Midwest Select Preview: Michigan/Ohio Teams

On April 13-14 at Grand Park in Westfield, IN, the inaugural PBR Midwest Select tournament will be played with teams representing Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. The event aims to highlight the talent in the Midwest and the great competition and atmosphere high school baseball creates.

Each team will play two or three games in a round-robin format. In the weeks leading up to the event, PBR will release information on the participating teams, starting with those from Michigan and Ohio.

Archbishop Moeller HS, OH
Year in and year out, the Crusaders are looked at as one of the top programs not only in Ohio, but the nation. Moeller has eight state championships overall, and should be one of the top teams in the state in 2018. This year’s squad is led by a solid senior class and supported by talented underclassmen. The senior class is led by the 6-foot-5 power hitter Cameron Swanger (Missouri), smooth-swinging 2B Taylor Hopkins (Eastern Michigan) and the solid glove of SS Jack Deeds (Northwood). Two of the top uncommitted seniors in the state will be keys to the season in switch-hitting C/MIF Tyler McDonough and RHP/OF Mo Schaffer. Some underclassmen to keep an eye on include 2019 LHP Jack Pacetti (Cincinnati), 2019 SS Ryan Galanie (Wofford), 2020 RHP Seth Logue (Kentucky), 2020 RHP Justin Hornschemeier and 2020 LHP/1B Patrick Suter. Five position players return from the 2017 team, which went 19-7.

Massillon Jackson HS, OH
The defending state champion in Division I in Ohio, Massillon Jackson looks primed to make another run this year and beyond. Despite losing 2017 Player of the Year RHP Kyle Nicolas (Ball State), OHSAA State Tournament MVP C Dillon Dingler (Ohio State) and other key contributors, the 2018 Polar Bears have a talented roster from top to bottom. Four starters return from the 2017 season, including 2019 RHP Yianni Skeriotis (Ohio State), who went 9-0 with a 1.75 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 52 innings last season. Offensively, 2018 OF Davis Graham (Ohio Wesleyan) returns from hitting .343 with 18 RBIs in 2017. 2020 SS Josh Romans started as a freshman and put up a .333 clip with three triples. 2019 C/2B Trey Wright hit .364 with 17 RBIs last season.

Mason HS, OH
The Comets six starters off a 19-win team in 2017 and are led by 3B/RHP Nick Northcut (3B/RHP, .463 AVG, 9 2B, 1 HR, 28 RBIs | 32.2 IP, 3-2, 2.36 ERA, 36 K), a High School Top 100 Prospect and Vanderbilt recruit. His upside is at the plate, where he hit .463 last season with nine doubles, a home run and 28 RBIs. On the mound, he was 3-2 with a 2.36 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 32.2 innings. Accompanying Northcut on the mound will be RHP Will Pfennig (Ohio State), who posted a 6-2 record and 3.06 ERA in 36.2 innings with 47 strikeouts in 2017. Mason’s staff will be filled out by Rollie Sheriff (Miami Ohio-Hamilton) and Ben Kraus. Sheriff had a 1.09 ERA in 19.1 innings last year while Kraus logged 10.1 and had a 0.68 ERA. Northcut is the top returning hitter, but the Comets have other bats that can do some damage. Evan Haas and Kadeen Beermann (Heidelburg) will look to provide plenty of runs for the Comets. Haas hit .308 with 22 RBIs last season.

Portage Northern HS, MI
Portage Northern has been a mainstay at the top of the Michigan high school pecking order for years. Looking to improve on last year’s district title, this team shouldn’t fall short of the legacy set with the previous teams. They will be led by 2018 OF Noah Hecht (Kalamazoo College) and 2017 Future Games participants 2019 RHP Tyler Helgeson and 2019 1B Cameron French. They also return a group of sophomores that all started as freshmen in C Gannon Andrews, SS Nolan McCarthy, 3B/RHP Greg Lapetina, and RHP Parker Brey. Portage Northern also has a freshman that has been a standout at winter events in OF/RHP Xander Morris. Overall, the Huskies have their top five starting pitchers back from 2017 with other good arms available in the bullpen.

Tallmadge HS, OH
Like Massillion Jackson, Tallmadge (Division II) looks to make another playoff run after winning a state title in 2017. The Blue Devils have all nine starters returning and lost just one arm to graduation. That includes five Division-I signees and another senior with D-I offers. 2018 OF Seth Gergely (Purdue) returns after hitting .430 last year with 14 RBIs. 2018 SS Phillip Glasser (Youngstown State, hit .400 with 39 runs scored. Tallmadge has a few two-way threats in 2018 RHP/OF Jared Burick (Wright State), 2018 3B/RHP Zach Boyd (Belmont) and 2018 1B/RHP Scott Seeker (Army). Burick went 10-1 with a 2.49 ERA and 51 strikeouts on the mound. He drove in 15 and had 10 doubles at the plate. Boyd hit .349 with 25 RBIs and went 6-2 with a 2.01 ERA and Seeker hit .273 AVG with 23 RBIs and had a 0.70 ERA in 10 innings. 2019 OF/LHP Sam Seeker, who has offers from Toledo and Dayton, figures to chip in as well after hitting .313 with three home runs as a sophomore.

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