Madison Central is No. 1 in latest KHSBCA poll

High School Baseball

The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association has released its weekly top 25 poll. Check out the rankings below:

Madison Central
St. Xavier
Eastern
Central Hardin
Lafayette
Lexington Catholic
Paul Laurence Dunbar
Male
Apollo
Pleasure Ridge Park
Covington Catholic
Tates Creek
Hopkinsville
Ballard
Bryan Station
Harrison County
Allen County Scottsville
Woodford County
Lawrence County
Danville
Ryle
Pikeville
Trinity
Henderson County
Warren East

You can see the other schools receiving votes here.

Cowgill named PCL player of week; Soloman named OVC player of week; Wellemeyer hopes to contribute with Cubs

College Baseball, High School Baseball, Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball

Todd Wellemeyer; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Latest links from around Kentucky baseball:

Lexington native and former UK outfielder Collin Cowgill was named the player of the week in the Pacific Coast League after batting .640 with 2 HR, 7 RBI and 8 runs last week.
Eastern Kentucky University freshman infielder Bryan Soloman was named the co-Ohio Valley Conference player of the week.
Madison Central High School dropped its first game of the season last night with a 5-0 loss to Bryan Station High School.
Aaron Fitt of Baseball America highlights Western Kentucky University senior catcher Matt Rice in his weekly “Golden Spikes Award” spotlight.
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun -Times reports Louisville native and former Bellarmine right-handed pitcher Todd Wellemeyer missed an opportunity to start for the Cubs early this season due to a hip injury, but is close to returning to game action with the Iowa Cubs and still may fill an important role for the MLB team.
Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated ranks University of Kentucky junior right-handed pitcher Alex Meyer the No. 20 prospect in the 2011 draft, noting he could go anywhere from a top five pick to the sandwich round.

Webb’s velocity down during rehab appearance; Miller struggling; Wellemeyer to return to action this week

High School Baseball, Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball

Brandon Webb; Photo by SD Dirk via Flickr

Latest links from around Kentucky baseball:

Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com reports Ashland native and former UK right-handed pitcher Brandon Webb was at 78 to 81 mph during the first two innings of his latest extended spring training appearance.
Jason Frakes of the Courier-Journal runs down the high school top 25 matchups at this week’s Louisville Invitational Tournament.
Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Louisville native Trever Miller has been struggling recently as the Cardinals’ only left-handed reliever. Miller has not recorded an out in his last five appearances.
Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports Louisville native and former Bellarmine right-handed pitcher Todd Wellemeyer is scheduled to pitch this week for AAA Iowa.
Thomas Harding and Nick Kosmider of MLB.com reports Colorado Rockies right-handed pitcher Aaron Cook, who was born in Ft. Campbell, will throw a simulated game on Wednesday as he rehabs from a broken finger.
Mike Fields of the Lexington Herald-Leader profiles 16-0 Madison Central High School in his most recent high school notebook.
Herald-Leader columnist Mark Story also talked to me this week about BluGrass Baseball for his latest column.

Downs returns to the DL; Hart close to returning to Brewers; Madison Central is last undefeated high school team

College Baseball, High School Baseball, Major League Baseball

Scott Downs; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Latest links from around Kentucky baseball:

Lyle Spencer of MLB.com reports the Los Angeles Angels placed Louisville native and former UK left-handed pitcher Scott Downs back on the 15-day disabled list with a gastrointestinal virus that has caused him to lose around 10 pounds.
Todd Rosiak and Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports Bowling Green native Corey Hart will be back in uniform for the Brewers as early as Tuesday.
Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com reports Ashland native and former UK right-handed pitcher Brandon Webb will pitch in an extended Spring Training game on Monday as the next step in his rehabilitation process.
University of Louisville junior right-handed pitcher Tony Zych has been named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year award.
Jason Frakes of the Courier-Journal reports Madison Central High School is the last remaining undefeated Kentucky high school baseball team and could be the first team in 29 years to finish the season without a loss.

St. X remains No. 1 in latest KHSBCA top 25 poll

High School Baseball

The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association has released an update on its top 25 high school poll. Check out the rankings below, noting ties at No. 18 and No. 25:

1. St. Xavier
2. Madison Central
3. Eastern
4. Lexington Catholic
5. Paul Laurence Dunbar
6. Ballard
7. Male
8. Pleasure Ridge Park
9. Apollo
10. Central Hardin
11. Lafayette
12. Harrison County
13. Hopkinsville
14. Tates Creek
15. West Jessamine
16. Woodford County
17. Danville
18. Covington Catholic
18. Daviess County
20. Butler
21. Pikeville
22. Lawrence County
23. Clay County
24. Trinity
25. Allen County Scottsville
25. Bryan Station

St. X remains No. 1 in latest KHSBCA top 25

High School Baseball

The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association has released its latest top 25 ranking last week. Check out the rankings below, noting the ties at No. 4 and No. 9:

1 — St. Xavier
2 — Lexington Catholic
3 — Eastern
4 — Male
4 — Paul Laurence Dunbar
6 — Apollo
7 — Harrison County
8 — Ballard
9 — Central Hardin
9 — Pleasure Ridge Park
11 — Madison Central
12 — West Jessamine
13 — Lafayette
14 — Trinity
15 — Daviess County
16 — Hopkinsville
17 — Henderson County
18 — Clay County
19 — Beechwood
20 — Somerset
21 — Tates Creek
22 — Danville
23 — Covington Catholic
24 — Pikeville
25 — Woodford County

You can see the other schools receiving votes here.

St. Xavier headlines latest KHSBCA top 25 poll

High School Baseball

The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association has released its first in-season top 25 rankings. Check out the top 25 below (Note the ties for No. 11, 20 and 22):

1) St. Xavier High School
2) Harrison County High School
3) Male High School
4) Apollo High School
5) Lexington Catholic High School
6) Eastern High School
7) Pleasure Ridge Park High School
8 ) Central Hardin High School
9) Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
10) Lawrence County High School
11) Madison Central High School
11) Trinity High School
13) Ballard High School
14) West Jessamine High School
15) Lafayette High School
16) Daviess County High School
17) Clay County High School
18) Henderson County High School
19) Lexington Christian Academy
20) Beechwood High School
20) Tates Creek High School
22) Christian County High School
22) Somerset High School
24) Russell County High School
25) Pikeville High School

You can see the top 25 with the “others receiving votes” here.

Wiley signs NDFA deal with Braves

Minor League Baseball

Keenan Wiley; UK photo

Former University of Kentucky outfielder Keenan Wiley has signed a free agent contract with the Atlanta Braves. Wiley batted .324 with four home runs and 37 RBI as a redshirt senior for UK in 2010. The Richmond native and Madison Central High School alum also stole 14 bases in 19 attempts for UK. In four seasons at UK Wiley played in 214 games and compiled a .306 batting average with 36 stolen bases.

Wiley’s signing brings the total number of Kentuckians signing professional contracts from the 2010 draft class to 35. The Kentuckians in the class have signed with 17 different teams. With just over a week until the signing deadline 18 drafted Kentuckian remain unsigned. (Read more)

Kentucky High School Poll (May 8)

High School Baseball

The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association released its latest top 25 poll on May 6. Lexington Catholic is holding steady in the No. 1 spot as the regular season winds down but several teams can challenge the Nights. Check out the most rankings below with each team’s total points listed and number of first place votes in parentheses:

1.   Lexington Catholic — 218 — (16)
2.   Eastern — 200 — (4)
3.   Lexington Christian — 194
4.   St. Xavier — 159
5.   West Jessamine — 156 — (2)
6.   Apollo — 155
7.   Pleasure Ridge Park — 150
8.   Tates Creek — 144
9.   Harrison County — 122
10.   Male — 114
11.   Trinity — 108
12.   Western Hills — 105
13.   Elizabethtown — 97
14.   DeSales — 96
15.   Henderson County — 93
16.   Lafayette — 88
17.   DuPont Manual — 85
18.   Central Hardin — 73
19.   Franklin County — 70
20.   Madison Central — 64
21.   Russell County — 63
22.   George Rogers Clark — 55
23.   Mercer County — 50 — (1)
24.   Butler — 44
25.   Glasgow — 43