High school baseball: Titles are up for grabs

SALT LAKE CITY — The 2011 high school baseball season is in full swing, and intriguing storylines are already unfolding.

In Class 5A, a traditional powerhouse is reemerging as a state-title contender. Everyone is gunning for Spanish Fork in 4A, from St. George to Hyrum. Juan Diego is just as big a target in 3A with teams from locations all over the state such as Cedar City, Price and Garland wanting to unseat them. Class 2A is wide open and picking a state-title favorite is impossible.

The next couple of months will feature exciting games, league and state championship races, and of course, unpredictable weather. Here is a look at each classification before league play begins to heat up, while the spring weather hopefully does the same:

CLASS 5A: It was supposed to mark the end of Taylorsville's proud baseball dynasty when the Warriors stunningly went 7-14 and missed the state tournament last season.

But the Warriors have way too much pride for that. They look to be back among the state's powerhouses this season. They return seven starters from last year's team, and their entire roster enjoyed being a part of an American Legion state championship last summer.

Taylorsville has no shortage of motivation after missing the tournament last year.

"It was disappointing," Taylorsville first baseman Marc Reynolds said. "We all had high hopes. I think it kind of fueled us for this year. We don't want that to happen again. Being the first team in 16 years not to make playoffs for Taylorsville — that's like an insult to me and I'm sure it is to everyone else. We don't want that to happen again."

Second-year coach Jake Brown has a strong pitching staff to work with and a solid batting lineup. Reynolds anchors the offense, and he's complemented nicely by players such as Dallas Carroll, Dalton Carroll, Hayden Heugly and Bryson Heaton.

"We're happy with our team," Brown said. "We know we're an underdog, but we like our team and we'd like to go find out (where we stand) against anybody."

There is no shortage of state-title contenders in 5A, and no one team stands ahead of the pack as eventual champion Lone Peak did during the 2010 season. The Knights, ranked No. 1, have a real shot at repeating thanks to a deep pitching staff. They'll first have to get through a rough Region 4 that features unbeaten teams Jordan, American Fork and Brighton.