After a very abbreviated 2020 schedule, the 2021 season is just underway with pretty much every team in the area getting started over the weekend - some already with a handful of games under their belts.
The mostly lost season a year ago has baseball coaches, players and fans/parents antsy to make sure the entire year plays out, culminating with crowning state champions across all classifications and organizations.
With that said, we're going to try a new spin on the previews. We'll introduce power rankings in a couple weeks after a good amount of games have been played.
What we'll do instead is highlight a team we think has a high chance to win state, a team that could be dark horse in that class as well as a preseason player to watch in each class.
Class 6A
Team to Beat: Prosper
Simply put, Prosper is the best team in the state by Diamond Pro/THSB. Prosper went 11-2 in the abbreviated 2020 season and returns 10 starters from that team that looked to be headed toward a deep playoff run.
Junior catcher Easton Carmichael, Jr. and senior shortstop Chase Pendley are the headliners for a team laced with talent up and down the lineup.
6A Dark Horse: Dallas Jesuit
Like Prosper, Jesuit is a team that has double-digit returning starters (10) for a team that was off to a very solid start in 2020. Before things shut down, Jesuit was off to an 8-4 start.
Jesuit is led by senior infielder Jordan Lawlar, a Vanderbilt commit.
Preseason Player to Watch: Tyler Collins, McKinney Boyd
Collins is an Oklahoma State-bound outfield from McKinney Boyd. Last year, Collins started the year with a .486 average with 2 doubles, 2 triples, a home run and 18 runs scored.
Collins has made an impact for McKinney Boyd since his freshman year and has continually gotten better each season.
