Koehn, Seidler and Sheehan finalists for ‘Prep Player of the Week’

As I mentioned last week, we’re highlighting three of the area’s top high school baseball players from the previous week in a post every Monday on BaltimoreBaseball.com.

Then, you can vote – early and often – for the athlete you believe should be our “Prep Player of the Week.” Last week, thanks to 1,426 votes from our readers, Archbishop Spalding’s Billy Godrick was selected as our inaugural Prep Player of the Week.

In order to vote for this week’s winner, you’ll need to select your choice at the bottom of this post. Voting ends 11:59 p.m. Thursday night. On Friday, we’ll reveal the winner. This week’s three candidates – for the games from April 11 to April 17 – are listed below, as well as the other players who received serious consideration.

If you would like to submit candidates to be considered as the BaltimoreBaseball.com Prep Player of the Week in the future, please send the player’s name, key statistics from the week, and your contact information to dean@baltimorebaseball.com.

This Week’s Finalists:

Austin Koehn, Patterson Mill
Koehn pitched 10 total scoreless innings in two victories for the Huskies, who have won five consecutive games and lead the Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference’s Chesapeake Division. On Monday, the 5-foot-8, 135-pound sophomore struck out six batters and scattered six hits in five innings as Patterson Mill routed Rising Sun, 12-2. And, following the Huskies’ 4-3 walk-off victory over division rival Bel Air on Wednesday, Koehn earned his first career shutout in a 10-0, five-inning win versus Fallston on Friday. In that game, he had five strikeouts, no walks and limited the Cougars to four hits.

Joe Seidler, Chesapeake-Anne Arundel
It has been tough for teams to score on Seidler so far this year. And although he gave up earned runs (two) for the first time this season in a 5-2 win over Broadneck on Monday, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore – who has a 0.62 ERA in 29 innings this year – kept the Cougars among the leaders in Anne Arundel County with his right arm and bat. In the victory over the Bruins, he was 2-for-3 with two stolen bases. On Wednesday, Seidler had a double, a home run and three RBIs as Chesapeake beat Meade, 10-0, in five innings. His teammate, Bobby Quesenberry, threw a no-hitter. Then, on Friday, Seidler struck out four batters and walked two in a two-hit shutout as the Cougars edged Old Mill, 1-0. He also contributed one of Chesapeake’s three hits in the game.

Jack Sheehan, Loyola Blakefield
The 6-foot-2, 175-pound senior almost single-handedly carried the Dons to an 8-6 victory over Mount Saint Joseph on Monday. With a full count and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, Sheehan hit a walk-off grand slam to complete Loyola’s comeback from a 5-1 deficit heading into the bottom of the sixth. Sheehan also pitched the final five innings of the game, earning the win after holding the Gaels to one run and three hits. Earlier this year, Sheehan homered twice as the Dons upset two-time defending MIAA A Conference champion Archbishop Spalding, 14-4, on March 23.

Others considered (listed alphabetically): Bryce Bidinger, Old Mill; Tyler Blohm, Archbishop Spalding; Camden Cregger, Francis Scott Key; Reece Early, Gerstell Academy; LaVale Hodges, Archbishop Spalding; David Kates, Glen Burnie; Bobby Quesenberry, Chesapeake-AA; Jake Sheesley, Patterson Mill; Trevor Sprinkle, Calvert Hall; Zach Thompson, Archbishop Spalding.

BALTIMOREBASEBALL.COM PREP PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Week 1 (April 4-10): Billy Godrick, Archbishop Spalding