Butler County baseball all-stars: Meet the 2025 player of the year, first team, honorable mentions
It was the Year of the Pitcher.
It’s not uncommon for a high school baseball team’s best athlete to also be a stud pitcher, but Butler County’s aces took things to another level this season. Nine of this year’s Butler Eagle baseball all-stars were either the team’s ace or a key part of the rotation.
So if any of the county’s coaches need one inning of hard work, they don’t have to look far.
But this year’s baseball player of the year is known more for his bat — he did pitch, including key playoff innings. Seneca Valley’s Ryan Piekutoski was one of the WPIAL’s most dangerous hitters, leading the Raiders to the district title and a PIAA Class 6A quarterfinal appearance.
Below are this year’s Butler County baseball all-stars, including our player of the year, first team picks and honorable mentions. The first team and honorable mentions are listed alphabetically.
Ryan Piekutoski, sr., 3B/P, Seneca Valley
The best player on the county’s best team, Piekutoski crushed opposing pitching all year, hitting .455 with four home runs and 19 extra base hits. He went 3-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs in the PIAA first round, then went 2-for-3 with another homer and two runs scored in a quarterfinal loss to eventual Class 6A champ Cedar Cliff. The South Carolina-Sumter commit took on an increased pitching workload this season and impressed.
Kason Barker, jr., C, Freeport
Barker’s bat stood out among Butler County catchers this season. He hit .444 with a .507 on-base percentage, two homers and 27 RBIs and 22 runs scored. He also stole a team-high 14 bases and had two home runs. The performance earned him second team all-state honors.
Trent Best, so., 3B/P, Butler
His run production won’t stand out against some of his peers on this list, but Best hit .368 with 11 runs and seven RBIs, a solid jump from his freshman season. He earned All-Big 56 Class 6A Section 1 first-team honors, one of just two sophomores to make the team.
Michael Hanz, sr., IF/P, Freeport
You don’t see batting lines like Hanz put up very often. The slugger hit .646 — you read that right — including .706 in section play and had a .700 on-base percentage after missing the first few games of the season due to injury. Yellowjackets coach Ed Carr called it an historic season. The all-state first-team pick also had 26 runs, 25 RBIs and four homers.
Jacob Jones, sr., P/OF, Karns City
Jones took over top-of-the-rotation duties for the Gremlins this season and didn’t disappoint. In a career-high 60 innings, he struck out what’s likely a county-leading 88 with a 2.22 ERA. The only blemish? A 2-0 record, but wins are a team stat. He also hit .333 with 19 runs and 16 RBIs.
Kyle Krause, jr., P, Mars
The Virginia commit was one of the county’s top pitchers — in a year full of great ones — with a fastball approaching 90 mph. Krause tossed 41.2 innings in his first year back in Mars after living in Georgia for a few years, striking out 45 with a 1.60 ERA.
Jacob Kunsman, jr., 3B/P, Slippery Rock
The District 10, Region 2 first-team honoree was, like most on this list, a talented infielder and pitcher with a bat to match. Kunsman hit .362 with 17 runs, 17 RBIs, 11 stolen bases and two homers at the plate. He added a 3-0 record in 26.1 innings with a 2.39 ERA and 30 strikeouts on the mound.
Ryan Rebholz, jr., P/IF, Seneca Valley
The unquestioned ace of the Raiders staff, Rebholz was darn near untouchable with a 6-0 record and 0.99 ERA. His signature performance came in the WPIAL Class 6A championship game, where he was on the way to twirling a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 win before a line drive off his foot forced him from the game in the sixth inning. He struck out 41 in 37.2 innings.
Nolan Stefaniak, jr., P/Util, Butler
Butler County had a plethora of ace-level pitchers this season, and Stefaniak is at or near the top of that class. In 39 innings, he went 5-0 with 64 strikeouts and a 1.43 ERA with a fastball that can hit 93 mph. The Penn State pledge also hit .349 with a .473 on-base percentage and nine RBIs.
Kyle Casteel, jr., P, Butler; Mavrik Clement, jr., C/IF/P, Butler; Boden Lenyk, jr., SS/P, Butler; Sebastian Link, sr., IF/P, Union/A-C Valley; Adam Manuel, sr., 1B/P, Karns City; Danny Murray, so., 2B, Mars; Mason Sherwin, sr., SS, Karns City; Austan Runtas, sr., P, Slippery Rock; Gavin Tola, so., IF, Freeport; Owen Westendorf, fr., P, Freeport; Caden Williams, sr., P, North Catholic.
Eagle staff writer Brendan Howe contributed to this story.
