By Robert Wilson 

JP Abt was named the Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Baseball Player of the Year last season after he led Hartfield Academy to a 28-8 record and a MAIS Class 6A state runner-up finish.

Now, his younger brother, Henry, is trying to give the Abt family two players of the year awards in a row.

The Hartfield outfielder-pitcher and Souther Miss signee had an incredible week last week as he had a .909 batting average (10 of 11 at bats) with 6 runs scored, 7 runs batted in, 1 double, 3 home runs in three games in the Battle of the Beach on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

For his outstanding performance, Abt has been named the Box Sports Academy/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Baseball Player of the Week.

Abt had 4 hits and 1 double and had 4 strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings of relief pitching in a 4-4 tie with MHSAA Class 6A Warren Central, 4 hits, 4 runs scored, 2 RBIs, 1 home run in a 10-10 tie with Collierville, Tenn., and 2 hits, 2 runs scored, 5 RBIs, 2 home runs in a 10-0 victory over MHSAA Class 6A Pascagoula. 

Abt – a member of the Box Sports Academy/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Metro Jackson Elite 11 Team – has a .636 batting average with 27 runs scored, 16 RBIs, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs and 9 stolen bases and has a 0.00 earned run average with 6 strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings and led Hartfield to a 8-4-2 record and a No. 10 ranking in Mississippi by MaxPreps this season going into this week.

Abt is on pace to break the school’s batting average record for a single season. Bran Boyd hit .469 in 2021.

“Henry has been really special for the past four games,” Hartfield coach Justin Smith said. “He is 13 of 14 and that’s really tough to do, and he did it against arms that are all juco level or better. Henry has really developed over the last several seasons from a good baseball player to a great one. He has speed, barrel awareness, and power. The way Henry plays the game is fun to watch. He is a high character man who is a leader on our team.”

Abt was first team All Metro and had a .400 batting average with 32 runs, 32 runs batted in, 10 doubles, 3 triples, 3 home runs and 14 stolen bases and helped Hartfield to a 28-8 record and a MAIS Class 6A runner-up finish last season as a junior.

JP Abt, playing as a freshman at Pearl River Community Community this spring, was also the MAIS Class 6A Player of the Year last year and hit .368 with 34 runs, 46 RBIs, 14 doubles, 2 triples and 8 home runs and had a 6-2 pitching record with a 2.53 earned run average and 68 strikeouts in 55 1/3 innings. 

  Abt is the son of John and Leslie Abt. John was a Clarion Ledger Dandy Dozen pitcher for Terry High and pitched for Hinds Community College in the Junior College World Series. Leslie graduated from Brandon High and Belhaven. Abt’s brother, JP, is a freshman and playing baseball at Pearl River Community College. Abt’s uncle, Walker Williams, was the Mississippi Gatorade Boys Soccer Player of the Year at Brandon High. Abt’s cousin, Emily Dixon, won the state girls soccer championship at Northwest Rankin last season. Aunt Laura Britt was a cheerleader at University of Alabama-Birmingham and is a sports reporter in the Bay Area in California. 

Hartfield plays Jackson Prep in a three-game series this week, Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Prep and Thursday a doubleheader at 4:30 p.m. at Hartfield.

Mississippi Scoreboard selects a baseball player from Hinds, Madison, or Rankin counties each week. Coaches can nominate a player by sending a text to Robert Wilson at 601.506.2276.

PREVIOUS WINNERS

WEEK ONE: Deuce Jenkins, Jackson Academy