Meet the 2023 All-Livingston County baseball team
Easton Storey
► School: Brighton
► Class: Senior
► Position: Pitcher
► Accomplishments: Storey made second-team all-state in Division 1 and will pitch for Purdue University. He went 8-2 with a 1.30 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 54 innings. He won his last seven appearances, fanning 66 batters and allowing 19 hits over 31 innings in those games. He had a streak of three straight 14-strikeout games.
► Coach Charlie Christner: “He showed what we thought about him going into the season. He was one of the better pitchers in the county. He had as good a season as a pitcher we’ve had here since maybe Cameron Tullar (in 2018).”
David Zilch
► School: Howell
► Class: Senior
► Position: Pitcher
► Accomplishments: Zilch set a school record with 20 career victories and tied Sam Weatherly’s 2017 single-season mark with 103 strikeouts in 79⅔ innings. He went 9-3 with a 1.67 ERA, allowing an opponent batting average of .178. He will play for Kellogg Community College.
► Coach Jason Ladd: “We knew he was going to be our No. 1 pitcher, and he definitely met expectations and maybe a little bit beyond. He had the ability to throw multiple pitches for strikes and attack the hitting zone. He wasn’t afraid to throw any pitch in any count.”
Evan McGlothin
► School: Pinckney
► Class: Sophomore
► Position: Catcher
► Accomplishments: McGlothin led the county in batting with a .396 average, going 36-for-91. He had nine multiple-hit games. He drove in 19 runs and stole 13 bases. He made all-region in Division 2.
► Coach Bill Cortez: “He’s an old-school kid, a tough kid. He loves the weight room, is physically tough and mentally tough. He doesn’t get fazed by anything. The improvement he’s made behind the plate to start winning pitches for us has been awesome.”
Conner Prahl
► School: Brighton
► Class: Senior
► Position: First baseman
► Accomplishments: Prahl made second-team all-state in Division 1 and will play for Lansing Community College. He hit .324 with 15 doubles, one home run and a team-high 32 RBIs. He drove in five runs April 22 against Plymouth, part of a three-game stretch in which he drove in nine runs.
► Coach Charlie Christner: “He’s a level-headed kid, just goes about his business, does what he needs to do. He works really hard. He has a really bright future in baseball as somebody who continues to develop and get better, who just eats it all up and loves to play.”
Daniel Hampton
► School: Howell
► Class: Freshman
► Position: Infielder
► Accomplishments: After a season of varsity basketball, Hampton wasn’t fazed playing varsity baseball as a shortstop and second baseman. He was Howell’s third-leading hitter with a .344 average, driving in 20 runs and scoring 37 times. He had 12 doubles.
► Coach Jason Ladd: “He’s our best freshman since (2017 graduate) Caleb Balgaard, who ended up getting a Division I scholarship. He had a huge impact. He swings the bat tremendously well. He does a nice job in the field, as well. He’s a very heads-up player. His knowledge of the game is way beyond his years.”
Nick Hoorn
► School: Howell
► Class: Sophomore
► Position: Infielder
► Accomplishments: Hoorn is the early favorite to win Player of the Year the next two seasons after an outstanding year on the mound and at the plate. He was second on the team with a .370 average and 29 RBIs. As a pitcher, he went 8-0 with 49 strikeouts and only 12 walks in 45⅓ innings, fashioning a team-leading 1.24 ERA.
► Coach Jason Ladd: “He’s a gamer. He’s versatile. We can put him anywhere. He can play any position on the field. He threw very well for us with a lot of strikes.”
Ryan Metz
► School: Brighton
► Class: Junior
► Position: Infielder
► Accomplishments: Metz handled a couple demanding duties as a starting shortstop and lead-off hitter. He was Brighton’s third-leading hitter with a .328 average. Metz drove in 20 runs, had three triples, scored 41 runs and stole 17 bases. He turned six double plays in the field.
► Coach Charlie Christner: “He’s one of the best defensive shortstops we’ve had. He got on base a lot and made things happen on the bases. I expect big things from him next year as a senior.”
Braeden Chiles
► School: Brighton
► Class: Junior
► Position: Outfielder
► Accomplishments: Chiles is the only athlete to make first-team all-county in football and baseball in 2022-23. He shared the county home run lead with six, had a team-leading .672 slugging percentage, hit .297 and drove in 24 runs. As a pitcher, he was 6-3 with a 2.36 ERA.
► Coach Charlie Christner: “He was kind of our do-everything. He pitched in a lot of big games, won a lot of big games. Offensively, we went down to Myrtle Beach and he was outstanding. We had to find a spot for him, so we put him in left field and he took off with that.”
Owen Elsey
► School: Howell
► Class: Senior
► Position: Outfielder
► Accomplishments: Elsey had the top batting average among the county’s three Division 1 schools, hitting .375. He led the county with 39 runs, went 25-for-25 on stolen bases and drove in 25 runs. Elsey will play for Schoolcraft College.
► Coach Jason Ladd: “He’s a great leader on and off the field. He threw a no-hitter against Fowlerville, so he’s a pretty tremendous athlete. He’s only going to get better. The sky’s the limit for him when he gets to college.”
Michael Zielinski
► School: Hartland
► Class: Sophomore
► Position: Outfielder
► Accomplishments: Zielinski was chosen MVP on a senior-laden Hartland team after posting a team-high .326 average. He drove in 14 runs and scored 21. As a pitcher, he was 3-1 with 44 strikeouts in 26 innings, posting a 2.15 ERA.
► Coach Brad Guenther: “He brings it on both sides for us. He’s just phenomenal kid, too. He works really hard, probably the hardest worker on the team.”
Aidan Liedeke
► School: Charyl Stockwell
► Class: Senior
► Position: Utility
► Accomplishments: Liedeke, who played shortstop when he wasn’t pitching, led the county in strikeouts each of the past three seasons. He struck out 135 batters in 63 1/3 innings this season, giving him 403 career strikeouts to rank third in county history. He had a 0.88 ERA and allowed a batting average of .107.
► Coach Dawson Kling: “He was an electric pitcher to have. You knew any game he pitched we were going to be competitive in. He’s a guy who can completely change the course of, not only a game, but a season. You don’t have too many guys with the punch-out ability he had.”
SECOND TEAM
P, Colton King, Hartland, Sr.
P, Gavin Nash, Hartland, Sr.
C, JT Thomas, Howell, Soph.
1B, Gannon Grundman, Hartland, Sr.
IF, Sam Clay, Hartland, Sr.
IF, Carter Gregg, Brighton, Jr.
IF, Hunter Hopman, Brighton, Sr.
OF, Nolan Carruthers, Pinckney, Soph.
OF, Andrew Hiller, Howell, Jr.
OF, Lane Petit, Brighton, Jr.
U, Caleb Moore, Charyl Stockwell, Sr.
HONORABLE MENTION
Brighton: Cooper Andrzejewski (Jr.),Evan Larson (Sr.), Luke Micunek (Sr.), Jack Storey (Sr.). Charyl Stockwell: Teddy Gottbreht (Sr.), Braden Leverenz (Sr.), Chris Petroski (Sr.). Fowlerville: Griffin Gonzalez (Jr.), Mikey Hatfield (Jr.), Brendan Ray (Jr.). Hartland: Colin Farquharson (Sr.). Howell: Curt Dell (Jr.), Brandon Hamilton (Jr.), Logan Leppek (Sr.), Nick Mason (Sr.), Bryce Poss (Sr.). Pinckney: Landen Bauer (Soph.), Jonny Hoffmann (Jr.), Talon Koppmann (Jr.), Ethan Putnam (Jr.).
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillKhan.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Meet the 2023 All-Livingston County baseball team
