Jaguar Baseball 2026 Preview

The 2026 Northridge Jaguars baseball season is about to kick off and there’s a new sheriff in town. Deacon Medders takes over at the helm for his first year as a high school head coach. Medders’ most recent head coaching job was just up the road with Northridge Middle School. So, he is no stranger to the Northridge family. This will be his fourth season, with three years at NMS and as a Collegiate summer league coach.

Medders is looking forward to the competition that the Jags will see. “We play a tough schedule, that will test our guys in the regular season in ways they haven’t been tested before. I look forward to watching some high level baseball from a different perspective this year,” Medders commented about his first season as the Jaguars’ coach.

To have a successful campaign, the Jags need to avoid limiting themselves through mistakes. That includes allowing mistakes to compound, rather than keeping them to a minimum. “The game of baseball is too hard to expect perfection over the course of 40-50 games, but if we can keep the mistakes at a minimum and not let one turn into three, then we will be successful. We want to be excellent at our execution of routine plays,” said Medders.

Medders views pitching and defense as strengths for this year’s team. Northridge has a very talented group of veteran arms and an athletic group of defenders that will be relied on heavity this spring.

Leadership shouldn’t be an issue for the Jaguars. Seniors Evan Malone, an Alabama commit, and Mayson Elam, a UWA commit, will spearhead leadership roles. Malone is the bell cow for the pitching staff and also excels at the plate. Elam is a vocal leader who has been starting at the high school level since eighth grade. The team listens when he speaks and Elam can also be a spark plug, offensively. Wyatt Rath is a physical leader and at the plate, the Jags look to him as someone who can get any job done.

Although they are not newcomers or young, there are a few players to keep on your radar. Cooper Obradovich will see a lot of time on the mound and play on the corners of the outfield. Evan Champion is on pace to be the number three starter on the mound, as a result of elevating his game from last season. Senior Matthew Weyer has taken strides to secure a bigger role with spot starts and long relief outings. Weyer keeps the ball in the strike zone with multiple quality pitches and could be a game-changer for the 2026 pitching staff.

The Jags will start the season off at River Run Park, with three games over this weekend. The Jags will take on Gardendale on Friday, Feb, 20, and return Saturday, Feb. 21, for meetings with Helena and Thompson.

2026 Northridge Baseball Seniors