2015
WWBA Underclass World Championship: Day 1 Notes | Day 2 Notes
There
were plenty of projectable arms on display at the 5-Plex on Saturday
in the last full day of pool play at the 2015 WWBA Underclass World
Championship.
Perhaps
the most impressive of the bunch, Jalon Long (2018, Millbrook,
Ala.) took to the mound in a resumption of a previous game that was
suspended due to inclement weather. Currently ranked 61st overall in
the class of 2018 by Perfect Game, Long is the son of former MLB
outfielder Terrence Long. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound righty has some
present strength and quick-twitch in his athletic frame. The
sophomore ran his fastball up to 88 mph in the early innings before
settling into a more consistent 84-87 mph with the heater. Young has
a very loose arm, and it works through the path extremely quickly to
his high three-quarters arm slot. There is some effort to his
delivery, and at times he can yank his front side open, but his
athleticism allows him to repeat his mechanics relatively
consistently. As one would expect for a player of his age, Long’s
fastball command is still developing and needs refinement, but the
present life and velocity on the pitch allow it to play even when
located up and out over the plate. He didn’t have to use his
curveball, an upper-60s offering with 12-to-6 break, all that often
but the pitch showed depth and finish when he was extended over his
frontside. There’s still work to be done, but there’s no doubt
that Long has a very high ceiling on the mound.
Caden
O’Brien (2017, Maiden, N.C.) also topped out at 88 mph with his
fastball. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound lefty started Southern Athletics
2017 first game of the day on Saturday, and the southpaw has a nice,
large projectable frame with quality projection remaining and room to
fill out. O’Brien, currently uncommitted, was more consistently in
the 83-86 mph range with his fastball for most of his outing, and he
had some deception in his delivery with a high lead arm and some
moving parts in his up-tempo pace to plate. He has a full, extended
arm action with some slight wrap on the backside, but he works
through to his high three-quarters arm slot thanks to solid arm
speed. There is some effort in his delivery, but he maintains decent
body control and is able to repeat his mechanics relatively
consistently because of solid core strength and athleticism. O’Brien
also flashed a 72-75 mph curveball with varied tilt, with the best
offerings showing 12-to-6 shape and average depth and finish. His
changeup was the more consistent secondary pitch, as the 69-73 mph
offering had some slight fade and was thrown with similar arm speed
and arm action.
Austin
Cole (2017, Tivoli, N.Y.) is listed at 6-foot-5, 210-pounds, but
the young righthanded pitcher is probably closer to 6-foot-6 and
180-pounds. Cole, also currently uncommitted, has a narrow frame but
still has plenty of room to fill out and add strength as he matures
and gets into the weight room. With very long limbs, Cole presents a
different and intimidating look for opposing hitters. In the early
going he was up to 86 mph with his fastball before settling more
consistently into the low-80s. Cole has a full, extended arm swing
and he’s able to work through a hook on the backside because of
solid arm speed. As he gains strength, one can easily envision Cole
adding more velocity as he matures. Cole used his fastball heavily
throughout the outing, but he also flashed a decent changeup in the
mid-70s. He is definitely an arm from the Northeast arm worth
watching over the next couple of years.
Trey
Dillard (2017, Phoenix, Ariz.) flashed the best fastball velocity
at the complex, hitting 92 mph in his short relief stint. The
6-foot-2, 200-pound righthanded pitcher was up to 90 mph
consistently, but he struggled to find the strike zone as he has in
the past. With a medium-compact arm action and clean stroke, the
balls comes out well out of his hand. When he was able to snyc up his
upper and lower halves, Dillard showed the ability to get the ball
down in the zone, where his heater flashed solid downhill plane and
angle and was extremely hard to hit. He also flashed a quality
breaking ball in the 74-77 range with two-plane depth and solid
11-to-5 tilt. Dillard will have to continue to iron out his delivery
and more consistently command his fastball, but he has considerable
upside and it is easy to see why he’s currently ranked 162nd in the
2017 class.
Last
week, Nathan Webb (2017, Moreno Valley, Calif.) hit two home
runs at the California World Series and was up to 91 mph off the
mound. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound UC Riverside commit has big-time
tools with very impressive bat speed. On Saturday, Webb again
displayed his high-end tools, whipping the bat head out and driving
an elevated fastball about 380 feet to left field for a home run. At
times, Webb’s swing can be a bit too rotational with his swing,
spinning off of his frontside, but he has serious strength and juice
in his muscular, well-proportioned frame. Webb also caught in Next
Level Titan’s second game on Saturday afternoon, and he sets a nice
target and receives pretty well. He also has a strong arm (see the 91
mph velocity off the mound), but he can get a bit loose and sloppy
with his footwork at times. Still, it was a promising look for an
intriguing player and if he can continue to stick there than he has
extremely high upside.
Cameron
Pferrer (2017, Carmel, Ind.) came out of the bullpen for Lids
Indiana Bulls and turned some heads with his 86-89 mph fastball. The
6-foot-1, 175-pound righthander is currently uncommitted, and he
worked exclusively out of the stretch. With a leg lift above the belt
and a small hip turn and coil and the apex, Pferrer has a good burst
to the plate and gets extended over his frontside with a deep release
and long stride. Working from a high three quarters arm slot, Pferrer
maintains good balance thanks to his strong core and flashed decent
command of his heater. He didn’t use his short 77-79 mph slider too
often, and while he got around a few of them, they flashed solid
potential.
Jared
Shemper (2017, Germantown, Tenn.) is an intriguing lefthanded
pitcher. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound southpaw has broad shoulders and
athletic build. While he doesn’t have the most projectable frame,
Shemper still has room to fill out. He has some deception in his
delivery with a small hip turn and coil. At times Shemper struggled
with maintaining a direct line to the plate, but there is some
looseness and athleticism in his mechanics that portend solid body
control. His arm action is long and loose, and there is some spring
and bounce on the backside before coming through to a three-quarters
arm slot. The lefty worked in the 81-85 mph range with his fastball,
with the offering showing solid arm-side run. He also flashed a
low-70s breaking ball with some sweep and decent depth and a
developing changeup.
William
Heurtin (2017, Covington, La.) and Riley Bertram (2017,
Zionsville, Ill.) form a solid middle infield duo for the Evoshield
Canes Southeast team. Both Heurtin and Bertram have medium athletic
frames and show lateral quickness and range in the field.
Additionally, both players have strong feel for the barrel with quick
hands and a level, line-drive swings.
Drew
Bolden (2017, Atlanta, Ga.) is a primary outfielder, but the
junior also displayed some solid arm strength and arm speed off of
the mound on Saturday afternoon. Bolden, an uncommitted righthander,
has an athletic 6-foot, 175-pound frame and he ran his fastball up to
87 mph a couple of times and 86 on a handful of other occasions.
While he predominately worked in the 82-84 mph range, the
broad-shouldered Bolden has some natural tail and solid sink on the
offering, and when it was located down in the zone it was a tough
pitch to barrel. There is some effort in his delivery, but the arm
action is pretty clean and the combination of arm speed and
athleticism is intriguing.
– Andrew
Krause
The
Dirtbags 17’s, a well-known North Carolina-based club. started the
action in Charlotte County early Saturday morning. Austin Beck
(2017, Clemmons, N.C.) showed extremely well defensively in both of
the Dirtbags games, and also showed some intriguing offensive tools
to go along with his impressive physicality and speed. He’s a
no-doubt center fielder at the next level, one who will be able to
make a near immediate impact on the UNC team just due to his
defensive abilities. He’s strong throughout his body, and that
strength translates well to his offensive prowess, where he shows the
ability to drive the ball into both gaps and use his plus speed to
grab extra bases.
Beck’s
teammate and fellow outfielder Jeremy Whitehead (2017,
Huntersville, N.C.) is a true burner, with the type of athleticism
and speed that immediately impact the top of any lineup. His swing is
geared for spray contact, and once the ball is in play, he’s got as
much of a shot as anyone to turn routine groundballs into singles due
to his plus-plus wheels from the left side.
Opposing
the Dirtbags was the Atlanta Blue Jays and their catcher Luis
Aviles (2017, Palmetto Bay, Fla.) showed some solid upside
potential both with the glove and the bat. He has impressive
receiving skills behind the plate and moves well back there to both
sides and his catch-and-throw lower half mechanics are very nearly
ideal. He also has some thunder in his swing with a power approach
highlighted by a big leg kick and lifted swing.
Houston
Select’s Brice Armistead (2017, Katy, Texas) started their
mid-morning game on Friday, and was impressive in shutting down
opposing hitters over the entirety of his outing. He worked 80-85
from more compact arm action to three-quarters slot with solid arm
speed and a bit of deception. He did a good job getting the fastball
down to both sides of the plate and changing speeds within his
velocity band. He mixed in a quality curveball that showed solid spin
and depth at 70-72, throwing it for strikes and as a chase pitch.
Houston
Select’s offensive output was paced by Justin Collins (2017,
Houston, Texas), a 6-foot-1, 203-pound catcher who possesses advanced
strength with jump off the barrel. He showed off his present power
with a one-hop double off the left-center field wall at the stadium
of the Rays complex, and that power is only going to get bigger as he
continues to develop and hone his offensive game.
North
East Baseball often boasts a highly talented lineup, and this year’s
edition of their Underclass team is no exception. Christian Fedko,
a 2017 third baseman who is committed to UConn, showed very well both
defensively and offensively. He’s athletic on the charge with the
body control needed to clear his hips out of the way and throw
accurately, on a line, to first base. He has solid hand speed at the
plate with a line drive approach that often results in hard contact
all over the field.
Joe
Simeone (2017, Groton, Mass.) started for NEB, and certainly
flashed Division I quality stuff. Working 84-87 across his outing,
Simeone was able to work his fastball down with some success and keep
the ball of the barrel. His changeup is very advanced, with excellent
wrist pronation out front that really puts fading action on the
pitch, to go along with fastball-replicating arm speed.
Drayton
Harris (2018, Royse City, Texas) is a righthanded pitcher who
needs to be on the radar, as he was very impressive in his start for
the Louisiana All Starts on Saturday afternoon. At 6-foot-1,
165-pounds Harris is very projectable and has lots of room to fill
out his frame with strength. He’s already working 84-87 with a very
loose, very easy arm action that will certainly continue to add
velocity as he fills out. His delivery is slightly crossfire so he
has some trouble getting to the glove side at times, but for the most
part is command profile is advanced. He has feel for a pair of
secondary offerings with a curveball and changeup, both of which are
good pitches for him now. His curve showed 11-to-5 shape with good
spin and depth in the low-70s, while his changeup was highly
deceptive with tumbling action.
In
the eyes of this scout, the best fastball command of the tournament
so far belongs to Jacob Kuchmaner (2017, Waxhaw, N.C.).
Kuchmaner started for the On Deck O’s Black in their pivotal
matchup with Team GA 17u Elite, with the winner taking the pool. Team
GA ultimately prevailed, but it would be criminal not to mention the
performance that Kuchmaner put on. He stabs some in the back of his
arm circle but comes out of it well, and it’s clean action through
acceleration into extension and release from high three-quarters
slot. He was basically able to put his fastball wherever he wanted it
whenever he wanted to for the vast majority of his start, and was
especially effective working down and away to the lefthanded-heavy
Team Georgia lineup. Rarely mixing in a curveball and a short cutter,
he was primarily fastball/changeup and did a really good job keeping
the opposing hitters off balance. He’s committed to East Carolina,
and absolutely looks the part of a future weekend starter who
commands the strike zone at a very high level.
In
the other dugout, Team Georgia’s shortstop David Dunn (2017,
Alpharetta, Ga.) was very impressive defensively. His frame projects
to add good weight while retaining his excellent athleticism and
looseness, and he surely projects to stay at shortstop at the
collegiate level. With high level defensive instincts and actions to
go along with quality first step quickness and range, Dunn’s
defensive prowess will carry his profile. He also runs very well,
showing times down in the line in the 4.3-4.4 seconds range right
now, which benefits his line drive-oriented swing that is built for
contact to all fields.
Nolan
Crisp really burst onto the scene during the summer when, as a
rising ninth grader, he hit 86-87 mph at various WWBA and PG World
Series events. The McDonough, Georgia righthanded pitcher started for
the Houston Banditos on Saturday afternoon and drew a solid crowd of
coaches from big schools, all hoping to catch a glimpse of the young
flamethrower. Crisp started out working 85-86, touching 87 in the
first inning, but command issues forced him to ease off the throttle
some to 82-84, where he found much more success. He throws from an
extended three quarters arm slot and uses his lower half very well,
showing flexibility and athleticism in his delivery from his athletic
build/frame. At the lower velocities, his fastball has solid
sinking/running action when down in the zone, and he shows advanced
feel to spin a hard slider as well, working in the mid-70s with hard
tilt when spun correctly. He’s obviously advanced in terms of arm
speed, arm strength, and breaking ball feel for a prospect of his
grade level, and absolutely someone keeping an eye on as we work
towards 2016.
Crisp’s
teammate, Jack Rogers (2017, Spring, Texas) is committed to
Sam Houston State as a primary pitcher, but his offensive prowess
shown on Saturday make him an intriguing two way option to watch
closely as he develops. With a long, lean frame that features plenty
of projectable room to fill, Rogers has the athleticism to play an
outfield corner spot in addition to his primary position as a
lefthanded pitcher. He has advanced bat to ball skills with good
barrel control and hand-eye coordination, matching the plane of his
swing to the plane of the pitch and squaring up line drives to all
fields. He’ll surely develop some more power to go along with that
natural hitting ability as he continues to develop as well.
– Brian
Sakowski
The
matchup between Team Elite Prime 17U and US Elite 2018's Saturday
afternoon at Mack Field at Terry Park was for a playoff spot, as both
teams entered the game with 2-0 pool play records. It also appeared
to be a bit of a mismatch, as Team Elite is truly one of the elite
teams in the country and features a roster both long on Division I
commits and heavy on extra big and strong athletes. There are high
school football teams who likely envy Team Elite's size. US Elite,
on the other hand, was made up entirely of freshman and sophomores
and were not only younger but outsized by 30-40 pounds a position, to
use football language.
Of
course, in baseball that doesn't always matter. The game featured a
bit of everything from a prospect and competitive standpoint.
Team
Elite was forced to start ace righthander Weston Bizzle (2017,
Memphis, Tenn.) who they likely would have rather saved for the
playoffs. Bizzle was his usual self, working in the 88-90 mph range
and striking out 12 hitters in six innings of work. He relied far
more heavily on his curveball than usual, with about half his 97
pitches being breaking balls. Bizzle has tremendous feel for changing
speeds on the pitch and will throw it anywhere between 72 and 78 mph
with the same shape and depth. The utility and command of his
breaking ball makes his fastball, which can be a bit straight at
times, play up in velocity.
However,
Bizzle was touched for two runs in the first inning, highlighted by a
very loud triple off the bat of outfielder Troy LaNeve (2019,
Gibsonia, Pa.). LaNeve is a very talented and precocious lefthanded
hitter who is ranked ninth in the very early PG 2019 class rankings.
The confidence of the early lead was boosted by a number of
outstanding US Elite defensive plays in the early innings, including
highlight real efforts from shortstop Nic Kent (2018,
Gordonsville, Va.), center fielder Cullan Wadsworth (2018,
Orefield, Pa.) and second baseman Phillip Dull (2018, Alum
Bank, Pa.).
Dull
was also up to 89 mph on the mound with a hard breaking ball that
flashed tight spin and bite while pitching in relief late in the
game.
Team
Elite eventually wore down their younger opponents and emerged with a
5-2 win and a spot in the playoffs. Catcher/outfielder Steven
Williams (2017, Albany, Ga.) provided the highlight in the
comeback with the hardest contact I've seen this week and probably in
the last two months, an absolutely crushed triple off the center
field fence just to the left of the 400-foot sign. The 6-foot-3,
210-pound lefthanded hitter was just a little late on a similar power
swing in a later at-bat or he might have driven a ball across the
street behind the right field fence. The Auburn commit has some
serious strength and power.
(Sidenote:
A total of 29 teams out of the 246 present (11.8 percent) in Fort
Myers this weekend have the word "Elite" in their team
name.)
Palm
Beach Select Underclass Gold shortstop Xavier Edwards (2018,
Wellington, Fla.) is a prime example of why size doesn't always
matter in baseball. The 5-foot-8, 140-pound switch-hitter has been
on PG's prospect map since he was a 125-pound eighth grader and
already has a verbal commitment to Vanderbilt. Edwards went 2-for-4
Saturday morning while hitting lefthanded, driving one ball hard up
the middle, placing a perfect bunt down the third base line and
running 3.9 home to first while letting up and lining hard up the
right-center field alley for a tough out. Past scouting has shown
that Edwards has surprising gap power from both sides of the plate.
He wasn't challenged in the field in this game but has also shown
very good defensive actions and tools, especially when playing second
base.
A
couple of Marucci Elite 16's prospects impressed in Marucci's 4-1 win
over Edwards' Palm Beach squad. Righthanded pitcher Alexander
Kobersteen (2018, Fredericksburg, Va.) is listed at 6-foot-1,
140-pounds and very little of that weight is in his lower half. He
has a loose and fast arm action that produced an 84-87 mph fastball
that had outstanding running and sinking life at times. Kobersteen
showed lots of confidence in a quality changeup and threw a few
upper-70s sliders with short cutter action that can be further
developed. He gets very little use out of his young lower half in
his delivery and it's easy to see him making a velocity jump when he
starts to physically mature.
Marucci
righthanded pitcher Will Ripoll (2018, Rosenberg, Texas) has a
strong young middle infielder's build and looks to be a nice athlete.
He pitched in the 84-86 mph range but his best pitch was a big and
occasionally nasty 12-to-6 downer curveball up to 76 mph. It's rare
to see a young pitcher who has that hard a power curveball who
doesn't project more velocity in the future. He reminds me a bit of
former PG All-American and current Oklahoma standout Sheldon Neuse.
The
Florida Burn have been playing very typical Florida Burn baseball and
enter the playoffs as the No. 1 seed, as PG's Jeff Dahn details here.
"Burn Baseball" is pretty simple in its execution;
pitchers pound the strike zone and pitch to contact, fielders make
clean and simple plays and hitters execute a team oriented sequential
offense.
Starting
righthander Sam Keating (2017, Fort Myers, Fla.), a Clemson
commit, did his part on Saturday for the Burn, throwing four no-hit
innings while striking out seven and throwing 70 percent of his
pitches for strikes. Keating rarely threw a pitch at the belt and
was mostly at the knees with a fastball that touched 89 mph but was
more commonly at 84 mph with heavy sinking life. He used a hard
mid-70s curveball for many of his strikeouts but essentially only
used his off-speed stuff as a knockout pitch when ahead in the count.
Keating's
Canterbury High School teammate, infielder Cooper Swanson
(2017, Fort Myers, Fla.), is no relation to 2015 No. 1 overall draft
pick Dansby Swanson despite the name similarity and his Vanderbilt
commit. He does, however, have one of the nicest swings seen this
week and laced two hard singles to left field on Saturday. Swanson
is just coming back from a broken ankle suffered in July and looked a
bit tentative still running the bases but there was no hesitation in
his righthanded swing.
Chandler
World 16u also cruised into the playoffs with a 3-0 record, riding
righthander Christopher McMahon's (2017, West Chester, Pa.)
masterpiece in a 6-0 pool play clinching win over Team Georgia
Baseball Academy Prospects Saturday evening. McMahon threw a
complete game, striking out 16 hitters without issuing a walk. He
did this throwing over 90 percent fastballs, mostly in the 86-90 mph
range, and lots of the at-bats were of the "good morning, good
evening, good night" variety as the 6-foot-2, 180-pound McMahon
simply pumped heat past hitters who knew it was coming. McMahon does
a very good job of powering downhill from a high three-quarters arm
slot and gets ideal leverage at release out over his front side. His
challenge for taking the next step will be to develop a viable
breaking ball, with a slider to replace his present curveball a
possibility.
McMahon's
teammate, shortstop Jonjon Conahan (2018, Teaneck, N.J.),
showed a quick righthanded swing and laced a pair of doubles to drive
the Chandler offense.
Another
high level pitching performance, this one by lefthander Joesph
Graziano (2017, Schererville, Ind.) propelled APEX Baseball to a
3-0 record and a playoff spot as well. Graziano is a very young
looking junior with a 6-foot-1, 160-pound frame and a loose and easy
arm action from an extended high three-quarters arm slot. He only
needed 90 pitches in a complete game two-hit shutout over Longshots
Baseball and struck out 10 hitters. His stuff wasn't overpowering,
touching 85 mph with a big breaking upper-60s curveball, but his
command was outstanding. Graziano has a very good chance to throw
harder in the future and already has a good grasp on the other
essentials of pitching.
Although
this scout only saw one inning of one game and can't offer a talent
evaluation, the pitching that playoff-bound Phenom Signature showed
Saturday warrants mention. Four Signature pitchers threw 13 innings
in a pair of wins at Terry Park without allowing a hit, posting two
no-hitters. Lefthander Patrick Wicklander (2018, San Jose,
Calif.) was especially impressive, tossing a seven-inning complete
game no-no against a strong FTB Royal team. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound
Wicklander needed only 85 pitches, working with an 84-87 mph fastball
and a low-70s curveball and throwing over 70 percent strikes.
– David
Rawnsley
Team
Elite Prime 16u appears to be in good shape for the coming years in
terms of pitching as they have the current top player in the 2018
class in righthander Kumar Rocker who forms a formidable duo with
fellow righthander Ethan Hankins (2018, Cumming, Ga.), who
more than impressed on Saturday night. Listed at 6-foot-5,
187-pounds, Hankins is one of the top players in the 2018 class
himself, coming in at No. 19 and has as bright of a future as any
player within the class.
Though
he’s grown roughly three inches or so in the last year Hankins
shows very good coordination and athleticism in his delivery,
repeating it well which in turn allows him to pound the strike zone
with solid downhill plane to his fastball. With an extremely loose
and easy arm action the uncommitted Hankins was able to generate
effortless velocity which he held over the course of his outing,
sitting in the 86-89 mph range, touching 90 on the first couple of
pitches. He lands closed off with his front side but it didn’t
impact anything he did on the mound and in fact may have helped as he
worked over his front leg well and created solid angle, especially
when locating down to his glove side. His fastball showed consistent
running life with which he was able to miss 10 bats over his five
inning, one-hit performance.
Both
of his off-speed pitches, a changeup and curveball, showed solid
progression since my last viewing of Hankins from this summer,
particularly with his feel for his breaking ball. Thrown in the
low-70s the pitch featured some depth to it and he did a nice job of
mixing them in though he worked predominantly off of his fastball. He
did show one breaking ball at 74 mph that gave more of a slider look
with tighter rotation and showed some short tilting life. His
changeup wasn’t a go-to pitch either for the young righthander
though he did show it in warms up and threw one early in the game at
79 mph, giving him a three-pitch mix with comfort in each. Hankins
did a nice job of maintaining his arm action and arm speed on the
pitch, leading a batter to think fastball out of his hand before
coming in 10 mph slower with late fading life.
Saturday
night was my first look at Will Banfield (2018, Lawrenceville,
Ga.) and I walked away impressed with the overall skillset, both
behind the plate and with the stick. With a physical yet very loose
and flexible 6-foot, 187-pound frame Banfield stood out behind the
plate for his overall looseness and quickness behind the plate. He
did a nice job of receiving Hankins' high quality stuff and put an
end to the running game quickly throwing out the lone attempted theft
while showing off advanced arm strength with carry on his throws in
between innings as well. A righthanded hitter, Banfield showed some
of the biggest bat speed with natural leverage coming to the ball. He
digs in with an open lower half and does a nice job of striding
closed as he moves into contact. After going hitless in his first two
at-bats of the game Banfield squared up a pitch for a loud and hard
line drive double to his pull side, again showing his bat speed and
strength at contact.
Alek
Boychuk (2020, Buford, Ga.) was featured in Friday's recap based
mostly off his defensive abilities behind the plate. With Banfield
calling pitches Saturday afternoon, Boychuk took reps at third base
though it was the bat that impressed in this look. With a strong
5-foot-11 frame the young righthanded bat showed advanced bat speed
for a player his age and showed no signs of intimidation at the dish.
Showing natural lift in his swing Boychuk just missed barreling up a
ball and instead drove in a run with a sac fly to the left-center
field gap. In his final at-bat of the night Boychuk jumped on an
inner-half fastball he could handle and ripped it down the left field
line for an easy standup double with hard jump coming off the barrel.
You
won’t miss lefthander Jacob Smith (2018, Calera, Ala.) when
he’s on the mound as he stands 6-foot-6, 213-pounds and he does a
nice job of using the height to his advantage. With nice fluidity and
smoothness to his delivery for a pitcher his size and age, Smith
showed a quick arm action with some effort from an extended
three-quarters arm action as he produced a fastball in the 83-85 mph
range early and bumped an 86. The fastball leaves his hand rather
cleanly and he does a nice job of working on top of the ball which
helped generate consistent downhill plane with short running life to
his arm side. He also showed a feel for two different breaking balls,
the first of which was a curveball in the 70-71 mph range with big
1-to-7 shape and depth. The uncommitted Smith also showed a slider at
73 mph and showed more vertical, sweeping life as he broke the pitch
out to pick up a swinging third strike to finish off the batter.
Hunter
Milligan (2017, Greenbrier, Ark.) is another young and very
impressive lefthander, both with his overall stuff and physicality of
his 6-foot-4 frame, but unlike Smith he’s committed to Mississippi
State. In a quick one inning of work Milligan threw almost all
fastballs, each coming in the 86-89 mph range with hard and late
sinking life from a short and quick arm action. He worked exclusively
out of the stretch and punched out the first two batters he faced
showing rather easy velocity out of his hand with the ability to get
the ball to the lower quadrants of the zone. The only two off-speed
pitches he threw were both changeups (at 81 and 82 mph) and the
second one showed quality fading life with late downward drop.
Continuing
with the theme of young catchers, Zachary Mazur (2018, Palm
Beach Gardens, Fla.) quickly put an end to the running game in the
first inning with a pop time in the low 1.9 range, showing solid
present catch-and-throw skills. He moved well defensively to either
side and blocked well in the dirt before lining a pitch for a two bag
hit to his pull side in his final trip to the plate, capping a
quality day at the yard for Mazur.
Cade
Hungate (2018, Abingdon, Va.) is a strong piece to a nice 2018
recruiting class for Florida State University, and while he has
two-way potential at the next level it was his defensive play at
third base and righthanded swing that was noteworthy on Saturday. The
one particular play that stood out from Hungate came on a slow
chopper in which he immediately broke in and delivered an off balance
strike to nail the runner on a bang-bang play.
Zeb
Stough (2018, Lewisberry, Pa.) had a nice day at the plate, twice
hitting the ball hard from the right side while showing a feel to use
all parts of the yard. With a strong 6-foot-1, 195-pound frame Stough
showed the ability to cover the plate as he went with the pitch and
drove a double to the opposite field gap. Later in the game Stough
came to the plate again and this time pulled a pitch over the
shortstop’s head for a hard line drive single into left field.
Ethan
Smith (2018, Mount Juliet, Tenn.) and Stephen Pelli (2018,
Arnold, Md.) are two young righthanders who impressed throughout the
summer circuit and have continued that trend into the fall with the
EvoShield Prime 2018 team. Both uncommitted, Smith was the first arm
to take the mound and the 6-foot-3 Tennessee native certainly
impressed the onlooking college coaches.
A
sound athlete with a projectable build, Smith works through his
delivery well and does a nice job of repeating it while adding
deception with a Clayton Kershaw-esque type stutter as he brings down
his front leg before driving towards the mound. His arm action is
quick through the back and he was able to consistently get on top of
the ball with his high three-quarters release point. Smith lived at
the bottom of the strike zone with his fastball, sitting comfortably
in the 85-88 mph range over his couple of innings with a curveball
that he showed the ability to manipulate the shape off. With some
breaking balls showing true 12-to-6 hammer shape with hard downward
bite in the upper-70s, Smith would at times show more slider to it
with tilt rather than depth and still proved to be an effective
pitch. Though he didn’t show it often, his changeup has as much
potential as any of his other pitches showing good fading life to it
in the upper-70s, giving him a full three-pitch arsenal that projects
well moving forward.
If
you blinked, you missed Stephen Pelli’s appearance on the mound as
he came in to close the game in full attack mode and set the side
down 1-2-3 in order. With a strong, broad-shouldered 6-foot,
190-pound frame Pelli worked with an up-tempo delivery and filled up
the strike zone with a fastball that sat in the upper-80s and touched
a 90, showing running life to his arm side and downhill plane. He did
a nice job of consistently locating to his arm side and flashed both
a changeup at 79 mph and a curveball at 74 mph a time each as he
attacked mostly with his heater.
Ma’Khail
Hilliard (2017, Baton Rouge, La.) may not be the biggest player
yet but that’s what adds intrigue as he’s listed at 6-foot,
145-pound but his arm action is fast and very live upon release. Up
to 87 mph with his fastball on Saturday throughout the course of his
outing, it’ll be fun to watch Hilliard’s stuff develop over the
next two years with added strength, especially given the amount of
cutting life he would show on his fastball at times. His breaking
ball however is his bread-and-butter pitch, an upper-70s offering
with extremely tight and hard rotation and equally as impressive
shape which he used to pick up several swings and misses and will
continue to be an out pitch for him whenever he takes the mound.
Tim
Elko (2017, Lutz, Fla.) already has an impressive 6-foot-4,
225-pound frame, and given his young look there’s reason to believe
he’ll get even stronger which is something that’s scary to think
about. A primary third baseman, Elko got the start at first base and
moved very well for his size showing smooth footwork around the bag
and rather flexible actions when stretching to receive a throw. The
bat will be his calling card and it showed up in Saturday afternoon’s
game as he picked up two base knocks in his first two at-bats. With a
balanced stance at the plate and a smooth stroke capable of producing
easy bat speed, Elko bounced a single up the middle in his first trip
before going with an outer half pitch that got over the left
fielder’s head for a two-base hit.
– Jheremy
Brown