Mercer County High School pitcher Evan Hart, a UK baseball signee, was named Kentucky Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year this morning.
Hart was a 6-foot-4, 205-pound senior left-handed pitcher, outfielder and first baseman for the Titans. He went 7-3 with a 0.76 ERA while striking out 123 batters over 64.1 innings on the mound. Hart also batted .344 with four home runs, 30 RBI, 27 runs scored, a .492 on-base percentage and a .583 slugging percentage.
Excited and blessed to announce that I’ve been named the 2022-23 Gatorade Kentucky Baseball Player of the Year! I want to thank God, my family, and all the friends and coaches who have been involved in my life. Also, a huge thanks to @Gatorade! #GatoradePOY pic.twitter.com/CS8tTgSV2r
— Evan Hart (@evan23hart) June 2, 2023
Here is a release about the honor:
CHICAGO (June 2, 2023) — In its 38th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today
announced Evan Hart of Mercer County Senior High School is the 2022-23 Gatorade Kentucky Baseball Player
of the Year. Hart is the first Gatorade Kentucky Baseball Player of the Year to be chosen from Mercer County
Senior High School.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic
achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Hart as Kentucky’s best
high school baseball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year award
to be announced in June, Hart joins an elite alumni association of state award-winners in 12 sports, including
Jackson Holliday (2021-22, Stillwater High School, Okla.), Bobby Witt Jr. (2018-19, Colleybille Heritage High
School, Texas), Clayton Kershaw (2005-06, Highland Park High School, Texas) and Derek Jeter (1991-92,
Kalamazoo High School, Mich.).
The 6-foot-4, 205-pound senior left-handed pitcher, outfielder and first baseman went 7-3 with a 0.76 ERA while
striking out 123 batters over 64.1 innings, leading the Titans (25-11) to the regional quarterfinals this past season.
Ranked as the state’s top prospect in the Class of 2023 by Perfect Game, Hart also batted .344 with four home runs,
30 RBI, 27 runs scored, a .492 on-base percentage and a .583 slugging percentage. He was named the Kentucky
High School Baseball Coaches Association 12th region Player of the Year.
Hart has volunteered locally with Upward Sports as well as the Kendyl and Friends Foundation, a nonprofit
resource for children with special needs. “Evan’s dominant on the mound, confident, throws a ton of strikes and
attacks guys,” said Josh Loughry, head coach at Danville High School. “He had the leadership skills to take this
young Mercer County team and carry them on his back, too. I don’t know if anyone this year has been able to do
what Evan has done.”
Hart has maintained a B average in the classroom. He has signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball on scholarship at the University of Kentucky this fall.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of
the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls
basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player
of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection
Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and
determine the state winners in each sport.
Hart joins recent Gatorade Kentucky Baseball Players of the Year Jack Bennett (2021-22, McCracken County High
School), Daylen Lile (2020-21 & 2019-20, Trinity High School), and AJ Hacker (2018-19, Rowan County Senior High
School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
Being a Gatorade Player of the Year means paying it forward for the next generation. Through Gatorade’s Play it
Forward initiative, every Player of the Year receives a grant to give to one of Gatorade’s social impact partners,
supporting Gatorade’s ambition to fuel the future of sport. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have
totaled more than $3.5 million across more than 1,300 organizations.
For nearly 40 years, Gatorade has honored high school athletes at the top of their game as teammates, supporting
their communities and achieving academic success. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes and community
leaders, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport.
To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate studentathletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Facebook at
facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade.
