MIAA

Yesterday I got the chance to see some MIAA B Conference basketball. I saw the Friends School of Baltimore Quakers take on conference rivals St. Paul’s Crusaders. The Crusaders came in at 6-4 with notable wins against A Conference Loyola Blakefield, McDonogh, and a win against Conference rival Archbishop Curley. The Quakers came in 4-5 with notable wins against Annapolis Area Christian and Park. To begin the game the Quakers came out hot holding the Crusaders 24-21 at the half. The second half was not the same story. The Crusaders were playing great defense forcing turnovers, 3 point desperation shots, and holding the Quakers to only 9 points in the second half. On the other side of the paint the Crusaders were winning all the rebounds scoring 25 points in the second half. The game would end 33-46 making the Quakers go 4-6 and 1-2 in conference play while the Crusaders go 7-4 and now 2-1 in conference play.

The MLB Draft is coming soon, with festivities split across July 13-14 in Atlanta. The event opens the biggest weekend in baseball alongside the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby. This year, Maryland celebrates 80 years of producing top MLB talent. In 1965, Jim Spencer made history when the California Angels selected the first baseman with the 11th overall pick out of Andover High School, which is now North County High School. Spencer made his major league debut on Sept. 7, 1968, beginning a 15-year career. In 1978, he became the first Maryland high school draftee to win a World Series. 337 players have followed Spencer's lead from schools across the state. Two, Cal Ripken Jr. and Harold Baines, have made the Hall of Fame. Maryland high school draftees have combined for 37 All-Star appearances, 13 Silver Sluggers, nine Gold Gloves, two MVPs, a Rookie of the Year and seven World Series wins. The Chicago White Sox used their No.1 overall pick in 1977 on Harold Baines out of St. Michaels High School. He became the first and only player to be drafted from the school and the only top selection in state history. The White Sox had faith in the then-18-year-old after he hit .532 as a senior and became an All-American first baseman. Baines played for five teams, headlined by the White Sox and the Baltimore Orioles. He debuted on Opening Day in 1980 and dominated the decade, boasting the 5th most RBIs among American League players from 1980 to 1989. Baines is regarded as one of the most clutch players of all time. He is tied for the fourth-most walk-off home runs and the 10th-most grand slams in MLB history. Baines joined the Hall of Fame in 2019 as an inductee of the Today's Game Era Committee. In his induction speech, Baines gave credit to his Maryland upbringing. “From teachers to coaches to town residents who showed me both kindness and discipline, I thank you all for what you have done for me. I cannot ever express enough appreciation for St. Michaels. It still remains my home to this day,” Baines said. In 1993, the town of St. Michaels named Jan. 9 as Harold Baines Day. The White Sox retired his number 3 in honor of their franchise icon. Baines returned to Chicago as a bench coach in 2004 and finally helped bring a World Series back to the South Side in 2005. Most recently, the San Diego Padres selected Lamar King Jr. (Calvert Hall College High School 22) in the 4th round of the 2022 draft. San Diego has made two of the three most recent Maryland high school selections, joined by Jackson Merrill and the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Peter Heubeck. King impressed scouts in his senior season with a .545 batting average and a 1.363 slugging percentage, according to MaxPreps. The catcher had been committed to Georgia Tech before the draft. He ultimately signed for full slot value at the 120th overall pick. King recently won the Minor League Player of the Month award for his June performance. The 21-year-old had a .408 batting average with a 1.084 OPS and 11 doubles in the month. MLB Pipeline ranks King as the Padres’ 29th-best prospect. King now has a chance to follow in his father, Lamar King Sr., a former NFL defensive end, and make it to the pros. The elder King played for Essex High School and the Seattle Seahawks drafted him in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft. In 2025, the legacy of Maryland players could continue with Long Reach High School's Aidan West. MLB lists the shortstop as a top 125 player in the draft class. West could make history for Long Reach as their first draftee and end a three-year drought for Maryland high school talent.

Myles Upchurch (St. Albans ‘25) is one of the most exciting DMV high school players to watch with MLB’s draft day approaching. The Maryland native stands out for his college commitment and projectable upside for major league clubs. Upchurch enjoyed a successful and acclaimed career for the Bulldogs across multiple sports. He did not fully commit to baseball until the 2024-2025 season, also playing football for his first three years. Upchurch’s arm helped earn a quarterback spot and the Bulldogs performed well in his junior year. He threw for 817 yards and had eight touchdowns with only one interception. The right-hander wields a four-pitch mix with impressive numbers. Upchurch throws a fastball, a slider, a changeup and a curveball. In a recent start on May 5, scouts recorded his velocity at over 92 MPH for the fastball and 87 MPH for the slider. Accolades are abundant for Upchurch, with his St. Albans baseball career finished. The pitcher won two MVP awards for his sophomore and junior seasons, with multiple appearances in national showcases. His final game is the most impressive of his high school career. Upchurch started on the mound in the DCSAA championship as the Bulldogs faced rival Jackson-Reed. The senior pitched a complete game shutout, which proved essential for the low-scoring game. The Bulldogs struggled to find an offensive break until Upchurch provided his run support, hitting a go-ahead two-run home run. His heroics earned the third DCSAA title in St. Albans history and their first since 2023. The University of Alabama took notice and recruited Upchurch to exclusively pitch. Alabama boasts one of the top pitching programs across NCAA baseball and Upchurch became one of four right-handed pitching recruits this cycle. Nationally, MLB Pipeline has Upchurch as the 167th best prospect among this year’s draft class. Prep Baseball is extremely bullish, ranking him as the 25th-best right-handed high school pitcher. MLB teams have only drafted 17 D.C. high schoolers, but three of them have successfully reached the major leagues. Most recently, the New York Mets drafted outfielder Nick Morabito in the second round of the 2022 draft. That pick ended an eight-year drought for D.C. talent and became the highest selection for any D.C high schooler. St. Albans has produced one player for the draft. In 2008, the Arizona Diamondbacks selected pitcher Danny Hultzen, but he opted to attend the University of Virginia instead. The lefty ultimately reached the majors in 2019 for the Chicago Cubs. Hultzen now works in the Cubs front office as a pitching performance manager. Upchurch recently attended the MLB Draft Combine in Phoenix, Arizona, from June 17 to 21. High school pitchers often require substantial signing bonuses to forgo college, so that will likely be the deciding factor for Upchurch on draft day. The MLB Draft is scheduled for July 13 and 14.

Gavin Sheets, Gilman ‘14, and Jackson Merrill, Severna Park ‘21, play right next to each other in the Padres outfield, but the two lefties took vastly different journeys to reach San Diego. As a Severna Park senior, Jackson Merrill hit an even .500 with a program record of 13 home runs for the Falcons in 2021. MLB Pipeline ranked him as the 79th-best prospect that year. The Padres were highly impressed with his athleticism and drafted him 27th overall in one of the biggest draft day jumps. He became the first player since 2000 to be drafted out of Severna Park. The then-shortstop rocketed through the minor leagues to become a consensus top 15 prospect in baseball before the 2024 season. The Padres challenged him to learn to play center field in early 2024 and push for a spot on the team. Without playing a single game at the Triple-A level, Merrill made the major league roster as the starting centerfielder. The Padres' rookie hit the ground running offensively and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting. Merrill posted the third-most valuable season for a Padres centerfielder in franchise history, according to wins above replacement. He has continued the strong production this season with a .304 batting average and strong defense. Gavin Sheets signed a minor league deal with the Padres on Feb. 9 after a down 2024 with the Chicago White Sox. He made the major league roster after impressing in spring training with six home runs, tied for the MLB lead. Sheets immediately rewarded the team's confidence on Opening Day with a pinch-hit game-tying home run in his first at-bat, fueling the Padres' comeback win against the Atlanta Braves. Gilman Baseball Head Coach Larry Sheets, Gavin’s father and a former MLB player, spoke with CSZ Network and emphasized how the change of scenery unlocked a new level for Gavin. “***'s put him in a great setting in San Diego. The coaches are terrific and they were able to break down his flaws and get him back on the right track…You've got to feel like you're wanted and I think that's the other thing that's going on in San Diego that didn't go on in Chicago,” Coach Sheets said. Sheets made multiple key adjustments to turn the page on his 2024 season. His contact quality improved with a 54.2% hard hit rate, the highest of his career. Sheets also took massive strides against fastballs with a .615 slugging percentage near the top of the league. The 29-year-old has been one of the best hitters in baseball with 12 home runs, 42 RBIs and an .801 OPS. Sheets has also supplied numerous clutch moments for the Padres. He has the fourth most home runs in the National League to tie the game or take the lead. With his breakout success, Sheets could become an All-Star for the first time. No Maryland high school player has made an All-Star Game as a designated hitter since Hall of Famer Harold Baines in 1999. Beyond the accolades, Sheets has already given back to his community. Coach Sheets described how his son’s success impacts the current Gilman roster. “To see somebody come from Gilman, which is a small school…and know that they've been able to make it, I think it just gives you hope. A lot of the kids are excited about watching his progress and I think deep down they feel like ‘well shoot, if he can do it, then you know I can do it as well,’” Coach Sheets said.

Archbishop Spalding’s baseball team has enjoyed a dominant spring season, and they will be entering May looking to finish off an undefeated season in conference play. Dominant pitching has been the formula for the Cavaliers, with their pitching staff only allowing 19 runs in the entire month of April! They will be going against tough competition in Calvert Hall, who they have only defeated by a total of 3 runs in their past 2 matchups. A 5-4 extra inning victory on Monday and the 2-0 win in last year’s league championship will leave Calvert Hall looking for revenge. Stay in the Zone to see how Spalding finishes off a spectacular start to the season.