The Kansas high school baseball season kicks off on Mar. 19, opening day for regular season action under KSHSAA regulations. Leading up to opening day, we’ll be publishing our team previews ahead of the 2026 spring season, touching on programs spanning all state classifications, counting down to the official Prep Baseball Kansas Preseason Power 25 Rankings.

Perennially, we’ve submitted a preseason questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we’re using the detailed insight they’ve provided in our team-by-team preseason analysis.

Our 2026 preseason coverage continues today.

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2026 SEASON OUTLOOK

No. of Returning Position Players: 5
No. of Returning Pitchers: 6

Top Returners:

• Mason Becker (2027) - SS, 5'10 160, R/R
  • BA .359 OBP .510
• Zayne Litchenauer (2026) - 1B, 5'10 160, R/L
  • Ottawa commit 
  • BA .346 OBP .452
• Aiden Roberts (2026) - OF, 5'9 165, R/R
  • Saint Mary commit
  • BA .409 OBP .467
• Kade Mitchell (2026) - OF, 5'9 175, R/R
  • BA .403 OBP .489
• Brady Deutsch (2026) - C, 6'1 180, R/R
  • BA .349 OBP .449
• Caleb Menke (2027) - DH, 5'10 180, R/R
  • BA .403 OBP .537
    

Top Newcomers:

• Kyden Litchenauer (2028) - INF/OF, 5'9 150, R/R
• Keaton Waggoner (2026) - OF
• Max Becker (2028) - INF/OF/P, L/L
• Mason Branson (2027) - INF, R/R

Key Players Lost:

• Cooper Grace - Nebraska
• Liam Annand - Benedictine
• Brady Heinen - Saint Mary

Coach’s Insight: “We should have a good group of pitchers that have varsity experience and can throw strikes. We should be solid up the middle with the bulk of them returning from last year. We won't be as deep in pitching as we have been in recent times.” – Bill Arnold, head coach

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Find more information on the 2026 Hayden program below:

+ Visit Prep Baseball Kansas’ 2026 KSHSAA Team Previews page to learn more.

+ If you are a high school coach and didn’t receive our questionnaire, please click HERE to fill out the form

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