2026 GSHA State Playoffs: 2A Preview

START DATE: APRIL 24

The 2026 GHSA State Playoffs kick off on Wednesday. Playoff baseball in Georgia is some of the best baseball in the entire country and we are lucky enough to get to cover it. We have covered the state of Georgia from as south as Lowndes to as north as Gordon Lee and everything in between. Our staff has watched over 200 baseball games this year and can’t wait to cover playoff baseball.

To kick off the season we highlighted over 100 teams in our “Team Preview” articles if you want to check out any of those before the playoffs they can be found HERE

If you missed anything from the season we have you covered with our weekly scout blogs with hundreds of players mentioned with notes and video that can be found HERE

We also released our Power 25 rankings and Classification Rankings weekly. Be sure to check out the final update of the regular season HERE

We are going to kick things off today with our 6A GHSA State Playoff Preview.

Top Seeds: Pierce County, Morgan County, Thomson, Redan, Columbus

Final Four Sleepers: Sonoraville, Franklin County,

The round of 32 boasts some major match ups that are likely to be 3 game series. Here are a few that we are keeping our eyes on.

Ringgold vs Stephens County

The 15 vs 18 seed can always be an interesting game with 2 opponents that finished the regular season in similar fashion.

We got a chane to see Stephens County early on in the year at Georgia Dugout Club where the competitiveness stood out against some stout competition. They stack up in a strong region and have some quality non-region wins as well. There is a good mix of upperclass and underclass talent throughout the line up. Sophomore Duke Collins sets the tone at the top and has been since he was a freshman. Senior Christian Hewitt was one of the more impressive uncommitted seniors we saw throughout the regular season with a strong glove at SS and feel for the barrel in the box. Noah Strickland and Landry Williams lead the rotation with Strickland being a key contributor in the line up as well. Coach Cash has done a great job getting this program back in the right direction and will lead them into the 2A playoffs with a chance to make a run.

Ringgold has been a staple in the playoffs for many years, and look to make a run in 2026. They bounced back after 2 1 run losses to Sonoraville and rattled off 4 wins to get some momentum headed in the playoffs. They are a fairly young team this year, but have Haddon Fries leading the way with juniors Haydon Montoya, Easton Daniel, Franklin Helsel. These teams match up really well and should see some competitive baseball across the DH with a potential to go to 3 games.

Franklin County vs Union County

This is an intriguing first round matchup between two teams that have put up strong showings on the diamond this year.

The Lions are coming off a year where they were state runner-ups as they look to make a deep run once again in ‘26. They lost some talent but returned the pieces to make noise. 2026 SS Keyes Harbin is the engine that makes this club go with present tools throughout while anchoring the infield defense. The uncommitted senior has been a favorite amongst staff these past couple of seasons and knows what it will take to advance to the next round. A pair of 2026’s Easton Gailey and Luke Beasley have been significant pieces over the years and return the type of senior production that can pace an offense. Sophomore Hudson Huff was out to open the year due to basketball but holds two-way value that will prove pivotal in a tough first round match-up. This team has a sour taste in their mouths from last season and will look to right the ship of a championship loss.

We have yet to see Union County this year but they have good wins against quality opponents. Including wins over Gilmer, Lumpkin County, Ringgold, and Rockmart. A strong senior class including Gunnar Akins, Maddox Patton, and Eli Gwynn will look to lead the way. This is shaping out to be a 3-game series as the two squads appear to be battle tested coming into this thing.

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