5 storylines to watch in Kendall County baseball in 2025

Baseball season is officially here, and there is no shortage of interesting stories to watch as the season unfolds. Here are five storylines in particular to follow in the Record Newspapers coverage area.

Young infield talent

High school baseball can be hard to predict, but one thing seems a certainty among Kendall County baseball teams.

There is talent on the left side of the infield. And it is young.

Oswego, Oswego East, Plano and Yorkville all feature outstanding shortstops or third baseman that could be their team’s best players. And none of them are seniors.

The best of the bunch could be Oswego junior shortstop Kamrin Jenkins, a Missouri recruit. Smooth with the glove, Jenkins hit leadoff last season for an Oswego team that was stocked with underclassmen. Plano junior third baseman Jason Phillips brings thump to the top of the Reapers' lineup, having hit .485 with 13 doubles, five homers and 48 RBIs as a sophomore.

Yorkville junior third baseman Jailen Veliz, like Phillips, was all-conference as a sophomore, hitting .322 with 20 RBIs, 18 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. And all Oswego East sophomore Jacsen Tucker did was play varsity shortstop as a freshman, hitting .304 with a .994 OPS, 20 RBIs, 18 runs scored and 10 stolen bases.

Who are the aces?

This area has been blessed with a wealth of dominant pitchers in recent seasons.

Oswego East alum Noah Schultz is now the White Sox’s No. 1 prospect. Former teammate Ashton Izzi is now in the Mariners organization. Another former Oswego East hurler, Adam Dowler, went on to Louisville, and 2024 Yorkville grad Simon Skroch is now at Minnesota. The list goes on and on.

Where are the aces this season?

At first blush, there does not appear to be much ace-level pitching across the area. But there are always diamonds waiting to be uncovered.

A year ago, Preston Regnier was a revelation for Yorkville. In 2023, Oswego East’s Griffin Sleyko went from unheralded to leading the Wolves to their first sectional title. Oswego’s Jeffrey Behrends was a similar case in 2021, carrying the Panthers to a conference title.

Who emerges this season?

Can Plano or Sandwich take the next step in the KRC?

Both Plano and Sandwich were in contention for a Kishwaukee River Conference title last year until the season’s final week. Ultimately, Marengo emerged as conference champ.

The Sandwich and Plano athletic programs have certainly shown they can compete in their new league, with Sandwich’s boys basketball team just winning the KRC title, and Plano’s girls basketball team finishing near the top.

Can the baseball teams take the next step?

Plano graduated 11 seniors, so there could be a rebuilding element. But the Reapers do return their best hitter, Phillips, who will also lead their pitching staff, as well as all-conference pick Josh Stellwagen.

Sandwich, likewise, is fairly inexperienced, but juniors Brady Behringer (all-conference last year), Nick Michalek and Jeffrey Ashley should keep the Indians in the hunt.

What about the SPC?

Yorkville, like Plano, was positioned to win its conference championship, the Southwest Prairie West, last season down to the league’s last game. But Plainfield North played spoiler to the Foxes, and Minooka took home the title.

Minooka looks like the team to beat in the SPC West again, with Illinois State recruit Brayden Zilis and Michigan State commits Zane Caves and CJ Deckinga leading a loaded roster with eight college recruits.

Can Kendall County-area teams contend?

Oswego seems like the most likely candidate to give Minooka a run for its money. Jenkins, Dylan King and Easton Ruby lead a lineup that has a ton of game experience back from a team that finished third in the SPC West last season.

What about our 1A clubs?

Yorkville Christian and Newark both finished below .500 last season and lost in regional semifinals. But both seem poised for a potential jump this spring.

Yorkville Christian returns seven starters and every pitcher from a team that finished 12-15 last season. The ringleader is Lewis commit Nolan Hooper, who posted a 2.2 ERA with 74 strikeouts and became the program’s all-time strikeout leader this week.

Newark, 10-22 last year, has a strong core back. Landon Begovac and Payton Wills both played in all 32 games last season and hit over .300 with OPSes over .800.