Prep Baseball Report

OK High School Preseason Spotlight: Canute


Diego Solares
Staff Writer

The Oklahoma high school baseball season kicks off on March 2nd, opening day for regular season action under Ossaa regulations. Over the next several weeks, leading up to opening day, we’ll be publishing our team previews ahead of the 2021 spring season, touching on programs spanning all state classifications, leading into a countdown through the official PBR Oklahoma Preseason Power 25 Rankings.

Perennially, we’ve submitted a Preseason Questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we’re using the detailed insight they’ve provided in our team-by-team preseason analysis.

If you would like your team covered, please have your head coach email us at [email protected]

Our 2021 preseason coverage continues today.

Team: Canute
OSSAA Class: A
Head Coach: J.W. Gillett
Returning Starters: 8
Returning Pitchers: 6

TOP PLAYERS

Kelln Henderson, LHP/OF, 2021 

Standing at an impressive 6-foot-4, 175-pounds, Henderson figures to be an anchor at the top of Canute’s rotation. He had himself a strong fall in 2020, pitching his way to a perfect 7-0 record and an extremely impressive 0.648 ERA, while striking out 85 batters over 54 innings pitched. He can swing it a bit too; .430 batting average with six home runs and 31 RBIs. A Western Oklahoma State JC commit, Henderson is ranked 16th overall in the state’s senior class.  

Keenan Smith, RHP/OF, 2021

Like Henderson, Smith will be a key cog to Canute’s rotation as well as an integral part of their offensive attack. The 6-foot, 180-pound right-hander pitched to the tune of an 11-1 record this fall, posting a 1.50 ERA in 53 innings of work, while striking out 61. He had himself quite the offensive surge as well, batting .426 with 10 home runs and 45 RBIs. Committed to Connors State, Smith is the 60th ranked senior in Oklahoma. 

Dalton Williams, C, 2022

Dipping into the junior class, Canute is home to one of the state’s top 2022 prospects in Williams. He represented Team Oklahoma at the PBR Future Games this past summer and shortly committed to the Science and Arts School of Oklahoma afterward. Standing at an impressive 6-foot-2 and 195-pounds, Williams has plenty of gap-to-gap power harnessed within his right-handed stroke. He had a strong fall in 2020, batting .452 with 19 doubles, four home runs, and 21 RBIs. 

Colt Randall, SS, 2022

Randall figures to be the staple for this team up the middle as a savvy, sure-handed shortstop that didn’t make an error all fall. At a compact 5-foot-9, 165-pounds, he’s a quick-twitch middle infield prospect that can swing it a bit too, batting .418 with eight doubles, seven home runs, and 21 RBIs this fall. Randall served as a main table setter for their offense as well, scoring 42 runs for Canute in the fall. He’s still uncommitted.

Kyron Whinery, 3B, 2023

Whinery looks the part of a potential impact player for Canute as a sophomore. Built at an athletic 6-foot, 175-pounds, he had a productive fall, batting .350 with five doubles, six home runs, and 29 RBIs. 

Kasen LeGrand, OF, 2023

Ranked 25th overall in Oklahoma’s sophomore class, LeGrand is a physical 5-foot-10, 200-pound right-handed hitter with premium raw power for his age. He has the makings of a potential middle-of-the-order thumper and flashed that this fall, batting .333 with six doubles and five home runs.

OUTLOOK

STRENGTHS: The defending Fall Class A State Champions feature two power arms in Henderson and Smith heading the front of this rotation. They’re also littered with power throughout their lineup with the ability to do some serious damage from top to bottom. This squad is also rather comfortable with what they’re capable of doing defensively, particularly up the middle with Randall at shortstop. 

AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT: Lacking to some team speed, Canute will have to rely more on driving the ball into the gaps rather than stolen bases to move runners around.  

Make sure to follow @PBR_Oklahoma on Twitter for the most up-to-date coverage throughout the 2021 season.

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