Preseason Power 25 Countdown: No. 21 Westosha Central

The WIAA high school baseball season opens on March 26, the opening day for prep baseball in Wisconsin.

Leading up to the opening week of action, we’ll be rolling out team-by-team previews, counting down to our state’s preseason No. 1-ranked program for the 2019 season. We’re combing over all classifications and corners of the state to determine our top-25 ranked teams ahead of what’s sure to be an historic campaign, with the merging of the spring and summer divisions into one single WIAA season.

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 analysis.

Our 2019 preseason coverage continues today.

Team: Westosha Central
Preseason Rank: 21
2018 Record: 17-7
Conference: Southern Lakes
WIAA Division: 1
Head Coach: Jacob Morman
Playoff Run: Sectional Semifinals
2018 Final Rank: 20
Returning Starters: 7
Returning Pitchers: 5

TOP PLAYERS

KEY PLAYERS LOST

Josh Leslie, SS (Mesa CC)

NEWCOMER TO WATCH

Although Kyle Mitchell saw limited varsity action last year as a freshman, we are still listing Mitchell as this team’s Newcomer to Watch. The sophomore got just 19 at-bats last spring, but will likely see that role expand in 2019. And where his role is especially expected to expand is on the mound. Mitchell did not pitch any varsity innings last year, but he has the arm strength to do so. We’ve already seen him up to 82 mph on the mound at a couple of our events, and he carries an 88 mph arm in the outfield, so there’s clearly more in the tank. Don’t be surprised to see Mitchell get his first crack at varsity innings on the mound this season.

Kyle Mitchell (3/3/19)

STAT RAT

Exactly 100 percent of this Falcons pitching staff returns from a season ago, one in which they won 17 of their 24 games. Every inning that head coach Jacob Morman relied on in 2018 is back for this season. Not many teams can say that, and that’s a huge feather in the Westosha Central caps this season. The Falcons won’t just feature your run-of-the-mill high school arms either, senior righty Dylan Anderson brings back the team best line from 2018, going 4-1 with a 1.92 ERA, eating up over 47 innings with just nine walks. He’s clearly a reliable strike-thrower who will keep the Falcons in every contest he starts. Fellow senior right-hander Austin Glidden (4-1, 2.86) and junior righties Cooper Griffiths (5-3, 2.27) and Bryce Kerkman (2-0, 1.89) round out an experienced staff. We’ll touch more on these three below.

X-FACTOR

As for Glidden, he has the ability to affect this 2019 team in more ways than one. He is likely the Falcons’ best returning defender on the infield, which could push him to the everyday shortstop role. He’s also a .300-plus hitter and a rotation type arm. With the hole left by Josh Leslie at shortstop, we could see Glidden get more time there and sacrifice some innings on the mound, since the staff is so deep. But it would be hard not to start Glidden’s arm on the mound as often as possible. Come playoff time, Glidden could be Central’s most impactful player, in whichever role he takes on gameday.

OUTLOOK

Westosha Central may quietly be one of the more experienced teams in the state. The Falcons have not seen a conference title in a long time, but they made it out of last year’s regional only to lose a tough 4-3 contest to Kenosha Tremper – the No. 22-ranked team on this year’s Preseason Power 25 – in the sectional semis. That game’s lineup returns all but two participants and adds valuable experience to a highly talented Falcons lineup.

Pitching may be Coach Morman’s strongest asset in 2019, as we touched on earlier, considering every inning pitched is back, locked and loaded on staff.

The senior Anderson likely headlines as the ace, returning almost a third of all Falcon innings pitched from last year. Glidden (4-1, 2.86), an Illinois-Springfield commit, is a mid-80s arm who has shown lively stuff in the hitting zone. He struck out almost a batter an inning in 2018, though, unfortunately, that lively stuff walked almost just as many. If a slightly more accurate Glidden appears in 2019, then you’ll see the ERA drop and inject this rotation with another tough game-changing arm once the playoffs role around.

The wildcard on this staff is the junior Griffiths. Griffiths served as a swing guy last season as just a sophomore, showing the ability to start as well as be the first guy out of the pen in high-leverage situations. He was clearly a go-to arm for Coach Morman, too. Griffiths has, arguably, the best stuff on staff, with a blazing fastball that will reach the upper 80s. His dynamic stuff helped notch 44 punch-outs in 37 innings pitched last year, and he could find himself as the regular No. 2 this spring.

Cooper Griffiths (8/2/18)

Kerkman added more than 29 innings as a sophomore and reliability in multiple roles. His ability to round out and deepen this staff should help the Falcons really compete throughout the regular season.

As for the Falcons lineup, the biggest hole to fill will be replacing the defensive prowess of the since-graduated Leslie at shortstop. He hit two-hole and locked down one more important positions on the diamond in 2018. This year, Glidden could be an option here for Coach Morman, as he could slide over from second base where he played last year when he didn’t pitch. Otherwise, the talent coming up the ranks has already caught our attention this winter, and he could find an option there.

Senior Alex Salerno returns as one of two returning all-conference selections (Austin Glidden) and hit .333 last season, best average on the team and used his wheels to man centerfield and lead the team in runs scored (25) and stolen bases (13). The team’s biggest run producer also returns in the outfield in the likes of junior left-handed hitter Andrew Hrncar. Hrncar drove in 23 with a .250 average and typically hits in the middle of the lineup. The sophomore Mitchell has a chance to solidify the final outfield spot, as he saw partial action on varsity last spring.

Andrew Hrncar (1/26/19)

One of the bigger juggling acts for Coach Morman will be shuffling his pitching staff throughout the infield. Griffiths (3B), Glidden (MIF) and Anderson (1B) all play infield spots when not pitching, and hit over or near .300 last year.

Lastly, watch Myles Zazumura as he returns as the team’s backstop. His experience with this veteran staff should not skip a beat in 2019.

BOTTOM LINE

The Falcons have what it takes to give Burlington a run at the Southern Lakes title, seeing as though the Demons have won it the last three seasons. On top of that, Westosha Central could set up nicely for a deep playoff run. Many of their returners have three-years varsity experience, and have gotten a taste of winning playoff baseball. Couple that with a lineup that is nearly intact from 2018 and several options for a potent 1-2 punch on the mound, the Falcons could be a sleeper to come out of the Kenosha Sectional.

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

Find more information on the 2019 Falcons below:

+ Full Schedule
+ Team Website
+ GameChanger
+ Twitter