Will It Be Baseball, Football Or Both For Ponatoski?

Matt Ponatoski SS / RHP / Archbishop Moeller, OH / 2026

HAMILTON - The future is bright for Matt Ponatoski. The biggest question is what will the Moeller junior do when it comes to his athletic career after high school.

Will it be baseball?

Maybe football is his destination?

Or could it even be both?

“I’m trying to be a 16-year-old kid,” Ponatoski said. “I’m having fun playing both right now. There’s no clear answer. I could play one or the other and I’m still open if I want to play both.”

What are some of the deciding factors when it comes to being a two-sport athlete?

“If coaches at the school are cool with me playing both,” Ponatoski explained. “Maybe the level of the school will matter. I also want to be on the field early which might be a problem if I play both. But I love to compete.”

As for who has shown interest, the top-rated 2026 baseball player in Ohio listed SEC and ACC schools as the main ones on the ball diamond with “a few Big 10 schools” putting him on the radar for football.

“If that becomes a thing, I may talk to a few of the Big 10 schools for baseball,” Ponatoski said.

A SPECIAL TALENT

So what is so special about the 6-2 196-pounder, who plays quarterback on the gridiron and shortstop in baseball while also showing the ability to pitch?

Ponatoski had a memorable junior year in leading Moeller to the Division I state football finals. The signal-caller for the Crusaders was named Ohio’s Mr. Football for the 2024 season after throwing for 4,187 yards and 57 touchdowns. In addition, Ponatoski earned Greater Catholic League South and Southwest District D-I Offensive Player of the Year honors.

A season highlight came in a 49-10 state semifinal win over Cedarville when Ponatoski threw for 431 yards and tied a school record with six touchdown passes. 

Ponatoski's 57 touchdown passes are 12th all-time in a single season, according to the OHSAA record book. In six playoff games, Ponatoski was 94-of-134 for 1,503 yards with 19 touchdowns (one rushing) while throwing just one interception.

A sure-fire big-time football recruit it seems.

But there is also a matter of what he can do in the sport of baseball.

The promising shortstop prospect showed off his arm on the diamond at the Future Games in Georgia this past summer, tying the all-time infield velocity record of 96 at the prestigious event at LakePoint with more than 400 coaches looking on.

His impressive metrics also include a 100.3 exit velocity, 6.90 time in the 60, 24.6 hand speed, and 78.4 bat speed. But there are even more statistics that shine for the left-handed hitter. It comes from his right arm where Ponatoski has a fastball that has been clocked at 93 miles an hour.

It is no wonder the Moeller product is not just the top-rated 11th-grader in Ohio, but the fifth-ranked junior shortstop in the nation and number 11 overall player in the 2026 class in the country.

THE ‘IT-FACTOR’

While the numbers are spectacular, there is more to Ponatoski according to Shooter Hunt, the Vice President of Scouting for Prep Baseball.

“The ‘it-factor’ is undeniable for Matt Ponatoski,” Hunt said. “He walks on the diamond expecting success, but he isn’t loud about it. There’s a quiet assuredness in his belief in self that allows his monster tools to play up even higher in gameplay. He checks the boxes with regards to pure tools, but the ability to perform when the lights come on is what is most impressive to me.

“He has huge power potential from the left side with adjustability and plate coverage along with soft hands on the dirt and the obviously strong throwing arm. I’m a huge QB1 fan, not just because of the athleticism that those guys have, but mainly because you can’t go out on Friday night in that position, especially at a national powerhouse like Moeller, and not be confident.”

Kyle Weldon, Prep Baseball Ohio Director of Scouting, is a big fan of Ponatoski.

“The top-rated player in Ohio has had himself quite the year on the baseball and football fields,” Weldon noted. “The arm talent jumps off the page from the left side of the infield, recording the highest infield velocity at the Future Games and, offensively, he performed well on the summer circuit showing off gap-to-gap power and impressive plate discipline.

“His stock rose considerably as a quarterback this fall after breaking passing records for the Crusaders and he’s now rated at 4 stars and receiving major interest. Whether or not he’ll pursue both at the next level is still unclear. The options have certainly expanded in the past couple of months.”

As Hunt says, waiting for a decision will be captivating.

“It’ll be interesting to see what the recruiting process ultimately steers him toward,” Hunt said. “It’s just very difficult to ignore what is going on with regards to NIL on the football side of things.”

HARD WORK PAYS OFF

While it was an amazing junior season at quarterback, it has made his college decision much tougher according to Ponatoski.

“Jokingly, if I had had a bad football season it would have made my recruitment much easier,” Ponatoski said. “But instead it’s picked up and made it more complicated. I love both and I’m blessed to be where I am, but it’s stressful.

“If you asked me a year ago I was 100 percent baseball when it came to college. But football is catching on a little later. Junior year is when you’re highly recruited in football. For me, I’m sticking to the plan. I’m surprised it’s picking up to where it is, but I’ve put in the work.”

Tim Held, the baseball coach at Moeller, sees a bright future ahead.

“Matt is a tremendous athlete that entered Moeller with great talent and has now added physical strength to complement that talent,” Held explained. “It has allowed him to take a big jump from his freshman year to sophomore year and through his latest football season. 

“He is a tireless worker and that is going to help him to stay at the top of his class. He leads by example and his teammates definitely like to see him working and feed off of him. 

We’re excited to see him play for the next two years at Moeller and see where all of this hard work takes him.”

EARLY COMMIT

It wasn’t long ago that Ponatoski was a Missouri baseball commit.

In eighth grade, at the age of 13, Ponatoski decided that playing baseball at Missouri was right for him.

Ponatoski, who was 5-7 and 140 pounds at the time, listed three reasons for making the decision to commit three months before turning 14.

“My parents don’t have to pay for college, the SEC is the best conference there is and the coaching staff was absolutely amazing,” Ponatoski said back in January of 2022 after making the decision to attend Missouri after high school.

But a year ago, Ponatoski decided to decommit.

“When I went to Missouri it was the first college baseball camp I’d ever been to get coaches’ eyes on me,” Ponatoski reflected. “A coach connected me with them, I had a great camp and they sat me down afterward and offered. I felt it was right at the time. There was not much more I wanted then to play in the SEC at that time.

“But the coaching staff has moved on and I felt it was the right time to decommit, especially with football and moving up in the baseball rankings.”

MAKING A NAME

Ponatoski has been back in the recruiting process since the decommitment and making a name along the way.

“The Prep Baseball events I’ve gone to have really helped,” Ponatoski pointed out. “Obviously with the higher ranking you get more eyes on you. I love it. The more attention brings out the player I am. I thrive in that environment.”

The Future Games is a perfect example.

“I’ve never seen so many college coaches,” Ponatoski said of the Prep Baseball showcase of talent held just prior to Aug. 1, which this year featured more than 425 coaches in attendance. “It’s a great event, something I didn’t go to before because I was committed. To have all those eyes on you is just a fun experience. I think it really helped with the schools that might have been on the edge with me. I had a good showing. It was just a great event overall.”

In spite of being so highly regarded as the 11th-ranked junior in North America, Ponatoski had some uncertainty leading up to the first day of August when college baseball coaches could first reach out to players in the 2026 class.

“I wasn’t nervous, but I was wondering the night before what it would be like,” Ponatoski related. “Then I wake up and have a few hundred text messages. It was like waking up Christmas morning and seeing all the presents under the tree.”

A BUSY TIME

So where has his recruitment gone since then?

“It’s been a busy few months,” Ponatoski noted. “It was crazy Aug. 1. People began texting at midnight, but I stayed away from my phone. My first call was at 8 o’clock that night and I started calling a bunch back the next day. I did some research on schools and tried to get back with everybody in the next two or three weeks.”

As for the position he is being recruited, the answer is shortstop.

“Every school I talked to in my recruitment has me at short,” Ponatoski said. “Infield and hitting is what they say. Being a pitcher is the backup plan. The arm talent is there, but I want to be on the field and contribute every day. I think I have the tools everybody wants to be in the starting lineup.”

The importance of improving is understood.

“I’m heavy into baseball right now,” Ponatoski related. “I’m just doing football on days I can’t get guys to come out and catch, but it’s mainly baseball. I was doing baseball before, but then I had a hand injury during football and had to stop.”

The Moeller junior is pleased where his game is headed.

“It’s about trusting the process,” Ponatoski explained. “Last year I didn’t put out my best product, but I’m trusting the process now and I’ve matured as a hitter. My agility has gotten better and getting down the line will be a lot better. But I have a lot of tools that I can improve on.”

VISITS AHEAD

While the work is going on, Ponatoski is also busy checking out potential landing spots.

“I’m super busy right now talking to a lot of people,” Ponatoski said. “With football, teams are doing bowl games so I think talking with colleges will come a little later. With baseball I’m setting up visits to get on campus. I’m talking to everybody. I’m not narrowing anything down.

“I love the warm weather, especially for baseball, but I’ve been in the Ohio cold and I’m used to it. It’s not going to get colder than Ohio in the spring.”

Is there a blueprint of what he is looking for in a school?

“Travel isn’t a big thing for me,” Ponatoski related. “I’m pretty mature and can be independent. I’m just trying to find a good relationship with the coach. That is important. I want people around me that want to win as much as I do. And I want to get on the field early. The only way to grow is by playing. I also want to use the NIL to the best of my ability. I want to use it in my favor.”

LIVING OUT A DREAM

A busy time is upon him.

“I have a few visits in the works, it’s just about getting dates,” Ponatoski said. “My sisters are busy and I need to find a weekend that my mom and dad can get away from their jobs and my little sisters.”

There is no rush in the process.

“I’m just trying to put myself in the best possible position to live out my dream,” Ponatoski concluded. “I want to get drafted. I’m just setting little goals right now, win a championship with Moeller and win on the summer circuit. I’m hitting every day, too. Anything to get better.

“I’m just taking my time,” Ponatoski added. “If a school really wants me and if they’re invested in me, they just need to let me figure it out if I’m going to play one sport or the other. I don’t think I’m going to wait too long, though. I’m going to take a few visits and maybe decide in the spring or summer, but I’m not too sure right now. I’m just enjoying the process.”