With the 2026 Missouri high school baseball season officially in the books, it’s time to announce our 2026 Prep Baseball Missouri Player of the Year. In 2024, the honor went to Jack Nobe of St. Francis Borgia after a standout season, while Staley standout Brody Irlbeck took home the title in 2025. This year, the award goes to RHP/1B Tyler Putnam (Battle, 2026, Tennessee signee), who capped off his high school career with a dominant senior season.

A multi-sport standout for Battle, Putnam has long been a must-see name on the diamond, turning heads on the mound as a member of Team Missouri at the 2024 Future Games, where he would later commit to the University of Tennessee that fall. This spring, Putnam took another huge leap forward as a catalyst on both sides of the ball for the Spartans, producing video game-like numbers and seeing his draft stock climb as the season went on.

In a 6-foot-5 frame to dream on, Putnam's velo took a major leap, running his fastball up to 96 mph across several looks from our staff, overpowering hitters en route to a 1.38 ERA and 81 punchouts, walking just 16 batters and allowing 21 hits, good for a 0.89 WHIP and .143 BAA on the year. And if that wasn't enough, Putnam provided some offensive fireworks as well, slashing .486/.655/1.097 with 20 extra-base hits (12 of the home run variety) and driving in 39 RBIs while posting a staggering 14/37 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Congratulations to Tyler Putnam on winning our 2026 Prep Baseball Missouri Player of the Year Award!

2026 Statistics

G	IP	W-L	H	ER	R	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	BAA
9	40.2	2-1	21	8	12	16	81	1.38	0.89	.143

(4/22/26) 

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