USA Baseball Announces 2019 NHSI Field

Image credit: C.J. Abrams (Photo courtesy of USA Baseball)

USA Baseball announced the 16-team field for the 2019 National High School Invitational (NHSI) Tuesday afternoon, and in the event’s eighth year, the talent is as strong as ever. The tournament, which brings together top high school teams from around the country with a four-day, single-elimination bracket, will be held at USA Baseball’s National Training Complex in Cary, N.C. and take place from April 3-6.

“USA Baseball is honored to once again shine the spotlight on high school baseball with the eighth annual National High School Invitational,” said USA Baseball Executive Director/CEO Paul Seiler in a press release. “This event continues to draw elite high school baseball programs, as well as some of the top talent from across the United States, for a truly one-of-a-kind high school baseball experience. We look forward to welcoming these sixteen programs to the National Training Complex in Cary in April.”

The full field is as follows:

Blessed Trinity HS, Roswell, Ga.
Christian Brothers College HS, St. Louis
Corona del Sol HS, Tempe, Ariz.
Delbarton HS, Morristown, N.J.
Desert Oasis HS, Las Vegas
Hagerty HS, Oviedo, Fla.
Harvard-Westlake HS, Studio City, Calif.
Hendersonville (Tenn.) HS
Huntington Beach (Calif.) HS
IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla.
La Mirada (Calif.) HS
Marist HS, Chicago
Monsignor Pace HS, Miami
Northwest Guilford HS, Greensboro, N.C.
Orange (Calif.) Lutheran HS
South Forsyth HS, Cumming, Ga.

The NHSI has become one of the biggest scouting events of the year for major league teams. Just last year, six players who competed in the event went on to be selected in the first round of the 2018 draft, led by RHP Cole Winn (15) and LHP Matthew Liberatore (16, Rays). Also joining the two pitchers was outfielder Jordyn Adams (17, Angels), third baseman Nolan Gorman (19, Cardinals), shortstop Brice Turang (21, Brewers) and third baseman Triston Casas (26, Red Sox).

Five of those six players were considered first-round talents entering the tournament, while Adams took advantage of the opportunity and hit well enough to elevate his draft stock and earn a $4.1 million signing bonus—the fourth-highest prep bonus of the 2018 draft.

Adams played for the host team, Green Hope High (Cary, N.C.), which was the first North Carolina team in event history to make the championship game, eventually losing to Orange (Calif.) Lutheran High, who returns to the 2019 event as back-to-back champions. Orange Lutheran joined Mater Dei High (Santa Ana, Calif.) as the only teams to win back-to-back championships at the event and will be one of the heavy favorites once again this year.

While California teams have historically dominated the event—winning each year outside of 2014 when The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.) took home the gold—IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) brings more draft talent to the table than any team in the field in 2019, with four players ranked among Baseball America’s Top 200 Draft Prospects list.

Below you can see a list of all Top 200 Prospects who will be playing in the tournament.