The 2024 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, excitement abounds throughout the state.  Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Louisiana.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in Sulphur, LA, home of the LHSAA State Championships, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality.  We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Louisiana.  We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews, followed by our Power 25 Rankings release, and our popular Game of the Week segment. 

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the bayou state.  Each week, we will be releasing our players of the week, updating our Power 25 Rankings, and many more pieces of content.  

*Please note that all information is based on team preview questionnaires that were sent out and returned by the participating high school coaches.

 

High School Name: Sterlington

Head Coach: Mark Sims

Classification: Class 3A (Non-Select D-III)

District: 1-3A

2023 Record: 24-11

2023 Playoff Finish: State Quarterfinalist

No. of Returning Positional Starters: 7

No. of Returning Pitchers: 2

Team Strengths: Experience & Deep Lineup

Top Returning Players: 2024 INF/RHP Sterling Sims (Southeast Arkansas College commit), 2024 UTIL Easton Bruscato, 2025 INF Travis Adams, 2025 OF Peyton Robinson, 2025 RHP/OF Dylan Downs, 2026 INF/RHP Miller Sheets, 2026 C Conner Justice

Top Newcomers: 2024 1B Jackson King, 2025 C Brody Belanger, 2026 OF/RHP Corbin Peacock, 2026 C Dalton Hernandez, 2027 RHP/INF Devyn Downs (LSU commit)

 

Team Outlook

Sterlington finished the 2023 season with a 24-11 overall record and entered the LHSAA Non-Select D-III playoffs as the #4 seed.  The Panthers made it to the quarterfinal round where they ran into a familiar foe in Berwick, who ended up ending their season.  The good news for Head Coach Mark Sims and company is that they return seven position players and their top two pitchers from last year's team, to go along with a good mix of talented younger guys.  The top two returning arms for Sterlington are senior RHP Sterling Sims and junior RHP Dylan Downs.  Sims, a Southeast Arkansas College recruit, went 9-1 with a 1.64 ERA last year, on route to earning All-State honors for the second consecutive year.  In addition to his duties on the mound, Sims is also the team's returning shortstop, and hit at a .364 clip last spring.  Downs posted a 6-4 record and 2.02 ERA a season ago, and is also a returning outfielder as well.  Look for sophomore Jack Henry Goode and freshman Devyn Downs to factor into the mix this spring as well.  Goode showed well at our State Games this past fall with good life to his low-mid 80's FB with spin rates up to 2445 RPM's.  Downs has been a household name for quite some time, thanks to a mid-80's FB that pairs well with a "11-5" shaped CB.  The LSU recruit is also projected to the team's starting third baseman and has some of the best pop and bat speed of anyone in the state in his class.  Junior Peyton Robinson also returns in the outfield for the Panthers this year, after hitting .311 with a .488 OBP last year as a sophomore.  Senior Easton Bruscato can play a variety of positions defensively and is the team's leading returning hitter, after hitting .389 a season ago.  Joining Sims back on the infield will be junior Travis Adams and sophomore Miller Sheets.  Adams is making the move from third base to second base this year and hit at a .333 clip last season.  He's a physical prospect with a lot of quick-twitch and made surprise some people this spring.  Sheets finished his freshman year with an impressive .333 average and will likely see time at first base and shortstop.  He'll also be relied upon more on the mound this year and features a mid-upper 80's heater, to go along with good feel for a late-fading CH and a short/tight SL.  Sophomore Conner Justice won the team's starting catching job last year as a freshman, and will be back again this spring behind the plate.  This year's Sterlington team looks to have some of the same key ingredients from the successful Panther teams of the past.  They've got a good blend of upperclassmen and underclassmen, and return their top two arms, in addition to seven starting position players from a season ago.  We are bullish on the Panthers and fully expect them to be in Sulphur, LA, at the LHSAA state tournament, with the chance to win their fourth state title in program history.  

 

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