The Missouri high school baseball season kicks off on Mar. 19, opening day for regular season action under MSHSAA 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 Missouri 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: 3

Top Returners:

• Andrew Maultsby (2027) - C, 5’10, 200, R/R
• Krue Patrick (2028) - INF/RHP, 6’1, 190, R/R
• Xander Paul (2026) - OF, 5’10 175, L/R
• Brady Nelson (2028) - C/OF, 5’11, 180, R/R
• Landon Schreifels (2026) - RHP/1B, 6’1, 210, L/R
  

Top Newcomers:

• Marcus Madden (2026) - RHP, 5’11, 200
• David Hernandez (2027) - MIF, 6'0, 175, R/R
• Casen Willenborg (2026) - RHP, 6'2, 210
  • Crowder JC commit
• Ayden Boyer (2027) - LHP, 5'10 165

Key Players Lost:

• Brody Irlbeck - Iowa
• Jake Thomas - Butler
• Easton Phillippe - Omaha
• Kyle Pearcy - Oklahoma State
• Evan Abbott - Emporia State
• Grant Madrid - Jefferson JC

Coach’s Insight: “This team is a hardworking group that consistently shows a strong commitment to preparation and daily improvement. Overall athleticism allows us to play with speed, energy, and competitiveness, while our defensive flexibility gives us the ability to adjust lineups and cover multiple positions without sacrificing performance. Additionally, we have the potential to develop solid pitching depth, which can provide valuable options and stability on the mound as the season progresses. We have to replace the majority of our innings on the mound with unproven players at the Varsity level.” – Dionandre Josenberger , head coach

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Find more information on the 2026 Staley program below:

+ Follow them on X: @StaleyBaseball
+ Visit Prep Baseball Missouri’s 2026 MSHSAA 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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