MaxPreps 2017 top 25 national high school baseball rankings

No. 1 Archbishop McCarthy off to a strong start with pair of wins; Buchanan jumps to No. 2 with trio of impressive wins.

Early Contenders - #3 Buchanan (CA) 8,548 views 1:19

Video: Early Contenders - #3 Buchanan
The Bears moved from preseason No. 3 to No. 2 this week.

The preseason No. 1 team in the MaxPreps 2017 National High School Baseball Rankings got off to a strong start, but so did the defending 2016 MaxPreps national champion.

Archbishop McCarthy (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), the 2017 preseason No. 1, opened the season with a pair of mercy-rule wins and got some strong hitting performances. This despite playing without Alex Toral, the Mavericks' potential first-round MLB draft pick, who sat out the first game with an injury.

Archbishop McCarthy thus opens the regular season as the No. 1 team in the first MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National High School Baseball Rankings.

Meanwhile, Buchanan (Clovis), the 2016 national champion, also got off to a strong start with three straight routs. The Bears, the 2017 preseason No. 3 team, moved up to No. 2 after Barbe (Lake Charles, La.), the preseason No. 2, lost to Airline (Bossier City, La.) in a tournament last week and dropped to No. 10.

A total of five teams from the preseason top 25 dropped out of the rankings due to losses. Another group of teams that were part of the preseason rankings were not included because the sport is still more than a week away from starting in that team's state.

Following are the Xcellent 25 rankings with the preseason rankings in parenthesis.

MaxPreps 2017 Xcellent 25 National High School Baseball Rankings

1. (Preseason No. 1) Archbishop McCarthy (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 2-0
The Mavericks opened the season with a pair of mercy-rule wins, beating Martin County (Stuart) 12-1 in the opener and North Broward Prep (Coconut Creek) 10-0 on Friday. Ubaldo Lopez and Andrew Fernandez both hit home runs in the win over Martin County with Sanchez hitting a walk-off grand slam.

2. (3) Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.), 3-0
The Bears opened the season with three impressive wins, defeating Mt. Whitney (Visalia) 13-3, El Diamante (Visalia) 13-2 and Hanford West 11-2. Quentin Selma had two home runs and Zach Presno hit one during the three-game stretch.

3. (4) Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.), 3-0
The Lancers swept two from Dana Hills (Dana Point), a 2-1 win and a 13-0 shutout over its ace pitcher Hans Crouse. Garrett Mitchell went 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBIs in the shutout win. Orange Lutheran also defeated Santiago (Corona) in its opener.

4. (7) Steinbrenner (Lutz, Fla.), 3-0
The defending Class 8A state champions opened with a 6-5 win over Robinson (Tampa), a 4-0 win over Sickles (Tampa) and a 16-1 win over Middleton (Tampa). Patrick Morris already has two home runs while CJ Van Eyk picked up a win, allowed one hit and struck out eight in six innings against Sickles.

5. (8) South Hills (West Covina, Calif.), 1-0
The defending Southern Section Division 2 champions knocked off Covina 4-2 in the opening round of the Frozen Ropes Tournament.

6. (12) Stoneman Douglas (Parkland, Fla.), 3-0
The Eagles opened the season with a 4-1 win over Flanagan (Pembroke Pines) and followed up with a 2-1 win over Calvary Christian Academy (Fort Lauderdale) and a 7-5 win over Westminster Christian (Miami). Chad McDaniel went 3-for-3 with a double against Westminster Christian. Brandon Kaminer got the win over Flanagan, going five innings without a hit while striking out seven.

7. (13) Johnson (San Antonio), 6-0
The Jaguars won the Border Wars Tournament, going 4-0 in pool play including a 13-1 win over Calallen. Also defeated Ray (Corpus Christi) 8-5 in the semifinals and Tomball 4-2 in the championship game.

8. (14) Huntington Beach (Calif.), 2-0
The Oilers swept Aliso Niguel (Aliso Viejo) with a pair of shutouts, winning 6-0 and 8-0. Hagen Danner struck out 10 in the 6-0 victory, but Cory Moore got the decision. Nick Pratto and Josh Hahn each had a home run. Danner homered in the 8-0 win.

9. (34) Sparkman (Harvest, Ala.), 4-0
The Senators are undefeated, including a 4-0 win over Cullman. They also beat Thompson (Alabaster) 6-5, Vestavia Hills 5-4 and Hartselle 8-1.

10. (2) Barbe (Lake Charles, La.), 4-1
The Buccaneers dropped a 2-1 decision to Airline, one of the top teams in Louisiana, but defeated defending Class 4A state champion Teurlings Catholic (Lafayette) 9-0, West Monroe 3-1, Sulphur 5-0 and Neville (Monroe) 5-0. Next up is Catholic (Baton Rouge) on Thursday.

11. (5) Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), 3-1
The Huskies lost their season opener 4-2 to an always tough Horizon (Scottsdale) team. Hamilton bounced back to beat Mountain View (Mesa) 12-1, Mesquite (Gilbert) 3-2 and Red Mountain (Mesa) 11-1. Nick Brueser had two home runs against Mountain View and had a double and a triple against Red Mountain.

Kyle Jacobsen and Allatoona made a big move this week, going from No. 42 in the preseason rankings to No. 12.

File photo by Alyson Boyer Rode

12. (42) Allatoona (Acworth, Ga.), 6-0
The Buccaneers have been outstanding thus far, posting a 4-0 win over McEachern (Powder Springs), a 9-0 win over Chapel Hill (Douglasville), a 3-2 victory against South Paulding (Douglasville), an 11-1 win over Troup County (LaGrange), a 6-4 win over Hillgrove (Powder Springs) and a 10-4 win over Whitewater (Fayetteville).

13. (11) JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.), 0-0
Season opener is March 11 with doubleheader against Huntington Beach.

14. (15) Rancho Bernardo (San Diego), 0-0
The Broncos open their season March 7 against defending San Diego Section Division 1 champion Granite Hills (El Cajon).

15. (16) Shawnee (Okla.), 0-0
The two-time Oklahoma Class 5A defending state champions open their season Thursday vs. Duncan.

16. (18) North Davidson (Lexington, N.C.), 0-0
The defending North Carolina Class 4A champions open Feb. 28 vs. Randleman.

17. (25) Oxford (Miss.), 2-0
The Chargers opened with a pair of impressive wins, beating Tupelo Christian Prep (Belden) 10-0 and Kossuth 11-1. A tough game with defending Alabama state champion UMS-Wright Prep (Mobile, Ala.) looms Friday.

18. (28) Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.), 3-0
The Bulldogs opened their season with three straight wins, beating Christ's Church Academy (Jacksonville) 4-2, Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville) 1-0 and Providence (Jacksonville) 4-3.

19. (29) Canterbury (Fort Myers, Fla.), 1-0
The defending Florida Class 3A state champions topped Southwest Florida Christian (Fort Myers) 10-1 in their opener.

20. (30) American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 2-0
The Patriots began the season with a 1-0 win over Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale) and a 15-1 victory over Western (Davie). Santiago Garavito and Julio Cortez homered during the two wins.

21. (35) De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), 1-0
The Spartans opened up a tough preseason schedule with a 6-1 win over Bellarmine College Prep (San Jose).

22. (37) Venice (Fla.), 2-0
The Indians are off to a solid start after a pair of close wins over Palmetto, 1-0, and Jesuit (Tampa), 2-1.

23. (31) Deer Creek (Edmond, Okla.), 0-0
The Antlers begin play on March 6 vs. Sapulpa.

24. (33) Chaparral (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 3-0-1
The Firebirds defeated Thunderbird (Phoenix) 10-0, Arcadia (Phoenix) 9-8 and Cactus Shadows (Cave Creek) 14-12 to go with a 2-2 tie against Skyline (Mesa) at the Scottsdale Invitational.

25. (41) Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, Calif.), 0-0
The defending Southern Section Division 3 champions open their season Friday against Banning (Wilmington).

Dropped out: No. 6 Walton (Ga.), No. 9 Dallas Jesuit, No. 10 Cullman (Ala.), No. 19 Deer Park (Texas), No. 20 Fort Bend Travis (Richmond, Texas), No. 22 Blessed Trinity (Roswell, Ga.).