The MoCo Baseball Report

All-division awards for all four MoCo divisions are finalized! Congratulations to everyone selected!

And especially D3. Oliver Martin (Clarksburg), Gabriel Ruiz (Paint Branch), and Kanen Kreafle (Churchill) standout hitters at Mary-Washington, Catholic, and St Olaf’s respectively. Cole Williams (Wheaton) and Mitchell Hwang (Whitman) two of the best D3 relievers in the country.

Some other outstanding players from that year being key players at the next level. Amari Allen (Sherwood) has dominated JUCO Tanner Sanderoff (Blake) key arm at Hofstra Darin Kuskie (Damascus) with big roles at USC-Upstate/Old Dominion.

Great opportunity to honor the MoCo 2023 class, some elite talent and a lot of post-grad success. Chris Hacopian (Churchill) drafted today. Ben Berger, Brian Scott, Ryan Bouma (Sherwood) with much success at Frostburg St.

Great article on Sherwood legends from the original 3 peat, especially the '22 and '23 titles - Ryan Bouma, Ben Berger, Brian Scott, and Mac Crismond. Dominated high school together, playing at Frostburg St, and with the Cropdusters over the summers.

ready to get to work 💪

The current generation of MoCo players likely were too young to have watched Hacopian’s tenure at Churchill. But now, those same players and families will get the chance at Nats Park.

From Churchill to UMD to Texas A&M to the Washington Nationals Chris Hacopian is coming home.

MLB 1st rounder ….pick 11 the Nats pick CHRIS HACOPIAN!

Covering a H.S. Baseball game in 2022, they told me you gotta check out this @WC_Baseball_MD pitcher/hitter Chris Hacopian! 4 years later, Chris, who played for @Coach_Skell at Churchill & spent some time with @TerpsBaseball, has now been selected No. 11 overall by the Nats!

🔥 Congratulations to Chris Hacopian on being selected with the 11th Pick in the First Round by the @Nationals! Chris played in our inaugural All-Star Weekend and put on an unforgettable SHOW en route to winning the HR Derby! 🎆 Tremendous player and even better person! 👊

𝐇𝐄’𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐇𝐎𝐌𝐄 👊 INF Chris Hacopian (@AggieBaseball) has been selected by the @Nationals with the 11th overall pick in the #MLBDraft 👏 ▪️ Potomac, MD native ▪️ #2 player in @PrepBaseballMD ‘23 class. ▪️ Attended Winston Churchill HS @prepbaseball | @PB_DraftHQ

Hacopian on the cover of the Baltimore Sun. Full article of his journey at their website. Some quotes from Coach Skellchock as well. Be sure to tune in to the 1st round of the 2026 MLB Draft tomorrow at 1p!

And one of the biggest what ifs is if he returned his SR yr in 2023. Whitman had one of the best pitching staffs the county has ever produced and WJ won the MoCo championship. But if Chris was playing, Churchill would’ve been the region favorite - going for the 4A West I 3 peat

Fun fact: Sherwood under Coach Davis has been run ruled only once in his ~15+ years with the program: 2022 vs. Churchill when Hacopian blasted 3 HR including the walk off grand slam in a 17-7 rout. Was compared to Jackson Merrill who got drafted in 2021 throughout the season.

Great doc on former Churchill standout and 2022 MD Gatorade POTY Chris Hacopian prior to this year’s MLB draft. Years ago, I said he was the best talent to ever play in MoCo. Still stand by that take. Now will have a chance to be the highest drafted player in county history.

First player in the county off the board! One of MoCo's top two way threats. Four year starter and helped lead Blake to a region title this past year. Primed for huge performances over the next year and beyond.

Legendary

Congrats to the following players on earning 1st Team All State! Ethan Pletter (WJ) Carter Sweeney-Strawberry (Sherwood) Ryan Zanni (Sherwood)

As a sidenote, gotta remind again how 2025 Damascus was absolutely absurd with talent. This now makes EIGHT different All State players over the last two years - four in the rotation and five in the lineup. One of the most complete teams we’ve seen in a long time.

Congrats to the following graduates for earning PBR MD 2nd Team All State. Great way to cap off high school! Justin Witmer (Damascus) Ian Hyman (Damascus) Raff Iorio (Damascus) Blake Graham (Wootton) Matt Strahan (Magruder) Jack Gilder (WJ)