Gatorade 2020 - 2021: Player of the Year

Baseball - Kansas

athletes playing Baseball
The POY Logo
BASEBALL

Ben Kudrna

Right-handed pitcher
BLUE VALLEY SOUTHWEST HS
OVERLAND PARK, KANSAS
SENIOR
Height: 6-FOOT4
Press Release

Peak Performance

0.99

ERA (Season)

100

Stikeouts (Season)

11

Walks (Season)

3

Shutouts (Season)
“Kudrna is a stud ballplayer with big-time stuff. He has the best arm we’ve seen in a while. He’s got ‘pitchability,’ meaning he’s not just a thrower. He seemed to elevate his team’s play whenever he was on the mound. There aren’t many better prep arms out there in the country. I would say he’s very worthy of the award.”
Michael Dudley
Head Coach head coach at Blue Valley North
excellence star

Athletic Excellence

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound senior right-handed pitcher led the Timberwolves to a 22-3 record, the Class 5A state championship and the No. 43 national ranking by Perfect Game USA this past season. The 2021 Class 5A Pitcher of the Year, Kudrna compiled a 9-1 record on the mound with a 0.99 ERA and 100 strikeouts against just 11 walks in 57.1 innings. He also fired three shutouts, posted a WHIP of 0.67 and limited opponents to a .130 batting average. He did not allow an earned run in 12 postseason innings-pitched, striking out 18 in that span.

a graduation cap

Academic Achievement

Kudrna has maintained a 3.50 weighted GPA in the classroom. He has signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball on scholarship at Louisiana State University this fall, but is projected as an early round selection in July’s Major League Baseball draft.

first place ribbon

Exemplary Character

A member of his BVSW’s WolfPack Crew, which plans and executes school assemblies, Kudrna has volunteered locally at a food pantry. He has also served as a supervisor for area baseball fields, where he’s been a role model and mentor to youth players.