Jeff Johnson

Iowa City Liberty’s baseball team scored a run in the top of the first inning in its Class 4A state tournament quarterfinal Tuesday night against Waukee Northwest. But the Wolves couldn’t dent Northwest pitcher Chuck Berdovich the rest of the way, and Northwest went on to a 4-1 victory.

Waukee scored three runs in the top of the first inning to take an immediate lead on Iowa City High in a Class 4A state baseball tournament quarterfinal Tuesday afternoon. But the Little Hawks scored the final five runs, including three in the sixth to win, 5-3.

No. 7 seeded Hawks’ 6-0 quaterfinal victory over No. 2 Johnston may have been an upset seeding wise but wasn’t entirely suprising and here’s why.

Cedar Rapids Prairie baseball coach James Nelson was asked recently who he considered to be the MVP of a Hawks team that plays Tuesday afternoon at the state baseball tournament in Sioux City. He answered Kamren Francois, a senior shortstop hitting .455 and heading to play college ball at Southeastern Community College in Burlington.

Relief pitcher Nick Trabacchi of the Cedar Rapids Kernels is 26 years old. He threw collegiately at Maryland-Baltimore County and Division II Shepherd, not exactly big-time programs. He then spent four years in independent leagues, finally getting his shot in affiliated ball in late May when the Minnesota Twins signed him.

Poncho Ruiz began this baseball season for low-Class A Fort Myers, promoted to the Cedar Rapids Kernels in late May. His steadiness, especially defensively, has been a boon for the Kernels. Ruiz, 23, is from Tijuana, Mexico, traveling across the border each day to attend high school in Chula Vista, California.

The Cedar Rapids Prairie baseball team won a pair of regular-season games over Cedar Falls by mercy rule. Both games lasted only five innings. Their third matchup this season was Wednesday night in a Class 4A substate final, and while the game went all seven innings, an 11-4 Hawks victory still was decisive.

The East Buchanan baseball team upset fifth-ranked North Linn, 5-4, in Tuesday night’s Class 1A substate final game at Independence. It is the first state tournament berth for the school.

Marion High School grad Owen Puk had a couple of inconsistent college baseball seasons at Florida International University in Miami, as well as a missed season because of Tommy John surgery. But he put things together this past season, which led to the pitcher being taken Monday in the 18th round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the Washington Nationals. He will sign a contract and turn pro.

Clear Creek Amana baseball coach Bryan McCray didn’t know who his team’s starting pitcher was going to be for its Class 3A substate semifinal Monday night, even just hours before the game. Robert Meade was the choice, and he made his coach look like a genius, throwing a seven-hit shutout in CCA’s 3-0 win over Cedar Rapids Xavier.

Kaleb Johnson became an All-American and a NFL draft pick after a stellar season rushing the football for the 2024 Iowa Hawkeyes. How will Iowa replace his sizable chunk of yardage? Carefully, and probably with multiple guys.

University of Iowa pitcher Cade Obermueller was taken by the Texas Rangers in the 19th round of the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft, but bet on himself that he’d perform well enough to improve his stock for 2025, not signing. He was correct, as the Philadelphia Phillies took him Sunday night in the second round.

Iowa City West scored three times in the bottom of the first inning of a Class 4A substate opener Saturday afternoon. But Linn-Mar scored the final seven runs, all in their final three at-bats, to pick up a 7-3 victory.

Cedar Rapids Prairie beats Waterloo East in substate opener Saturday, July 12, 2025, postponed from Friday night because of rain, ended after four and a half innings via mercy rule.

Iowa Hawkeyes graduate transfer quarterback Mark Gronowski has been given the all clear sign medically after offseason shoulder surgery and has been going through summer informal workouts, trying to get to know his teammates. In that vein, he took his offensive linemen to the Lake of the Ozarks for a recent relaxation trip and some of his wide receivers and tight ends to Dallas. He also recently competed at the Manning Passing Academy in Louisiana, a camp run by the famous football family.