By Chris Parker
Warsaw baseball is poised for a big season after graduating just one senior from last season’s 17-win district champion squad.
“We have a big senior group so the whole group is full of leaders,” Warsaw head coach John Eierman said. “They are a tight group that works hard so we are excited to see what they can do this spring.”
Josh Bunch (senior) and Ryan Fajen (junior) will be the go-to players on the mound. Bunch was 7-5 with a 3.50 ERA and 80 strikeouts in 66 innings last season. Fajen went 6-3 with 54 strikeouts in 54 innings with a 3.00 ERA.
Jayce Depriest (senior) will see more time on the mound after throwing eight innings with an ERA of 0.80 as a junior. Six-foot-four lefthander Reece Maxwell will be a go-to guy after he went 3-0 last season.
Logan Gemes (senior) caught every game last season and returns. Brody Burnworth is a junior who could also see innings at catcher.
Garrett Ferguson (senior third base), Kendall Bagley (senior shortstop) and Drake Murrell (senior second base) all return as three-year starters.
Reece Maxwell (senior), Fajen, Brennen Slavens (junior), Colton Kern (junior), David Glenn (junior), Noah Siebert (junior) and Logan Gemes (sophomore) will all look for time on the infield along with some freshmen.
Depriest, and all-state centerfielder, returns to anchor the outfield. Jase Hubert (junior) started in left field last season. Sonny Garrett (senior) and Bradley Watson (senior) split time in right field in 2024. Look for Josh Harvath (junior) and D’Angelo Ramirez (junior) to compete for time in the outfield.
Junior Ayden Burdick would have had a role this season, but he will miss the spring due to a torn ACL sustained in the fall.
Warsaw opens the season on Mar. 20 at Skyline.
“I want this year’s group to realize the opportunity they have and to make the most of it,” Eierman said. “The goal is to win our conference, win our district, and go to the Final Four. Those are high expectations, but this is a great group of kids with great families. We went 17-12 and won our district last year before losing to Lone Jack in the playoffs. Our goal is to compete at a high level throughout the spring and play our best ball at the right time and go on a run.”
