Road to Baum: 4A State Tournament Preview

May 9, 2017

By: Zac Bottoms
Arkansas Scouting Director

The road to Baum Stadium starts Thursday May 11^th for teams across the state of Arkansas. We will break down all 7 classifications before Thursday. Today we will begin by looking at 4A classification. The tournament will be hosted by Lonoke High School.

Check out the previews of the 7A, 6A and 5A classifications.

First Round Matchups

3E Lonoke vs 3N Pottsville

A solid matchup between two teams that have played good baseball all season. Lonoke will lean on 2017 MIF/RHP Casey Martin to get their offense going. Martin is an advanced athlete with bat speed and the ability to change the game with one swing of the bat. On the mound, I expect them to throw 2018 RHP Kade Stuart works off a mid-80s fastball with two solid off speed pitches, he has had a good year, keeping the Jackrabbits competitive in every start. Pottsville is led by 2018 LHP/OF Greyson Stevens. Stevens has hit .526 with 16 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs, and 48 RBIs. On the mound, he has a 1.14 ERA in 55 innings pitched with 78 strike outs. This will be battle to see who’s supporting cast can produce the most, as I assume both coaches will ensure the stars don’t get very many opportunities to make large impacts on the contest.

3S Monticello vs 4E Heber Springs

This is an intriguing match up as it features two teams with vastly different rosters. Heber Springs is a veteran club that has paid their dues, at times taken their lumps and now have matured into a solid club. Monticello is a young club that has had a strong year competing at a high level all year, pulling the biggest upset in the regional knocking off Ashdown. Heber Springs will look to 2017 RHP Andrew Bradshaw on the mound and 2017 OF Pierce Mitchum offensively. Monticello may turn to 2020 LHP Nick Griffin on the mound and offensively will hope they can create some offense with the advanced athletes they have throughout their line up

2N Shiloh Christian vs 4S Arkadelphia

Two programs that are familiar with how to navigate the road to Baum Stadium meet in the first round. Shiloh is the 2016 Defending State Champions and has had a solid year, suffering a few close loses of late in the district tournament and the regional tournament. On the mound 2018 RHP Landon Brown is their No.1 he is a physical right-hander with an upper 80’s fastball and solid off-speed. Offensively an experienced group with depth. A difference maker should be 2018 CIF Luke Johnson, a physical left-handed hitter. Arkadelphia, has navigated a rebuilding year, and turned it into a reloading year, with new names and similar results. On the mound they will give the ball to 2018 RHP Braydon Todd. Todd has advanced arm strength and a solid breaking ball. Offensively they will look to 2017 OF Eric Groom to show leadership and bring a calmness as one of the few badgers with post season experience.

2E Westside vs 4N Pea Ridge

Pea Ridge vs Westside is a hard match up to call, as Pea Ridge has looked the part as one of the elites of 4A baseball, before suffering two tough losses in the regional tournament. Westside is still a bit of an unknown. They won their conference but split against Lonoke and Central Arkansas Christian in the regional tournament. 2018 Jakota Sainsbury and 2019 MIF Tyler O’dell are two interesting prospects for Pea Ridge as Westside has benefited from the big year 2017 Austin Tyler who has 2.04 ERA in 61 innings pitched recording 78 strike outs. Offensively he has hit .354 with 4 doubles and a homerun driving in 17 runs on the season

Byes

Nashville: The Scrappers are one of the hottest teams in the state with a record of 16-1 since April 1^st. A well-rounded group with both offensive and pitching depth. A well-coached group that competes at a high level. On the mound their staff has competed consistently in the strike zone with an ERA of 1.98 on the season and 3:1 Strike out walk ratio. 2018 RHP Tyler Hanson has worked as their No.1 most of the season, he is solid but there isn’t a huge drop off between No.1 and No.3. Offensively players to watch are 2017 MIF Zach Jamison and 2018 MIF Chris Willard, two versatile athletes that have had solid years at the top of the order.

Booneville: The Bearcats are the 2016 3A State Runner-Ups. In 2017 they were bumped up a classification but have had similar results. They have won with a high-octane offense which has scores 8+ runs per game and has a team batting average of .360. They have some high-end athletes that run the bases aggressively stealing 138 bases as a unit. They are sound on the mound with a staff ERA of 2.53 and average over a strike out an inning. My top prospect for this group is 2019 OF/RHP Brandon Ulmer; an advanced athlete with a compact swing; which makes consistent loud contact.

Central Arkansas Christian: The most consistent performers of the 2016 season. This veteran club has not faltered along the way. They have played the game well, throwing strikes, playing sound defense, and have a consistent approach offensively. On the mound, they will primarily use three pitchers two with experience and a promising youngster in 2020 RHP Rhett James. Offensively a team approach with 2017 Braden Quesinberry 2017 Tanner Weber and 2017 Hunter Corbel being consistent contributors the past 3 season.

Malvern: An up and coming program, with a good young head coach and players, that are buying into the program, with each step of success. Their best prospect is 2018 RHP/ATH Demias Jimmerson. He is solid on the mound 82-84 mph a solid slider. Offensively he impresses with a line drive swing and bat speed. He has shown enough to power to be a threat, to run one out of the yard. This is a fun group to watch, and see if the youth catches up with them on a big stage or if they continue to ride the recent success.

Finals

Nashville vs Central Arkansas Christian

I am picking the two veteran clubs that have played the most consistent baseball, all season. This will be a great baseball game, two teams that execute at a high level.

Pick; Nashville; The 4A State Champion has come out of the 4A South 3 of the past 5 season and a team from the South has been in the finals the last four season. They won the South Regional and they will win the 4A State Title.

Sleeper Pick; Pea Ridge; 2016/2017 has been the year of the Blackhawk, they have shown that they can compete against anyone in the 4A classification. The bracket may work out well for them if they can maneuver to the semi-finals and catch Shiloh Christian or CAC after a hard fought contest against each other.

Overall a very balanced field, which could go numerous ways, as far as determining a champion. There will be good baseball played in Lonoke over the three-day stretch.

Road to Baum: 4A State Tournament Preview

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