National Player of the Week: 4/29 to 5/5

May 8, 2024
By Andy Sroka
Managing Editor, Scouting

Today, we’re announcing our 10th National Player of the Week of the 2024 campaign. Quite a few states have begun their postseason play and those states have paused selecting a POTW as a result, which means we have a smaller set of names to choose from for our National Player of the Week this time around. Even still, there are several competitive options, and we elected to award our Week 10 choice to a Minnesota left-hander who punched out 32 batters over 12.1 innings.

PAST WINNERS

The players listed below were submitted by their coaches to their states through an official ‘Player of the Week’ form, and they were awarded the Player or Pitcher of the week awards in their respective states. If you’re a coach interested in submitting a nomination this season but have not yet received that form so far this spring, visit our staff directory to find the contact information for the state director overseeing your state’s season coverage.

Our staff took player stat lines from the week of April 29 to May 5 into account when determining these awards.

🏆 NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

William Haas LHP / OF / Rockford, MN / 2025

“The 2022 Future Games participant significantly impacted the game on both sides of the ball this past week. However, it was his exceptional display on the mound that truly stood out. Our No. 2 prospect in the state's class of 2025 made two starts last week, tossed 12.1 innings, and he struck out 32 batters while allowing just one earned run. In Haas' start against a potent Holy Family lineup, he worked 7.1 innings and struck out 19 in a no-decision outing. That followed a five-inning perfect game against Litchfield, in which he struck out 13 of the 15 batters he faced.

The Rockford lefty also lifted the Rockets' offense, going .500 at the plate with three extra-base hits, including a home run. On the season, he's now thrown 29 innings with 69 strikeouts, nine walks, and a tidy 1.44 ERA. Haas is committed to Tennessee.” – Andy Judkins, Minnesota State Director

(3/16/24)

STATE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Colorado

+ Sean Togher, OF/RHP (Fort Collins HS, 2024) | Cal Baptist:
“Togher isn't new to the Prep Baseball Colorado's 'Player of the Week' page, and he earns himself another award after Week 8. The senior belted three home runs, four doubles, a triple, racked up eight RBIs, and he went 10-for-16 overall on the week. Togher is committed to playing baseball at Division-I Cal Baptist after this spring and he has some true two-way upside. Togher is now hitting .519 with three home runs, five stolen bases, and a 1.500 OPS through 74 plate appearances. The line for Togher on the mound is now up to 43.1 innings with 63 Ks, 11 walks, and a 1.28 ERA.”

+ Sam Eldredge, RHP (Summit HS, 2026) | Uncommitted:
“Eldredge whiffed 17 batters across a complete game against Eagle Valley HS. The sophomore did not allow an earned run, scattered five hits, and he walked just two batters en route to the win. Eldredge is a surging underclassman with a fastball in the mid-80s and a deceptive breaking ball. At the 4A level this spring, Eldredge has 56 strikeouts across 34.2 innings pitched to go with only 12 walks and 2.02 ERA. We have also seen some two-way upside from Eldredge with his .488 average, three homers, five stolen bases, and a 1.453 OPS during 54 plate appearances so far. Eldredge could be one to watch closely as we progress deeper into 2024.”

– Caleb Dameron, Colorado Staff

Illinois

+ Kalieb Hackman, 3B/RHP (Normal Community HS, 2024) | Augustana (IL):
“Normal Community is now up to No. 12 in our Power 25 after a dominant 4-1 week, due in part to the performance of Hackman. On the week, Hackman finished 7-for-11 with a home run, triple, four doubles, six RBIs, seven runs scored, two walks and one stolen base.

His most dominant game arguably came in an 11-10 win in eight innings over Bloomington, where he went 4-for-4 with a triple, two doubles, one RBI, three runs scored and a walk. There was no shortage of offense in the Ironmen’s 29-1 victory over Peoria, where Hackman finished the day 2-for-2 with a home run, double, five RBIs and two runs scored. They capped off their week with a 6-2 win over a strong Andrew club and Hackman once again contributed, going 1-for-2 with a double and a run scored.

The Augustana commit has been a force on both sides of the ball for the Ironmen all season long, boasting a strong right-handed swing with power in the middle of their lineup. He can also hop on the mound and run his fastball into the upper-80s, touching 89 mph numerous times in front of our staff earlier this spring.”

+ Joshua Vaughn, RHP (Illini Bluffs HS, 2024) | Bradley:
“Vaughn put together arguably the most dominant performance we have seen in some time, twirling a perfect game in a 1-0 win over Peoria Christian. Throwing a perfect game is extremely rare on its own, but Vaughn took it to the next level when he recorded every out via the strikeout, notching 21 on the game. He only needed 87 pitches to complete this feat, with 67 of them being strikes. Committed to play his collegiate ball at Bradley, the right-hander has impressed our staff numerous times in the past, running his fastball up to 90 mph to pair with a sharp, mid-70s slider and changeup that plays around 80 with a similar profile to the fastball.

On the season, Vaughn now boasts a 5-1 record with 32 innings pitched, a 0.21 ERA, just eight hits allowed, six walks and an eye-opening 77 strikeouts.”

(4/25/23)

– Pete Hamot, Illinois & Wisconsin Asst. Director

Indiana

+ Kaleb Short, SS/RHP (River Forest HS, 2024) | Ancilla JC:
“Short had a monster week for 3A River Forest – quite possibly the most impressive stat-line that has been submitted this year. The senior, who is committed to Ancilla JC, went 10-for-11 (.909) at this dish, driving in 14 runs, while clubbing two doubles, two triples, and he slugged a home run. Short also stole four bases and reached base at a .923 clip. Short was just as, if not more impressive on the mound, where he earned the win in both of his appearances in 12 innings pitched, allowing just four hits, two walks, and no earned runs, while striking out 31 batters total.”

– Cooper Trinkle, Indiana Lead Scout

Kansas

+ Noah Davis, 3B/RHP (Leavenworth HS, 2026) | Uncommitted:
“Last week, the sophomore third baseman went 5-for-7 with a double, triple, four walks, and he drove in five runs, scored nine times, and he stole four bases. The right-handed hitter is leading the Pioneers in many offensive categories this spring. For good measure, Davis also tossed 4.2 shutout innings last week and allowed just one hit, one walk, and he K'd 11.”

(2/11/24)

+ Logan Baalmann, RHP/SS (Thomas More Prep-Marian HS, 2027) | Uncommitted:
“The freshman right-hander twirled a seven-inning complete game against in-town rival Hays HS, preventing them from scoring, allowing just four hits and striking out six total. He also threw a perfect inning against Salina-Sacred Heart. For good measure, Baalmann went 10-for-20 last week with seven RBIs at the plate. ”

– Andy Urban, Central Region Supervisor

Minnesota

+ Nolan Geislinger, SS/RHP (Eden Valley-Watkins HS, 2024) | Iowa Western JC:
“The Eden Valley-Watkins shortstop had a big offensive week. Geislinger went 5-for-8, drove in nine, scored seven times, and hit a pair of home runs in one game against Kimball. The 6.60 runner also stole nine bags over that time. On the year, he's slashing .500/.585/.786 with seven extra-base hits, 22 runs scored, and 17 stolen bases.

The multi-sport athlete is committed to Iowa Western to play football and baseball.”

(8/4/23)

– Andy Judkins, Minnesota State Director

Nevada

+ Chase Sorlie, RHP (Faith Lutheran HS, 2024) | Sacramento State:
“Sorlie has been the go-to arm this season for Faith Lutheran and he turned in another dominant performance to open up the postseason. The Crusaders took on Las Vegas and Sorlie, a recent Sac State commit, went the distance while allowing no runs en route to a 6-0 win for Faith Lutheran. While allowing no runs, the right-hander also allowed just three hits while picking up four strikeouts. It's been a dominant season for Sorlie.”

(5/6/23)

– Cam Black-Araujo, West Coast Content Manager

Ohio

+ Anthony Hutter, OF (Elyria Catholic HS, 2024) | Eastern Michigan:
Hutter is a quick-twitch athlete with tools and he starred last week for Elyria Catholic. The EMU recruit was 10-for-14 with four extra-base hits, including a pair of doubles and triples, and he scored nine times, drove in another eight runs, walked four times, and swiped three bags.”

(2/10/24)

– Dylan Hefflinger, Ohio Editor-in-Chief, Scout

Utah

+ Austin Ellis, C/3B (Mountain Ridge HS, 2024) | Northwestern State:
“Ellis, a former Utah Future Gamer, had a huge week for Mountain Ridge. He tallied seven extra-base hits, including four home runs, that generated 10 RBIs and helped his high school along to four wins. The Northwestern State recruit is a top-20-ranked player in the state of Utah and he's been very productive offensively all while catching four 90-plus mph arms on the Sentinels pitching staff.”

– Jeff Scholzen, Utah Scouting Director

Wisconsin

+ Sam Moses, CIF/RHP (Cedarburg HS, 2024) | Madison JC:
“Moses (Cedarburg, 2024; Madison JC commit) has been the heart and soul of this Cedarburg unit. Standing at a strong 6-foot-1, 195-pound frame, Moses has been a force at the plate for the Bulldogs all year.

He reached base a total of 18 times over the course of six games. The star senior was 10-for-16 on the week — tallying eight walks in addition to those 10 hits.

Moses flexed his muscles at the plate as well. From the middle of Cedarburg’s order, Moses hit two home runs, one double and a triple that turned into a run scored after a throwing error was committed. With that performance, he accumulated six RBIs in his work for the Bulldogs—proving to be a difference-maker when it counted most.

Moses got up on the mound and struck out 18 batters in two separate occasions, too. He defeated Slinger in a 4-2 victory by tossing 5.2 innings against the Owls—striking out 10 batters while only increasing his production. Moses remains a player to watch out for in the latter half of the season, as he currently ranks No. 54 in Wisconsin’s class of 2024.”

+ Drew Kavanaugh, RHP (Sun Prairie East HS, 2024) | UW-Eau Claire (football):
“Sun Prairie East has enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in the WIAA through the halfway point in the year—boasting an unblemished 15-0 record as of May 7. A mainstay in their pitching rotation has been Kavanaugh, who has emerged as the ace of this unit.

Kavanaugh — known for his prowess on the gridiron as Sun Prairie East’s QB1 — started his week on the mound with six strikeouts in four innings against Madison East in a Big Eight Conference battle. The right-hander walked zero batters in the process and worked around four hits, as the Cardinals notched a 13-1 victory over the Purgolders.

His second outing of the week turned heads over at Kapco Park though. Kavanaugh twirled a complete-game shutout against Marquette, who has proven to put up runs in the past this year. Kavanaugh struck out 15 of the 25 batters he faced on Saturday — allowing one walk and two hits. East went on to win the game 2-0, as their senior right-hander improved his record to 5-0 on the season. His ERA currently sits at 0.82, as the No. 1 team in Wisconsin looks to maintain their momentum this week.”

– Maddox Durst, Wisconsin Staff