Riley Pint and Aquinas come in to this season as a contender to be the top team in Kansas.
File photo by Norman Tackett
MaxPreps 2015 Kansas Baseball Fab 5 presented by the Army National Guard
1. Blue Valley (Stilwell)2014 finish: 17-7
Head coach: Tony Scardino
Blue Valley sailed through the postseason after losing seven games during the regular season. Two of the team's top pitchers return from that squad in
Ryan Cyr and
Tanner Fox. Cyr, a senior, earned all-state honors after going 5-2 with 57 strikeouts. Fox, a junior, posted a 6-1 record with 49 strikeouts.
View last season's Kansas baseball rankings, presented by the Army National Guard2. Aquinas (Overland Park)2014 finish: 21-4
Head coach: Lorne Parks
Aquinas won the Class 5A state championship last year and returns the nation's No. 1 ranked player from the Class of 2016, according to Perfect Game.
Riley Pint, a 6-foot-4 right-handed pitcher, is ranked No. 1 thanks to a fastball that hits 96 mph. Aquinas also has one of the state's top seniors in
Garrett Hutson, who is ranked No. 2 in the state by Perfect Game.
View last season's Kansas baseball playoff brackets3. Blue Valley Southwest (Overland Park)2014 finish: 14-8
Head coach: Rick Sabath
The Timberwolves lost to Aquinas in the Class 5A championship game last year, but they have a talented group of arms returning to make a run at the title.
Brendan Stanek, an Arkansas commit, returns along with
Miller Hogan, a St. Louis recruit.
David Tudhope, a lefthander, also returns.
View last season's Kansas baseball stat leaders4. Blue Valley West (Stilwell)2014 finish: 18-5
Head coach: Bill McDonald
One year removed from winning a Class 6A state championship, Blue Valley
Southwest should be in the hunt for another title in 2015. Four starters return, including shortstop
Connor Kaiser, who was injured much of last season. He has committed to Vanderbilt. Other key players include outfielder
Jackson Layton, pitcher
Davis Schwab and junior
Nathan Wiles, who has committed to Oklahoma.
View the MaxPreps Kansas baseball pro photo galleries5. Seaman (Topeka)2014 finish: 10-13
Head coach: Steve Bushnell
Winners of the 2013 state Class 5 championship and winners of seven state titles since 2000, Seaman dropped 13 games last year and still managed to reach the semifinals. A total of 15 underclassmen return from last year's squad that had just three seniors.
