Skagit Valley Herald Baseball Player of the Year: Reece Roberts

Reece Roberts set the tone for the Mount Vernon High School baseball team this season, helping the team to the Class 3A State Tournament and a 22-2 record.

As the Bulldogs' leadoff hitter, Roberts was on base constantly during his junior season. He had a batting average of .516 and an on-base percentage of .680.

Roberts is the Skagit Valley Herald Baseball Player of the Year.

He said he didn't care how he got on base this season, he just wanted to put the batters behind him in a good position.

"My job as a leadoff hitter, I was trying to get on for the next guy," Roberts said.

Sometimes this meant getting hit by a pitch (13 times this season), or working the count to draw a walk (22 times).

But most often, Roberts found his way on via base hits. He had 12 multi-hit games.

Roberts said his season was a product of the supportive environment his teammates created.

"(It was) a great year. Kind of didn't end how we wanted it to, of course, but (it's) a really good group of guys. Everyone is so close to each other. Such an easy team to get along with, it made it so easy for me to succeed because of the environment," Roberts said.

He said everyone on the team pushes each other to get better. This was especially apparent during weightlifting sessions, which the team holds throughout the school year at 6:40 a.m., four times a week.

"It really just got us close and made us feel like we're able to beat anyone," Roberts said. "Having that mindset gives you confidence, like individually, just knowing you got guys around you."

Coach Tony Wolden said Roberts, who had played in state championship games in 2024 and 2025, uses his experience to be a strong leader.

"He's kind of in the epicenter of success," Wolden said. "He cares about winning, and he cares about competing, and I think the others feed off that leadership."

On an individual level, Roberts also attributed his success to his selective approach at the plate - a trait Wolden praised.

"He's a true professional with the bat in his hand," Wolden said.

Wolden said Roberts has a great sense of the strike zone, which allowed him to draw walks while still hunting pitches that were over the plate. This made him a great leadoff hitter.

"We knew he had a really good eye for the zone, and we knew he wasn't going to chase balls out of the zone," Wolden said. "And it does help the hitters behind him, because he sees quite a few pitches."

Roberts struck out just four times this season, three of which were on questionable calls, Wolden said.

There are many approaches that hitters take to prevent strikeouts. Some choke up on the bat when they get to two strikes. Some widen their stance and forgo their stride, sacrificing power to eliminate a timing variable.

But for Roberts, limiting strikeouts was simple.

"The best way to not strike out is to not get to two strikes," Roberts said. "Hunting something early in the count became the best thing for me. Being aggressive."

Roberts said he always looks for pitches in a specific location, and if the pitch wasn't in that spot, he'd let it go.

"He's not going to let really good pitches go by, because he knows what he's looking for, and he's confident in the zone," Wolden said.

Not only did Roberts hit for a high average while rarely striking out, but he hit for power. He had three home runs, nine doubles and a triple. His slugging percentage was .828.

Roberts said when he started to develop power as the season went on, that opened up the field for him even more.

He said that once he started to hit the ball over outfielders' heads, they began to back up, which gave more room for hits to drop in.

Roberts said power is what he's most focused on developing this offseason as he looks ahead to his senior year, and at a chance for another state championship.

While Roberts attributed his success to several factors, including teammates, coaching and his approach, above everything else he said his success comes from practicing with his father.

Roberts said that for most of his life his father has tossed him batting practice at home.

When Roberts was 12 years old, his father bought a batting cage, which made it even more fun for Roberts.

Even during the offseason, Roberts said he and his father practice.

"Every day I was asking him to hit, and he was totally up for it, no matter how long he worked for. (On a) bad day, I could go home and I could count on him to be there to help me and throw to me," Roberts said. "I think most of my success just came from (hitting) every day with my dad."

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