The beautiful town of Cary, NC is home to the one and only USA Baseball National Training Complex.  The complex consists of four beautiful ballparks with pristine playing surfaces, and has a grounds crew with members worthy of MLB consideration.  The only thing more special than the complex itself are the players and coaches that are fortunate to step foot on it.  These players consist of the best our country has to offer in the way of baseball players.

Hopkins Flyers Head Coach, Todd Jahnke, recently completed his fifth event working for USA Baseball in the last four years – this one a 16U National Team Identification Series (NTIS) where he served on the Scout Team Task Force.  The NTIS events are the most comprehensive player identification programs offered through USA Baseball.  It was his second consecutive year working this four-day 16U NTIS event in which he and a team of USA Baseball assigned Scouts and Administrators work tirelessly to identify the most talented players, placing them on the potential fast-track to becoming National Team players.  

In addition to the NTIS events Jahnke has worked, he has also played multiple roles within the 18U Tournament of Stars (TOS) Program, which is the vehicle from which the 18U National Team is ultimately derived.  This event boasts 108 of the country’s best 18U players, most of them being future MLB draft picks.  With former TOS participants such as Bryce Harper and Joe Mauer, and more recent participants and MLB 1st overall draft picks Dansby Swanson and Kris Bryant, this tournament is, without a doubt, the premiere amateur event in the country for the 18U age-level.  Coach Jahnke has worked as an on-field coach for the TOS, as well as a member of the Tournament Task Force, responsible for scouting and evaluating the players, as well as assisting with tournament operations.  

“I’ve been humbled and honored to have been afforded the opportunity to work for USA Baseball, it’s a phenomenal organization,” Jahnke said.  “There’s a ton of outstanding coaches across the country – including right here in our backyard in Minnesota – to be one of few that get to work with some of the most talented players in the United States is a true honor and blessing.”  Jahnke aims to one day have the opportunity to be a member of a National Team Staff.  “To be able to one day wear USA across my chest, and represent the greatest country in the world as a member of a National Team Coaching Staff, would be a dream come true for me,” he said.