Detroit News contributor Keith Dunlap selects the top baseball players in Metro Detroit for the 2026 season.
First team
Pitchers
Ethan Armstrong, Sr., Garden City
Named the winner of the Mr. Baseball award, the right-hander who has signed with Michigan helped put Garden City baseball on the map this year and throughout his career. In 49.2 innings pitched, Armstrong went 5-0 with 96 strikeouts, a 1.41 ERA, a 0.383 WHIP, and just five walks. Armstrong allowed just one earned run all season.
Andrew Mahoney, Sr., Detroit Catholic Central
The ace for the Division 1 state champions, Mahoney was elite against terrific competition all season. A lefty, Mahoney finished with a 10-1 record with a 1.04 ERA, 102 strikeouts, a .145 batting average against and 19 walks in 60 innings pitched. Signed with Cincinnati, Mahoney was named to the all-state Dream Team.
Cole Duhaime, Birmingham Brother Rice
A left-hander who has signed with Virginia, Duhaime started in the state-championship game two years ago as a sophomore and finished a terrific high school career by being named to the all-state Dream Team. Duhaime went 7-3 with a 2.16 ERA, a .218 batting average against and 78 strikeouts in 55 innings pitched.
Infielders
Hudson Brzustewicz, Sr., Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
Signed with Notre Dame, Brzustewicz excelled in all facets for the Division 2 state champions. At the plate, he finished batting .490 with 37 RBIs, 13 doubles and 57 runs. On the mound, he went 6-1 with a 1.70 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 36 innings pitched. He was named to the all-state Dream Team for a second straight year.
Drake Roa, Sr., Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Named to the all-state Dream Team for a second straight year, Roa was a big reason Notre Dame Prep won over 30 games this spring. Signed with Michigan, Roa against good competition finished with a .403 batting average, 23 RBIs, 42 stolen bases and 60 runs scored. Defensively, he had a .996 fielding percentage at shortstop.
Henry Ewles, Sr, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
As was the case with teammate Roa, Ewles was named to the all-state Dream Team for a second straight year. At the plate, Ewles batted .446 with seven home runs, 54 RBIs and 20 doubles. He had a .993 fielding percentage. On the mound, he was team’s ace, going 9-2 with 61 strikeouts and a 1.78 ERA. He has signed with Miami (Ohio).
Tristan Turner, Sr., Birmingham Brother Rice
Turner was an ignitor of the Brother Rice offense all year long, finishing with a .405 batting average, four home runs, 13 doubles, 37 RBIs, 49 runs and 22 stolen bases. Signed with Western Michigan, he was named to the all-state Dream Team.
Outfielders
Luke Crighton, Sr., Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
Signed with Indiana and named to the all-state Dream Team for a second straight year, Crighton could be on this squad in just about every position given his versatility and how he dominated. At the plate, he hit. 464 with 43 RBIs, 57 runs and 20 stolen bases. On the mound, he was the ace for St. Mary’s, going 10-0 with a 1.20 ERA and 83 strikeouts in 59 innings pitched against a brutal schedule that resulted in a state championship.
Flip Watters, Soph., Rochester Adams
There was no sophomore slump for Watters after he made the all-state Dream Team as a freshman. Watters repeated the feat this year, batting .408 with 51 runs, 25 RBIs, 37 stolen bases and 16 walks to just 11 strikeouts. He is one of the top-ranked sophomores in the country and should garner a lot of attention from college coaches this summer.
Logan Evans, Sr., Richmond
Richmond was one of the stronger teams in the state all season and might have been in East Lansing had it not had to play St. Mary’s in the super regional. Evans was maybe the biggest reason for the team’s success. He hit .671 with 24 RBIs, 48 stolen bases, 13 doubles and 10 triples. He also had a .739 on-base percentage in being named to the all-state Dream Team.
Maksim Neshov, Soph., Birmingham Brother Rice
Another top sophomore in the area, Neshov was named to the all-state Dream Team after batting .381 with 33 RBIs, 47 runs and 47 stolen bases. A switch-hitter, he should be one of the state’s best over the next two years and have an active summer on the recruiting circuit.
Catcher
Broder Katke, Jr., Birmingham Brother Rice
A starter for Brother Rice since he was a freshman, Katke continues to only get better and cement his status as one of the best prep catchers in the entire Midwest. Committed to perennial powerhouse Vanderbilt, Katke can swing the bat, as well, hitting .417 with five home runs, 30 RBIs, 49 runs and 14 stolen bases.
Head coach
Ryan Rogowski, Detroit Catholic Central
In his sixth season at the helm, Rogowski helped guide a veteran Catholic Central team to its first state championship in Division 1. C.C. fared well against a tough schedule during the regular season and then went on about as dominant run as a baseball team can go on in the playoffs, particular in the state’s highest classification. C.C. outscored its seven opponents, 44-8, in the state tournament.
Second team
Pitchers — Nick Kaminski, Sr., Romeo; Cash Moczydlowsky, Jr., New Boston Huron; Brad Bieniasz, Jr., Oxford; Brady Lindstrom, Jr., Rochester Adams
Infielders — Dylan Fairchild, Sr., Detroit Catholic Central; Daniel Hampton, Sr., Howell; Mike Stanton, Jr., Birmingham Brother Rice; Derek Conrad, Sr., Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
Outfielders — Drew Tribul, Sr., Orchard Lake St. Mary’s; Dante Perry, Sr., Woodhaven, Boden Bishop, Sr. Lakeland; Gavin McKee, Sr., St. Clair Shores Lakeview
Catcher — Cameron Thorning, Jr., Woodhaven
Honorable mention
Nate Alba, Sr., Royal Oak Shrine; Aidan Bailey, Sr., Brighton; Noah Banas, Sr., New Boston Huron; Cayden Barbato, Sr., Royal Oak Shrine; Dominic Bonnetti, Jr., Richmond; Jamir Campbell, Sr., Detroit Edison; Dylan Crowe, Jr., Hartland; Griffin Delusky, Jr., Birmingham Brother Rice; Deshawn Edwards, Sr., Grosse Pointe North; Lucas Farner, Jr., Woodhaven; Owen Fulsher, Sr., Pontiac Notre Dame Prep; Brennan Goebel, Jr., Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest; Javion Gray, Sr., Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett; David Hemphill, Sr., Detroit Edison; Joseph Hollyer, Jr., Lutheran Westland; Luke Jennigan, Sr., Plymouth Christian; Micky Laser, Sr, Detroit Catholic Central; Kyle McCabe, Sr., St. Clair Shores Lakeview; Sean Murphy, Sr., Royal Oak Shrine; Andrew Ryan, Sr., Dearborn Divine Child; Jaden Saavedra, Sr., South Lyon East; Logan Scheidt, Jr., West Bloomfield; Bennett Thompson, Sr., Detroit Catholic Central; Dallas Terski, Sr,, Dearborn Divine Child; Christian Tracy, Sr., Utica Ford; Rico Valdovinos, Sr., Southgate Anderson; Landon Wilkoff, Sr., Walled Lake Northern; JonTae Wright, Sr., Detroit Edison.
Keith Dunlap is a freelance writer.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Meet the 2026 Detroit News All-Metro Detroit baseball teams
Reporting by Keith Dunlap, Special to The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Keith Dunlap, Special to The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
