Baseball 2013: Players/Teams To Watch

INDIVIDUALS TO WATCH -

Reid Bonner (Iowa City West): Senior second baseman was a Super Team all-state member, as selected by the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association last season. Hit .391 but had a .509 on-base percentage due to 28 walks. Also was 24-for-24 in steals. Signed with DMACC. -

Jonny Frese (Benton Community): Compiled 9-1 record with 1.54 ERA last season. That was good enough for second-team all-state in Class 3A. -

Josey Jewell (Decorah): Leading hitter for Vikings squad that advanced to 3A championship game in 2012. Senior outfielder had .407 batting average and seven home runs. Has signed to play football at Iowa. -

Brennan Hammer (Cedar Rapids Prairie): Was a first-team Class 4A all-stater as utility player but made most of his noise on the mound. Had 7-1 record and 2.76 ERA, with 63 strikeouts in 45 2/3 innings. Has signed with Heartland Community College in Illinois. -

Mitch Keller (Cedar Rapids Xavier): Junior pitcher has committed to college powerhouse North Carolina. Went 4-0 as a sophomore with 3.73 earned run average.-

Mitch Moser (Benton Community): First-team all-state shortstop in Class 3A. His .483 with 20 doubles and 41 RBIs in 43 games. Also went 7-3, 2.42 ERA as a pitcher. -

Adam Noethe (Dyersville Beckman): Named second-team all-state in Class 2A last season for state champion Blazers. Had 9-0 pitching record with 1.74 ERA. -

A.J. Puk (Cedar Rapids Washington): Won't finish the season with Warriors, as he is scheduled to begin taking summer classes at Florida in late June. By then, could be playing professional. 6-foot-7 lefty a likely second or third-round MLB pick. -

Austin Stroschein (Linn-Mar): Had fine overall junior season. Hit .351 with team-leading 44 RBIs. Also went 5-0 as a pitcher. -

Keegan Tritle (Lisbon): Broke out as a freshman in 2012, smashing 10 home runs and posting a .417 batting average. -

Tyler Votroubek (Cedar Rapids Prairie): Big first baseman drove in 42 runs and hit .429 last season as a junior. Was third-team all-stater in 4A by Iowa Newspaper Association. -

Corbin Woods (Cedar Rapids Xavier): Multiple-year starter at shortstop. Hit disappointing .300 last season. Another Heartland Community College signee. ---- ----

TEAMS TO WATCH -

Benton Community: Went 35-8 last season and qualified for state tournament in Class 3A. Bobcats have two all-staters back in Mitch Moser and Jonny Frese, also are are the team's top two pitchers. Jordan McFarland (.374 batting average) gives BC a trio of top returners. An unexpected loss is senior Jacob Germann, who hit .480 last season but decided not to play baseball this summer. -

Decorah: Vikings went 28-11 last season and were 3A runner-up. In what likely will be veteran Coach Dennis Olejniczak's final season, Decorah returns seven players who started the championship game. That includes top two hitters Josey Jewell and James Ostlie. -

Dyersville Beckman: When aren't the Blazers on this list? Graduated six seniors from last year's 2A title team, but feature top returning players in pitcher Adam Noethe (second-team all-state) and infielder Ian Ross (.470 average). Beckman always reloads instead of rebuilds. -

Iowa City High: Brian Mitchell did a terrific job reviving the Little Hawks in his first season as head coach. City High went 24-16 and returns virtually its entire team. Top guys include Josh Crosby (.467, five home runs) and Eric Kenney (7-2 pitching record). -

Iowa City West: Another program that reloads under successful head coach Charlie Stumpff. West's top player is senior second baseman Reid Bonner, a Super Team all-stater last season. Senior Sam Scott (5-1, 2.52 ERA) should top the pitching staff. Trojans have made it to state four years in a row. -

Linn-Mar: Who's the best team in the Metro? Looks like a pretty even season, honestly, but this vote goes to the Lions, who qualified for state tournament last season, losing to Cedar Rapids Kennedy in 4A quarterfinal. Linn-Mar finished 29-12. Senior standout Nate Greve decided to play for a traveling team instead, so that's an unexpected big loss. Hard-throwing Justin Wyant went 6-1 with 2.38 ERA last season. Austin Stroschein returns after leading team with 44 RBIs.