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Tournaments  | Story  | 12/23/2021

Regional Review: Texas

Billy Cruz     
Photo: Jordan Lawlar (Perfect Game)
With the Perfect Game scouting staff spread throughout the country and another action-packed season in the books, we'll take a look back at some highlights from individual states over the next couple of weeks, from the 13u level all the way up through the collegiate ranks and the MLB Draft.


Biggest 13u Moment/Breakout Player
Texas is well represented in the 2026 class with an exciting up-and-coming pool of talent. Among notable performances in the 2021 circuit, the biggest moments of the year came from the state’s top two ranks. Grady Emerson and CJ Sampson were exceptional at 13u National and 13u Select Festival. Sampson was named 13u Pitcher of the Year while Emerson, the No. 4 overall 2026 prospect, helped lead a dominant championship run at the 14u Worlds with his talent at the plate. Plenty still to come from this class, but the most intriguing breakout player was Miles Young, a physical 6-foot-2, 175-pound shortstop who seamlessly impacted games on both sides with a deep tool set on display at the South Elite Championships in the 16u group no less. 


Biggest 14u Moment/Breakout Player
The 2025s in Texas competed very well on some of the biggest 14u stages of 2021. A lot of anticipation lies ahead of these prospects' prep careers after finishing the season with several enticing early verbal commitments to the country’s top programs. There were a handful of notable big moments, but few compared to Vanderbilt commit Minjae Seo tossing a hitless eight-punchout outing at the Freshman Worlds and holding his own in a short appearance in the Upperclass World Championship, striking out two more in the same week. From the start of the spring, Jack McKernan was the clear biggest breakout player, who took leaps in the rankings with dominant performances and power stuff from the left side with more to come, the recent Texas commit really molded his craft on the mound posting strong starts week to week.


Biggest College Moments
Texas had an exciting 2021 campaign, making another College World Series appearance. Though the Longhorns fell one game short of the CWS Championship to the eventual national champions, their 50-17 season highlighted having no holes in their loaded lineup with some of college baseball’s top prospects leading the way and young talent making early impact. Dallas Baptist was also a fun watch in 2021, seeking their first CWS appearance and putting together a Top 25 stature to their 41-18 season that ended after winning the series opener against Virginia in the Super Regional.


Biggest Summer Moment
The 2021 Texas summer circuit provided some fun to watch next-level baseball. Standing out immediately is the power arm from 2023’s No. 10 prospect and 2023 draft eligible prospect, Travis Sykora. The 6-foot-5 athletic and physical presence on the mound still does not prepare you for 97 mph fastballs with life downhill, and not often are rising juniors prepared to make the adjustment at the plate against it. His first start of the summer at the South Invitational was a short two-inning stint with six strikeouts and not much hope to find the barrel against him.


Biggest Breakout Player
Jett Williams was a very fun to watch two-way talent all summer who made leaps in his big summer. He plays with excellent feel for the middle infield and a plus run tool he transfers to the field effectively. He put his five-tool potential on full display week-in and week-out, consistently productive with impact in every phase of the game. Williams is an athletic, compact 5-foot-8 frame with explosive tools and advanced strength heading in the right direction, bringing some excitement to the 2022 Mississippi State recruiting class.


Biggest Draft Moment
In the 2021 MLB Draft, Colton Cowser and Jordan Lawlar exemplified Texas amateur talent at the highest level with back-to-back early first round selections. The Baltimore Orioles put their trust in Southland’s Player of the Year, Cowser, with the No. 5 overall pick out of Sam Houston providing one of the most polished bats making it easy to jump his rank after an incredible college career, piecing together quite the track record alongside a pure hit tool we should see in the Big Leagues soon. Vanderbilt recruit and five-tool shortstop Lawler was the top prep position player in the draft selected at No. 6 overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks out of Jesuit in Dallas. 

Top Texas Travel Teams

2022 Grads: USA Prime 2022 National
National Rank: 10

2023 Grads: Lonestar Baseball 2023 National
National Rank: 17

2024 Grads: USA Prime 16u National
National Rank: 1

2025 Grads: 2025 Texas Twelve Black 
National Rank: 3

2026 Grads: USA Prime 14u National
National Rank: 1

A Look Ahead

High School: The 2022 Texas high school season is getting ready for another spring of some of the nation’s best teams and players across the state. Picking up where the 2021 season left off with Rockwall-Heath, Friendswood and Lake Travis as the top-three in Texas, I look forward to Lake Travis’s season and another year with an exciting pitching rotation, including the power arm duo from two-way player and Texas signee Pierce George and Texas A&M signee Luke Jackson bringing a difficult pair of low-90s arms both with feel to spin, alongside Rhode Island signee Cole Carroll and 2023 Alabama commit Jackson Baker to go to.

College: Texas is bringing back important players to the 2022 season with some exciting transfers and freshman talent in the mix. This program has looked spring ready since the start of fall, especially their unfair pitching depth, including 2023 draft eligible RHP Tanner Witt generating buzz and looking sharp on the mound in the fall, and there will be plenty of big moments to watch for from him. And after a dominant 2021 season, the experience returns with quality depth shaped for another highly-anticipated CWS run from the Longhorns. 
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