“He is a very special athlete.” “He loves to work hard.” “He is all in.” Getting to know a future Louisville baseball star.
Unless you closely follow Louisville baseball, you probably don’t know the name, Bryson Wittmer, yet. The recent Cardinal commitment is a special one though.
Standing 6’1 tall and 215 pounds, Wittmer is already an imposing figure on the mound. When you add in the fact that he throws left handed and is up to 91 mph, it’s even better. Oh yeah, and he’s a freshman in high school.
Bryson Wittmer has always been a special talent. Even as a 13-year old, those around him knew that he was going places.
Max Carevic is a trainer for NMC Baseball, the travel organization that Bryson plays for. Max came to him as a young teenager and those in the organization saw how special he was from day one.
“The first day I met him, he was sitting 80-82 and we told him that this could be special. He trusted us, his parents trusted us, and we went all in,” says Carevic. That hard work paid off for Bryson as he finds himself committed to the Cards before he throws his first high school pitch.
Wittmer hails out of Edison High School in Ohio, the alma mater of former Louisville lefty and current Detroit Tigers farmhand, Adam Wolf. When asked about the Ohio to Louisville pipeline, Wittmer says it absolutely impacted his decision to join Dan McDonnell & co.
“I’ve had the opportunity to speak to Adam Wolf,” says Bryson, “also, Louisville is close enough to home so family and friends can attend.”
It was the perfect storm for Wittmer to come to Louisville.
“The stability in the coaching staff. One of the top baseball programs in the country. Focus on academics and player development. Comfortable environment. Work with FCA,” says Wittmer on why Louisville is the right fit for him.
He is now the ninth commit for the Cards in their class of 2026, a group that is already shaping up to be great, continuing the trend of elite recruiting classes from the coaching staff.
The recruiting at Louisville has intensified in recent years. The incoming freshman, class of ‘22, are the third ranked recruiting class in the country according to Perfect Game. That ranking comes even with the losses of Cam Collier, Jacob Miller, and Logan Wagner to the 2022 draft. The Cardinals caught a break though in being able to retain all of Korbyn Dickerson, Gavin Kilen, Patrick Forbes, and Tucker Biven. Now, Louisville is heading into 2023 with one of the best freshman classes the program has ever seen, and it’s only just the beginning.
The Cardinals coaching staff have expanded their recruiting footprint to nearly go nationwide now. What used to be a team of players from Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois has now grown to include commitments from guys who hail from states like Colorado, Florida, and New York. The coaching staff has put the program on the map and shows no signs of slowing down.
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Ohio is a state that has been very kind to Louisville in the past and figures to stay that way for a long time to come. Not only has there been a big pipeline of Ohio baseball players to Louisville, but the state has been great to the Cardinals in producing pitchers. Ohio has produced a trio of left-handed pitchers in recent years; Michael Kirian, Nick Bennett and Wolf, that have all gone on to enjoy success at the professional level. Bryson Wittmer has all the tools to join that talented group.
That talent extends past the baseball field, however. Wittmer is a three-sport standout and has found success on a football field and basketball court as well. As a football player, he played to an honorable mention division pick and now currently leads the Edison basketball team in rebounds as well. There is no doubt that he will be sticking with baseball though and will focus on just the one sport in college.
On the field, Louisville is getting a team first player. “Winning state championships,” is the goal for Wittmer over the next four years. Off the field, Wittmer is devoted to his faith and his community. In fact, it was the Fellowship of Christian Athletes ties at Louisville that was a deciding factor for Wittmer to commit to the program. Wittmer cites his faith as the biggest influence on his athletic career.
“With God all things are possible,” says Wittmer.
On and off the field, Louisville has landed a big time recruit. While it will still be a few years before he signs his National Letter of Intent and takes the field at Jim Patterson, Wittmer has his eyes set on Louisville.
As far as rankings go, Prep baseball Report cites Wittmer as the 67th ranked player in the class of ‘26 and 3rd in the state of Ohio. WIth his build, raw talent, and competitive drive, the sky’s the limit for Wittmer. There is definitely a high chance that Wittmer continues to move up rankings and puts himself on the map at a national level.
For now though, Wittmer has what is set to be a very exciting four years of high school baseball. When he steps on campus in Louisville though, he has one thing in mind;
“Omaha here we come!”
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