Preble grad Max Wagner named ACC baseball player of the year

CLEMSON, S.C. (NBC 26) — Not many saw Max Wagner's sophomore season coming.

Maybe not even Wagner himself.

"Just grateful," the Green Bay Preble alumnus said after learning he had won ACC Player of the Year honors. "Shocked was probably the word that came into my head when I first heard."

The 20-year-old put up monster numbers in 2022. He batted .369 and hit 27 home runs, tying the Tigers single-season program record.

"I'd say the experience I got my freshman year," Wagner said when asked how he found so much success this spring. "Even though (my freshman year) didn't go the way I wanted to... I knew I was an everyday player here."

As a true freshman in 2021, Wagner hit just .214 and struck out in nearly 40 percent of his at bats.

"It definitely took a toll on me, just confidence-wise," he said.

"I was always that guy up in Wisconsin, I was a dude. It just felt like that status just went away freshman year."

He said a focus on his mental health helped him turn things around.

"I reached out with our mental guy (at Clemson)," Wagner said. "He kind of took me under his wing a little bit. He helped me out with this year and the success I've had because the mental side of the game is really big."

Now, he'll go down as one of the best players in Clemson baseball history, alongside players like current major-leaguer Seth Beer.

And Wagner might not be far behind him.

"Just to hear my name with those kind of guys... The Clemson greats. It's unreal," he said. "I know how much recognition those guys get."

"I just feel grateful," he added. "And like I said, (it's) just hard work."

Speaking with local reporters Monday, Wagner said he hadn't thought much about the MLB Draft. He's currently projected as a first-round pick.