CHICAGO — In its 38th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Kash Mayfield of Elk City High School is the 2022-23 Gatorade Oklahoma Baseball Player of the Year. Mayfield is the first Gatorade Oklahoma Baseball Player of the Year to be chosen from Elk City High School.
The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Mayfield as Oklahoma’s best high school baseball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year award to be announced in June, Mayfield joins an elite alumni association of state award-winners in 12 sports, including Jackson Holliday (2021-22, Stillwater High School, Okla.), Bobby Witt Jr. (2018-19, Colleybille Heritage High School, Texas), Clayton Kershaw (2005-06, Highland Park High School, Texas) and Derek Jeter (1991-92, Kalamazoo High School, Mich.).
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior left-handed pitcher and center fielder compiled a 9-1 record on the mound with a 0.75 ERA this past season, leading the Elks to a 34-3 record and the Class 4A state semifinals. Mayfield struck out 109 batters while allowing just 18 hits and walking 13 in 46.2 innings pitched. Ranked as the nation’s No. 33 recruit in the Class of 2024 by Prep Baseball Report, he posted a .364 batting average with five home runs, 38 runs scored, 43 RBI and a .611 onbase percentage.
A member of his local chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Mayfield has volunteered locally as a youth baseball coach and has donated his time to multiple community service initiatives through his church. “Kash is a special kid on the mound,” said Cory Miller, head coach of Weatherford High School. “He has great command of all the pitches he throws. Anytime he’s on the mound for Elk, they have a great chance at winning and only need to get a couple runs for him to close the deal.”
Mayfield has maintained a 3.33 GPA in the classroom. He has made a verbal commitment to play baseball on scholarship at Oklahoma State University beginning in the fall of 2024.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.
Mayfield joins recent Gatorade Oklahoma Baseball Players of the Year Jackson Holliday (2021-22, Stillwater High School), Jackson Jobe (2020-21, Heritage Hall), Cade Horton (2019-20, Norman High School), and Kale Davis (2018- 19, Westmoore High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
Being a Gatorade Player of the Year means paying it forward for the next generation. Through Gatorade’s Play it Forward initiative, every Player of the Year receives a grant to give to one of Gatorade’s social impact partners, supporting Gatorade’s ambition to fuel the future of sport. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than $3.5 million across more than 1,300 organizations.
For nearly 40 years, Gatorade has honored high school athletes at the top of their game as teammates, supporting their communities and achieving academic success. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes and community leaders, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport.
