Vote for The State’s 2025 Midlands high school baseball Player of Year
It’s time to vote for The State’s Midlands baseball Player of the Year. Voting ends at noon Tuesday, June 17, and you can vote as many times as you like.
The winner will be announced next week along with The State’s all-area softball and baseball teams.
The nominees and polls are below. Please note that these polls are not scientific and are meant to be just for fun:
Baseball Player of Year Nominees
Charlie Bonds, Richard Winn: Francis Marion signee hit .460 with seven home runs and 36 RBIs. On the mound, Bonds went 6-2 with a 1.43 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 30 innings.
Johnny Collins, Blythewood: Junior P/1B went 10-2 with a 1.44 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 58 innings pitched. At the plate, the College of Charleston commit hit .287 with a home run and 18 RBI. Collins was Class 5A Division I All-State selection and 5A Division I Pitcher of the Year.
Brandon Cromer, Lexington: Senior hit .427 with 5 home runs, 24 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Cromer was a Class 5A Division I All-State selection and signed to play at South Carolina.
Hunter Epps, Airport: Senior P/INF hit .311 with a homer and 10 RBI. On the mound, Epps was 10-3 with a 1.18 ERA, four saves and 82 strikeouts in 88 ⅔ innings in helping the Eagles to the program’s first state championship. He was a Region 5-4A Player of Year, Class 4A All-State selection, picked to play in the North-South All-Star game and signed with USC Union.
Braydon Hallman, Batesburg-Leesville: Junior P/SS hit .356 with three home runs and 34 RBIs in helping the Panthers to their first state championship in almost 80 years. On the mound, Hallman was 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 27 innings and was a Class 2A All-State selection.
Zechariah Haney, Camden: Senior hit .436 with two home runs, 16 doubles and 23 RBIs. On the mound, he was 4-3 with a 1.86 ERA, a save and 59 strikeouts in 56 ⅔ innings pitched. Haney was a Class 4A All-State selection, MVP in the North-South baseball All-Star game and signed to play at Newberry.
Sean Lee, Ben Lippen: Senior P/INF hit .420 with three home runs, 26 RBIs, eight doubles and three triples. On the mound, Lee was 9-1 with a 1.30 ERA and 111 strikeouts in 69 innings. He was SCISA 1-4A Player of Year and signed with USC Sumter.
Kaden Myers, Mid-Carolina: Senior P/INF hit .356 with three home runs and 24 RBIs. On the mound, Myers was 10-1 with a 0.71 ERA, a save and 97 strikeouts in 58 ⅔ innings pitched. He was Region 3-2A Player of Year, Class 2A Co-Pitcher of Year, an All-State selection and signed with College of Charleston.
Dalton Taylor, Gilbert: Senior pitcher was 9-0 with a 0.25 ERA, a save and 68 strikeouts in 56 innings pitched. Taylor was Region 5-4A Pitcher of Year, Class 4A All-State selection and 4A Pitcher of Year, picked for the North-South All-Star game and signed with USC Sumter.
This story was originally published June 10, 2025 at 3:00 PM.
