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With 2024 now in the past, Prep Baseball Michigan is eagerly anticipating bringing the state the best high school coverage that can be found anywhere in 2025. Starting in February, we began releasing team previews for squads across the state. Ahead, we will have Preseason All-State Teams as well as the Preseason State Rankings coming your way.

To view the full list of 2025 Team Previews that we have already completed, please click here.

If you are a coach and haven't filled out your 2025 Team Preview, click here.

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2025 Spring Team Preview: Flat Rock

FLAT ROCK - Third-year head coach Josh Godfrey does not mince words when talking about his thoughts on this year’s Flat Rock team.

“I think that this team can not only make some noise but make history within the Flat Rock  program,” Godfrey explained. “Winning the Huron League is a feat that the Rams have not achieved in over 50 years. Although the Huron League is quite talented this year, we think that this group has what it takes to win it for the first time in five decades. That is the goal.

“Additionally, when you consider the pitching talent this squad has, as well as the experience that our players have playing together, we think that a deep postseason run is possible as well.”

Pitching and experience are a big reason for the confidence out of Godfrey, who led Flat Rock to an 18-12 record last season with just one senior on the roster.

“The Flat Rock program hasn’t been known for much in the past two decades, including when I played ball here,” Godfrey explained. “That was one of the reasons I wanted to come back and coach. “In the past two years, our program has been known as a developing and young program with a great string of talent coming through. We are a program that focuses on the quality of development of our player’s physical tools, as well as mental tools to prepare them for the diamond, and in life, all the while teaching the raw fundamentals of the game.”

Five key returnees are expected to lead the cause in 2025, led by the one-two pitching punch of Michael Giroux and Jayden Yancey. The 22nd-rated senior right-handed pitcher in Michigan, Giroux allowed just 19 hits in 31 innings last year with 52 strikeouts. The Grand Valley State commit will be helped out on the mound by Yancey, the 13th-ranked junior RHP in the state who is committed to Central Michigan. Yancey had a 1.78 ERA a year ago, permitting 35 hits in 59 innings with 88 Ks. Senior Adam Szalay adds depth to the staff after throwing 42 frames last season, fanning 51 and giving up 34 hits with a 3.33 ERA.

“I love the top-end arm talent we have,” Godfrey noted. “This team has high-level arms that this program has not witnessed in a very long time. This pitching staff had some nice success in 2024, and plan to build off that success in this upcoming season. If the pitching staff can limit free passes then they will be a dangerous one.”

Senior Anthony Hernandez is back in the outfield after pacing the Rams in RBIs last year with 30, while also batting .333. Sophomore Ty Bergeron, a left-handed hitting first baseman who can also pitch, had a big freshman year producing a .365 batting average and .500 OBP with 14 RBIs and 15 stolen bases and is another key returnee.

“The main strengths of this team are the pitching staff and experience our players now have,” Godfrey said. “This is a pitching staff that has been developing together for two years now, and has gotten better year after year.

“With only one senior on the roster in 2024, the 2025 roster will have experienced seniors who have played in plenty of big games and who won’t shy away from the spotlight.”

Improvement is vital, however, according to the head coach.

“The two weaknesses this team had in 2024 was inconsistent infield defense and inconsistencies in the batter’s box,” Godfrey related. “Improving in these categories has been a priority for us this off-season. We should see an improvement in these aspects in 2025 because of that, as well as adding a couple young and intriguing players to the roster. These players will help balance out the lineup, as well as improve the infield defense.”

Sophomore David Riddle and freshman Jordan Godfrey are being counted on to play important roles this year. Riddle will play outfield while Godfrey is a speedy middle infielder with the ability to pitch.

“I like that this team demonstrates what it means to be a team,” the Flat Rock mentor said. “They always look out for each other, push one another, and want to win together. It is a group of guys that meshes exceptionally well.

“I also like this team’s attitude toward their development and their overall experience. This group understands the time and effort it takes to improve their skills, as well as understanding how those skills translate to help us win games. There are guys on this team that were on the 2022 team that had a record of 5-23. As soon as I was introduced to the program in 2023, I noticed that the players within this program wanted to improve and were willing to go to the lengths necessary to do so. Their efforts are the reason this program has turned around, and why the program finds itself in the spot it is in today.”

It brings a lot of optimism as the 2025 season nears the beginning. “The first key to success for this season is the pitching staff going out and continuing to give us a chance to win every game,” Godfrey explained. “We expect them to be improved and sharper in 2025, building off their success in 2024.

As a staff in 2024, they held opposing teams to a .199 batting average and, considering that we have our top three starters from that team returning in 2025, we are very excited to see them execute this upcoming season. “The next key to success for the Rams in 2025 is patching up the clear weaknesses we had in 2024, defensive and offensive inconsistencies, which our coaching staff believes they can and will. Teams with no clear weaknesses are very tough to beat because they can find numerous ways to win games, which is what we are striving for in 2025, and is what will make this team dangerous.”

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