2017 WWBA Underclass World Championship: Daily Leaders | Day 1 Notes | Day 2 Notes
The Royals Scout Team catcher Hayden Travinski (2019, Haughton, La.) has had a strong tournament, and, despite serving as the designated hitter on Friday morning, has strong tools behind the plate. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 228-pounds, the backstop is an immense physical presence with well-proportioned strength, especially through the lower half. The Louisiana State commit showed off his catch-and-throw abilities on Friday catching a runner at second base with a 1.94-second pop time. He receives the ball well enough behind the plate and the arm strength stands out from the position. Offensively he has tremendous strength with a lofted swing plane and projects well for power now and in the future.
Talented righthander Nolan Crisp (2019, McDonough, Ga.) took the hill for Team Elite in one of the early games over at the Lee County Player Development Complex and showed off his strong talent. The Florida commit worked in the mid- to upper-80s for the duration of the outing while topping out at 89 mph. The arm speed is undoubtedly impressive, and Crisp has been upwards of 92 mph in past viewings. He showed off the lively fastball while mixing in the tight slider in the mid-70s as an effective secondary offering. Crisp was remarkably difficult to square up as the command of the fastball was excellent to the tune of only allowing one hit in six shutout innings pitched. The outing was also an efficient one for the righthander as he needed just 70 pitches to get through the opposition en route to a victory for his Team Elite squad.
Toeing the rubber for the eventual No. 2 playoff seed BigStix 17u Prime, righthander John Moses Jr. (2019, Union City, Ga.) turned in a strong start to help push his team to bracket play. Listed at 6-foot and 155-pounds, which seems a bit on the conservative side, the uncommitted arm has a strong athletic frame on the mound.
Throwing from a compact and quick arm action, Moses Jr. was able to work the fastball to either side of the plate early and often. The pitch registered up to 89 mph in the first inning and sat in the 84-87 mph range throughout the frame. He was able to create plane and get on top of the fastball when working low in the strike zone and threw from a slightly crossfire landing spot.
Moses Jr. showed off the ability to spin the ball as well which worked well to keep hitters off balance and also gave him a pitch to throw for strikes when his command of the fastball would waver a bit. The breaking ball showed good tilt with late bite and was very effective when he got on top. There are a lot of interesting raw tools to the profile and the quickness of his arm really stands out.
Rolling into the playoffs with the No. 5 overall seed, the Canes 17u needed some late inning runs to secure the victory and the go-ahead run came courtesy of Tucker Flint (2019, East Greenwich, R.I.). The 6-foot-2, 198-pound outfielder has good size and strength to the current frame with a simple and easy swing from the left side. The Maryland commit came up with the biggest hit of the game and showed off his raw strength to all fields as he took an elevated fastball to the opposite field gap to one-hop the wall and plate a run. There is good bat speed to the swing path with looseness to the hands. He covers the plate well as he extended over the outside part (the pitch might have been even further than that) and the overall swing projects very nicely.
Casey Green (2019, Chestervield, Va.) recorded eight of the final nine outs during the win for the Canes and showed off a very intriguing skill-set in the process. The righthander has an extremely physically projectable frame at a listed 6-foot-5, 180-pounds and extremely long limbs.
Green pitches exclusively from the stretch with a full and loose arm action – although the arm circle is a bit long which can lead to some timing issues – and worked best when he was on top of the fastball. The pitch sat in the 85-88 mph range and featured occasional plane to the otherwise straight pitch. With the length of the limbs and arm action it can be difficult to time up and repeat the delivery, so the exclusive stretch helps Green keep it simple in that regard. The delivery only features a higher leg lift that helps him extend and get his lower half moving toward the plate. He mixed in a soft curveball as a secondary pitch that worked in the low-70s and could be thrown for strikes. The frame and looseness to the arm are extremely attractive and there is a ton of more velocity in the tank.
Turning in an outstanding performance during the afternoon slots over at CenturyLink was Caleb Stallings (2019, Apopka, Fla.), who twirled a complete game shutout during his team’s final game of pool play. Stallings worked all three pitches for strikes and kept the opposing hitters at bay for the entire game.
Stallings is a lean and athletic with long legs and a pretty low effort overall delivery. The arm action was shorter and easy through the back and released the ball through a tight three-quarters arm slot. The fastball was the pitch he worked off and sat in the 84-88 mph range. The delivery is easy and repeatable with a simple path to release and he worked with a good tempo that was rarely disrupted throughout. He created sink on the fastball and worked well from a ground ball approach.
The breaking ball showed some tight 11-to-5 shape and was able to be thrown for strikes to give him a change-of-pace pitch and he flashed a changeup a couple of times throughout the game. Stallings’ effort was one of the best thus far in the event and he showed good tools to back up the numbers.
The pitching matchup of the tournament thus far came between Tyler Owens (2019, Ocala, Fla.) and Dominic Cancellieri (2019, Wayne, N.J.) who traded blows for the majority of the game.
Owens showed a big velocity jump from the summer as he worked 92-95 mph in the first inning and flashed nasty cut on his fastball. He utilizes the lower half extremely well to drive off his backside toward the plate and attacked hitters with the velocity. There were numerous 93s and 94s to either side of the plate seemingly at will, which was used to blow by hitters.
The Florida State commit was not simply a one-pitch pitcher as early on he used his tight slider to get some ugly swings as well. It’s hard for any high school hitter to gear up for 95 mph and then have to adjust to an 82 mph slider that fades out of the strike zone at the last minute.
Owens was able to repeat his delivery well and showed off an extremely fast arm in the process. The advancement of the sequencing and lower half usage are impressive. The performance was remarkable and he brought his fastball velocity through the entire performance as he was still touching 92s in the fourth inning. Owens struck out seven batters and allowed just one hit in four-plus innings.
Cancellieri started just as hot as Owens did pumping his fastball up to 92 mph in the first inning and mixing in a sharp 12-to-6 breaking ball. The Notre Dame commit comes straight over the top with his arm slot and got good plane to the lower third of the strike zone with the fastball. The strikeouts came early and often for Cencellieri as he punched out 12 batters in four-plus innings while allowing just one hit.
The curveball was the highlight to the profile as it was his best pitch of the evening and he showed remarkable confidence in it. Cancellieri battled through some command issues with regards to the fastball but he had no such issues with the breaking ball. The pitch worked in the low-70s with sharp tilt to the pitch and he was able to throw it for strikes regardless of count. The tilt and break were so sharp it often buckled the knees of opposing hitters to sit them down regularly.
Cancellieri was down to the 86-89 mph range later in the outing but still had extremely good command of the breaking ball. The pitch alone is enough to warrant praise, and when combined with the rest of his outing and stuff he makes for a high-level pitcher.
– Vinnie Cervino
It’s often pretty easy to see when a player is going to be really good at maturity, given components such as mechanics, ease of operation and physical projection. This is the case with Riley Feltner (2019, Hudson, Ohio) given just how picturesque his present mechanics are and how easy he operates on the mound in addition to how physically projectable he is. There’s tremendous balance and repeatability to his delivery, consistently getting over his front side with ease and really extending through release. He worked in the 80-83 mph range consistently and really filled up the zone over his four innings, allowing some baserunners but having seemingly no issue working around them and consistently being in control on the mound.
He mixed in a quality breaking ball as well, tunneling the pitch well out of his hand and generating good spin, though the shape varied a bit. It’s thrown in the upper-60s to low-70s right now, but given the components discussed above in addition to the raw feel for spinning the baseball, it’s easy to envision the pitch becoming a hammer in time.
One of the higher-upside pitchers in the class given body type and arm speed, Harrison Cook (2019, Solon, Iowa) – a recent Kentucky commit – started for the Iowa Select Black on Saturday afternoon. Cook is a long-limbed, lean, highly-projectable prospect with athleticism and significant upside on the mound, though Saturday’s outing certainly did not find him with his most crisp command.
He worked up to 88 mph with his fastball, generating really good extension to the plate when on time with his delivery and in synch with his arm action; and flashing solid arm-side life to the pitch as well. There exists a quality three-pitch mix here to go along with the arm speed and projection to dream on, as Cook flashed both a quality curveball that bites with 12-to-6 shape as well as advanced feel for his changeup with fading life. He was comfortable throwing the changeup right-on-right, and as the game wore on found more confidence in his entire arsenal. If he can find consistency with his mechanics and subsequent command profile; his upside is excellent and he should be a very nice arm for Kentucky in time.
Another 2019 Kentucky commit took the mound right after Cook back at Lee County as Alex Margot (2019, Collingswood, N.J.) got the start for Tri State Arsenal Prime. Margot delivered the win in impressive fashion, throwing four shutout innings while striking out five. Margot is similar to Feltner given the ease in which he throws, especially in terms of how well his lower half mechanics operate. He’s got some physicality to him, with the beginnings of a plus build throughout his body, and perhaps the most notable thing about his profile at present is the supreme extension that he generates at release, clocked upwards of seven feet consistently per TrackMan.
He worked in the 81-85 mph range throughout his time on the mound for Tri State, consistently working the fastball to the bottom of the zone and generating quality arm-side life. He showed the ability to move the fastball around the zone a good bit, creating angles to the plate and overall pitching with an effective fastball well above the raw velocity. Margot showed solid feel to spin the baseball as well, with more of a slurvy breaking ball as a result of his arm slot but still a quality pitch with 2-to-8 shape, landing it for strikes at times and on the whole using the pitch to good effect.
As Tri State moved to 3-0 and secured their pool victory, shortstop and Maryland commit Matt Orlando (2019, Marlton, N.J.) did what he’s always done at PG events: hit. Orlando collected four more hits in two games on Saturday, consistently finding the barrel in an authoritative way. He’s also a solid defender, not super twitchy in a traditional sense but the actions are fine and he projects to stay on the dirt long term, where he’ll be an asset for Maryland both offensively and defensively.
Later on Saturday evening, the On Deck O’s locked into quite a pitcher’s duel with Langan Baseball, finally emerging victorious by a 3-0 score.
Brennan Malone (2019, Matthews, N.C.) got the ball for the O’s, and the fifth-ranked player in the class of 2019 delivered an excellent performance, throwing five shutout innings allowing no hits and striking out 10, though he did walk five hitters. Malone, for the sake of subtlety, looks like you want prospects to look, with a picturesque build highlighted by broad shoulders and a very high waist, oozing athleticism, projection, and power all at once.
His arm speed is easily plus, and the young righthander worked up to 95 mph with his fastball several times, sitting consistently 91-94 mph and at times generating significantly above average fastball life to the arm side. When in the zone, the fastball was overpowering, and despite the five walks Malone still demonstrated the ability to work north/south with the pitch and get swings and misses in all four quadrants of the zone.
He worked in a curveball in the mid-70’s that flashed sharp downward bite, a pitch that projects quite well long term in terms of swings-and-misses. He also demonstrated very quality feel for his changeup, thrown with intent and fastball arm speed with very good fading action when pronated properly out front. It looks to be the whole package at this early juncture and his lofty ranking is more than justified.
Opposing Malone and really impressing in his own right was Langan starter Chris Shine (2019, South Plainfield, N.J.). Shine went toe-to-toe with Malone, throwing five shutout innings of his own, striking out eight and allowing a scant two total baserunners.
Shine is a large-framed righthander with room to fill who employs a crossfire, deceptive delivery that he repeats pretty well. The arm stroke has some effort to it but he hides the ball well through the back and was able to generate consistent plane, working his fastball up to 88 mph before settling into the 82-86 mph range for most of his outing. The fastball featured solid sinking action when located down in the zone and Shine did a very good job consistently pounding strikes with the pitch. He was unafraid to work in his curveball, a pitch which varied in shape at times but never in sharpness, throwing it both for strikes and as a chase pitch and overall demonstrating very good feel for the pitch overall. Shine also worked in a changeup with fading life, giving him a three-pitch mix that he threw for strikes with very good overall feel for pitching.
– Brian Sakowski
The Stadium field at Terry Park is usually one of the most difficult parks on the travel ball/showcase circuit to allow a home run. However, the ball was flying out on Saturday, helped by a generous wind blowing out to left field.
Outfielder Steven Schissler (2019, Pembroke Pines, Fla.) blasted two deep home runs to left field in Elite Squad 2019 Black's 12-2 win, with one of those bombs being a grand slam. This scout has watched literally hundreds of games at the Stadium over the last two decades and doesn't ever remember a player hitting a pair of home runs in a game. One home run is rare enough. Schissler is only 5-foot-10, 150-pounds but takes a full and aggressive swing at the plate and is looking to drive the ball. Ironically, he has over 50 plate appearances at Perfect Game tournaments in 2017 but those were his first two home runs.
Two games later, Team Elite 17u Prime outfielder Tyler Williams (2019, Lilburn, Ga.) launched a huge home run over the left-center field scoreboard, a definite 400-foot plus shot, to drive in two runs in Team Elite's 5-1 win. Williams is a lean and projectable 6-foot-2, 175-pound athlete who ran a 6.68 60-yard dash at a PG showcase earlier this year. He had a quality at-bat his following trip to the plate, keeping his hands back very well on a breaking ball and singling to left-center field.
Diamond Skills Dodgers shortstop Ian Remalia (2019, Waldorf, Md.) was outstanding defensively in his team's hard-fought 2-0 win over Chicago Scouts Association. In fact, given that it was a scoreless tie heading into the seventh inning and Remalia had likely saved maybe four base hits, it's fair to say he was the difference in the game despite a quiet day offensively. Ramalia made two plays in particular, one deep and the hole and the other a spinning play deep up the middle, that highlighted both his athleticism and strong throwing arm.
Diamond Skills Dodgers catcher Ethan Anderson (2022, Virginia Beach, Va.) may be the youngest player at this Underclass World Championship, having just turned 14 years old three weeks ago. He's already getting plenty of looks as a 6-foot-1, 185-pound switch-hitter with plenty of present tools. Anderson is 2-for-6 with a pair of RBI at this event and had four extra-base hits and six RBI at the 14u WWBA National Championship this summer.
Chicago Scout Association corner infielder/righthanded pitcher A.J. Vukovich (2020, Mukwonago, Wis.) is a strong 6-foot-4, 190-pound righthanded hitter but he also might have a future on the mound. He topped out 88 mph on his fastball and it looks like there is plenty more in his arm as he keeps getting stronger. Vukovich is currently ranked 67th nationally in the 2020 class.
Lefthander Francis Ferguson (2019, Jefferson, Mass.) is a very young junior, having just turned 16 years old, and is throwing in his first Perfect Game event but is a young southpaw to take note of. He worked 3 1/3 innings in North East Baseball's 3-3 tie with Team Elite 16u Prime, striking out five hitters and showing three very solid pitches. Ferguson worked in the 85-88 mph range with his fastball with a very loose and whippy arm action and had outstanding cutting life on the inside half to righthanded hitters. His curveball was very sharp and tight with big power at 75-77 mph and he showed some feel for his 79 mph changeup as well. Ferguson isn't a big athlete at 5-foot-10, 160-pounds, but he's wiry and loose with lots of quick-twitch fiber.
Another 5-foot-10 southpaw with similar velocity but a different build and approach is Blackhawks National lefty Alex Munroe (2019, Davenport, Fla.), a Miami commit who is ranked 195th in the 2019 class. Munroe threw six innings and picked up the win in a 3-2 Blackhawks victory, striking out seven hitters without issuing a walk. He relied primarily on a 85-88 mph fastball that had good running action at times and maintained his velocity very well through his 86-pitch outing. Munroe showed some feel and good arm speed on his changeup but will have to continue to work on tightening his curveball as he progresses in the game.
– David Rawnsley
If you blinked then you would have almost certainly missed Ryan Pettys’ (2019, Panama City Beach, Fla.) outing for Team Elite from the bullpen as he quickly punched out the side in his lone inning of work. A recent Florida State commit, Pettys oozes physical projection at 6-foot-2, 145-pounds with a long and lean build.
Beginning his delivery with a full hands-over-the-head windup, Pettys shows nice rhythm and overall tempo to his mechanics, landing closed with his front foot, though not to the point where it inhibits him from doing anything on the mound. In fact, his landing spot actually helps Pettys as he was able to generating pretty hard angle to his fastball while running it up to 88 mph on his final pitch of the day, sitting mostly in the 85-87 mph range. The ball comes out of his hand cleanly, and though he can continue to incorporate additional lower half in his drive, Petty still managed to locate to his glove side from his mid three-quarters release point.
Petty flashed both a curveball and a changeup and it was his bender he went to more than once. He landed the pitch to both sides of the plate, including to the front door on a lefthanded hitter at 73 mph to freeze the batter on a called third strike to end the game. The pitch was up to 74 mph and he flashed a changeup just once at 78 mph.
Among the numerous talented bats on the Team Elite 16u Prime roster is lefthanded hitting Sam Ruta (2020, Yardley, Pa.). Strongly built at 6-foot-1, 180-pounds with additional room for added strength, Ruta shows components to his swing that intrigue with loose hands and a rather fluid barrel path through the zone, all of which were on display for his extra-base hit in his team’s first game of the day. He was able to get a pitch he could handle up in the zone and showed interesting jump off the barrel with nice carry to the middle of the diamond, which resulted in a three-base hit. He also showed arm strength across the diamond and could shift over to third base upon hitting physical maturation.
Marquise Grissom (2020, Fayetteville, Ga.), the son of former big league outfielder of the same name, is very much a prospect as a primary righthanded pitcher. On Saturday afternoon for the MLB Breakthrough squad he delivered three innings of hitless baseball in which he struck out two and picked up the win.
With square shoulders and long limbs, along with the fact he’s just beginning his sophomore year of high school, the uncommitted Grissom projects well moving forward with some of that projection already coming to fruition. A look through his Perfect Game profile reveals how his fastball velocity has continued to climb since this past May, and in this most recent look he worked comfortably in the 84-86 mph range.
Though he loads up on his backside before driving towards the plate, Grissom did a nice job of consistently working on top of the ball from a higher slot, showing arm speed through the back while moving the ball around the zone. He attacked predominately off his fastball, showing subtle running life to down in the zone while generating some angle to his glove side which he hit more than a couple of times. Grissom also flashed a couple of curveballs with his best coming across at 72 mph, offering 12-to-6 shape with some depth and a similar release point.
One of the beneficial parts about watching underclassmen since their debuts on the national scene is the ability to track their progress and watch them develop as prospects on the diamond. That’s something that certainly holds true for righthander Riley Cornelio (2019, Monument, Colo.) who continues to climb in an upward trajectory and delivered his most impressive performance yet.
The last time Cornelio threw at a Perfect Game event was this past summer where he allowed nine hits over four innings but still showed an uptick in fastball velocity along with some physical growth. Jump to Saturday and the young TCU commit, who is now listed at 6-foot-3, 175-pounds and appears to have begun filling out his athletic frame, worked five impressive innings in which he struck out 10 and issued just two free passes. That athleticism is something that Cornelio incorporates into his delivery well, showing a fast and online arm action while getting to a higher release point, which allowed for consistent downhill plane and some angle to the bottom of the zone.
His fastball worked comfortably in the 86-88 mph range early in the game, bumping as high as 89 mph, though like his frame he’s only going to see development in the future. Cornelio did a nice job of locating his fastball through the zone and was able to work either side of the plate, inducing weak contact when he wasn’t missing bats all together while mixing in a tight curveball with 11-to-5 shape. The pitch showed late biting action to it from the same high three-quarters slot and continues to improve with nearly every outing.
Taking the mound for the MN Blizzard Saturday morning in the 8 a.m. slot was current sophomore Maxwell Carlson (2020, Savage, Minn.), and had it not been for his recent commitment to North Carolina, he would have certainly had a crowd of collegiate coaches lining the backstop. Carlson offers almost everything you want in a young arm, from the long, athletic frame, a fast right arm and a current arsenal that has proven capable of missing bats.
The younger brother of recent Seattle Mariners draft pick Sam Carlson, Maxwell appears to be on his own path to the next level as he’s already secured his ACC commitment with the Tar Heels where current Minnesota native Mac Horvath is also committed. After not consistently finding his release point early in the contest, Carlson settled in very well and actually saw his velocity tick upwards as the game wore on, eventually topping out at 87 mph. There’s undoubtedly more velocity there for the young righthander and it wouldn’t be much of a surprise at all to hear reports of steady low-90s this time next year.
Not only is his arm fast, he also generates solid extension out front which, when on top of the ball, allowed for steady plane with running life down to either side. Like his velocity, the curveball improved throughout his time on the mound, showing more 11-to-5 shape and depth up to 72 mph. Carlson also flashed a low-70s changeup, and while he wasn’t able to work on top of the ball consistently, he still shows the makings of a true three-pitch mix with projection through the roof.
Though not overly physical at 5-foot-10, 150-pounds, lefthanded hitting Dalton McNamara (2019, Lino Lakes, Minn.) brings an up-tempo and aggressive skill-set to the top of the MN Blizzard Blue’s lineup. With a couple stolen bags heading into the contest, McNamara added another single to stat line as he went the other way with a fastball, showing a smooth line drive path as he uncoils well moving into contact. He also walked three times, and though he didn’t take any extra bases, he was still disruptive for opposing pitchers the way he would dance down the line in an attempt to induce a balk or mess with a pitcher’s tempo.
Jackson Phipps (2020, Dallas, Ga.) is far from a secret in terms of prospect status as he was selected to last year’s inaugural 14u Perfect Game Select Baseball Festival before springboarding up the 2020 rankings throughout the summer. Now a University of South Carolina commit, Phipps is currently ranked No. 15 in the class, and while he didn’t have his best command he still showed why he’s such a valued prospect.
Over his 2 2/3 innings of work Phipps managed to strike out four and walked five, navigating a tighter strike zone with some pitches that just missed off the corner on either side of the plate. At 6-foot-4, 205-pounds, Phipps certainly looks the part out on the mound and the fact that he’s lefthanded only adds to the intrigue of him; and that’s before even factoring his fastball, which he runs consistently into the low-90s. Still continuing to refine his lower half mechanics (and he’s certainly made noted strides since this summer), Phipps touched both 92 and 93 mph one time each while living comfortably anywhere in the 88-91 mph range, both out of the windup and stretch.
With a slight crossfire element to his delivery Phipps can generate hard angle when working to his glove side and for the most part lived down in the zone with an impressively quick arm action. Given his slot, arm speed and release there’s a chance Phipps develops a power slider down the road as he currently shows a curveball in the 68-70 mph range. He slows his arm action at release but is able to create shape to the pitch with some depth down in the zone. Overall, there are plenty of ingredients that make Phipps more than enticing as we saw both on Saturday and throughout the summer circuit.
It wasn’t a long look at all for 2020 righthander Jackson Nezuh (2020, St. Cloud, Fla.) but he was plenty efficient for the Scorpions, striking out five during his time on the mound. The uncommitted Nezuh looks longer than his listed 6-foot height, and after bumping 85 mph this summer at the 15u World Series, he came out and ran his fastball up to 87 mph in this look and still appears to have plenty in the tank. He did a nice job of maintaing that velocity out of the stretch, still working in the 84-86 mph range with a full and quick arm action while working at the knees to either side of the plate. He would also take off from his fastball and show an occasional 80 or 81 mph heater while mixing in an 11-to-5 shaped curveball with quality spin for his main secondary. There’s no reason the velocity won’t continue to tick up for Nezuh as he looks to be an arm who will continue to intrigue collegiate programs moving forward.
Ethan Anderson (2022, Virginia Beach, Va.) might be one of the youngest players in attendance at this tournament and that hasn’t stopped college coaches from taking notice, despite the fact he won’t enter high school for another full season. At 6-foot-1, 185-pounds the switch-hitting Anderson doesn’t look like your typical eighth grader and is hitting .333. Though he was held hitless against the Florida Burn he continued to show elements to his lefthanded stroke that project well moving forward, especially given his age, with balance to his swing and looseness to hands. Behind the plate the young backstop did a nice job receiving the ball and sticking pitches out front while staying quiet with his overall actions.
Evan Sleight (2019, Framingham, Mass.) is one of the more physical players on the Rawlings National Team at 6-foot-1, 205-pounds with broad shoulders and well proportioned strength throughout, including in his hands as he showed in his 2-for-2 day at the plate. For his first base hit of the day Sleight showed his bat speed with a ground ball single through the right side before continuing to show some barrel skills in his next trip. Rather than rolling over an outer half pitch, the University of Virginia commit simply went with the outer half pitch through the six-hole for his second single of the day.
Troy Schreffler (2019, Harrisburg, Pa.) is already committed to Maryland and after his performance at this tournament it’s easy to see why the Terrapins’ coaching staff jumped on the young outfielder early. Through North East Baseball’s first three pool play games Schreffler is hitting .667 on the tournament with six RBI, though the reason for this particular write up are for his heroics in center field, helping secure the tie rather than fall to Team Elite 16u Prime. With two out and a runner on first base, Schreffler was off with the crack of the bat in the bottom of the seventh, and he not only managed to track down the deep drive to the left-center gap, but gloved the ball and secured it on his way down, showing an impressive combination of athleticism and range.
– Jheremy Brown
With the East Coast Sox Select having a doubleheader Saturday it gave the team extra chances to show off their loaded talent. Several offensive weapons are in the Sox’s lineup including Brayden Jobert (2019, Slidell, La.) and G Allen (2020, Little Rock, Ark.) as well as a sound defensive group of players such as Eric Brown (2019, Bossier City, La.) and T.J. McCants (2020, Cantonment, Fla.).
Jobert was quiet for most of the first game at the plate, but made his presence very known late. His solo game-winning home run to his pull side put his team in front 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Jobert was certainly not done in game two as he went 2-for-2 with a walk and a rocket triple down the pull-side foul line. The contact was incredibly loud and echoed throughout the stadium at Port Charlotte. His swing is simple yet powerful. With a slight bat waggle and leg kick timing mechanism, he creates a line drive swing plane with outstanding bat speed. The physical lefthanded hitting corner infielder is committed to the University of Alabama.
Fellow East Coast Sox Select heavy hitter G Allen had himself a big day at the plate as well. In the first game of the doubleheader, Allen showed a rotational swing for a single through the 4-3 hole that showed power potential. That power potential was shown later in the day in game two as the strong lefthanded hitting third baseman unloaded on a fastball and put it over the 384-feet sign as well as the bullpen behind the fence. At 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, Allen is very physical with present strength throughout his frame. He also plays a sound third base with good arm strength and sure hands.
Brown showed a combination of offensive and defensive tools Saturday. His defensive tools were on display in game one and his offensive abilities in game two showing that Brown has multiple weapons at his disposal that make him a high-end player. Brown’s infield actions are very impressive with an exchange that is lightning quick and the ability to throw from multiple arm angles with carry. Brown has the ability to hit for loud contact as well. Good bat speed and a line drive swing plane, along with good running speed, makes the uncommitted righthanded hitting middle infielder very projectable.
High school sophomore, T.J. McCants has one of the more projectable frames in the 2020 class. At a lean 6-foot-3, 170-pounds McCants has limitless room to fill with added strength throughout. His athleticism is outstanding with his build and the speed he displays. In game one of the East Coast Sox Select’s doubleheader McCants, a primary shortstop, moved to center field and made an immediate impact, showing his incredible closing speed on a deep fly ball to the right-center field gap to track down the would be sure double. The uncommitted athlete followed that up with a diving catch on a sinking line drive to shallow center that he laid completely out for. McCants is still developing his hit tool on a consistent basis to complement his outstanding defensive abilities.
Rece Ritchey (2020, Huntingdon, Pa.) is a tall and skinny lefthanded pitcher with tons of room to fill, especially in the lower half. Ritchey’s delivery does not display much effort and the arm works, and he sat and maintained in the 83-86 mph range, touching 87. The uncommitted southpaw gets downhill and uses his long limbs and height to get good extension out front. He does, however, cut himself off causing his pitches to be left up in the zone on certain occasions. He did show signs of a sharp curveball that can potentially be a big weapon for him. The curveball shows 1-to-7 shape in the low-70s and tight break down and in to righthanded hitters. Facing a lefthanded hitting filled lineup, Ritchey was right in his niche getting quick outs to those arm-side hitters. From the speed of Ritchey’s arm, his projectable frame and the easiness with which it comes out, the ability seems all there for Ritchey to make the next stride to a velocity jump.
Kevin Karstetter (2020, State College, Pa.) is a physical primary shortstop who started for Flood City Elite at third base. Listed in the program at 6-foot-3, 200-pounds, Karstetter is every bit of that. He shows present strength at the plate and defensively as he shows fluidity at the third base position. He showed his ability to hit for power and make hard contact to all fields; in his second at-bat, he drove a fastball to deep right field for a triple. He displayed the ability to drive the ball well to the opposite field and showed off very good speed for his size.
Jorel Ortega (2019, Lake Worth, Fla.) is a special player that needs recognition. Listed at 6-foot-1, 190-pounds, and most likely bigger than that, Ortega has raw tools all around. He has the type of body professional scouts love in a shortstop, and defensively he is as sound as they come. Ortega has soft sure hands with fluid actions and a good first step. He shows lateral agility and quickness as well with range to both directions. The University of Tennessee commit can swing the bat as well as a righthanded hitter, showing power potential in his swing with good bat speed and hard barrel contact that is consistent when the leg kick trigger is on time getting down. Ortega has a lot of upside and is worth a follow.
– Gregory Gerard
Northeast Pride Select’s David Curreri (2019, Beach Lake, Pa.) and Luke Gold (29019, Ballston Spa, N.Y.) are two talented infielders who will make some pretty big contributions to their college baseball teams when they arrive.
Curreri went 1-for-2 with two walks and laced a line drive single to left field in the first. He showed an excellent job of being able to turn on in the inside pitch with ease as he did a good job of opening up his body and getting great torque going in his hips to create some quality bat speed that barreled the baseball with hard contact to left. He swings with his hands slightly choked up on the bat, which helps him get his bat very quickly through the zone. Curreri is a Stony Brook commit, with a medium frame and plenty of room to still get stronger, and has a very relaxed and patient approach at the plate.
Gold is a Boston College commit with a strong frame, a physical presence and a strong lower half that he does a good job of using in his swing. He wiggles his body back and forth to get his hands going before the pitcher commits to home and has a long, hard swing that produces some very hard contact as he hit a loud double to the fence in the second inning to advance Curreri to third.
Adam Hutchinson (2020, Greenfield, Ind.) is a young corner infielder with an interesting swing from the right side of the plate. Hutchinson has a large frame and a thick upper body as he is listed at 6-foot-4, 220-pounds. He displayed some solid bat speed as he hits with a small hitch in his swing as the ball approaches the plate, but showed consistent ability to be on time with his swing and produce a quality line drive swing. Hutchinson does a great job of squaring up the baseball and creating some hard contact as the bat connects with the ball.
Brett Cook (2019, Richmond, Va.) and Justin Starke (2019, Prince George, Va.) had pretty good days at the plate for the Virginia Cardinals.
Cook, a Tulane commit, has a very physical frame and big arms that he uses well to create some solid pop on his pull side. He possesses a hard, compact swing that creates some solid lift and he uses his arms to muscle the ball to the outfield.
Starke, a VMI commit, has a lean, athletic frame and long arms that he uses to get good extension as he smashed a hard line drive to left field in the second, jumping on the first pitch he saw. He finished the day 2-for-2 with an RBI and a walk. Starke has some quality bat speed and fluidity in his swing with a smooth and easy path to the ball that projects to produce consistent hard contact and line drives.
The middle part of the lineup took care of business for the Florida Burn 2019 Platinum team in their 9-1 victory over Team Nike New England on Saturday. Kevin Dubrule (2019, Venice, Fla.), Josh Rivera (2019, Avon Park, Fla.) and Matthew Powell (2019, Fort Meyers, Fla.) combined to go 5-for-8 at the plate.
An Army commit, Dubrule has a medium frame with plenty of room to grow stronger and develop. He has a pretty loose stance and is very relaxed at the plate. He has a simple and easy swing, with a good ability to barrel the baseball with solid contact. Dubrule still has time to develop some muscle which will add a little bit more strength at the point of contact and make the ball travel farther when he hits the baseball.
Rivera is listed at 6-foot-2, 190-pounds and has a pretty lean and athletic frame and solid upper body strength that he uses in his swing to produce solid power on the pull side. His swing is mostly upper body and arms, but he flashed some good bat speed on a few swings, and when he connects the ball travels pretty far.
Powell was impressive behind the plate as he threw out two would-be basestealers at second with a 1.92 on his second throw. At the plate, he went 2-for-2 with two line drives and an RBI as he possesses a loose, quick swing with good extension and showed some solid pop to his pull side as both hits were laced to left field. Powell and Rivera are both headed to the University of Florida in 2019.
Landon Gartman (2019, Bogue Chitto, Miss.) was impressive for the East Coast Sox as he struck out 11 in 5 1/3 innings in his Saturday start. Gartman has a large and filled out frame that allows him to maintain his fastball velocity. He was up to 87, but sat mostly from 83-85 with good life on his fastball. He does a great job of utilizing his lower half and bends his knee to get solid push off the mound to produce a quick arm action from his over-the-top arm slot. He also possesses an above average curveball with big depth and late, sharp 12-to-6 break and sat from 69-74. He will be a big add to a top Division I college program.
– Brandon Lowe