The 2026 New Balance Future Stars Series JUCO Main Event Showdown will be held January 26-27 at Globe Life Field. Nine high-octane programs will compete to kick off the 2026 season in style.
Those nine are: Florida SouthWestern State College, San Jacinto College, Wharton County Junior College, Grayson College, Seminole State College, Amarillo College, Florence Darlington Tech, Lake Land College, and Wabash Valley College.
Let’s meet these programs, one by one.
Head Coach: Aaron Biddle
Home Ballpark: Fournier Field
Notable Alums: Erik Swanson, Aaron Barrett, Adisyn Coffey, Yovan Gonzalez
2025 Result: 35-23
2025 LEADERS
(MIN. 100 PA / 20 IP)
| STAT | LEADER | VALUE |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Aidyn Coffey | .400 |
| HR | AJ Malzone | 10 |
| RBI | Mueller | 58 |
| SB | Krew Bond | 23 |
| OPS | Malzone` | 1.098 |
| ERA | Trevor Fishman | 3.43 |
| WHIP | Jared Eisiminger | Bennett Holdener | 1.31 |
| K | Stone Silver | 63 |
Only a few years removed from a runner-up finish at the JUCO World Series, the Wabash Valley College Warriors are looking to get off to a hot start en route to taking that next step towards getting to the top of the mountain.
That process will start that the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series JUCO Main Event Showdown presented by DraftLine, an event that will be anything but a cakewalk given the quality of the nine-team field. For fourth-year head coach Aaron Biddle in particular, his team’s route back to Grand Junction starts with three games in three days against Grayson, Wharton and Florence-Darlington, respectively.
It’s hard to ignore the setting it’ll all take place in, however. Globe Life Field, the stunning new home of the 2023 World Series winning-Texas Rangers, will be the backdrop for the most anticipated regular season event in JUCO baseball history — and the first that’ll have meaningful games in a big-league park, of course — and a balance between getting to play in such an incredible environment versus the magnitude of the contests at hand is one that Biddle knows his team will be able to handle well.
“It’s incredible,” Biddle told FSS Plus earlier this offseason. “As a coach, you want to have these great opportunities to showcase your guys, and do it on a great stage. What better place to play than Globe Life Field, plus the field of teams down there is going to be absolutely incredible. It’s going to be an awesome week of baseball, and we’re just super excited and super blessed to be a part of it.
“I’ve gotten to know Kory (Koehler) down at San Jac over the years from playing them out at Grand Junction, and then the past couple of years we’ve gone down there and played early in the year against them, he and I developed a friendship, and he started asking us to come get involved. It’s evolved from there.”
Coming off a 35-win season, one that comes on the heels of winning a combined 99 contests over Biddle’s first two seasons at the helm, Arlington will provide a perfect setting for an eager Biddle to get a quick feel for what type of group he’ll have in 2026.
“Last year, for a lot of people, I think a lot of people love a 35-win season,” he said. “And, lack of a better term, I was pissed off when the year was over. It was, in my eyes, a major disappointment. In my coaching staff’s eyes, it was a major disappointment. We have worked our tails off all summer to make sure we were getting the right guys in here, and we’ve worked our tails off all fall to get these guys better and get them to where they need to be.
“We’ve put in the time, we’ve put in the work, and now we’re anxious to get back on the field and compete and see if we’re doing things right. If we’re not, then try to re-evaluate and figure out what we’re going to have to do to try to get better.”
To that end, the mix of players set to suit up at Globe Life will be particularly interesting to watch, as it’s a carefully curated blend of returnees and new blood that are hoping to get things back on the upswing up in Illinois, with a focus on two returning players who Biddle expects to make an immediate impact.
“Our shortstop, Enrico Veach, is committed to Louisville. He hit leadoff and played third base for us most of the year last year, and spent about a dozen games or so over at shortstop when our other guy was out with an injury. But he’s a super good player; really good bat, top of the order guy that’s going to hit, he’s going to run, he’s going to play really great defense at short.
“He had hamate surgery (this offseason), so he’s been dealing with that all fall, he played in two games this fall, and that’s been it. But, he’s going to be a catalyst for this offense and somebody that we’re super excited to have back.”
“The other guy is Connor Christenson. Connor was our second baseman the early part of last year, but the first weekend in March last year, he tore his ACL. He was having a really good year, he was hitting .314 early with a couple home runs and six stolen bases. He was able to get the medical redshirt, so we’ve got him back this year. He’s another guy who missed the entire fall, but got back to hitting (recently), and he’s a really, really good player who will be another top-of-the-order bat and probably hit in that 1-2-3 range somewhere.
“I envision he’s probably going to see some time at DH early because of the knee and still coming back from the rehab, but those two guys locking up the middle of the infield for us, once they’re both fully healthy and ready to go, is going to be a key for us.”
There may be no bigger piece to it all than Biddle himself, however. With over two decades’ worth of collegiate coaching experience, Biddle, currently an associate scout with the Philadelphia Phillies, has coached over 70 players who have gone on to play professional baseball, including two big leaguers.
“After stints at Kentucky-Wesleyan, The University of Texas-Brownsville, and Brescia University, he became a well-respected assistant at Wabash for seven seasons, and made an immediate impact when he finally took over the Warriors program in 2023, leading them to a 57-13 record and a trip to the JUCO World Series final.
Biddle feels like he’s found a home with the Warriors after a variety of roles coming up through the ranks, and is committed to doing what it takes to continue a historically successful program, having proven what he could do under sometimes-adverse situations during his stint at NAIA Brescia. A selfless, team-first attitude that got him to this point continues to carry him now.
“Rob (Fournier) had a job open up over here that I applied for on a Friday,” Biddle recalls. “I had a friend put in a call Saturday morning, Rob called me on Saturday afternoon, I interviewed on Monday with him, and he offered me the job Tuesday morning.
“The day he interviewed me, I’ll never forget the one thing he asked me, ‘How are you going to feel going from being a head coach back to an assistant coach.’ And I said, ‘Rob, I’m going to be honest with you, the only thing that matters to me is the opportunity and the opportunity to be a part of a winning program and to be able to learn and feel like I’m appreciated. I can assure you, if you give me an opportunity, I’m not going to let you down.’
“That started off a relationship that lasts to this day. Rob is one of my best friends, he was the best man in my wedding. We talk three or four times a week.
“I did anything Rob asked me to do; I came in that first year, and I coached first base, I worked with the outfielders, I helped with the hitters a little bit. Our hitting coach left in the middle of the year that year, and I took over the hitters down the stretch. We made a nice little run that year. Came back, he brought in another guy to work with the hitters and another guy on the pitching side, and I turned in to more of a bench coach-type role and worked with the catchers, and I loved that.
“I worked in that role for three years, and we made that run in ’17 to Grand Junction…before the ’19 season started, our pitching coach left, and Rob looked at me and said, ‘Bidds, I need you to take this, and I need you to do this for me.’ And I said, ‘Absolutely.’ So, I took over the pitching staff and took that over for two years. I was a college PO, so it was kind of getting back to doing what I really knew the most and had the most experience in, and was a lot of fun.
“Before the ’21 season, our hitting coach left, and they were looking for someone who could come in and take a bigger recruiting role. The guy that he liked was on the pitching side, and he said, ‘I know you’ve done a really good job in the pitching role and settled into that, but I want you to move back to the hitting side and help me with the hitters.’ And I said, ‘You know what, Rob, I don’t care about the role, I want to do what’s best for the program, and this is about getting us back to Colorado. I’m going to do whatever you ask me to do.’
“So, I did that for two years; in ’22, we made another run out to Colorado and then that summer, Rob called me and said, ‘I think I’m doing this,’ and I was in complete shock, but he took the Western Kentucky assistant job and left, and I was blessed to get the opportunity to lead this program. There’s nothing like it.
“There’s nothing that makes me happier than leading this group of guys and this program. It’s everything to me.”
About New Balance Future Stars Series
The New Balance Future Stars Series presented by Program 15 is a global platform for amateur baseball development and scouting, powered by a commitment to impact, integrity, and player-focused innovation. Its alumni can be found throughout professional baseball, and its events and partnerships have reshaped how talent is identified, nurtured, and celebrated.
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Since 2003, he has covered multiple World Series and has worked high-profile events ranging from the MLB All-Star Game to the World Baseball Classic. In addition to his role working for the Future Stars Series that he's held since 2017, Ashmore currently serves as the beat writer of the Double-A New York Yankees affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, as well as national hockey writer and New York Jets game day beat reporter for The Trentonian.
A regular contributor to Baseball America, Ashmore has worked eight Super Bowls, 12 Stanley Cup Finals, the 4 Nations Face-Off, the NBA Playoffs, College Football Playoff National Championship Game, Frozen Four, Daytona 500, major UFC events and much more as he approaches 3,300 games covered in his career.
An avid trading card enthusiast, he lives with his wife, Sarah, their son, future No. 1 overall draft pick in 2042, William, their beloved dog, Bailey, and occasionally well-behaved cat, Smokey.
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