The reverberating sounds of baseball star Xavier Neyens: A ping, a thud and plenty of pitcher groans

Wielding a powerful bat, shortstop at Mount Vernon (WA) is projected to be a first-round MLB Draft selection in July

Heading into the WIAA Class 3A baseball semifinals, Mount Vernon star and projected high MLB Draft hopeful Xavier Neyens has hit eight home runs and walked 38 times in 2025. / Photo by Todd Milles

MOUNT VERNON, Wash. - Visit any local baseball field, or sneak a peek inside the BASE by Pro indoor facility - you will hear a drastically different pinging vibration.

It is the loudest, deepest echo of metal ringing you can imagine.

And then look up and see who is in the batter's box or batting cage - it's consensus top-20 MLB Draft pick Xavier Neyens, who plays shortstop for Mount Vernon High School.

When it comes to a staredown between Neyens and a pitcher ... well, the smart money should be on the guy whose high-velocity swing continues to make over-the-fence deposits with ease.

"My thought is no (pitcher) can beat me, really," Neyens said.

"Especially during the high school season, you know, I'm not going to get very many pitches in the (strike) zone, so it's just trying to hammer what I do get."

As the Bulldogs prepare for their trip to Yakima this weekend for a WIAA Class 3A semifinal game against 3A Metro League champion Ballard, one thing is for certain - pitchers have rarely tried to win a matchup against Neyens.

As a senior, Neyens holds a .460 batting average with eight home runs, 27 RBI and 44 runs scored in either the leadoff or No. 2 spot in the order.

He has also walked an insane amount of times - 38.

"It's something I've seen all four years," Mount Vernon coach Tony Wolden said. "(The high walk number) is not an anomoly.

"He is just cool as a cucumber. He is a pro. He is a confident, strong-minded, down-to-earth dude who does not get too high or too low."

When teams did choose to pitch to him, he made them pay, registering multiple-home run games against Lynden and Blaine during Northwest Conference play.

"He squared up three balls really well on us (for home runs)," longtime Lynden baseball coach Cory White said. "And the thing about him, his swing was so effortless. Some hitters have monster swings where they come out of their shoes. With Xavier, it's a nice, fluid swing."

And yet, when Neyens traces his early days of youth baseball, he admitted his defense was well ahead of his hitting prowess.

"I wasn't a very good hitter at all when I was younger actually," Neyens said. "I was a really, really good defensive catcher, so that's kind of what kept me on the field."

But Neyens studied hitting - a lot.

"I started watching a lot of (MLB All-Star) Bryce Harper film when I was about 10 or 11, and then that's when it kind of started to click a little bit ... like I actually started hitting balls a little bit harder than most people. From then on, it's just kind of been like that."

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