Pitcher of the Year: Keith Weisenberg, Sr., Osceola.
Why we picked him: If Osceola was playing a meaningful game, there was a good chance Weisenberg was on the mound. For four years, he was a reliable starter, but this season he was the main focus. Armed with a 92-mph fastball, the 6-foot-5, 195-pounder drew plenty of MLB scouts for his starts. Overall, he was 9-2 with a 1.09 ERA, 88 strikeouts and 64 innings. “I wanted the ball in the big games,’’ Weisenberg said. Some of his highlights include an early-season win over district champion Northeast, in which he pitched five innings, struck out six and gave up no runs. He also shut out Mitchell for five innings in a 3-0 win and threw a complete game in the region quarterfinal win over Jefferson. “He got better and better from his freshman year to his senior year. And he got better and better as the game went on,” coach Stefan Futch said. Weisenberg also hit .329 with two home runs and 15 RBIs, but his future will be as a pitcher.
Did you know? Weisenberg finished in the top 10 percent of his class, graduated summa cum laude, was a member of the National Honor Society and Spanish National Honor Society.
What’s next? Weisenberg was a 38th-round pick by the Toronto Blue Jays in last week’s MLB first-year player draft. He would have been picked much higher had he not already committed to Stanford.
Player of the Year: Brad Deppermann, Sr., East Lake
Why we picked him: Granted, Deppermann was most valuable as a pitcher. But by the end of the season he became the Eagles’ most versatile player. When he wasn’t mowing down hitters as a pitcher (6-2, 0.93 ERA, 100 strikeouts, 75 innings), he was playing third or first base and batting leadoff. He hit .327 with a home run, six doubles and 12 RBIs. His bat was crucial in the playoffs, especially in the region semifinal against Northeast. He was 4-for-5 with a home run and a double to lead the Eagles to a 9-0 win. “He’s a tremendous athlete,” coach Dan Genna said. “He can play anywhere we put him. He can dunk a basketball. He can do it all. And he didn’t even come out his freshman year.” Deppermann also helped pitch East Lake to playoff wins over Sarasota and Kissimmee Osceola. Deppermann was invited to play in the prestigious Florida Athletic Coaches Association senior all-star game in Sebring, where he pitched two scoreless innings.
Did you know? Deppermann didn’t become a starting pitcher until this season. He was mainly an infielder as a junior and was used in relief. Early in the season he was a starter and didn’t focus on hitting. “We were struggling at the plate as a team so we started to get him focused a little more on hitting,” Genna said. “With him, we were focused on the mound but we had to get him back focused at the plate. He’s just so valuable at the plate for us as well.”
What’s next? Deppermann, a 4.0 student, was taken late in the MLB draft. He was selected in the 31st round by the Chicago Cubs, the first Pinellas high school player taken. He is committed to play baseball at North Florida.
First team
P Daniel Broeseker, Sr., Calvary Christian: Warriors’ ace was 10-2 with a 0.52 ERA and 117 strikeouts in 81.1 innings; shut out CCC in eight innings in the region semifinal.
P David Paul, Sr., Clearwater Central Catholic: Was 10-1 with a 0.90 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 70 innings pitched.
P Brandon Grigsby, Sr., Pinellas Park: For the fourth season, was a workhorse for the Patriots; pitched 58 innings and racked up 80 strikeouts. Also hit .388 with 12 RBIs.
IF Keegan Maronpot, Sr., East Lake: Hit .430 with nine doubles and 18 RBIs; smooth shortstop heading to Wake Forest.
IF Trevor Jensen, Jr., Dunedin: Hit a gaudy .530 with seven doubles, 12 RBIs and 14 stolen bases.
IF Brenden Overton, Sr., Clearwater Central Catholic: Saint Leo commit hit .493 with 35 RBIs, seven home runs and seven doubles.
IF Connor Labrie, Sr, St. Petersburg: Hit .432 with 13 RBIs as the Green Devils’ clean-up hitter.
OF Chris Clark, Sr., Northeast: Hit .356 with 18 RBIs and 25 stolen bases; was solid defensively and recently committed to Tallahassee CC.
OF Andrew Murphy, Sr., Clearwater Central Catholic: Hit .338 and was selected to the Pinellas/Hillsborough senior all-star game.
OF Aaron Turman, Sr., Dunedin: Hit .397 with 15 RBIs and four doubles; also as Pinellas senior all-star selection.
DH Joseph Simmons, Sr., Dixie Hollins: Not only a capable hitter (.362), he was the county leader in steals (36).
UTIL Richie Rivera, Sr., St. Petersburg: Played both infield and outfield, and hit .349 with five doubles and 15 steals; committed to State College of Florida in Bradenton.
Second team
P Josh Hale, Sr., Northeast
P Christian Townsend, Sr., Countryside
P Tanner Watkins, Sr., Boca Ciega
P Steven Plaskett, Jr., East Lake
C Tommy Georgevich, Sr., Calvary Christian
IF Bo Bichette, So., Lakewood
IF Jaret Helinger, Sr., Osceola
IF Charlie Skantze, Sr., Countryside
IF Zuriel Collins, Jr., Clearwater Central Catholic
OF John Miller, Sr. St. Petersburg
OF Cody Miller, Sr., Seminole
OF Abi Jimenez, Sr., Osceola
DH Brian Auerbach, Sr., Palm Harbor University
UTIL Max Romanski, Sr. Tarpon Springs
Honorable mention
Admiral Farragut: Bryce Cooke; Boca Ciega: Tully Allen, Nick Adams, Darius Blasingame, Bradley Watson; Calvary Christian: Ray Hansen, Graham Hoffman, Grant McDaniel, Johnnie Schneider, Jake Rothwell, Johnny Chiaramonte, Collin Booten, Jake Richardson; Canterbury: Steven Winesett, Jonathan Rivera, Steven Valentine; Clearwater: Andrew Young, Reed Brinkman, Zach Marshall, Garrison Bryant, Quinn Blauvelt; Clearwater Central Catholic: Andrew Mink, Britton Araujo, Derek Gibree, Michael Paul, Nicholas Dohse; Countryside: Zach Taylor, Jack Skantze, Mike Adams, Tommy Labella, Kevin Rosinski, Kyle Kania; Dixie Hollins: Devin Reyes, Dominick Gervato, Anthony Mosgaard, Mike Leary; Dunedin: Eric Sexton, Justin Glover, Colton Widdows, Tim Luth; East Lake: Cameron Churchill, Nick DeSantis, Ian Lisle, Andrew Monahan, Ryan Wall, Christian James; Indian Rocks Christian: Shane Priest, Mitch Palm, Daniel Llerena, Dan Oberst, Jesse Tona, Paul Kulaga; Keswick Christian: Noah Brunk, Christian Michener, Bryan Lopez, Trey O’Shields; Lakewood: Donovan Pink, Jamaal Chaney, Mike Ferrandiz, Lance Smith, Marcus Bradley; Largo: Tyler Short, Jacob Henniger, Travis Carden, Logan Liddie, Matt VanJelgerhuis, Drew Guido; Northeast: Jason Mugavero, Will Condon, Jesse Moeller, Brien Story, Brandon Reiss, Drew Vimond, Kobe Hartley; Northside Christian: Aidan Anderson; Osceola: Francis Dougherty, Mike Kleinman, Joey Coca, Ethan Wheeler, Garrett Sullivan, Tyler Malinowski; Palm Harbor University: A.J. Hrica, Ethan Olivero, Adam Jurco, John Pichman; Pinellas Park: Ryan Griffith, Triston Allen, Zachary Roberts, Daniel McHenry, Chase Stevens, Tyler Curry, Kenny Brush, Derek Jaar; St. Petersburg: David Sockol, Aaron Haughton, Jake Ferguson, Sam Goodis, Matt Mainelli, David Phrathep; St.Petersburg Catholic: Sean Coughlin, Justin Dahill, Austin Andrade; Seminole: Jacob Silverstein, Chris Berry, Austin Lamoreux, Tyler Koser, Ethan Roberts, Matt Tharp, Douglas Borgh, Joe Favetta, Nate Tomilonus; Shorecrest: Avery Cutro, Anthony Falcone; Tarpon Springs: Eric Kehoe, Aaron Dickson, Matt Sakellarides
Coach of the Year
Dan Genna, East Lake. There were times during the season when it looked as if East Lake might fall apart. Despite a pitching rotation other coaches would kill for, the Eagles were underachieving in the regular season on offense. But Genna never panicked. He continued to adjust the lineup and stuck with his small-ball strategy. If it took extra innings to win by a run, that’s what the Eagles did. There was a dramatic 10-inning win over Sarasota in the Class 7A region quarterfinal, a nine-inning win over Melbourne in the region final, and a marathon 13-inning, 1-0 state semifinal win over Kissimmee Osceola. Genna led East Lake to its first state final since 2002.