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2025 Sparkman Senators Team Preview

January 29, 2025
Austin Sharp
Alabama Scouting Director

The 2025 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, excitement abounds throughout the state. Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Alabama.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in the Jacksonville/Oxford/Montgomery area at the AISA or AHSAA state championships, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality. We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Alabama. We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews and by continuing our scheduled podcasts and releasing our preseason top-10 rankings in each AHSAA classification.

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the state.

Each week we will be releasing our Players of the Week, updating the top-10 ranks in each AHSAA classification, as well updating our Power 25 overall rankings. One thing, especially, you don’t want to miss are our scheduled podcasts with guests from across the state, as well as the recaps and previews of the big games we’re covering.

*Please note the information has been gathered from head coaches across the state, based on their replies to the questionnaire we distributed over this offseason.

High School: Sparkman Senators
Head Coach: Ben Stevenson
Classification: AHSAA Class 7A
Area Number: Class 7A, Area 7
2024 Record (Finish): 27-11 (Eliminated in 1st Round)
No. of Returning Positional Starters: 4
No. of Returning Pitchers: 3
Team Strengths: Pitching

 

TOP RETURNING PLAYERS

UTL Ryan Gross (1/18/25)

TOP UNDERCLASSMEN

TEAM OUTLOOK

The Sparkman Senators have notoriously been known for being one of the top larger-classification programs in the northern part of the state over the past decade, and last year was another quality one as they reached the Class 7A playoffs and finished as the runner-up in their area. While the Senators will look to some newer faces this spring after losing some talented seniors from last year's team to graduation, the Senators consistently produce prospects who go on to play at the next level and certainly have plenty of talent on this year's roster.

Competing in a tough area with four strong teams, all of which have playoff potential, the Senators have made the Class 7A playoffs in each of the past four seasons and are aiming for a fifth consecutive appearance in 2025. Coming off an impressive 27-9 regular-season record, with notable wins over Helena, Hoover, St. Paul’s Episcopal, James Clemens, Hueytown, and more, the Senators faced a challenging road test in the first round of the playoffs, traveling to Bob Jones. They ultimately fell to the eventual state champions, finishing the season at 27-11. With four positional starters and three key pitchers returning, the Senators' strength in 2025 appears to be their pitching staff, particularly at the front end. LHP/OF Brenner VanDeWynckel (2026) and RHP/3B RJ Freiholtz (King, 2025) form a dynamic duo with plenty of experience. VanDeWynckel is a crafty southpaw with excellent pitchability, operating in the low-80s and showing good feel for his secondary pitches. Last season, he posted a 5-1 record with 43.2 innings, 58 strikeouts, and a 2.56 ERA. As a hitter, he’s also a threat from the left side. Freiholtz, a right-handed pitcher with a lower arm slot, brings a running upper-80s fastball and a tough slider to the mound. In 2024, he went a perfect 7-for-7 in save opportunities with a stellar 0.87 ERA. Offensively, they also return several middle-of-the-order hitters who can generate runs in multiple ways. The Senators will look to UTL Ryan Gross (2025), 1B/C Will Peccia (2026), and 3B/RHP Braxton Williams (2027) to lead the charge. Both Gross and Williams earned All-Area honors in 2024, while Peccia brings a solid left-handed bat to the lineup. The team also boasts some exciting underclassmen in INF Mark Bundy (2027) and RHP/UTL Tripp Morris (2029), both of whom have bright futures and are worth keeping an eye on this spring.

With several key players returning from last year's playoff team, the Senators are primed for another strong season in Class 7A. They'll compete in Class 7A, Area 7 against Albertville, Grissom, and Huntsville for a spot in the playoffs at the end of the regular season. Look for the Senators to once again be in the thick of the playoff race as the 2025 season comes to a close.

Find more information on the 2025 Sparkman High School program below:

+ Follow them on X: @Sparkman_RBI
+ Visit the Prep Baseball Alabama, 2025 HS Team Previews

FOLLOW PREP BASEBALL ALABAMA THROUGHOUT THE SPRING

+ Prep Baseball Alabama on X
+ Prep Baseball Alabama on Instagram
+ Prep Baseball Alabama on Facebook

 

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