MaxPreps 2015 Georgia preseason baseball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard

1. Lambert (Suwanee)
2014 finish: 36-2
Head coach: Drew Ferrer

The Longhorns won the Class 6A state championship last season and return nearly everyone from that team, except for the coach, Jamie Corr, who took a college coaching job in Florida. Ferrer inherits a squad that includes MaxPreps National Sophomore of the Year Seth Beer, who has already committed to Clemson. He led Lambert with a .589 batting average, 10 home runs and 21 doubles last season. He also had a 6-0 pitching record. J.D. Dutka is also back after posting an 11-1 record last year while Tucker Maxwell (.404) and Kyle McCann (.404) return for their junior seasons. Maxwell has committed to the University of Georgia while Dutka has committed to Florida Southwestern. Another player to watch is Auburn recruit Jeremy Johnson, who batted .360.

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2. Parkview (Lilburn)
2014 finish: 28-7
Head coach: Chan Brown



Brown returns six of his team's top nine offensive performers and nine wins from the pitching staff of a team that reached the Class 6A state semifinals before falling to eventual champion Lambert. Among the top returning players include Daino Deas, a second baseman committed to Auburn; Trevor Brown, a shortstop committed to Kennesaw State; Ryne Inman, a right-handed pitcher committed to Georgia State, and David Draper, an outfielder headed to Emory University. The Panthers will miss pitcher Mac Marshall and first baseman Isiah Gilliam, both of whom were high MLB Draft picks last June.

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3. Kennesaw Mountain (Kennesaw)
2014 finish: 25-7
Head coach: George Hansen

Kennesaw Mountain has five players headed to Division I colleges next year in centerfielder Reggie Pruitt (Vanderbilt), catcher Tyler Stephenson (Georgia Tech), pitcher Ryley Gilliam (Clemson), pitcher Zach Goodman (Clemson) and third baseman Cole Buffington (The Citadel). Pruitt batted .480 last year while Stephenson batted .447 with 31 RBIs. Both Pruitt and Stephenson are expected to be high draft picks in the Major League Baseball Draft in June.

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4. Gainesville
2014 finish: 27-8
Head coach: Jeremy Kemp



The Red Elephants lost one of the nation's top players in Michael Gettys, who was taken early in last year's Major League Baseball Draft. However, several top pitchers return, including Caleb Whitenton (4-0 on the mound), Michael Curry (4-1) and Sam Carpenter (2-1). Whitenton and Curry were also among the team's top batters, along with Brandon Sewell (.310) and Luke Maddox (.364).

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5. Buford
2014 finish: 30-5
Head coach: Tony Wolfe

Buford returns 29 wins from last year's pitching staff, led by Kevin Coulter (10-1), who has signed with Mercer, and Jake Higginbotham (9-0), who has signed with Clemson. Wolfe has five other returning starters, all of whom have signed with Division I schools: catcher Joey Bart (Georgia Tech), pitcher Keyton Gibson (Georgia Tech), pitcher Conner Bennett (West Virginia), junior outfielder Nick Wilhite (Georgia Tech) and junior shortstop Austin Wilhite (Georgia Tech).