Who Did West Virginia Fans Pick as High School On SI's Baseball Player of the Year?

Morgantown senior Slade Barton has been voted High School On SI's West Virginia Baseball Player of the Year after receiving 36.73 percent of the fan vote. The senior and West Virginia commit finished at the top with 36.73-percent of votes.

Barton Finishes First

Barton capped a dominant senior season after earning Gatorade West Virginia Baseball Player of the Year honors. He went 8-0 on the mound with a 1.50 ERA, 50 strikeouts, and 12 walks in 37.1 innings pitched.

At the plate, Barton batted .368 with seven hits, three RBIs, a double, a triple and four runs.

Pence Claims Runner-Up Spot

St. Joseph Central junior Wyatt Pence finished second with 31.7 percent of the vote. The junior hit .443 with 57 RBIs, 10 home runs, nine doubles, and 35 runs. Pence led the Irish to a 32-4 record in 2026.

Tagliente Rounds Out Top Three

Rounding out the top three is Sherman's Luke Tagliente with 6.3 percent. The senior led the Tide to the Class A state championship and was named All-Tournament and Class A MVP.

On the mound, Tagliente went a perfect 13-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 96 strikeouts, and two saves in 65.2 innings. At the plate, he batted .463 with 44 hits, a .631 OBP, and 40 walks.

Final Voting Results

Coming in fourth place is Robert C. Byrd's Cooper Floyd with 4.16-percent. Floyd was named WV Big 10 Conference Baseball Player of the Year for the Eagles. The senior and Walters State Community College commit batted .445 with 57 hits, 11 home runs, 28 RBIs, 14 doubles, 62 runs, and 26 stolen bases.

Rounding out the top five is Lincoln County's Isaac Byrd with 3.64 percent. The senior stepped up by hitting .430 with 40 hits, 38 RBIs, 10 home runs, 12 doubles, 35 runs, and 16 stolen bases.

Next up in sixth place is Frankfort's Lanson Orndorf with 3.08 percent. Orndorf led the Falcons to the Class AA state title and earned honors like the WVSWA's Lowery Award and the Area Player of the Year.

The senior and Charleston (WV) commit went 11-3 on the bump with a 0.58 ERA, 112 strikeouts, and 21 walks in 84 innings pitched. He also batted .413 with 45 hits and 27 RBIs.

Coming in seventh place is Gilmer County's Kolten Holbert with 3-percent. Holbert led the Titans to a Class A finals appearance. The junior hit .450 with 50 hits, 53 RBIs, four home runs, 12 doubles, seven triples, and 57 runs.

The rest of the list goes James Monroe's Kadyn Hines (2.67), St. Mary's' Casey Burkhammer (2.41), St. Albans' Gavin Comer (2.4), and George Washington's Eli Smith (2.37) and Jon Fala (1.53).

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