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: 3
No. of Returning Pitchers: 2

Top Returners:

• Cade Strathman (2026) - INF/P, 6'3, 180 lb, R/R
  • Barton CC commit
  • Cade is a gifted athlete coming off a rough low leg injury that ended his summer in 2025. He did sign with Barton CC as a 2 way and will have the chance to pitch and play infield at the next level.
• Carter Bengtson (2027) - INF, 5'8, 170 lb, R/R
  • Carter is a special player and a solid future ahead of him. He can play every position on the infield and can really hit. He has started since his freshman year and his best baseball is ahead of him.
• Cowen Huggard (2026) - INF/C/RHP, 5'9, 170 lb, R/R
  • Cowen is a bit of an X-factor for the Bullpups. Very skilled player and has played a lot in 2024 & 2025. He can catch and play infield. Has tremendous upside on the mound, but consistency will be key for his success.
    

Top Newcomers:

• Takoda Linn (2027) - OF/RHP, 6'0, 160 lbs, R/R
  • Takoda is a kid who has a lot of success on our sub-varsity and should step right in and be a force on the varsity field this spring. He throws a lot of strikes on the mound and works with great tempo.
• Cru Buchman (2027) - RHP/INF, 6'0, 160 lbs, L/R
  • Cru got a taste of varsity last year due to an injury and handled it well. He has some really electric stuff on the mound and could make a good jump as a junior.
• Nolan Pearcy (2027) - OF, 6'0, 176 lbs, L/L
  • Nolan should be able to man a varsity spot in the outfield. Runs fairly well and takes good angles. We would like to see him take a step ahead offensively and add tools to his toolbox offensively.
• Brady Rinker (2027) - RHP/INF, 5'8, 145 lbs, L/R
  • Brady is a solid player that has pitched and played infield for our sub-varsity. We really like the progress he has made on the mound the last 2 years.
• Bo Barkley (2027) - C/INF, 6'2, 185 lbs, R/R
  • Bo will compete for our starting catcher spot. Great leader and great size.
• Asher Allen (2027) - INF, 5'8, 185 lbs, R/R
  • Asher will compete for a varsity spot this spring on the corner infield.

Key Players Lost:

• Ian Razak - Cloud County CC
• Brody Seidl - Cloud County CC
• Carter Allen - Pratt CC
• Brock Richardson - Butler CC
• Brenden Doile - Western Nebraska CC
• Logan Beede - Neosho County CC

Coach’s Insight: “I really like our athleticism this spring. We have the potential to be a very good team from a speed standpoint, and I think we’ll be fundamentally sound on the defensive side. Beyond that, we have a great group of young men who are very close, and that usually shows up as a team that competes hard and doesn’t go away easily. Anytime you lose seven seniors, particularly pitchers and top-of-the-order hitters, there’s an adjustment period. We’ll miss their leadership and passion for baseball, but this spring will be about developing new leaders and seeing who’s ready to step into bigger roles.” – Heath Gerstner, head coach

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Find more information on the 2026 McPherson program below:

+ Follow them on X: @bullpupbaseball
+ 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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