By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Houston baseball faced its share of challenges in 2025.
The Tigers finished with an 11-13 record, falling to Licking in the district tournament.
“Last year was a year of ups and downs,” Houston head coach Brent Hall said. “We had a rough start to the season, but this group kept working and finished strong at the end. It was a lot of moving parts to find what worked best for us but in the end we won five out of our last six games. You always want to finish the season strong and be most competitive at the end of the year and this is what this team did.”
This season, the Tigers postseason pursuit will be led by an all-state honoree in Aaden Scantlin.
Scantlin, a senior infielder and pitcher, hit .459 last season with 10 RBI and 18 stolen bases. On the mound, he compiled a 3-4 record with a 2.69 ERA.
“Aaden is very athletic and can play just about anywhere on the field,” Hall said. “He led us in every statistical category last year but pitching.”
He’ll be joined by fellow returnees Ethan Carter, Evan Edwards, Oliver Greiner, Jackson Morgan, Gage Smith, Kyson Brede and Aaron McCarthy.
Hall on Carter: “Ethan is one of our hardest workers. He earned SCA honorable mention last year. He will play some first base, DH and pitch.”
Hall on Edwards: “Evan will compete for an outfield spot this year. Evan’s biggest asset is his speed. He is a hard worker and a great teammate.”
Hall on Greiner: “Oliver came on last year and started a few games late in the season and hit for us as well. Oliver is a big strong kid that will compete for a spot at first as well as DH for us.”
Hall on Morgan: “Jackson started every game for us last year and played second base primarily and outfield. Jackson earned SCA honorable mention last year. He is a left-handed stick with good speed.”
Hall on Smith: “Gage broke into the lineup last year as the season progressed. He caught a little for us and played outfield as well. Gage will be competing for a spot in the outfield this year.”
Hall on Brede: “Kyson got some opportunity towards the end of last season. Kyson will be competing for an infield spot this year.”
Hall on McCarthy: “Aaron played some first base and outfield last year. He got a lot of at bats and good experience. He is a very hard worker and has had a good off season. Aaron will compete for a spot in the outfield.”
Hall also expects a host of varsity newcomers to step in and compete for innings this season, inducing Jasper McCloy, Elliton Greiner, Stryker Sloan, Tucker Venn, Karson McCain, Knox McCloy, Eli Carter, Griffin Aaron and Blake Sanders.
“We have a lot of excitement coming into this year,” Hall said. “We have several of our returners that got valuable experience last year. We have a large number of freshmen that are very talented and will likely see time on the field and hold big roles for us. With us being this young that is also a concern but also a lot of these kids played varsity football or basketball so when you get them in the spring with that experience they are almost like sophomores. We have a lot of depth on the mound and a lot of avenues to move players around and see what best fits for us.”
Following a March 16 home jamboree, Houston opens its season March 20 at Mountain View’s Champs Fitness Wood Bat Tournament.
