Alabama High School Team Preview: Hueytown Golden Gophers

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: Hueytown Golden Gophers

Coach’s Name: Billy Chandler

Classification: AHSAA 6A 

Area Number: Area 8 

No. of Returning Positional Starters: 5 

No. of Returning Pitchers: 5 

Team Strengths: Pitching  

Top Returning Players:

• RHP/OF Zac Hill (2022)
• LHP/OF Alton Davis II (Alabama, 2022)
• 3B/RHP Levi Weaver (Bevill State CC, 2022)
• LHP John Michael Pickens (2023)
• UTL Aaron Wallace (2022)
• 1B/OF Michael Glover (2022)

Top 2022 Prospects:

• OF Vince Tucker (2022)
• OF/RHP Ashton Parker (2022)
• C Alex Drake (2022)

Top 2023 Prospects:

• SS/RHP Carson Barry (2023)
• 2B/RHP Daniel Watkins (2023)
• 1B/RHP Sylas Amick (2023)

Top 2024 & 2025 Prospects:

• LHP/1B Marshall Bradberry (2024)
• RHP/3B Baker Davis (2025)

Team Outlook

The Hueytown Golden Gophers have always been a really consistent program in Class 6A over the past couple of decade, and it looks like the 2022 season should be no different after a strong 2021 season. The Golden Gophers ended up winning their area last year, but were unfortunately eliminated in the 1st round to Chilton County in two tightly-contested games. 

Hueytown has a lot coming back in 2022, but they also have a couple of new faces that should provide an immediate impact at the plate and on the mound. RHP/OF Zac Hill seemed to be the engine for this team last year, as he served as one of the top arms in the rotation and hit in the leadoff spot. Hill posted a 5-1 record with a 2.03 ERA and also hit .342 as a junior last year, so he should continue to be one player the coaches will depend on. LHP/OF Alton Davis II (Alabama) has transferred back to the Golden Gophers after playing his freshman & sophomore years there. Davis II is a legitimate prospect for the upcoming MLB Draft with a fastball that gets into the low-90's from the left side. He can also handle the bat well too, so he's a big addition for this program. 3B/RHP Levi Weaver (Bevill State CC) is another senior, like Hill & Davis II, who brings back valuable experience from the past few years. Weaver is a solid defender as the hot corner and posted a .346 average while turning in a 3-1 record & a 2.89 ERA on the mound. LHP John Michael Pickens will look to build off of his excellent sophomore campaign that saw him go 5-0 with a 0.89 ERA and 80 strikeouts in 52 innings pitched. The junior southpaw was also perfect on the back-end of games, as he was 7/7 in save opportunities. Continuing to look at the lineup, UTL Aaron Wallace & 1B/OF Michael Glover are a pair of upperclassmen who will be asked to play big parts offensively for this team. Wallace is a utility player who hit .356 last spring, while Glover hit .279 with seven doubles.

It's easy to see the talent Hueytown has coming back this year, but there are some other names to watch out for who will play a big part in this team's success. Some of these players are OF Vince Tucker, OF/RHP Ashton Parker, C Alex Drake, SS/RHP Carson Barry, 2B/RHP Daniel Watkins, 1B/RHP Sylas Amick, LHP/1B Marshall Bradberry & RHP/3B Baker Davis. The Golden Gophers should certainly be back in the mix in Class 6A in 2022.

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