Top Ten HS players you have seen

[Braves]

not in any particular order

- Chad Flack.........East Rutherford
* most explosive bat in HS. Set the all time HS HR record
- Drew Martin........Ashbrook
*POY in a tough conference as a freshman. Money player!!!
- Gary Morris.........Franklin
*Born leader..set the stage for the 3-A State Champion, Franklin
- Kyle Shelton.......South Meck
* The best defensive SS in NC. Cannon for an arm...great feet
- Cameron Maybin..TC Roberson
* The best athlete in baseball. The best player, too
- Madison Bumgarner..South Caldwell
* Accomplished everything one could strive for in HS. Unbelievable talent
- Aubrey Edens......Conley
* Had arguably the best HS season a player could have. Carried his team to the 4-A State Championship
- Robert Woodard...Myers Park
* The smartest, most competitive pitcher I have seen
- Daniel Bard.........Charlotte Christian
* The strongest HR hitter in HS.....could crush a ball farther than anyone. Not too bad a pitcher either

Really, there are many more, but those are my Top Ten

PS- I was trying to fit in Ryan Morris, David Mailman and Addison Johnson

[coachevans26]

Not in any order... IMHO, there may be a couple of surprises here!! BTW these are guys I have either seen several times, played against, coached, or coached against.

Tommy Greene - Whiteville HS - One heckuva pitcher.... solid pro career.

Trot Nixon - New Hanover - was a freshman when I coached JV at New Hanover... played varsity (obviously) so I did not get to write his name in the lineup.

Brien Taylor - East Carteret - Best HS Pitcher I have ever seen, period!!

Sean Gallagher - Watched him go 4-4 with 2 bombs against Person in the midst of his 40+ game hitting streak at the Buck Hardee Easter Tournament

Patrick Lennon - Whiteville HS - One heckuva Outfielder!! solid pro career

Landon Powell - Apex - This young man could mash the ball, excellent catcher.

Josh Hamilton - Tremendous talent... awesome hitter!! One of the greatest hitters I have seen as a high school player!!

David Mailman - everybody has said a lot on him!!! Had the opportunity to coach him 2 years ago! WOW!! What a player!!

Matt Harrison - South Granville - could dominate the high school game with power and location... this guy can pitch!!

Ryan Falcon - Top pure HS pitcher I have coached against!!

Others I could name on this list include Josh Horton (Orange), Jason Neighborgall (Riverside), Brian Roberts (Chapel Hill), AND OTHERS...

[Coach 27]

This is really hard to do. I have been fortunate to see alot of great players over the last couple of years especially.

#1 Josh Hamilton - Athens Drive HS - Looked a pro player in HS. He was so far ahead in every phase of the game is was silly. Mid 90's from the Left side from the hill. Dropped bombs with ease. Ran like a deer. The most talented HS player I have ever seen.

#2 Jeremy Dutton - Southern Durham HS - JD was just a pure hitter from the leftside. From the time he was 8 years old the kid could mash. Gritty , tough competitor that would always seem to come up huge in the clutch. Played at NCSU and was drafted by the Mariners. Great player.

#3 Wayne Gooch - Southern Durham HS - This guy was nasty. LHP that had a hook that could not be hit. He stills holds several pitching records at Methodist College. And thats saying something because he graduated from HS in the early 70's.

#4 Stihl Sowers - North Lenoir HS - You have to see play to appreciate how good he is. Very good fb but a wicked change up that he can paint with. Knows how to pitch. Im telling you he pitches like he is 25 not 18. I dont believe he ever lost a HS game on the hill. The kind of player that can and did carry a HS program to state titles.

#5 Matt Harrison - South Granville HS - He was a stud. I saw him strike out 15 consecutive batters in a game. He was 89-93 from the left side at 6-4 and could flat out pitch. He is in Dbl AA with the Rangers right now. He should get a chance with the ML club next year.

#6 Josh Horton - Orange HS - The first time I saw this kid play in HS it was a no brainer. Flat out stud in the field. Smooth stroke to all fields at the plate. He played with confidence and he played hard.

#7 Ryan Falcon - Northern Durham - Ryan was a stud as a freshman. The guy was a natural lhp that could paint with all three pitches. Great mechanics , smooth and a warrior on the hill. The kind of kid that you have so much respect for because of the way he went about his business on the field. Played at UNC-G drafted this year.

#8 David Mailman - Providence HS - Clutch , Fierce competitor , A coach on the field , Positive all the time , Leader ,name it he's it. Sweet LH stroke who can flat out hit. Great defender at 1st base or the outfield. Great team mate. He will play a long time. David will suit it up in the big leagues one day.

#9 Tyler Hanover - East Forsyth - I have watched him play almost 100 games from last summer through this fall. I have yet to see him make (1) error! Thats right , not one. He gets to balls other guys dont even attempt to go after. He plays the game the way it is supposed to be played. He can hit and hit for power. He can run the bases like a scalded dawg. He is one gritty tough nasty &$#*(#()#)^@!! The guy you hate when you play against him and the guy you want to have on your team. My boy the squirrell T- REX.

#10 Greg Holt - West Forsyth - He has alot of tools. Very good arm. Power at the plate. Very good glove. But what I love about this guy the most is his desire to be the best he can be. His desire to win regardless of where the game is played , who you are playing , what the score is , Greg is going to do whatever he can to try and win. He is never satisfied he is always looking for ways to get better. The guy is a stud and he doesnt know it. Thats a good thing.

Like Braves I could have added alot of other names. But these are the 10 guys that I felt I had to name.

[catamount36]

to add a few NOT mentioned

tommy greg- reynolds (long time ago)
steve lafaivre -west forsyth
garrison lassiter- west forsyth
dj mitchell- north
john stamper-west most think of him as a football man
addison johnson- north
alex zumwalt- east
ryan marion- glenn
alan plaster
john hendricks- glenn
could continue but it is late and just thought i would add afew that had not been mentioned. i agree with ALL the above posted

[EastOfRaleigh]

Thanks for including Tommy Greene of Whiteville. He re-wrote the NC record book in his day. Hitting and pitching.
I think he threw 6 no-no's in one season.

[EastOfRaleigh]

Originally Posted by coachevans26

Not in any order... IMHO, there may be a couple of surprises here!! BTW these are guys I have either seen several times, played against, coached, or coached against.

Coach Evans, tell us more about the HS play of Patrick Lennon and Brien Taylor. & thanks for including east guys.

[Coach 27]

I remember getting ready to play a playoff game against Greene Central several years ago. While standing on the field watching pregame bp I was talking to legendary former HC of Greene Central Rabbitt Fulgrum. He asked me if I have see the Taylor boy pitch. I said no. He said that he was the best HS pitcher he had ever seen. If not for an unfortunate off the field injury he probaly would have had a great ML career. I read somewhere where Briens mom did the negotiations with the Yankees. Prompting George Steinbrenner to say "I never want to negotiate with that lady again. She broke the bank on us."

[catamount36]

just to throw out a few more

erik walker
dan poindexter
lane twins

[Papabear]

Do you mean the Top 10 in Kernersville???

[EastOfRaleigh]

straying a bit from this original thread, but a look at the state record book reveals a few familiar names and amazing pitching accomplishments:
- Steve Streater (Sylva-Webster) won 23 games in one season. 61 wins in career.
- Mike Caldwell (Tarboro) struck out 31 batters in an 18-inning game.
- LeGrande Russell (Hallsboro) won 22 consecutive games (& also a 35-game hitting streak).
- Brian Barnes (Roanoke Rapids) struck out 17 consecutive batters.

[coachevans26]

Originally Posted by EastOfRaleigh

straying a bit from this original thread, but a look at the state record book reveals a few familiar names and amazing pitching accomplishments:
- Steve Streater (Sylva-Webster) won 23 games in one season. 61 wins in career.
- Mike Caldwell (Tarboro) struck out 31 batters in an 18-inning game.
- LeGrande Russell (Hallsboro) won 22 consecutive games (& also a 35-game hitting streak).
- Brian Barnes (Roanoke Rapids) struck out 17 consecutive batters.

I had the privilege (or misfortune??) of playing against Legrande Russell. WOW, I cant believe I left him off, he was a heckuva pitcher, strong arm and his control was excellent. Dominated games!! Competitor!!

As far as the questions asked of me above, referring to Patrick Lennon and Brien Taylor, let me say this... Lennon had all the tools and could flat out play. Taylor was without a doubt the best HS pitcher I have ever seen!! 94-95 from the left side, nasty breaking ball and spotted his pitches well. Saw him dominate some very good Wilmington teams in my day!!

[Baseball247]

These are no particular order:

Josh Hamilton- Athens Drive- Is the best I have ever seen- no question
Tommy Greene- Whiteville
Kevin Millwood- Bessemer City
Trot Nixon- New Hanover
Brien Taylor- East Carteret
Justin Willoughby- Princeton
John Hendricks- Glenn
Cameron Maybin- TC Roberson
David Mailman- Providence
Chad Flack- East Rutherford

[tj21]

I'd surely leave some great ones out if I had to list 10, but over my years theres clearly 2 individuals that truly stick out as my top 2:

1) (definitely tells my age) David Caldwell, Northwest Cabarrus HS early-mid 70's, All-American outfielder at Clemson, played several years in Orioles organization. Always gave 110% on playing field and could hit tape-measure shots to all fields using wooden bat.

2) In recent years, Cameron Maybin is a no-brainer.

Btw, actually saw Steve Streater pitch for Sylva-Webster the year he won his 20+ games (1977, I believe),,,,,,, he could've definetly played baseball for a living, if he hadn't chose football.

[Braves]

There are a lot of good names brought up. I have heard of most of them, but I never got to see them play HS.

Nobody has mentioned Ralph Roberts yet. That's surprising

[OldAngelsCoach]

Just a couple kids who were good from my area..Most of you won't know these boys but trust me, they could play!

Willie Stewart- Now head coach at UNCA. Extremely hard worker.

Jason Tuttle- Currently still playing I believe in the Independant League and played for a bit in Montreal's organization as a free agent. A fast lefty who hated me when at 12 years old told him he was no longer a shortstop and was moving to center field. Also played at Elon.

Alec Zumwalt- Used to beat us up pretty regularly. Pitches now but in High School could hit the ball 2 miles...

Brian Meadows- lesser known but what a competitor. Left handed pitcher who proved me wrong and never brings it up. Another hard worker from the Willie Stewart mold. Both were also wrestlers...Brian began at High Point and moved to UNCW.

[catamount36]

oldangelscoach,
had the privalege of coaching tuttle an meadows. 2 very good ones
had the privalege (even though they usually beat our butts) of coaching against the other 2
will have to agree on all of them.

[superwright]

I didn't get to see these two players play but there's a lot of talk about them from the Whiteville Area:

Terrell Godwin-UNC - Reds AAA team.
Chuck Baldwin - Clemson

[EastOfRaleigh]

Originally Posted by superwright

I didn't get to see these two players play but there's a lot of talk about them from the Whiteville Area:

Terrell Godwin-UNC - Reds AAA team.
Chuck Baldwin - Clemson

it seems like Terrell Godwin has been in the minors for ages now, and it's the Reds , one of MLB's worst teams for the last decade. Will he be a career minor leaguer? He was a great HS player.

[coachevans26]

Originally Posted by EastOfRaleigh

it seems like Terrell Godwin has been in the minors for ages now, and it's the Reds , one of MLB's worst teams for the last decade. Will he be a career minor leaguer? He was a great HS player.

Tyrell Godwin was drafted out of high school (East Bladen) by the Yankees, but chose to go to Carolina (UNC, that is), on a Morehead Scholarship. I thought he was with the Nats AAA team this year, but I am probably wrong on that one. One heckuva player!!!

[marlinfan1]

NC player of the year and freshman standout SS for Arkansas. Raleigh Broughton alum.