The ScoutConnect staff is once again updating our IHSA ‘Large School’ – 3A & 4A – team rankings, with the third and fourth weeks of the Illinois high school baseball season under our belt. We did not update this list last week, due to rain, so this update will cover from Monday, March 31st to Saturday, April 12th.

As a reminder, teams taken into consideration are those that fall into our ‘Coverage Map’, which includes all of Southern Illinois, the Metro East area, Springfield, and up as high as Mt. Zion. This does not mean that our staff won’t provide coverage to all areas of the state, as well as Missouri, but for team rankings purposes, we will stick to all teams in 3A and 4A that fall underneath the Mt. Zion line.

We’ve detailed some major movements inside our top-10, including a new No. 1, broke down a team that debuted for the first time, and touched on some teams who are next in line for the rankings. You can find all of that below.

THE TOP 10…

+ There is a new No. 1, as Triad (11-1) takes over the top spot. The Knights have one loss on the year, which came to one of Missouri’s top teams in Vianney, and have scored nine or more runs in nine of their 12 games. Five different Triad bats have more than 30 plate appearances and are hitting over .400, and their pitching staff is a deep, talented unit that’s starting to find its rhythm. Since our last update, Triad defeated Mater Dei, Wheaton Warrenville South, Collinsville, Centralia, and Granite City. 

+ We also have a new team at No. 2, with O’Fallon (11-1) climbing one spot up our board. The Panthers dropped their first game of the season to Champaign Central and have not lost since, rattling off 11 straight wins. They’ve picked up some ranked wins in that span, with victories over Highland, Freeburg, DeSmet, CBC, and, most recently, a 14-1 victory over Mascoutah. RHP/1B Connor Blue (2025; Cincinnati) has led the way, slashing .475/.563/.925 with four home runs and 23 RBI, while also striking out 31 over 17 innings of work with a 1.65 ERA. The Panthers have an important conference series against Alton this upcoming week. 

+ Edwardsville (7-6) drops two spots to No. 3 after winning one game since our last update. The Tigers did challenge themselves mightily, making the trip out to Cary, North Carolina to participate in the National High School Invitational (NHSI), where they played some of the top teams in the country. Despite not holding the top spot on our rankings anymore, Edwardsville was there for a reason, and the Tigers’ mightily talented roster is almost certainly primed for a bounceback. 

+ Mascoutah (8-2) stays put at No. 4 overall this time around. The Indians kicked off the third week of IHSA play with a statement 10-0 win over Edwardsville, defeating Belleville West, Murphysboro, and the St. Louis Patriots as well. They’d be higher on our board had they not dropped a contest to O’Fallon this past Wednesday, where the Panthers took them down 14-1. Regardless, Mascoutah is still one of the area’s top programs and has one of the area’s best players in RHP Austin Musso (2025; Arizona State), who is slashing .458/.567/1.125 with four home runs and a 0.42 ERA with 31 strikeouts over 16 ⅔ innings on the mound. 

+ There’s a new team at No. 5, with Alton (11-4) rising two spots after two strong weeks. The Redbirds only losses came out of state on their spring trip, where they played two talented clubs from Alabama and McCracken County, who’s one of the top teams in Kentucky. In Illinois, Alton defeated Civic Memorial, Roxana, Gillespie, Freeburg, and swept East St. Louis. Pitching has been the strength for Alton – the Redbirds allowed just six runs in six in-state games since we last updated our rankings. Freshman standout C/RHP Anderson Kaufmann (2028) has a 0.79 ERA in 17 ⅔ innings of work, while RHP Reid Murray (2025; Lewis & Clark CC) and RHP Logan Hickman (2026) have also thrown the ball well. Alton’s first true test of the season will come this week, when the Redbirds face off against Southwestern Conference foe O’Fallon in a two-game set. 

+ Mt. Zion (9-2) sticks at sixth overall after a 6-2 week. Their only losses came in two conference games, which they split with Effingham and Taylorville, while adding wins over Litchfield, MacArthur, Shelbyville, and St. Anthony. We got an up-close look at the Braves this past week in that series against Effingham, and you can read more about that by clicking HERE. 

+ Glenwood (6-3) is down a few spots here, falling from fifth to now No. 7 on these updated rankings. The Titans lost a conference tilt to Sacred Heart Griffin and fell in extra-innings to East Peoria in the past two weeks, with wins over Springfield, Lincoln, and Quincy Notre Dame. Despite their fall in the rankings, one name to keep an eye on for Glenwood is uncommitted junior C Colten Knoedler (2026), who’s slashing .562/.611/.656 in 32 at-bats. 

+ After debuting in the rankings last week, Rochester (9-2) keeps on climbing, now sitting at No. 8 after a perfect two weeks. In that span, the Rockets took down Jacksonville, Normal U-High, Lincoln, and Galesburg, scoring no less than nine runs in all four of those wins. INF/RHP Eli Carlson (2025; Spoon River JC), INF Jorey Myren (2026), INF/RHP Ajay Runkel (2026), and Sam Ferris (2027) have all been hot at the plate in the early going. Carlson, RHP Sean Plessa (2027), and RHP Breck Calvert (2025) are getting it done on the mound for Rochester. 

+ There’s a new team that makes their debut this week, as Belleville East (11-3) cracks the top-10, sitting at No. 9. The Lancers have won eight in a row, all of them rather comfortably, outscoring their opponents 98-to-14 in that span. RHP/INF Tommy Kramkowski (2025; Missouri State) has been excellent at the plate, slashing .525/.568/.825 in 40 at-bats, and his return to the mound gives East a true ace at the top of their rotation. INF Grady Davis (2025), CIF Caden Cagas (2025; McKendree), OF Nasir Fares (2026), and C/RHP Brody Lindemann (2027) are all names that are performing at a high level offensively in the early going. 

+ Freeburg (5-4) holds on to the final spot in our rankings, dropping one spot to No. 10 overall. The Midgets have played a tough schedule and earned a series split with conference foe Columbia, while also picking up a win over Waterloo before ending the week with a 2-0 loss to Alton. 

+ Belleville West (7-5) falls out of the rankings after a 3-3 week. The Maroons were swept by Belleville East in a conference set and also lost to Mascoutah this past week. They’ve won games over Gibault, Wheaton Warrenville South, and Centralia since we last updated the rankings. 

NEXT UP…

+ Effingham (8-5): The Hearts are a young, talented bunch that’s made up of mostly non-seniors, including OF/LHP Carter Braddy (2027), who looks like a potential two-way star. They likely would’ve cracked the top-10 this week had they not suffered a few key losses to Teutpolis, Mt. Zion, and Mahomet-Seymour. With that being said, Effingham did also beat Mt. Zion and Mahomet-Seymour, and they also won games over Salem and Dieterich. Keep an eye out for this young club to make some noise in the Apollo Conference. 

+ Waterloo (7-3): Another club that’s knocking on the door of our rankings is Waterloo, whose 7-6 loss to Freeburg was their only defeat over the last two weeks. They also beat Freeburg, and won three games over Gibault Catholic, with a victory over Valmeyer in there as well. OF Patrick O’Donnell (2025) and RHP/INF Conrad Lindhorst (2026) are both hitting over .440 in the early season, while RHP AJ Sensel (2025) has anchored this club on the mound. 

+ Marion (6-4): The Wildcats have only played three games since our last update, and their only loss came to an out-of-state team. In Illinois they beat a really tough Zeigler-Royalton club and opened up their conference set with Mt. Vernon on a high note, taking down the Rams 4-2. Marion is another team, like Effingham, that’s mostly led by non-seniors, like INF Will True (2026), INF/RHP Aidan Pickles (2026), OF Gabe Hart (2026), and RHP/3B Alex Henry (2026). 

+ Highland (5-4): A pre-season rank, Highland dropped out of the rankings after a 1-3 start, but the Bulldogs have won four of their last five and are now back on the bubble of teams to watch. Their top two arms – RHP Braxdon Decker (2025; Eastern Illinois) and LHP Chase Knebel (2025; SWIC) – have allowed a combined four earned runs in 27 ⅔ innings. 

Author: Diego