By Sean Duncan
Executive Director

Leading up to the start of the high school season, we will count down the top 75 preseason teams every day as part of our comprehensive season coverage:

Team: Andrew
Preseason Rank: 68
2013 Record: 24-12
Conference: Southwest Suburban Red
IHSA Class: 4A
Head Coach: Dave DeHaan
Playoff Run: Lost in First Round
2013 Final Rank: 24-12

Returning Starters: 1
Returning Pitchers: 2

TOP PLAYERS
Jeff Szubert, 2B, 2014
Stefan Urosevic, RHP/1B, 2014
Tom Bushnell, RHP/OF, 2015
Ramon Padilla, C, 2015
John McLaughlin, 3B, 2015
Austin Peterson, OF, 2015
Kyle Fitzgerald, RHP/INF, 2014
Luke Hook, SS/RHP, 2015
Ryan Hartman, RHP, 2016

X-FACTOR
Stefan Urosevic. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound right-hander will need to step up to be the team’s ace. He certainly has the stuff. Coach Dave DeHaan said Urosevic has an upper-80s fastball. As a junior, he posted a 3.11 ERA with 17 strikeouts. He’s also ranked in the top five in his graduation class.

NEWCOMER TO WATCH
Ramon Padilla. The 5-foot-8 junior is an excellent defensive catcher with a solid arm.

KEY PLAYER LOST
Dan Durkin, SS (Michigan State)

STAT RAT
Jeff Szubert scored 16 runs and drove in 9 as a junior last spring.

OUTLOOK
Dating back to when legendary coach Frank Ganser was at the helm, Andrew has always been a hard-nosed, well-disciplined team that grinds out wins. Coach Dave DeHaan has continued the tradition at the Tinley Park school, though this year’s edition isn’t the program’s strongest. Despite not having many returners back, Andrew features a solid junior class with a lot of potential. Juniors Tom Bushnell, John McLaughlin, Austin Peterson, Luke Hook and Padilla will need to deliver if the T-Bolts are to compete in the the tough Southwest Suburban Conference. While they definitely have talent in the program, filling the hole left by three-year starting INF Dan Durkin, who’s now at Michigan State, will be difficult.

BOTTOM LINE
Andrew may be a year away from being highly competitive, but the T-Bolts are never a team that can be taken lightly.

Season Countdown

+ Preseason Team Rankings

+ Updated Illinois 2014 Player Rankings

Make sure you follow @PBRillinois on Twitter for complete Illinois high school baseball coverage throughout the season.