBI and 118 runs. He concluded his UCLA career tied for seventh place on the school's all-time home run list.

Likewise, he became the first UCLA player to win the Pac-10 home run title since 2002 (Wes Whisler and Adam Berry, 18). He twice earned All-Pac-10 team honors (2007, 2009) and was a three-time Pac-10 Player of the Week selection.