September in South Beach was the site of the nation’s top amateur baseball game again.

After a successful 2024 edition, the Prep Baseball All-American Game returned to Miami in 2025, bringing the country’s top high school juniors and seniors back to loanDepot Park for the premier scouting showcase on the calendar. The Class of 2026 handled the Class of 2027, by a final score of 6-3, behind an MVP performance from SS Jacob Lombard (Gulliver Prep, FL, 2026) and a late two-run double from 3B Beau Peterson (Mill Valley, KS, 2026; Nebraska) that broke the game open in the eighth inning.

You can rewatch the game broadcast in full on our YouTube channel.

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AWARDS WEEKEND

Friday’s workout and derby set the tone. You can view the metrics collected at Friday's official workout, as well as the pitching data compiled during the game itself on Saturday, all at this page. Following the All-American Game, we bid farewell to the parents and players in attendance in a closing ceremony that featured some award-winning annoucements:

• The Mizuno “Haga Hands” Defensive Standout: Rocco Maniscalco (Oxford, AL, 2026)
• Top Athlete Award, Presented by PBSCCS: Grant Westphal (Blue Valley, KS, 2027)
• 1st Phorm Workout Warrior: Dylan Seward (Norco, CA, 2027)
• Standout Hitter Award, Presented by CamWood Bats & TwinTack: Will Brick (Christian Brothers, TN, 2027)
• Prep Baseball AAG, Home Run Derby Champion: Beau Peterson (Mill Valley, KS, 2026)
• Prep Baseball AAG, Most Valuable Pitcher: Connor Salerno (Sun Valley, NC, 2027)
• Prep Baseball AAG, Most Valuable Player: Jacob Lombard (Gulliver Prep, FL, 2026)

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POWER PITCHING

Salerno set an early tone for the ’27s, filling the zone at 92 mph and striking out the side on 11 pitches (10 strikes, six whiffs). This was instantly one of the most dominant performances in the history of Prep Baseball's three All-American Games.

Several other arms flashed mid-90s heat: RHP George Ferguson (Abilene, TX, 2027) sat 94-96 mph; INF/RHP Cole Koeninger (Keller, TX, 2026; Tennessee commit) worked 94-95 mph in a ninth inning that clinched the win for the '26s; and RHP Gannon Grant (Center Grove, IN, 2026; Tennessee) matched him at 94-95. RHP Trey Rangel (The Colony, TX, 2026; Texas) pitched around a minor two-out threat for a clean sixth frame that saw him record the highest fastball velo of the day (96.2 mph).

The depth was real, too: RHP Quinn Fitzpatrick (Stratford, TX, 2027) was 92-94 mph, as was teammate RHP Kaden Wasniewski (McHenry, IL, 2027), who worked a dominant bottom of the ninth with two Ks of his own. RHP Chase Kiker (Metrolina Christian Academy, NC, 2026; Clemson) reached the 94 mph mark as well; RHP/SS Kaden Waechter (Jesuit, FL, 2026; Florida State) opened the game at 92-93 mph for his Class of 2026 squad, setting the tone with a clean frame; RHP Tyson Grulkowski (Muskego, WI, 2026; South Florida) impressed as well, mowing down the side in the fifth with three quality pitches, including a heavy low-90s fastball and a curve that spun at nearly 3,000 rpm.

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THE GAME'S DEFINING MOMENTS

After a lead-off walk in the top of the first frame, it looked like (for a second) the '27s were set to threaten right away after a slow-roller off the bat of Sebastian Castillo (Byron Nelson, TX, 2027) challenged the top-ranked senior in the country at shortstop, Jacob Lombard. It's rare to see a play like this at the prep level, but Lombard charged the ball and flicked it to first base all in one swift and fluid motion, and – with the help of a professional scoop from Dominic Santarelli (St. Joseph, WI, 2026) at first base – he secured the second out of the inning to limit the would-be threat.

Still, the '27s were the hot bats early, and they scored the game's first run in the third frame after a lead-off walk was moved along the basepaths by Graham Houston's (Venice, FL, 2027) line-drive single. Then, Max Hemenway (IMG Academy, FL, 2027; Tennessee commit) lifted a sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead.

The ’26s answered immediately and emphatically. After Santarelli was hit by a pitch to start the frame, Lombard scorched a ground-ball single through the left side of the infield at nearly 96 mph off the bat, and John Stowers (St. Paul’s Episcopal, AL, 2026; Auburn) beat out an infield hit to load the bases. Back-to-back walks to Coleman Borthwick (South Walton, FL, 2026; Auburn) and LHP/1B Gio Rojas (Stoneman Douglas, FL, 2026; Miami) tied the game and then gave the '26s the lead, and Rocco Maniscalco (Oxford, AL, 2026) padded the lead with a sac fly of his own, making it 3-1. The inning ended on a wild, heads-up sequence when Brick’s back-pick behind the runner triggered a unique double play by Jared Grindlinger (Huntington Beach, CA, 2027), who chased down Borthwick for the second out of the inning and he then caught an overzealous Rojas rounding second base too hard to limit the damage.

The game was quiet in the middle frames thanks to same effective pitching. RHP Blake Bryant (Citizens Christian, GA, 2026; Clemson) erased a lead-off single in the fourth with a strikeout and some weak contact. Grulkowski spun a tidy fifth. And Rangel punched out two in a clean sixth. Quality defense really aided the '26s for much of this game as well. Lombard made another Major League-ready play to steal a hit from another MVP candidate, and Maniscalco flashed the leather in the seventh, ranging to his left at shortstop on a 100 mph EV grounder that he plucked off the bat of Hemenway, keeping the seniors on top.

The ’27s most electric moment arrived in the eighth, courtesy of Dylan Seward (Norco, CA, 2027). Down a run, he barreled a 2-2 pitch at 97 mph to deep center, landing past the outstretched centerfielder. When it skipped past a diving outfielder, Seward’s elite speed took over, and he circled the bases for an inside-the-park home run that trimmed the margin to 4-3 out of nowhere. On one swing, we were able to witness Seward's entire skill set – a fast twitch swing from the left side with two strikes while facing velocity that he smashed nearly 400 feet to straight center, turning a double or a triple for most into a home run, which is something maybe only Seward himself could have done at this level.

And yet again, the ’26s answered immediately.

With two aboard in the bottom half of the same frame, AAG Home Run Derby champ Beau Peterson drove a 98.5 mph liner the other way into the left-center gap for a two-run double. He was cut down stretching for three, but the damage was done: a 6-3 lead for the seniors.

In the ninth, the two-way Koeninger took the mound to put the finishing touches on senior victory, showing that mid-90s fastball and a hammer breaking ball that buckled knees several times. While Koeninger completed the mission, locking down the 6-3 win officially, we played out the ballgame in the bottom of the ninth where we witnessed the junior Wasniewski look like one of the best arms on the '27 squad in the process, finally ending the festivities at loanDepot Park, capping it all off with a backwards K.

MORE HIGHLIGHTS

• OF Drake Hawpe (Liberty Christian, TX, 2027; LSU) grounded a hard-hit single to center in his first at-bat at 99.7 mph EV
• OF Lash Henderson (Prestonwood Christian, TX, 2027) tallied a 90.3 mph EV single in the first inning
• OF Noah Wilson (McCallie, TN, 2026; Vanderbilt) connected for a deep fly out to center at 98.0 mph EV in his first at-bat
• C Will Brick (Christian Brothers, TN, 2027) flew out to deep left at 94.2 mph EV in the third inning
• OF Jake Turner (Centennial, NV, 2027) hit a groundball single through the infield at 104.6 mph EV in the fourth
• C John Stowers (Oxford, AL, 2026) pulled a double into the right field corner in the seventh at 98.3 mph EV
• 3B/RHP Graham Keen (Mt. Vernon, PA, 2027) lined a single to right-center at 93.6 mph EV in the ninth

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