2023 TX Staff Playoff Preview
May 3, 2023
TEXAS - The time is finally here, the time where every pitch and every swing mean just a little bit more. It is playoff time here in Texas. It has been a great year of HS baseball so far in our state, and if history tells us anything we are just getting started. There are must see matchups from the 1st week of the playoffs all the way through the State tournament. What team has a magical 6 week run in them? Today the PBR Texas staff is going to do some predictions for 4A-6A. We will pick our state winners, underdogs, and matchups that we are excited to see.
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Brandon Gowins - TX Scouting Director
6A State Champion: Rockwall
6A Dark Horse: FM Marcus
5A State Champion: Friendswood
5A Dark Horse: Frisco Wakeland
4A State Champion: Sinton
4A Dark Horse: Canyon
Tyler King - Houston Area Scout
6A State Champion: SA Johnson
6A Dark Horse: FM Marcus & Strake Jesuit
5A State Champion: Argyle
5A Dark Horse: Abilene Wylie
4A Dark Horse: Liberty-Eylau
Ben Green - TX Director of Operations
6A State Champion: SA Reagan
6A Dark Horse: Mansfield Lake Ridge
5A State Champion: Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial
5A Dark Horse: Leander Rouse
4A State Champion: Pleasant Grove
4A Dark Horse: Aubrey
potential matchups to watch for
Round 1
6A Prosper vs. Flower Mound - Two of the most successful programs in North Texas have a Round 1 matchup. Prosper finds itself in an unfamiliar role as the underdog.
6A Allen vs. FM Marcus - Another 1st round DFW matchup between some big names. Marcus has made deep run after deep run in recent history, but Allen has Freshman star Chandler Hart and ACU commit Brady Coe on the mound.
6A Tomball vs. Cy-Ranch - Not a matchup you normally see in the 1st round. Both teams have younger lineups than year’s past but expect a highly competitive series between these two schools who are usually playing deep into the playoffs.
5A Liberty Hill vs Boerne Champion - Liberty Hill has had a terrific year all season, but Boerne Champion has enough talent to pull off the upset. They have talent in all the right places.
5A Whitehouse vs Kingwood Park - Talented Whitehouse team that finished 2nd in district to Hallsville against a very scrappy Kingwood Park team that has had history of making a run with very scrappy teams.
Round 2
6A Mansfield Legacy vs. Rockwall Heath - Two teams that are no stranger to Round Rock. Both have firepower offensively and on the bump.
6A Round Rock vs. Reagan - There aren’t many programs in the state as consistent as the Rattlers, but to make another deep run they are going to have to go through Travis Sykora.
6A Cy-Fair vs. Katy - Two schools that have been mainstays at the top of Houston HS baseball for a long time. Both teams are going to play old school baseball, small ball, steal some bases, and battle out some low scoring games.
6A Klein Oak vs. Grand Oaks - Grand Oaks has been a team continually making deep runs under the leadership of Lou Ferrell and they are getting healthy at the right time. Klein Oak for the 1st time under coach Bo Hernandez won district. Both teams have shown quality pitching and hitting throughout the year and either team could be looking to make a deep run.
5A Barbers Hill vs. Foster - Foster has a deep roster this year all around led by 2024 LHP Chase Batten (Arizona State commit) and 2023 SS Micah Dean (Kansas State commit) looking to get over the 2nd round bump against a Barbers Hill team that is led by two seniors INF Jace Martinez (Sam Houston St commit) and OF Carson Garrett (Tarleton St commit), who both started on the 2021 State Championship team for Barbers Hill.
Round 3
6A Lake Travis vs. SA Johnson - Lake Travis and SA Johnson are both littered with D1 prospects. Lake Travis is always dangerous on the bump and SA Johnson’s offense is one of the best in the state led by Texas Tech recruit Kayson Cunningham.
6A Flower Mound vs. FM Marcus - One of the better rivalries in Texas, these two programs usually wouldn’t meet until later in the playoffs. But they could meet up in what would be a spicy 3rd round matchup. Both teams are coached well and it would be a highly entertaining matchup.
6A Cinco Ranch vs Ridge Point - Cinco Ranch finished 1st in a talented 19-6A district led by 2025 INF Lucas Franco (TCU commit) and 2024 INF Brock DeYoung (uncommitted) at the plate and 2023 RHP Charlie Atkinson (DBU commit) on the mound. While Ridge Point returns 5 hitters in the lineup and 2 starting pitchers from last year’s team that made it to State, including 2023 C JJ Kennett (DBU commit) and 2025 LHP Jack McKernan (Texas commit). Lots of intriguing matchups within this series.
6A Tomball vs The Woodlands - Two very opposite roster makeups. The Woodlands is very senior-heavy throughout the team, whereas Tomball has four freshmen making key contributions in the lineup and on the mound. The biggest matchup is this series though will be The Woodlands 2023 LHP Brayden Sharp (Tennessee commit) against Tomball 2024 C Cade Arrambide (LSU commit), two players who are the top of their class and are the leaders of each of their teams.
5A Burleson Centennial vs. Grapevine - Coach Senato and Centennial had another impressive season and Texas Commit Zachary Applegate is returning to the mound at the right time to join an already impressive staff. Grapevine surprised some people by winning their district, and they have a true ace in DBU commit LHP Dasan Hill
4A Carthage vs. Bullard - 2 of the top teams in East Texas have to face off in Round 3. Neither are strangers to deep playoff runs and the winner of this has a good path to the state tournament.
4A Sinton vs. Tuloso Midway - A repeat matchup of the Region Semifinals from the past two years and could be the 2nd week in a row that Sinton has to face a team they matched up with deep in the playoffs the past two seasons. Tuloso-Midway has fallen to Sinton both years they’ve been down in 4A and will be looking to get past them to make a run like Sinton has the past couple years.
Round 4
5A Friendswood vs. Magnolia West - This would be an electric matchup in Round 4. Power arms like Easton Tumis (Texas) and James Ellwanger (DBU) would keep this series entertaining from start to finish.
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