Sam Houston’s Cameron Meeks named Louisiana’s Mr. Baseball for 2019

By Warren Arceneaux
Written for the LSWA
In addition to a new home, Sam Houston’s Cameron Meeks found a few extra miles per hour on his fastball and a chance to play on the biggest stage in his one season as a Bronco.

Meeks helped the Broncos reach the state championship game for the first time in a decade by going 10-0 with a save and 0.69 ERA as a pitcher while hitting .405 with 5 HR and 51 RBIs. For that he was named Louisiana Farm Bureau Insurance/LSWA Mr. Baseball, the state’s most outstanding player chosen by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association.

Meeks, who played his first three seasons at Captain Shreve, said his best performance was his last, a 4-0 win over Parkway in the state semifinals. The outing led the Broncos to their first championship game appearance since 2009. Sam Houston had lost three semifinal games since then.

“It was the best moment of the year and I think it was my best performance,” Meeks said. “It was really fun. I had never played in front of that many people. I was nervous at first, but I calmed down and my velocity was the highest it has ever been. I had confidence my teammates would make the plays behind me and they made every one of them.”

Meeks said the success he enjoyed the season resulted from months of preparation.

“I put in a lot of work in the offseason, a lot of running and working out,” he said. “I knew expectations would be high because everyone knew the amount of talent we had. We were expecting a lot to and I am glad the season went as expected.”
The Broncos were briefly ranked as the top team in the country, finished the season with a 36-5 record, including a win over eventual state champion Barbe in which Meeks was the winning pitcher.

Meeks was drafted in the 38th round by the Boston Red Sox, but is a McNeese State signee and plans to play for the Cowboys.

“I’m looking forward to it, I have met some of the players and like them,” he said. “I like Lake Charles, especially the people, and want to help McNeese win a few more conference championships.”

La. Farm Bureau Insurance/LSWA Mr. Baseball
1996: Joe Lawrence, Barbe
1997: Chucky Son, Parkview Baptist
1998: Aaron Lowe, Parkway
1999: Nick Bourgeois, Barbe
2000: Austin Nagle, Barbe
2001: Austin Nagle, Barbe/Jonathan Zeringue, E.D. White
2002: Greg Smith, Alexandria
2003: Matt Greenwich, Parkview Baptist
2004: Ben Soignier, West Monroe
2005: Beau Jones, Destrehan
2006: Forrest Moore, Parkview Baptist
2007: Carmen Angelini, Barbe
2008: Zack Von Rosenberg, Zachary
2009: Zack Von Rosenberg, Zachary
2010: Bryan Picou, Northlake Christian
2011: Aaron Nola, Catholic-BR
2012: Gavin Cecchini, Barbe
2013: Jared Poché, Lutcher
2014: Chase Vallot, St. Thomas More
2015: Kale Breaux, Sulphur
2016: Nick Webre, Teurlings Catholic
2017: Jacob Pearson, West Monroe
2018: Cade Beloso, John Curtis
2019: Cameron Meeks, Sam Houston