Texas high school baseball: Who were the top 25 catchers in 2023?

Meet the Lone Star State's best presences behind the plate

The Texas high school baseball season is done, state champions have been crowned and SBLive is taking a look back at the top players in each position group as some of the state's top prospects prepare for the MLB Draft.

>> Texas (UIL) high school baseball state 2023: Everything you missed in championship round

>> Texas (UIL) State Baseball: 2023 All-Tournament teams for every high school classification

In the lead up to SBLive's all-state baseball team release, here is a look at the state's top catchers in the 2023 seasons.

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Editor's note: There are hundreds of outstanding baseball players in Texas. Have a case for an omission? Email andy@scorebooklive.com, tag us on Twitter or Instagram @SBLiveTX and let us know about other players worthy of additional consideration.

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Top 25 catchers in Texas high school baseball in 2023

Antonio Balboa, sr., Weslaco East

Balboa batted .538 with an on-base percentage of .602 his senior season. He recorded 43 hits and drove in 31 runs. In his first game of the season, Balboa went 3-for-3 with a triple and three runs scored as he had six multi-hit performances over his first 10 ballgames. Balboa also went 4-for-4 with two RBIs in a late March win against Mercedes.

Zane Becker, jr., Flower Mound

Becker received the honor as the catcher for the All-Tournament team for the Class 6A state tournament as he helped the Jaguars claim the 6A championship. He was also first-team All-District 6-6A catcher and an Academic All-District selection. A University of Arkansas commit, Becker batted .259 during the Jaguars’ run to state. In his sophomore season, he hit .411 and drove in 20 runs.

Conner Bennett, sr., Conroe Oak Ridge

Bennett was selected to play in the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association’s All-Star Game earlier in June at Round Rock. Two years ago as a sophomore, he was named the District 13-6A Newcomer of the Year after batting .444, and Bennett followed that up as a junior by hitting .418 with 20 doubles, which ranked him second in the state among 6A players in that particular category. Originally committed to Vanderbilt, Bennett decided to stay closer to home and ended up signing with the University of Houston.

Luke Billings, so., Prosper

A Tennessee commit, Billings batted .366 with five home runs, 15 doubles and 26 RBIs this past season for Prosper. Billings was also selected as the Class 6A first-team All-State catcher by the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association. He will continue to be active this summer, as he was one of 24 names released for the inaugural Perfect Game All-Star Game, held on Aug. 18 at Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz.

Caleb Boswell, sr., Odessa Permian

Boswell was selected as the Offensive Player of the Year in District 2-6A and was named to play in the recent Texas Baseball Coaches Association’s All-Star Game in Round Rock. Boswell, who hit eight home runs this past season for the Panthers, will stay home to play his college ball, signing with UT Permian Basin.

Tyson Brooks, so., Maypearl

Brooks finished his sophomore year by catching a whopping 222 innings. He batted .292 and threw out 13 runners attempting to steal as Brooks received first-team All-District 17-3A honors while helping lead the Panthers to the 3A state tournament. Despite a semifinal loss at state, Brooks went 4-for-4 and was named the catcher for the 3A All-Tournament team.

Brayden Buchanan, sr., Austin Vandegrift

Buchanan has signed to play at Baylor University. He received All-State honors and was a two-time Most Valuable Player in District 25-6A. Buchanan also played quarterback for Vandegrift’s football team.

Zach Garcia, sr., Tidehaven

Garcia batted .406 with an on-base percentage of .552 for the Tigers. He also put together a slugging percentage of .652 and drove in 24 runs. Garcia was selected to the Texas Baseball Coaches Association’s All-Star Game in Round Rock over the month of June.

Jase Garrett, sr., China Spring

Garrett was a first-team All-District 23-4A selection and also earned UIL Class 4A first-team catching honors during the Cougars’ run to the 4A state championship. He was behind the plate for both of China Spring’s epic 12-inning semifinal and championship wins and made only one passed ball in that stretch. Garrett, who will play next season at Murray State (Okla.) College, had two hits in the 12-inning 4A title-game win against Texarkana Liberty-Eylau.

JJ Kennett, sr., Ridge Point

Kennett was part of a Panther squad that won 30 games this past season, including a perfect 16-0 in District 20-6A. He was also a first-team All-District selection. Kennett - who is headed to Dallas Baptist University next season - had a two-hit game to help Ridge Point clinch its area round playoff series. He also had two hits and two RBIs as Ridge Point evened its regional quarterfinal series with Cinco Ranch, though the Panthers eventually dropped the decisive third game. Kennett batted .473 with 52 hits, an on-base percentage of .563 and 29 RBIs.

Dillon Lester, sr., Deer Park

Lester will be taking his catching skills to Waco, as he has signed with Baylor University. At Deer Park, he was a four-year letter winner who helped his team to back-to-back district championships his sophomore and junior years. In his last game for the Deer, Lester had a pair of hits, including an RBI double.

Pablo Lopez, sr., Austin McCallum

Lopez was selected to play in the recent Austin Area Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Game, representing the South team. He caught and had a base hit. For the season, Lopez batted .418 along with a .551 on-base percentage for a Knights’ team that went undefeated in District 24-5A and won their bi-district playoff series.

Jerson Martin, sr., Fort Worth Chisholm Trail

Martin is headed to play at Wichita State University in Kansas. In late April, he had a stretch in which he went 5-for-8 with two home runs, five RBIs and two runs scored along with a .667 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of 1.375. Martin’s first home run as a senior, in early March, went for a grand slam. As a junior, he was selected the District 3-6A Defensive Player of the Year.

Brian Mendoza, sr., Crystal City

Mendoza was selected to play in the Texas Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Game in June at Round Rock. Mendoza batted .583 over the first 10 games of his senior season while driving in 11 runs.

Blake Mitchell, sr., Sinton

Although he signed with recent national champion LSU, there’s a good chance Mitchell may bypass the Tigers and take his chance playing professionally, as he is projected to be a first-round pick for the upcoming MLB Draft. Mitchell was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for Texas after leading the Pirates in several offensive categories, including average (.452), on-base percentage (.691), home runs (6), stolen bases (44), runs scored (49), RBIs (41), doubles (15) and slugging percentage (.806). He was part of a 4A state title team his junior season and Mitchell helped the Pirates return to the 4A state semifinals in 2023.

Julius Ramirez, sr., Pharr-San Juan-Alamo

Ramirez was selected as the MVP in District 31-6A. In district play, he batted .558 and drove in 22 runs. In the regular season, Ramirez hit .545 with eight home runs and 45 RBIs. He will play at the next level, having signed with Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

Carson Riley, sr., Liberty Hill

Riley batted .355 with an on-base percentage of .406, driving in 28 runs. But defense was his calling card, as he was named the District 25-5A Defensive Player of the Year, as Riley turned in a .992 fielding percentage and threw out 20 of 25 runners attempting to steal. He has signed to play at Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton.

Andrew Mac Rose, sr., Rockwall

Rose was recently named the MVP of the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association’s 5A/6A Elite All-Star Game in Round Rock, as he went 3-for-3 at the plate. He batted close to .430 near the end of March. In a stretch of three straight postseason wins for the Yellowjackets in May, Rose went 6-for-8 with a home run and nine RBIs. He will play next season for McLennan Community College in Waco.

Nikolas Sanders, sr., Waco University

Sanders is headed down Interstate 35 to play next season at the University of Texas. He was arguably the Trojans’ top offensive standout, as he led the squad in batting average (.548), on-base percentage (.642), home runs (5) and slugging percentage (1.047). In back-to-back wins against Killeen Ellison in late March, Sanders went a combined 9-for-9 with three homers and five RBIs.

Luke Schulte, sr., Nazareth

Prior to his senior season, Schulte had primarily been a pitcher. But due to an elbow injury he suffered during football season, he wasn’t able to do that. However, he was determined to return to the diamond and decided to switch to catcher. The move proved to be fortuitous, as Schulte ended up with stellar numbers all the way around. He hit .406 with a .529 on-base percentage, scored 37 runs and even stole 13 bases. Then defensively, Schulte threw out 13 would-be base stealers and even picked off four other runners. Following the season, he was named the District 1A-2 MVP as he helped the Swifts return to the Class 1A state tournament for the third straight season.

Omar Serna, soph., Houston Dobie

Serna has committed to play at LSU. He finished his sophomore year being named the Catcher of the Year in District 22-6A, helping the Longhorns claim the district championship while winning 23 games. Serna homered when Dobie clinched the bi-district title by defeating Beaumont West Brook.

Nolan Traeger, jr., Tomball Concordia Lutheran

A TCU commit, Traeger batted .312 with an on-base percentage of .414. He had seven two-hit games and two three-hit games this past season as the Crusaders won 33 ballgames. Traeger turned in a fielding percentage of .985, only making two errors all season.

Zachary Tuxhorn, so., Houston Clear Lake

Tuxhorn batted .531 with an on-base percentage of .651 and a .741 slugging percentage. Of his 43 hits his sophomore season, three went for home runs. Tuxhorn also threw out 10 baserunners attempting to steal.

Jake Wagoner, sr., Vista Ridge

Wagoner will head to Seattle University later in the year. He finished his high school career by being named the District 25-6A Defensive Player of the Year, throwing out 40 percent of attempted base stealers. He was also a four-year starter for the Rangers. In a 9-0 win against Round Rock Westwood which gave Vista Ridge the No. 2 seed out of the district, Wagoner drove in a pair of runs.

Landon West, sr., Katy Tompkins

West was selected as the first-team catcher for the All-District 19-6A squad. He helped the Falcons win the district championship in a season in which they won 26 games. West, who throws and bats right-handed, is going to play at Rice University next season.