The 2023 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, our staff is excited for the upcoming spring season.  Players and coaches have been working all fall and through December, in preparation for the upcoming season and as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Louisiana.

Programs across the state have goals and aspirations to finish the year in Sulphur, LA at the LHSAA State Tournament, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes a reality.  We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams and players across the state, as we preview many of the great programs from Louisiana.  We will take you right up to the first pitch of this season with these team previews and we'll continue providing coverage throughout the spring. 

Please keep checking back throughout the season, as we strive to be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across Louisiana.  Each week we will release our players of the week, as well as our Power 25 Rankings, which encompasses the top 25 teams in the state, regardless of class.  

*Please note that all information is based on team preview questionnaires that were sent out and returned by the participating high school coaches.  If you did not receive a questionnaire and would like to fill one out, please send an email to [email protected].

-High School Name: West Monroe High School

-Coach’s Name: Wade Simoneaux

-Classification: Class 5A (Non-Select Division I)

-District: 2-5A

-No. of Returning Positional Starters: 6

-No. of Returning Pitchers: 8

-Team Strengths: Experience and Pitching Depth

-Top Returning Players: 2023 MIF Trent Anderson (Baton Rouge Community College signee), 2023 OF Nolan Norris, 2024 OF/RHP John Pearson (Louisiana State University commit), 2024 1B/LHP Trey Hawsey (Louisiana Tech University commit), 2024 MIF Hayden Federico (Ole Miss commit), 2024 LHP Brennan Eager, 2025 RHP Andrew Ferguson

-Top 2023 Prospects: 2023 MIF Trent Anderson (Baton Rouge Community College signee), 2023 1B Jack Cowan (Baton Rouge Community College signee), 2023 MIF Hemi Humphries

-Top 2024 Prospects: 2024 OF/RHP John Pearson (Louisiana State University commit), 2024 1B/LHP Trey Hawsey (Louisiana Tech University commit), 2024 MIF Hayden Federico (Ole Miss commit), 2024 LHP Brennan Eager

-Top 2025 & 2026 Prospects: 2025 RHP Andrew Ferguson, 2025 C Tyler Roark, 2025 INF Zach Simpson, 2026 LHP Bradyn Garner (Louisiana State University commit), 2026 MIF Gage Carr, 2026 C Ryder DeJean, 2026 OF/RHP Smoltz Lilly

 

 

Team Outlook

West Monroe entered the 2022 season with high expectations and they more than delivered, as they finished with an overall record of 33-4, capping off their season with the school's first baseball state championship since 1999.  The good news for Rebel fans is that the team returns a lot from last year's state title team and have added several talented prospects into the mix as well.  The strength of Head Coach Wade Simoneaux's team in 2023 is their experience, both on the mound and offensively.  In total, the Rebels return four pitchers who were significant contributors last season and they return four others, with one is coming off of an injury and three others who got varsity experience last season, albeit limited.  On the position player side of things, West Monroe brings back six full-time starters from a year ago, with anther three who saw significant playing time.  This year's Rebel staff could possibly be the best and deepest it has ever been.  Junior LHP Brennan Eager and Sophomore RHP Andrew Ferguson, both Future Games alumni, both return after leading the staff a season ago.  Eager, went 9-1 last season and was the state championship game MVP.  The southpaw works off of a three-pitch mix for strikes, that is headlined by a mid-80's FB with some late cutting action.  Ferguson is a "finesse" type of pitcher, who works in the low-mid 80's range with both a four-seam and two-seam heater, to go along with a breaking ball, slider, and change-up, and he can throw any of them for strikes, in any count.  Ferguson finished the 2022 season with a 9-1 record and a 2.44 ERA as a freshman, which earned him 1st Team All-District honors.  To make matters even worse for Rebel opponents, they have also added the state's top ranked player in the freshman class in LHP Bradyn Garner.  The LSU commit has a clean arm action and has already worked his fastball up to 90 mph.  Offensively, the Rebels return a lineup with their own version of a "murderers' row", that is headlined by a trio of junior prospects.  Junior INF Hayden Federico, an Ole Miss recruit, notched the big hit in the state finals last spring and is a consummate gamer, who always performs in the big moments.  Junior OF John Pearson, a LSU recruit, is one of the most feared hitters in the state, thanks to a simple, short, and compact swing, with the ability to really drive the ball to all fields.  The third guy of the three-headed monster for the Rebels is Junior 1B Trey Hawsey.  The Louisiana Tech recruit had arguably the best sophomore season of anyone in 2022 and had one of the biggest hits in West Monroe baseball history.  In last year's semifinal game against Dutchtown, with the Rebels down by two runs in the bottom of the 7th inning, Hawsey launched a game winning three-run home run that sent the Rebels to the state title game.  The talent doesn't stop there for the Rebels either.  Senior MIF Trent Anderson, a Baton Rouge Community College recruit, is a steady and reliable defender with really good bat to ball skills.  Senior Jack Cowan is another Baton Rouge Community College recruit, who's a physical right-handed hitter with power.  Senior Hemi Humphries is a veteran guy who should see time in the infield.  Senior OF Nolan Norris is another veteran left-handed bat with gap to gap power that is back again this season.  Who will stand in the Rebels way of repeating as state champions?  The Division I Non-Select playoffs will be strong, as it is year in and year out, but it's nothing that the Rebels can't handle.  It's baseball, so anything can happen and any team, can beat anyone, on any given day.  In saying that, the Rebels have a lot of firepower this year and it's a bunch of guys with experience that just went through the journey of winning a state title.  West Monroe is almost a sure-fire bet to return to Sulphur, LA in May and with a deep pitching staff and explosive offense, we think the Rebels will be tough to beat at the state tournament in 2023.

 

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