Rice named Georgia Player of the Year

Jasper, Ga — The postseason honors keep rolling in for Pickens Dragons star pitcher AJ Rice. After being named to the Atlanta Braves 400 Club High School All-Star Team, Georgia Dugout Club All-State First Team, and the NHSBCA (National High School Baseball Coaches Association) All-American Team, the Auburn commit has been recognized as the Player of the Year for the state of Georgia by Prep Baseball. Rice, who was a two-way player throughout his high school career, went 14-0 with a 0.35 ERA, collecting 162 strikeouts while only giving up 4 earned runs. Opponents, hit just .096 against Rice this season.

Offensively, Rice hit .365 with 31 hits, 17 singles, 10 doubles, 2 triples, and 2 home runs. Rice drove in 33 runs, 32 runs scored, walked 19 times, and stole 7 bases. Rice, who helped lead the Dragons to their first ever state championship this season, had one of the most dominant four year stretches you will see.

For his career, Rice went 41-3 with a 0.99 ERA while striking out 458 batters across 253 innings pitched. Rice, regarded as one of the top players in the ’26 class as he ranks as the 11th best player in Georgia, is also a highly thought of MLB prospect as MLB Pipeline ranks Rice as one of their top 200 prospects in next week’s upcoming MLB Draft. Rice, will more than likely hear his name called at some point during the draft.

Whether it’s at Auburn, or in the pros, the future for AJ Rice, is very bright. We here at TeamFYNSports and of course the people of Pickens County, are looking forward to seeing what big things await AJ.