ROUND ROCK – Two local boys will have the honor of taking the baseball field one last time for their respective schools at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 17 when Cohen Tyree of Taylor High School and Nathan Tucker of Granger High School play in the 2023 Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Game hosted at Dell Diamond.
Both Tyree and Tucker will be on the roster for the South team in the 2A-3A-4A game on Saturday morning as Tyree is listed as a third baseman and Tucker on the team as one of the squad’s outfielders.
As a centerpiece of a Ducks baseball team that made program history with a 31-5-1 mark in 2023, Tyree helped lead Taylor to four series victories in the 4A playoffs and was one win away from advancing to the state tournament. His dominance as a hitter at the plate throughout the season and clutch pitching in relief was the heart and soul behind the Ducks’ storybook 2023 campaign that had the entire Taylor area buzzing.
Tyree set a Taylor singleseason record for hits this past season with 53 and finished his varsity career with 129 base hits. He was also selected as the 4A-District 22 Co-Most Valuable Player Award winner.
Tucker was a star of a Lions team that was able to grind its way into the 2A postseason this year, which included a winner-take-all game against Thrall for the fourth-place playoff spot in District 27. The senior pitched 5.2 innings in relief with five strikeouts to help propel the Lions to a 6-5 comeback victory over the Tigers at neutral site Hutto.
Tucker, who was named the District 27 Defensive Most Valuable Player and also selected as academic all-district, had himself a fantastic year at the plate with a 0.373 batting average, 28 hits, 27 runs batted in, 17 runs scored, 11 stolen bases and three home runs. On the mound, Tucker had 40 strikeouts in 44.0 innings pitched with just a 2.86 earned run average.
