Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Managing Editor

In the blink of an eye, the 2023 baseball postseason is upon us, which means the final rankings of the season are here as well.

With the regular season now coming to a close, five local teams finished the season ranked inside their respective classification’s top 10, while another four earned nominations.

None, however, were ranked higher than the area champion Thompson Warriors. The Warriors closed out the area championship with a 10-0 win against Hoover on April 18, improving to 31-5 on the season with the win and 4-1 in area play.

As winners of six in a row ahead of the latest rankings and nine of the last 10, Thompson took the No. 1 spot in the final rankings—a spot the Warriors have held for much of the season after a historic 20-0 start.

They took the top spot ahead of Central-Phenix City in the No. 2 spot and county foe Spain Park in the third spot thanks to their strong finish to the regular season with an area title out of an area featuring two teams in the top 10 of the standings.

The Jags have had similar success this season and claimed the No. 3 spot in the final Class 7A standings. When the rankings were released, Spain Park had guaranteed a playoff spot, but the Jags had a battle with Chelsea to determine the area championship.

Spain Park has been one of the most consistent teams in the state all season and is now 25-7 overall with 13 wins in the last 16 games.

The Chelsea Hornets, who upset Spain Park the night before the rankings, were nominated for a spot in the top 10 with an 18-17 records, while Oak Mountain, who will miss out on the playoffs after a nine-inning loss to Hewitt-Trussville, also earned nominations for a spot.

In the 6A classification, it was Briarwood who shined, coming it at 19-6. The Lions finished off their run to the area championship earlier than most teams this season to earn home-field advantage in the opening round of the playoffs.

Briarwood had won six of seven and four in a row going into the rankings and will look for a special postseason run in the 6A classification as the No. 8 team.

Helena, who played a challenging schedule, also won an area championship this season, earning nominations for a spot in the top 10 even with a 12-18 record due to the teams they have faced to prepare for the playoffs.

The Vincent Yellow Jackets and Coosa Valley Rebels were the final teams to earn spots inside their respective classification’s top 10.

Vincent earned the No. 9 spot in the 2A classification as the Jackets were 21-4 thanks to a remarkable effort throughout the season. The Jackets have won 13 of the last 14 entering the postseason.

As for the Rebels, they earned the No. 7 spot in the AISA standings after winning this year’s area championship. Coosa Valley is 18-9 overall on the season.

The Shelby County Wildcats also received nominations for a spot inside the Class 5A top 10. The Wildcats have seen success at times throughout the season, but an up-and-down year had them at 15-14 entering the playoffs.

CLASS 7A

1. Thompson (31-5)
2. Central-Phenix City (25-7)
3. Spain Park (25-7)
4. Vestavia Hills (25-7)
5. Bob Jones (30-9)
6. Tuscaloosa County (29-8)
7. Fairhope (24-9)
8. James Clemens (27-8)
9. Hewitt-Trussville (20-10)
10. Auburn (17-13)

Others nominated: Baker (19-13), Chelsea (18-17), Daphne (15-12), Enterprise (18-11), Grissom (20-11), Hoover (21-18), Huntsville (19-7), Oak Mountain (13-16).

CLASS 6A

1. Oxford (29-6)
2. Hartselle (26-8)
3. Saraland (22-7)
4. Benjamin Russell (22-7)
5. Stanhope Elmore (23-5)
6. Spanish Fort (21-13)
7. Hueytown (25-9)
8. Briarwood Christian (19-6)
9. Mountain Brook (20-10)
10. Northridge (22-9)

Others nominated: Athens (19-12), Pike Road (25-5), Baldwin County (20-14), Buckhorn (19-16), Cullman (17-18), Gardendale (20-10), Hazel Green (21-13), Helena (12-18), Homewood (17-10).

CLASS 5A

1. Alexandria (26-5)
2. Headland (21-6)
3. Sardis (22-5)
4. Arab (27-6)
5. Gulf Shores (23-11)
6. Russellville (18-13)
7. St. Paul’s (20-8)
8. Mobile Christian (18-13)
9. Madison Academy (21-13)
10. Holtville (18-10)

Others nominated: Charles Henderson (15-14), Demopolis (12-9), Elmore County (20-10), John Carroll (17-13), Leeds (21-12), Scottsboro (17-12), Shelby County (15-14), Springville (17-12), Sylacauga (16-6).

CLASS 4A

1. Priceville (24-4)
2. Bibb County (22-8)
3. Bayside Academy (18-8)
4. Geneva (18-3)
5. Cleburne County (19-3)
6. UMS-Wright (19-10)
7. Deshler (22-10)
8. Munford (19-5)
9. T.R. Miller (19-7)
10. Etowah (18-11)

Others nominated: American Christian (18-14), Brooks (13-5), Central-Florence (21-10), Corner (18-15), Dora (16-12), Montgomery Catholic (19-9), North Jackson (20-11), Oak Grove (16-15), Oneonta (12-9), Slocomb (17-10), Trinity (18-11), West Limestone (21-10), Westminster Christian (15-8), West Morgan (10-8-2).

CLASS 3A

1. Gordo (24-4)
2. Phil Campbell (23-6)
3. Piedmont (20-6)
4. Westbrook Christian (18-8)
5. Thomasville (20-5)
6. Fayette County (21-10)
7. Providence Christian (17-8)
8. Houston Academy (17-6)
9. Prattville Christian (21-5)
10. Decatur Heritage (15-12)

Others nominated: Elkmont (17-7), Excel (13-4), J.B. Pennington (16-8), New Brockton (17-11), Opp (13-11), Plainview (17-8), Straughn (10-9).

CLASS 2A

1. Bayshore Christian (19-4)
2. G.W. Long (22-8)
3. Donoho (19-2)
4. Tuscaloosa Academy (23-4-1)
5. Lexington (21-2)
6. Mars Hill Bible (23-8)
7. Lindsay Lane (22-9)
8. Ariton (21-10-1)
9. Vincent (22-4)
10. Pike Liberal Arts (18-9)

Others nominated: Clarke County (12-6), Cleveland (15-8), Collinsville (18-8), Cottonwood (12-11), Fayetteville (18-11), Fyffe (15-11), Horseshoe Bend (15-8), North Sand Mountain (17-7), Wicksburg (14-7).

CLASS 1A

1. Appalachian (20-3)
2. Billingsley (14-3)
3. Lynn (20-4)
4. Florala (12-2)
5. Leroy (14-14)
6. Millry (19-8)
7. Sumiton Christian (14-7)
8. Coosa Christian (21-10)
9. Hackleburg (19-8)
10. Sweet Water (13-13)

Others nominated: Belgreen (11-10), Brantley (11-7), Covenant Christian (11-8), Ragland (13-8), South Lamar (13-9), Spring Garden (11-9).

 

AISA

1. Glenwood (38-4)
2. Autauga Academy (22-8)
3. Patrician (23-6)
4. Macon-East (27-7)
5. Lee-Scott (26-8)
6. Bessemer Academy (28-15-1)
7. Coosa Valley (18-7)
8. Chambers Academy (19-9)
9. Monroe Academy (17-11)
10. Jackson Academy (13-7)

Others nominated: Abbeville Christian (16-13), Clarke Prep (14-17), Crenshaw Christian (12-12), Fort Dale (13-13), Pickens Academy (17-6).