High School Baseball Rankings Top 25 (3/6/18)
The top 25 teams are selected through a poll of representatives from the Baseball Coaches Association (BCA) and Baseball America. This is the first in-season top 25 ranking of the 2018 season, though many states haven’t started playing and weather has caused delays in other states as well. The BCA and BA will update the top 25 rankings every other week through May.
The start of the spring baseball season has caused quite the shuffle in the top 25 high school teams in the country, including a new No. 1 after previously top-ranked Shawnee (Okla.) High dropped a tight game to Enid (Okla.) High, 11-10 to open the season.
One of the challenges in the high school rankings is determining how much weight to put on individual losses and how to balance those losses with teams who entered the season ranked highly but have yet to play a game this season—at least at the time the rankings were compiled, which accounts for games played through March 4.
At this stage the BCA puts more weight into performance on the field and also doesn’t knock teams who have yet to play this season. Because of this, Shawnee falls to No. 17 and teams like Basic High (Henderson, Nev.), Jackson High (Massillon, Ohio), Mater Dei High (Santa Ana, Calif.) and others remain where they were in the preseason top 50 ranking.
Notre Dame High (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) moves into the top spot of the rankings thanks to a strong 4-0 start to the season that includes out scoring its opposition 37-9. 2017 No. 2 overall pick Hunter Greene graduated from Notre Dame, but the team is cruising without the two-way star including impressive offensive numbers from seniors Noah Taylor (.625/.647/.812) and Grant Berman (.615/.615/.1.076) as well as 13 strong innings on the mound from junior righthander Carter Kessinger (1.62 ERA, 12 strikeouts, zero walks).
Lake Travis (11-0), American Heritage (5-0) and Sulpher High (10-0) also join the top five after impressive, undefeated starts to the 2018 season.
| Rank | School | Record | Previous Rank |
| 1 | Notre Dame HS, Sherman Oaks, Calif. | 4-0 | 15 |
| 2 | Lake Travis HS, Austin, Texas | 11-0 | NR |
| 3 | Basic HS, Henderson, Nev. | 0-0 | 3 |
| 4 | American Heritage HS, Plantation, Fla. | 5-0 | 44 |
| 5 | Sulphur (La.) HS | 10-0 | NR |
| 6 | Blessed Trinity HS, Roswell, Ga. | 7-0 | NR |
| 7 | Jackson HS, Massillon, Ohio | 0-0 | 7 |
| 8 | Harvard-Westlake HS, Studio City, Calif. | 2-1 | 2 |
| 9 | Gulfport (Miss.) HS | 6-0 | 40 |
| 10 | Mater Dei HS, Santa Ana, Calif. | 0-0 | 10 |
| 11 | Stoneman Douglas HS, Parkland, Fla. | 1-0 | NR |
| 12 | El Toro HS, Lake Forest, Calif. | 3-0 | 27 |
| 13 | Riverdale Baptist HS, Marlboro, Md. | 0-0 | 13 |
| 14 | Enid (Okla.) HS | 1-0 | NR |
| 15 | Woodstock (Ga.) HS | 11-0 | NR |
| 16 | Bellarmine Prep HS, San Jose, Calif. | 5-0 | NR |
| 17 | Shawnee (Okla.) HS | 0-1 | 1 |
| 18 | Chandler (Ariz.) HS | 7-1 | NR |
| 19 | Cullman (Ala.) HS | 4-0 | 28 |
| 20 | White Hall (Ark.) HS | 3-0 | NR |
| 21 | St. Vianney HS, Kirkwood, Mo. | 0-0 | 21 |
| 22 | Calvary Christian Academy, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. | 5-0 | NR |
| 23 | Saline (Mich.) HS | 0-0 | 23 |
| 24 | Cathedral Catholic HS, San Diego | 0-0 | 24 |
| 25 | West Lauderdale HS, Collinsville, Miss. | 4-0 | NR |
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