Video: Highlights of Parkview's Will EthridgeThe 2016 MaxPreps Preseason All-American baseball team features 30 of the top players in the country, with 13 of them coming from the states of Texas, California and Florida.
California and Florida lead the way with five players each while Texas has three. Georgia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia each have two apiece.
The Preseason All-American team is chosen based on past honors (All-American, Team USA, all-state), recruiting rankings and statistical performance.
MaxPreps Preseason All-American Baseball Team
Photos by MaxPreps photographers/Graphic by Ryan Escobar
After going 8-0 as a sophomore and earning the No. 1 ranking in the
Class of 2016 by Perfect Game, Pint went 5-2 with a 2.20 ERA and 47
strikeouts in 35 innings during his junior campaign. However, with a
96-mph fastball, Pint is still the top prospect in Kansas and a top-five
overall prospect in the nation.
P - Ian Anderson, Shenendehowa (Clifton Park, N.Y.), 6-3, 170
One of the nation's top pitching prospects, Anderson earned MaxPreps
Junior All-American honors last season while posting a 7-1 pitching
record with 91 strikeouts and just 17 walks with a 0.66 ERA in 53.1
innings pitched.
P - Austin Bergner, Windermere Prep (Windermere, Fla.), 6-4, 180
Ranked at one time by Perfect Game as the top player in the Class of
2016, Bergner still ranks near the top. He earned MaxPreps Junior
All-American honors last year after batting .469 (30 for 64) with 28 RBIs
and five home runs. He also pitched and went 6-1 with 85 strikeouts and
a 0.40 ERA in 52.2 innings pitched.
P - Forrest Whitley, Alamo Heights (San Antonio), 6-7, 250
A member of the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association Class 5A
All-State Team and the San Antonio News Express All-Area Team, Whitley
went 7-1 with 120 strikeouts and a 0.21 ERA in 64.2 innings pitched. He
was also a MaxPreps Junior All-American.
P - Jason Groome, Barnegat (N.J.), 6-6, 180
Ranked
by Perfect Game as the No. 1 overall player in the country, Groome
played at IMG Academy (Brandenton, Fla.) last year, but returned to
Barnaget for his senior year. He posted a 5-0
record last year with a 0.98 ERA. He also struck out 77 batters and
walked just nine in 43 innings pitched.
P - Brax Garrett, Florence (Ala.), 6-3, 190
The Super State Player of the Year by the Alabama Sports Writers
Association as a junior, Garrett was also a member of the MaxPreps
Junior All-American Team. He was one of the top strikeout pitchers in
the nation with 141 Ks in 66.2 innings pitched. He was 7-1 with a 0.75
ERA.
P - Charles King, Coppell (Texas), 6-5, 205
King helped Coppell reach the regional quarterfinals last year as he posted a 7-0 record with a 1.46 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 38.1 innings pitched.
P - Cole Ragans, North Florida Christian (Tallahassee, Fla.), 6-4, 190
Ragans earned All-Big Bend honors last year and helped North Florida Christian reach the Class 3A state championship game. He went 7-2 on the mound with 94 strikeouts and a 0.89 ERA in 62.2 innings pitched.
P - Jason Barber, Oxford (Miss.), 6-0, 190
A MaxPreps Junior All-American last year, Barber was the Gatorade State
Player of the Year after leading Oxford to the Class 5A state
championship. He had a 12-0 pitching record with a perfect game and
eight shutouts. He also struck out 110 batters with a 0.00 ERA in 78
innings pitched. Also batted .337 with 35 RBI and eight home runs.
P - Luca Dalatri, Christian Brothers Academy (Lincroft, N.J.), 6-6, 250
The Gatorade State Player of the Year as a junior, Dalatri was also the NJ.Com All-State Pitcher of the Year after posting a 9-0 record with a 0.88 ERA and 112 strikeouts with just seven walks in 71 innings pitched.
P - Will Ethridge, Parkview (Lilburn, Ga.), 6-5, 190
A key member of Parkview's national championship team, Ethridge was named to the Gwinnett Daily Post All-Area Team. He also posted a 13-0 record with 49 strikeouts and a 1.47 ERA in 71.1 innings pitched.
C - T.J. Collett, Terre Haute North Vigo (Terre Haute, Ind.), 6-1, 220
Hitting 17 home runs as a sophomore, Collett was limited to just three
during his junior year. Part of the reason is that opposing teams walked
Collet 45 times and he had a career-low 65 at-bats. He batted .292 with
16 RBIs and four doubles, but he is still ranked as one of the nation's
top catchers in the class of 2016.
C - Michael Amditis, Boca Raton (Fla.), 5-10, 185
Amditis was named the Palm County Hitter of the Year by the Baseball Network and he was also named all-county by the Palm Beach Post and the Sun Sentinel. He batted .500 with 35 runs scored, 33 RBIs, eight doubles and eight home runs.
C - Payton Henry, Pleasant Grove (Utah), 5-10, 145
The Gatorade State Player of the Year and a MaxPreps Junior
All-American, Henry batted .527 with 46 RBIs, 11 doubles and nine home
runs.
1B - Alex Kirilloff, Plum (Pittsburgh), 6-2, 195
Perhaps the No. 1 first baseman in the country, Kiriloff played in the
Perfect Game All-American Classic and the Area Code Games. Last year he
batted .500 (28-for-56) with six home runs, 29 RBIs and 20 runs scored.
1B - Spencer Brickhouse, Bunn (N.C.), 6-3, 220
Brickhouse is coming off a big junior year when he batted .585 (31-for-53) with 31 runs scored, 29 RBIs, nine doulbes, three triples and seven
home runs. In three varsity seasons, Brickhouse has a .560 batting
average with 93 RBIs and 12 home runs.
IF - Nick Quintana, Arbor View (Las Vegas), 5-11, 185
A member of the Las Vegas Review Journal All-State Team and the MaxPreps
Junior All-American Team, Quintana batted .433 with 18 doubles, eight
home runs, 49 RBIs and 44 runs scored.
IF - Cole Stobbe, Millard West (Omaha, Neb.), 6-1, 190
The Gatorade State Player of the Year as a junior, Stobbe was also a
member of Team USA 18U. An all-state infielder in Nebraska, Stobbe
batted .426 with 44 RBIs, 43 runs scored, 19 doubles, five triples and
four home runs.
IF - Bo Bichette, Lakewood (St. Petersburg, Fla.), 6-0, 200
The son of former Major League slugger Dante Bichette, Bo was off to a tremendous start his junior year as he batted .632 with 18 RBIs, three doubles, two triples and four home runs in seven games before an injury ended his season. He earned All-Tampa Area honors as a sophomore when he batted .492 with seven home runs.
IF - Joe Rizzo, Oakton (Vienna, Va.), 5-11, 215
Rizzo was named the Class 6A State Player of the Year by the Virginia High School League. He batted .619 with 24 RBIs, 25 runs scored, nine doubles and seven home runs.
IF - Joshua Lowe, Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 6-3, 210
Lowe continues to rise up the Perfect Game rankings, coming in most
recently at No. 4. He earned all-county honors from the Marietta Journal
last year as a third baseman, but he is also seen as a pitching
prospect after hitting in the 90s with his fastball during the summer.
Participated in the Perfect Game All-American Classic.
IF - Greg Veliz, Key West (Fla.), 6-2, 200
Veliz earned all-county honors from the Miami Herald and he was also the Dade County Player of the Year by the Baseball Network. He batted .412 with 34 runs scored, 36 RBIs, four doubles, five triples and six home runs. He also had a 5-3 pitching record with 70 strikeouts and a 1.04 ERA in 47 innings pitched.
OF - Jaren Shelby, Tates Creek (Lexington, Ky.), 5-11, 183
Played in the Perfect Game Classic and was an all-state selection in
Kentucky while also earning MaxPreps Junior All-American honors. He
batted .368 with 13 home runs, six doubles, 35 runs scored and 45 RBIs.
OF - Micky Moniak, La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad, Calif.), 6-2, 185
A standout on the La Costa Canyon varsity since his freshman year, Moniak was named to the San Diego all-section team last year after batting .426 with 29 runs scored, 28 RBIs, eight doubles and four triples.
OF - Blake Rutherford, Chaminade (West Hills, Calif.), 6-2, 190
Won the Gold Medal with Team USA 18U and was one of the top players in
the Southern Section last year. He batted .435 with 20 runs, 14 RBIs, two
triples and four home runs.
OF - Brandon McIlwain, Council Rock North (Newtown, Pa.), 6-1, 205
One of the top athletes in the state of Pennsylvania, McIlwain is also one of the state's top quarterbacks. Last year in baseball, McIlwain batted .433 with 25 RBIs, five doubles and five home runs.
OF - Jeremy Ydens, Saint Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 6-2, 175
Ydens plays multiple positions for the Lancers as he can also pitch and play the infield. As a junior, he was the San Jose Mercury News all-Area Player of the Year after batting .404 with a 7-3 pitching record and a 1.69 ERA.
OF - Dominic Fletcher, Cypress (Calif.), 5-10, 185
A top notch defensive outfielder, Fletcher earned a spot on the Orange County Register's all-county team after earning Empire League MVP honors. He batted .452 with nine home runs and 34 RBIs.
Util - Zack Hess, Liberty Christian (Lynchburg, Va.), 6-6, 200
Hess earned all-state honors last season by American Family Insurance
after leading Liberty Christian Academy to the VISAA Division I
championship. Hess batted .400 with three home runs to go with a 7-1
pitching record, a 0.65 ERA and 86 strikeouts in 54 innings pitched.
Util - Reggie Lawson, Victor Valley (Victorville, Calif.), 6-4, 187
Lawson played in the Perfect Game All-American Classic last summer, an honor he earned by batting .461 with 26 RBIs and four home runs while also posting a 6-4 pitching record with 67 strikeouts and a 2.25 ERA in 53 innings pitched.
Util - Kyle Muller, Dallas Jesuit, 6-5, 210
Muller was a key member of Dallas Jesuit's deep run on the Class 6A state playoffs last year. He had a 7-1 pitching record with a 1.11 ERA and 99 strikeouts and he also batted .397 with seven home runs and 31 RBIs.
