The 2022 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, excitement abounds throughout the state. Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Alabama.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in Montgomery at the AISA or AHSAA state championships, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality. We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Alabama. We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews and by continuing our scheduled podcasts and releasing our preseason Top 10 in each AHSAA classification. 

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the state. Each week we will be releasing our players of the week, updating the Top 10 in each AHSAA classification as well as a Power 25. One thing that you especially don’t want to miss are our scheduled podcasts with guests from across the state as well as recaps and previews of big games across the state.  

*Please note that all information is based on team preview questionnaires that were sent out and returned by the participating high school coaches.

High School Name: Hamilton Aggies

Coach’s Name: Trent Williams 

Classification: AHSAA 4A 

Area Number: Area 12 

No. of Returning Positional Starters: 7 

No. of Returning Pitchers: 6 

Team Strengths: Pitching and Defense 

Top Returning Players:

• LHP/OF Eli Jackson (Wallace-Hanceville CC, 2022)
• RHP/SS Bryant Loving (2023)
• 3B/RHP Payton Purser (2024)
• 2B Joseph Aycock (2023)
• 1B/C Will Shotts (2022)
• OF Jon Robert Page (2022)

Team Outlook

The Hamilton Aggies enjoyed an excellent season last spring, reaching the Elite 8 in the 4A State Playoffs. The good news for the Aggies is that they return the bulk of that roster, including some of the leaders from that team. It should be another solid season for Hamilton as they attempt to get to Montgomery in Class 4A.

One of the strengths of this team should be its ability to pitch, and LHP/OF Eli Jackson (Wallace-Hanceville CC) should lead the way on the mound as the ace just like last year. He finished with a 7-4 record & posted a minuscule 1.28 ERA in the process. He seemed to get better as the season went on, as he tossed two of his three shutouts in the postseason. He'll hit in the middle of the lineup and is  a big piece coming back for the Aggies. SS/RHP Bryant Loving is a very athletic player who will also play a two-way role for Hamilton this spring. He led the team in average (.301), hits (37) and RBI's (25) last spring and has a ton of potential at the plate. He'll be at the top of the order for the Aggies this year, as well. 3B/RHP Payton Purser is a player who the coaches are expecting a big jump from his freshman year to his sophomore. He's a strong corner infielder who logged four double, one home run and 20 RBI's last year as a freshman, so there's reason to believe he'll continue to see his role expand throughout his high school career. 

Continuing down the roster, 2B Joseph Aycock was enjoying a solid sophomore season last year for the Aggies before unfortunately missing the end of the season due to injury. He's back and fully-healed in 2022 and will return to the leadoff spot in the order. He's got a knack for getting on base and is a very good base runner, as he stole 15/16 base last spring. 1B/C Will Shotts is another one who could make a big jump from his sophomore to junior year. Last year, he hit at a .269 clip while logging seven extra base hits and 20 RBI's. After playing mostly 1st base & designated hitter last year, OF Jon Robert Page is expected to make the switch to outfield in 2022. He had 20 hits last year and drove in 11 runners in the process. Expect the Aggies to make another deep run throughout the 4A State Playoffs this spring.

 

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