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Tournaments  | Story | 6/27/2021

5 Star Blends Culture and Talent To Win

Photo: Jacob Kendall (Perfect Game)
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- To say that 5 Star Baseball is a powerhouse on the national competitive scene is an understatement. Since they began playing in Perfect Game events over a decade ago, the baseball conglomerate has won 149 PG tournaments and had over 1700 players commit to college programs. Names like Buster Posey, Josh Reddick and Austin Martin are just a few of the 113 5 Star alumni that have been drafted in the MLB Draft. The organization started in Warner Robbins, Ga., but now has 298 teams nationwide across 12 age divisions.
 
Of the plenty, 5 Star National 14u RR may field one of the most talented rosters in the 5 Star system. The squad is the 33rd-ranked 14u team in the nation, featuring six players ranked inside the top-150 of their respective classes and some of the best talent the country has to offer. Head coach Daniel Torres said while the team has a plethora of highly-ranked talent, he builds his team based on the quality of his player’s performance in the dugout, not just on the field.
 
“For me, it’s all about character,” Torres said. “It’s all about buying into the culture of 5 Star and wanting to fight for one another. We want guys that will be here for the long haul and are looking to be a part of a family.”
 
On Saturday, Torres and his squad displayed that combination of talent and character in their quest for the 2021 14u BCS National Championship, securing a solid victory at CenturyLink Sports Complex in Fort Myers. After playing a close game through four innings, the 5 Star offense broke through for six runs in the fifth inning, leading them to a 10-8 win over Legit Baseball Club.
 
For the prestigious tournament, Torres pulled out all the stops for his roster. Among their top-150 ranked players are Jacob Kendall and Luke Pappano, who rank inside the top-15 in the 2025 class. Jackson Roper, Ethan Clauss and Gabriel Acevedo add to 5 Star’s 2025 top-150 representation, and Xavier Rivera, the 72nd-ranked player in the 2024 class, adds some experience to the young and talented roster. While each player on 5 Star’s roster is individually talented, Torres reminds his team that baseball is a team sport and selflessness is required for success.
 
“They understand that in the game of baseball, there’s more failure than wins,” Torres said. “They understand that being that talented, they make each other better by the way they act no matter how they perform on the field.”
 
Despite the victory, 5 Star faltered at the start of their game against Legit Baseball Club. In the top of the first, Legit’s Jake Merz hit a leadoff triple to begin the game and promptly scored on a wild pitch. Ben Schulman added on for the club in the second, poking an RBI single to give Legit a 2-0 lead. 
 
However, the 5 Star bats woke up in the bottom of the inning, as Randy Ruiz gave the squad their first hit with a leadoff double. While the next two hitters couldn’t do any damage, Rivera stepped up with two outs and lined an RBI single up the middle, scoring 5 Star’s first run. The top-ranked 2024 player in Puerto Rico said he was happy he could produce for his team in a tight spot.
 
“I was able to drive the ball today, and that let me get the runs in,” Rivera said. “I just wanted to play for the team and help us get the win.”
 
5 Star kept the train rolling in the third, as Cole Rambler drove a two-RBI double over the Legit center fielder’s head to give his team the lead. Ruiz then sent a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Rambler and making it a 4-2 ballgame.
 
Legit didn’t back down from the challenge, however, as they answered back with two runs in the fourth on an Ismael Tavarez two-RBI double. The team then retook their lead in the top of the fifth, advancing on a throw to put them back on top, 5-4. Heading into the bottom of the inning, Torres knew his team had to make some adjustments to get over the hump.
 
“We had to have the right approaches at the plate and come through with situational hitting,” Torres said. “We had to be a little bit more aggressive, and that allowed us to be successful.”
 
In the bottom of the inning, 5 Star came through with situational hitting when they needed it most. Kendall and Rambler began with back-to-back singles, setting the table for an Acevedo RBI single to tie the game. Ruiz and Andrew Alvarez then reached on hit-by-pitches, loading the bases, then scoring Acevedo. Mason Mojica then added for 5 Star, shooting an RBI single to left field to make it 6-4. Rivera wasn’t happy with just a two-run lead, as he smoked a three-RBI double to deep left-center to clear the bases. The Florida International commit said his approach was simple as he stepped to the plate in the pivotal spot.
 
“There were no outs, so I just wanted to get a runner in,” Rivera said. “I was looking to drive the ball the other way, and everything worked out.”
 
While the sixth inning would be the matchup’s last due to time constraints, Legit didn’t go down without a fight. The Glen Rock, N.J.-based club put up three runs in the inning, but in the end, Austin Denamen was able to induce a lineout to right to end the game, giving 5 Star a 10-8 victory.
 
Despite believing his team could perform to a higher standard, Torres was proud of how his team came back and hung around in a close game. The head coach credits his team’s ability to do so to their team chemistry and close-knit relationships.
 
“We believe in each other like a family,” Torres said. “Our name is 5 Star National Mafia, so when you are a part of a mafia, you are a part of a family. So, we have to believe in each other like we are one.”

Tournaments | Story | 1/27/2026

MLK East Scout Notes Recap

Perfect Game Staff
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‘28 OF Jakob Groeschel (OH) continues to impress with the bat on the circuit, picked up 2 2Bs in the first game today. Really athletic, went 4.4 on turn; easy to dream on all the traits. #MLKEast @PG_OhioValley pic.twitter.com/wOIwnGKnkg — Perfect Game Florida (@Florida_PG) January 17, 2026 2028 OF Jakob Groeschel (Springfield, Ohio) broke out at this event last year hitting a casual .909, and although he didn’t turn in quite the same performance, he hit a strong .462 with 4 extra-base hits, 5 walks, 5 bags and only struck out once. He’s a pretty dynamic athlete who can do a lot of things well, but the bat is the calling card as he just lives on the barrel and has no problem handling all kinds of pitching. It’s a simple swing, but he’s got fast hands and he can really impact the ball without being overly physical yet.  2030 RHP Michael Vazquez...
Press Release | Press Release | 3/19/2026

PG Teams Up with OZ Ball Tournaments PTY

Perfect Game Staff
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  667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   PERFECT GAME NAMES OZ BALL TOURNAMENTS PTY AS OFFICIAL AREA DIRECTOR IN AUSTRALIA, EXPANDING GLOBAL FOOTPRINT   Sanford, Florida (Thursday, March 19, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced that it has entered into a new international partnership with Oz Ball Tournaments Pty, naming the organization as an official Perfect Game Area Director in Australia. The agreement establishes Perfect Game-licensed tournaments and showcases across major Australian markets, including Sydney, Brisbane/Gold Coast, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.     Australian events will operate under the Perfect Game brand, delivering the same...
Press Release | Press Release | 3/18/2026

PG Introduces Individual Player Entry

Perfect Game Staff
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  667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   PERFECT GAME INTRODUCES INDIVIDUAL PLAYER ENTRY, EXPANDING ACCESS TO ELITE NATIONAL EVENTS   Athletes Can Now Compete in Select National Tournaments Through Structured ‘Team PG’ Rosters   Sanford, Florida (Wednesday, March 18, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced the launch of Individual Player Entry, a new initiative designed to provide athletes the opportunity to compete in select national events even if their primary team is not attending.   Through the program, players can now register individually and be placed on a structured “Team PG” roster, allowing them to participate fully in...
Juco | Rankings | 3/18/2026

JUCO Top 25: March 18

Blaine Peterson
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This week brings a new top team to the rankings as Johnson County (KS), on the strength of 10 consecutive wins and a 26-2 record, claims the overall number 1 spot. The Cavaliers have made 3 consecutive trips to the JUCO World Series and have the talent to make it back there again this spring. Florida Southwestern and Chipola have seemingly separated themselves as the most consistent teams in Florida. Welcome to the top 5 to the Gaston Rhinos who will be one of the first teams to 30 wins this spring. Pearl River stays as the top NJCAA D2 team and Fresno City stays as the top Juco team in California; both are coming off undefeated 2 week stretches. Welcome back to the top 25 to John A. Logan who is now 20-7 overall and have played one of the toughest schedules of anyone. And for the first time in several years welcome to the top 25 to the College of Southern Idaho, the Golden Eagles have...
High School | General | 3/18/2026

Class of 2026: Preseason HS All-Americans

Perfect Game Staff
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College | Rankings | 3/18/2026

DII/DIII/NAIA Rankings Update: March 18

Nick Herfordt
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In every major sport, the championship is decided in the postseason. You can lose games all year, get hot at the right time, and walk away with the hardware. The regular season is a rehearsal. The playoffs are the show.  The championship belt changes that. Borrowed from professional wrestling, boxing and ultimate fighting, the belt travels the moment the holder loses — no brackets, no seeding, no second chances. A random Tuesday non-conference game in Milledgeville, Georgia  becomes a title fight. A spring trip to Florida becomes a gauntlet. The defending national champion can lose the belt before February is over.  We’re tracking three belts this season — NCAA Division II, NAIA, and NCAA Division III — each starting with the defending national champion. The results have been exactly as chaotic as you’d expect.  Worth noting along the...
High School | Rankings | 3/17/2026

High School Top 50 Update: March 17

Tyler Russo
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We have another update to the National Top-50 after two weeks of even more games being played in the southern states along with seasons just starting to kick off across the country. We’re quickly approaching another stellar high school event, the NHSI in Cary, and with that will come even more movement in these rankings. St. John Bosco (CA) continues to hold firm at the No. 1 position after a 4-0 start to their season. Venice (FL) has been rolling throughout the early portion of the year and jumps up to No. 2 in the country. One of the biggest movers in this update is The Bennett School (TX) jumping from unranked to No. 8 in the country after beating a handful of top ranked programs to start the year. Some other big movers inside the top-10 are Barbe (LA), who jumps from No. 18 to No. 5 in this update as well as Aledo (TX) who jumps from No. 20 to No. 9. The rest of the top-10...
College | Story | 3/17/2026

College Players of the Week: March 17

Vincent Cervino
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March 17th Perfect Game/Player of the Week: Vahn Lackey, C, Georgia Tech The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (17-3) came into the season with the highest external expectations in decades based on the anticipation of their offensive potential. To this point they have not only met those lofty expectations, but twenty games in they may have exceeded them. While there are plenty of high-level prospects up and down the lineup, with all that star power Vahn Lackey has stood out. Sure to be one of the first catchers selected in this year’s MLB Draft with his comprehensive skillset, he projects well as an everyday backstop at the next level. However, his overall athleticism stands out as we saw this week when he had a game where he played every defensive position on the field except pitcher. At the plate over four games including a series victory at Clemson last week, he went 9 for 15, scoring...
College | Rankings | 3/16/2026

College Top 25: March 16

Vincent Cervino
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Collegiate Player Report Database As each week of the college baseball season passes, we continue to be entertained at an incredible level with high level drama at every turn.  Conference play is under way and the national landscape is starting to make a bit more sense.  The development and strength of individual players is on full-display and there continue to be upsets on occasion that sends the message no team can relax for one moment.  For the most part, the Top 10 remains unchanged with some reshuffling as No. 1 UCLA (17-2) holds on to the top spot with yet another perfect (4-0) week after sweeping Michigan.  The No. 2 Texas Longhorns (18-1) did drop their first game of the season in Game 1 of SEC play but won the series against Ole Miss and finished the week with a (3-1) record.  The Georgia Tech Yellowjackets (17-3) passed their first real road test of the...
Draft | Story | 3/13/2026

PG Draft: Under the Radar Preps

Tyler Henninger
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PG Draft: Under the Radar Preps As the spring season gets underway, the showcase circuit and early high-level tournaments have already provided our scouts with some intriguing first looks at this year’s crop of prospects. At the same time, we’ve been tracking the buzz among team evaluators, listening closely to the names that keep coming up in conversations and the players clubs are making sure they get eyes on this spring. Every year, a handful of prospects quietly slip beneath the radar during the fall and winter months, only to reemerge once the games start counting again. Sometimes it’s the result of a productive offseason in the weight room, a noticeable jump in velocity, or a step forward in skill development. Other times, it’s simply a player finally getting the opportunity and the stage to show what’s been building behind the scenes. The spring has a...
College | Rankings | 3/11/2026

DII/DIII/NAIA Rankings Update: March 11

Nick Herfordt
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Allendale Doesn't Rhyme With Knoxville or Danville. The Baseball Does. Meet the Three Coaches Turning Small College Programs Into National Contenders. There's something happening in small college baseball right now that doesn't get nearly enough attention. Three programs — separated by hundreds of miles and spread across three different governing bodies — are in the middle of the kind of rebuilds that make you wonder why anyone ever counted them out in the first place. One is in a Michigan lakeside college town. Two are in places that end in 'ville. All three have coaches who looked at a program and saw something nobody else did. The Perfect Game small school rankings noticed. You should too. See where Grand Valley State, Johnson U, Centre and the rest of the schools are positioned in the latest Perfect Game Top 25 Small School Rankings. NCAA DII For a generation of DII...
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