Preseason Power 25 Countdown: No. 24 West Bend West

March 18, 2019
By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Supervisor - Wisconsin/Illinois

The WIAA high school baseball season opens on March 26, the opening day for prep baseball in Wisconsin.

Leading up to the opening week of action, we’ll be rolling out team-by-team previews, counting down to our state’s preseason No. 1-ranked program for the 2019 season. We’re combing over all classifications and corners of the state to determine our top-25 ranked teams ahead of what’s sure to be an historic campaign, with the merging of the spring and summer divisions into one single WIAA season.

Perennially, we’ve submitted a Preseason Questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we’re using the detailed insight they’ve provided in our analysis.

Our 2019 preseason coverage continues today.

Team: West Bend West
Preseason Rank: 24
2018 Record: 22-7
Conference: North Shore
WIAA Division: 1
Head Coach: Dan D'Amico
Playoff Run: 1st Round
2018 Final Rank: NA
Returning Starters: 6
Returning Pitchers: 4

TOP PLAYERS

Name	State	School	Class	Pos	Commitment
Logan Rupnow	WI	West Bend West	2019	UTL	Winona State
Lukas Broske	WI	West Bend West	2020	1B
Gavin Hinckley	WI	West Bend West	2020	RHP/SS
Brad Weber	WI	West Bend Westl	2020	OF
Jimmy D’Angelo	WI	West Bend West	2019	OF/C	Finlandia
Logan Chesak	WI	West Bend West	2019	C
Andrew Biertzer	WI	West Bend West	2019	LHP	Saginaw Valley State
Scott Henrich	WI	West Bend West	2019	OF

KEY PLAYERS LOST

Evan Albrecht, SS (Purdue)

NEWCOMER TO WATCH

Moving from summer to spring baseball, West Bend West will have the luxury of adding a big senior arm to a staff that already returns 13 wins on the mound from its junior class. Southpaw Andrew Biertzer is a Saginaw Valley State commit who has previously played club ball in the summers who will be inserted into a healthy Spartan staff. Biertzer is a mid-80s lefty who has shown improved command over the years and could be a big spark for West Bend West.

STAT RAT

Logan Rupnow torched opposing pitching in 2018. The Winona State commit hit to the tune of .453 and drove in 40 runs for the Spartans in 29 games. Rupnow will likely anchor the middle of a potent West Bend West lineup. With such a strong staff slated to headline this year's edition of the Spartans, someone like Rupnow can be critical to the success of West from the batter's box.

X-FACTORS

If Lukas Broske returns to his freshman year production, the Spartans will have a scary middle of the lineup. The junior hit .315 as a sophomore, nothing to sneeze at, but he blazed a trail in 2017 as a freshman, hitting .459 on an undefeated state championship team. If he puts up those type of numbers again in 2019, opposing pitchers will have to tread lightly through the middle of that lineup.

Lukas Broske (8/9/18)

OUTLOOK

Pitching may be the strength of new skipper Dan D’amico’s squad. Likely leading the way is righty Gavin Hinckley (4-0, 2.72). Hinckley has made another jump in velocity and most recently was touching 90 mph at the West Milwaukee Preseason I.D. His slider is the ultimate weapon, with plus-type action and he has shown the utmost confidence in it, and should rack up a ton of strikeouts with the pitch. Broske (6-2, 2.77), Brad Weber (3-3, 2.77), and Biertzer round out what's set to be a formidable staff in the North Shore.

Gavin Hinckley (2/17/19)

The Spartans will have a big hole to fill in the middle of the infield after graduating Evan Albrecht to Purdue. Hinckley could slide to shortstop when he’s not pitching, but infield defense will likely be coach D’Amico’s biggest challenge. However, what they don’t defend, they will certainly drive in. Their lineup returns six starters, five of whom hit over .300 last season, including first team all-conference selection, the aforementioned Rupnow. Rupnow and Broske return to the middle of the lineup amd should be as effective of a run-producing group as it gets.

BOTTOM LINE

The old adage, just drive in more than you give up, will likely ring true for Coach D’Amico and the Spartans. The offensive firepower is there to make a deep run, as well as the strong pitching staff, it's the defense that will likely be their biggest weakness.

For Coach D’Amico, it's his first year at the helm of a perennially strong West Bend West program, taking over for legendary skipper Billy Albrecht. D’Amico was previously at the helm of the Waukesha North program that was on an upswing under his tenure.

The same story will go for several summer teams making the switch to spring, and that will be just the sheer adjustment to the new season, teams and players. We'll see how the Spartans react.

Make sure to follow @PBRWisconsin on Twitter for the most up-to-date coverage throughout the season.