(Tim Bourke/TimBourke.com)
Valor Christian’s Radek Birkholz was named the Gatorade baseball player of the year for Colorado on Tuesday. He has been named a finalist for the national baseball player of the year which will be named in July.
Birkholz was a standout player for the Eagles in his time at Valor. As a freshman, he took on the challenge of pitching in the Class 4A state championship game against Pueblo West. Not only did he get the win, but he nearly threw a no-hitter as he had not given up a hit through six innings.
He has shined off the field as well as he has served as a member of the National Honor Society and led a mission trip to the Dominican Republic on behalf of his community. All while doing that, he has maintained a 4.14 GPA.
He has become the idea baseball player to represent the state of Colorado.
“As a head coach for 20 years, I can say Radek Birkholz is not only one of the best players I have seen in Colorado over that time span, but also one of the best kids,” Ralston Valley coach Brad Madden said in a release. “He is a great competitor, an unbelievable player and a humble young man.”
He finished the year with a 6-0 record, a 0.79 ERA and struck out 71 hitters that he faced. He gave up a total of four earned runs as Valor advanced to the 5A state championship game. He was also a menace at the plate as he hit .473 with seven home runs and 29 RBI’s.
He will play his college baseball at the University of Notre Dame and he’ll be paying attention to the MLB Entry Draft in July as his name could be called. He is the No. 3 draft prospect in the state according to Perfect Game.