2026 High School Team Preview: White County Warriors

The 2026 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 Georgia.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in the GHSA or GIAA state playoffs, 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 Georgia. 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 GHSA classification and Power 25.

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 GHSA 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: White County Warriors
Head Coach: Jim Waits
Classification: GHSA Class 3A
Region: 6-3A
2025 Record (Finish): 14-15
No. of Returning Positional Starters: 3
Team Strengths: Speed, pitching defense.

TOP RETURNING PLAYERS 

TOP UNDERCLASSMEN

TEAM OUTLOOK

The Warriors are a young team with only 3 starters returning but come into ‘26 with hopes to build off a 14-15 finish after just narrowly missing out on the playoffs a year ago. A pair of committed seniors will look to pace this squad in ‘26, OF Cooper Garrett (Huntington College) and QB1 INF/C/RHP Alex Freeman (Young Harris). Garrett has been a consistent performer over the years and is armed with high-floor tools throughout as he will be a tone-setter at the top once again after posting a .430 batting avg. a year ago. Freeman brings swiss-army knife production to the diamond for Coach Waits. Boasts plenty of upside in the physical 6-foot-2 frame with strong defensive tools at multiple premium positions and anchors the lineup in the middle with a quality hit tool, along with being SP1 for the staff as well. 2026 RHP Josh Adams follows Freeman and supplies invaluable experience to the rotation as he returns the most innings pitched. Uncommitted juniors, OF/RHP Sawyer Gailey and 3B/1B/RHP Noah Thomas, showed well in our looks across the Fall circuit and will be relied upon in important roles, as they will provide two-way value both in the lineup and in the rotation. Seniors OF Jackson Krilla and SS Carter Nguyen return as they look to give depth and consistency to the lineup. Nguyen offers a high-level defensive makeup in the dirt up-the-middle as well. Underclass impact comes from two sophomores including 1B Josiah Padgett and Braydon Vogh who got their feet wet last year and will be tasked to take on larger roles. It’s not going to be easy facing the likes of Pickens, North Hall, and GAC in a tough region 6-3A, but the Warriors have confidence on any given night backed by strengths in speed, pitching, and defense.

Find more information on the 2026 White County program below:

+ Follow them on X: @WhiteCobsball
+ Visit the Prep Baseball Georgia, 2026 Team Previews

FOLLOW PREP BASEBALL GEORGIA THROUGHOUT THE SPRING

+ Prep Baseball Georgia on X
+ Prep Baseball Georgia on Instagram
+ Prep Baseball Georgia on Facebook
+ Podcast: Peach Fuzz on YouTube

UPCOMING EVENTS