Wisconsin Legion Baseball Preseason Rankings

2016 American Legion Baseball Preseason Rankings

With the American Legion baseball season beginning this week for many teams in Wisconsin, it's time for our preseason rankings to take stock of the top teams in the state. Read on to find out who is expected to be the best of the best in 2016. The rankings compile all teams regardless of what Class they are in.

Honorable Mentions

Waupun Post 210

Chippewa Falls Post 77

Onalaska Post 336

Beaver Dam Post 146

Watertown Post 189

Ash Port

Marinette

Antigo Post 3

10. Marshfield Blue Devils

The Blue Devils lost a lot of talent from last year’s 24-8 team, but they also have some key players returning this summer. Mitch Susa is on the baseball team at UW-Platteville, and he is back for the Blue Devils. Trevor Schwecke and Paul Maguire, who made up the heart of the Marshfield High School batting order, will also play for the city’s Legion club. Three players named first team all-Cloverbelt East in 2016 are on the Blue Devil roster: Matthias Gouin of Columbus Catholic and Neillsville’s Jason Kurth and Logan Matson. Spencer High School standout Bobby Pilz has excelled on the mound and at the plate during his prep career, and he’ll be a solid option for Marshfield to have. All things considered, the Blue Devils have a lot of talent to work with this season.

9. Menasha Twins

The Twins made it to the Class AA state tournament last season, and they will have a good team again this summer. Griffin Jack started almost every game for St. Norbert College this year and posted a .267 batting average. He’ll be one of the top hitters for Menasha. St. Mary Catholic made it to the state tournament, and several of their top players also play for the Twins. Mack Blashka had a phenomenal season on the mound with a sub-one ERA, so he figures to be a key part of the Menasha rotation. Speedy outfielder Tyler Nelson batted well above .400 for St. Mary Catholic and should continue his hot hitting into the summer. The Twins will also have some of the top players from Menasha High School, including Dalton Knaack, Nathan Mentzel and Chris VanHandel, who made up the heart of the Bluejay order this spring. The Twins are the preseason favorites to win the Class AA state title, slightly ahead of Beaver Dam, Antigo and Onalaska.

8. Wisconsin Dells Post 187

Post 187 had a fantastic season last summer that saw them go 36-4 and win the Class A state title. They also reached the championship game of the Central Plains Division 2 Tournament, which featured some of the top teams in the country. They lost the title game on a walk-off suicide squeeze. That undoubtedly lit a fire underneath them, and they’re gearing up for another big year. They will have seven starters returning from last season’s dominant squad, and they are the strong favorites to repeat as Class A champions.

The Black Sox were the Class AAA state runners-up last summer, and they won 28 games overall. They have four of their starters returning this summer and only one top pitcher, so there will be a bit of a new look to the team. They are still expected to be a solid team though, as the ballplayers in the Plover area tend to be high-quality. The Black Sox have won eight consecutive conference titles, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a ninth one captured this year.

7. Plover Black Sox

6. Green Bay Shockers

The Shockers combine players from Green Bay Preble and Green Bay N.E.W. Lutheran High Schools. Preble made it to the state tournament in Division 1 this year, while N.E.W. Lutheran made it to the Division 4 state tournament. The majority of this year’s Shockers team is from Preble. That’s not a bad thing, as they have eight of the Hornets’ starters on their team this year. Overall, they have practically their entire lineup back from last year—eight starters are returning. They also have most of their pitching back as well. They made it to the Class AAA state tournament last summer, and they have the potential to do so again this year.

5. Janesville Post 205

Janesville comes into the summer more college-heavy than most other teams in Wisconsin. They have five college guys in their ranks, including three who play competitive baseball for their school. Alex Marro, who goes to McHenry County College, helped lead Janesville Craig to a state title in 2015 as the team’s ace. Zach Bailey saw significant playing time for Madison College this year and helped get Janesville Parker to the state semifinals in 2014. Among the high school players on Post 205’s roster, there is Janesville Craig pitcher Chase Nyborg and 1st team all-Big Eight infielder Hunter Yerke from Janesville Parker. Their pitching should be in good hands with Marro and 2nd team all-Big Eight pitchers Riley Grover and Hunter VanZandt.

4. Beloit Post 48

Beloit made it to the Class AAA state tournament last year, and they have five starters returning to their program. They also have two of their most used starting pitchers back, but they lost three pitchers who threw over 40 innings last summer. What they lost from last year will be replaced in part by players from Beloit Turner High School, who went 23-3 this spring. Some key players for the Trojans have joined the Legion program this summer. Ethan Burns batted .417 for Turner, and he’s joined on the Legion squad by Nate Loomis (.404 average) and Sam Behm (.341 average, 31 RBIs). There’s a lot of talent here to make Beloit one of the top teams in the state.

3. De Pere Post 230

De Pere returns five starters from a state tournament team last year, including the heart of their batting order. Emmett Kulick, who played ball at Upper Iowa University, and Connor Rutherford, who played at Lewis University, are both back for De Pere. They also have two of their top starting pitchers returning in Winona State commit Tyler Rouze and Carson Jacques. De Pere is a good baseball city, and this year’s Legion squad should reflect that.

2. Madison Impact

The defending Class AAA state champions come back just as good as last year. They’ve got six starters returning from the team that finished as the runner-up in the Great Lakes Regional Tournament, one round away from the American Legion World Series. Madison College’s Kian O’Brien batted .358 at the college level, and he is back for the Impact. Former Sun Prairie slugger Mike Brekke also returns for Madison. The team has some of the top players from the area’s high schools, including Sun Prairie, DeForest, and Marshall. In particular, they have a handful of Sun Prairie’s top players this year. The only question mark surrounding the team is pitching. They lost three of their top four starters from last summer. There’s no doubt that their offense will be strong though.

1. Eau Claire Post 53

Eau Claire will have an embarrassment of riches at their disposal this summer. Eau Claire Memorial and Eau Claire North were two of the best high school teams in the state this year, and several players from both schools will play for Post 53. Plus you can throw in some all-state level talent from the likes of Elk Mound and Durand. The amount of quality pitching on this team is ridiculous. They have five or six guys that would be aces on most high school teams in Wisconsin. They’ve got Travis Berg, Storm Standiford and Satchal Postlewaite, who formed one of the best pitching rotations in the state for Eau Claire Memorial this spring. They’ve also got Tanner Halvorson and Lukas Lanners, who were the top two pitchers for Eau Claire North, a state tournament team. If that’s not enough for you, they’ve got Elk Mound’s Brandon Bohl (10-1, 129 Ks, 0.39 ERA this spring) and Durand’s Hunter Black (15-2, 109 Ks, 1.03 ERA this spring). This has to be the best collection of pitching on a Wisconsin Legion team this summer. Post 53 was one of the final four teams standing in the Class AAA state tournament last year, and they are very capable of doing better this year.

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