Indiana HS catcher Sean Dunlap commits to Tennessee
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Prep baseball players in the state of Indiana continue to prove that the Hoosier state produces more than basketball players and corn. Crown Point catcher Sean Dunlap is the latest Indiana high school player to commit to play baseball in the SEC.
I spoke with Dunlap on the phone and asked him about his commitment to play for University of Tennessee, the No. 1 team in the country.
“How could you not pick Tennessee! Everything from the facilities, the coaches, to the staff there. It’s just amazing. It felt like something I wanted to be a part of,” Dunlap said.
Dunlap is one of the state’s top prospects in the Class of 2026, but it wasn’t always that way.
“I wasn’t on anyone’s radar, like ever,” Dunlap said, “No one knew about me before this summer and now we’re here.”
Things have clearly changed. Dunlap, who is now 6’3″ and nearly 200lbs, thinks a part of the reason he was overlooked was due to him being on the smaller side when he was younger.
“I was like 5’8″ and 130 pounds as an eighth grader and I started travel ball really late,” he added.
Dunlap also didn’t start catching consistently until he was 13.
“Our catcher broke his wrist; I put the glove on and haven’t looked back.”
It’s paid off, too. According to Prep Baseball Report’s Cooper Trinkle, Dunlap will be the first SEC catcher to come from Indiana since Hayden Jones signed to Mississippi State in 2018. That’s if Dunlap doesn’t sign professionally first.
“By all early indications, Dunlap appears to be a legitimate prospect for the 2026 MLB Draft with his professional-looking frame and high-end catch and throw abilities that he pairs with his power potential in the right-handed batters’ box. After the Future Games, I tabbed Dunlap as the best backstop to come from the state in 10 years,” Trinkle wrote.
The skies the limit for Dunlap and he’s proud of his Indiana roots.
“I feel like the Midwest is overlooked when it comes to baseball,” he said “Indiana baseball players are just raw, and the grit from being up north, we’re just ready to get at it everyday.”
Good luck, Sean!