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Tournaments | Story | 6/27/2019

15u BCS: Day 1 Scout Notes

Vincent Cervino

Parker Fronk

Tyler Russo

Photo: Brandon Barriera (Perfect Game)

Starting out Day 1 of the 15u BCS for the upstart Cannons Baseball Academy was righthanded pitcher Evan Dobias (2022, Sunrise, Fla.), and the Virginia commit was very impressive over the course of a short start. Dobias tossed only 44 pitches during his start but struck out four batters over four scoreless. The righthander stands at 6-foot, 165 pounds with some projection remaining on the frame and utilizes a fairly simple and loose arm stroke. He’s a sinker-baller primarily on the mound as his fastball sat 84-87 mph with pretty good sinking life when he got on top of the ball. The short, slightly cross-fired stride can lead to some inconsistencies with command but conversely it also allows him to get on top of the ball nicely to generate a good amount of weak ground ball contact. There’s good feel for spin that works mostly as a slurvy offering with tight spin in the 73-76 mph range. The shape varies at times, but he showed a strong two-pitch mix with good life on his fastball in this quick outing.

Raymond Bermudez (2022, Hollywood, Fla.) had a big day at the plate notching four hits on the afternoon which included a long home run and a triple. The Miami commit was clearly seeing the ball well and the lanky 6-foot-1, 155-pound frame possesses not only present power but the requisite projection to dream on as a power lefthanded slugger in the future. The swing is fairly clean with a simple separation and a naturally lofted, smooth swing plane that allows him to work the ball into the air with carry. His long limbs create leverage as he turned on a fastball in his second at-bat of game two to rocket a home run and in the next at-bat launched a triple to deep right-center field. There’s obvious barrel and hand-eye skills and it will be significant to follow his progress as he develops and fills out.

Game two for 5 Star National Dobbs featured some high upside arms as Sullivan Brackin (2022, Jacksonville, Fla.) and Cole Mathis (2021, Cataula, Ga.) toed the rubber to combine for three very strong innings. Both pitchers are legitimate two-way type prospects as well and showed off their skills during the day one doubleheader.

Brackin, committed to Florida, was impressive at the Junior National Showcase a few weeks ago and kept the momentum going with his first performance of the 15U BCS. The righthander is an uber-athletic and projectable 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds. The tools that stand out on the mound are more upside-oriented than possessing present stuff. Brackin’s delivery is a bit complicated with a big cross-fire landing leg and a timing-conducive higher arm slot that will lead him to cut it to the glove side often. That being said, the arm speed is extremely loud, and he ran his fastball up to 88 mph while sitting mostly 82-86 mph. The breaking ball is more of a slurvy offering in the mid-70s but Brackin will be throwing extremely hard extremely soon.

Mathis is a College of Charleston commit with an athletic delivery and good present arm strength with a fastball that worked 85-87 mph. His inning of work was more like a tune up as he threw exclusively fastballs to strike out the side in under 20 pitches. The delivery projects with good extension and he’s a strong two-way prospect too, with a compact swing that works on a line to all fields; Mathis notched three hits in 5 Star’s first game on the day.

Starting game one of the day for 5 Star was lanky lefthander Ashton Crowther (2022, New Port Richey, Fla.) and he looks the part of a sound pitching prospect at this point of his development. Crowther stands tall at 6-foot-3, 180 pounds with an athletic delivery and a very clean, loose arm stroke. The lower half could be cleaned up a bit, but the arm works and produced a fastball in the 81-84 mph range with some good life at times to the arm side. The velocity comes fairly easily and Crowther has strong secondaries to complement the fastball. The breaking ball worked in the low-70s with good shape and projection while his primary off-speed pitch was a sinking changeup in the 75-77 mph range. There’s starter’s build, arsenal, and projection to Crowther and there’s significant upside to be had.

Hunter Russell (2022, Jacksonville, Fla.) was the standout offensive force for 5 Star during game one and he looks the part of a big power-hitting prospect. Committed to Miami, Russell has a huge and physically projectable frame at 6-foot-3, 178 pounds and looks the part of a future middle of the order presence in the ACC. The swing is simple with loose and easy hands throughout the swing that create a good amount of natural leverage coupled with impact at the point of extension. This allows him to work to the pull side with authority and to wear out the outfielders chasing down his balls into the pull side gap. The power will continue to grow, and Russell is athletic in the box with some feel for barrel control; the athleticism is notable outside of offensive production as he recorded 4.6 second times on turns during the game.

As part of a BBA National onslaught to run away with game one, leadoff man Charlie Chropuvka (2022, Red Bank, N.J.) showed some impressive tools with a leadoff, contact oriented profile. He hammered the first hit of the game to the opposite field gap with a short, crisp stroke that showed off his quick hands and feel for using the whole field. Chropucka showed off the speed by hustling around the bases to record a triple. He sets up balanced in the box and his ability to stay short to the ball allows him to make a good amount of contact. The barrel skills coupled with his speed make him a very intriguing prospect out of the northeast.

The star of the afternoon was lefthanded pitcher Brandon Barriera (2022, Coconut Creek, Fla.) who made a big rise in the updated class of 2022 rankings to the No. 4 spot. It’s easy to see why when you see Barriera’s present stuff, athleticism, operation, and just imagine what the stuff is going to look like years from now. Barriera was dominant in a three-inning look where he needed just 40 pitches to get through three perfect frames while striking out seven batters faced. He made it look extremely easy too, as he was commanding his 87-91 mph fastball to either side with intent and comfort all while mixing in his off-speed pitches with conviction. The changeup is deadly with lots of sinking and tumbling action, albeit from a lower slot, while the breaking ball showed sharpness and late bite. Both secondaries worked in the mid- to upper-70s while he tunnels all three of his pitches effectively to create deception. The delivery is smooth, athletic, and features little wasted motion; the upside is hard to deny and Barriera looks the part as one of the best pitchers in the 2022 class at this juncture.

Two Division I commits stood out on the mound for the Florida Dodgers Scout Team as William Ross (2022, Winter Garden, Fla.) and Jordan Taylor (2022, Jacksonville, Fla.) both showed things to like out of young pitching prospects.

Ross, committed to Florida, is a huge prospect with a listed frame of 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds. There is significant room on the moldable frame to project future physicality and strength as presently his fastball sits around the 82-84 mph range. Ross throws a good amount of strikes for a larger prospect and has good feel for spin too with a breaking ball in the low-70s with some sharpness. Projection is the big play here as he will continue to improve as his stuff continues to tick up. Taylor is a two-way prospect committed to Florida State, and he ran his fastball up to 88 mph during his two innings of work. There is excellent athleticism with raw arm speed and worked in the mid-80s for most of his start, attacking with almost exclusively fastballs. The delivery is a bit segmented with a couple of different checkpoints, but the arm speed is for real and it’s not hard to imagine him throwing very hard very soon.

AJ Nessler (2022, Tampa, Fla.) had a strong day at the plate, going 3-for-3 on the afternoon and showed off a smooth swing with some mechanically-sound operation as well. Nessler has some physicality to the frame with a flat bat path throughout. He engages his back hip nicely with a leg kick to get some torque going through his hips and allows him to really drive the ball with some authority. The bat speed is impressive and his ability to not only cover the plate but to work to both sides of the field with intent stand out while projecting for some power in the future.

-Vinnie Cervino

In a very brief look due to the rain and other coverage, a few teammates made quite a loud impression. Team Elite Scout Team’s Kaden Martin (2022, Knoxville, Tenn.), Hayden Murphy (2022, Chula, Ga.) and Calvert Clark (2022, Charlotte, N.C.) drove in a chunk of the runs as they cruised to a 12-run lead in this abbreviated look.

Martin, an uber-athletic uncommitted outfielder, put a sweet swing on display as he went down and got a fastball and drove it over the right field wall for a three-run home run. Ranked No. 49 overall in the class, Martin is a very strong and athletic 6-foot-1, 205 pounds and even projects to more strength in the frame he currently has. He has great feel for moving the barrel around the zone to create strong contact from every part of it. He will be a lot of fun to watch as he lines up against some of the best arms in the class as the week progresses.

Murphy, ranked No. 24 overall in that same class and currently committed to Auburn, showed once again how the game comes easy as he lined a single down the pull-side line to pick up a pair of RBI in his second at-bat of the game. The swing is quick and smooth and he has great feel for pulling his hands inside to the inner half as well as creating strength and carry to the pull side when he can get his hands extended. At an athletic 6-foot-3, 175 pounds, there is a ton of strength to come as he fills into his lower half, but the tools are there and he does it with ease.

Sitting two spots behind Murphy in the 2022 rankings is No. 26-ranked Calvert Clark. Standing 6-foot-4, 175 pounds, Clark is a presence at the plate and he showed his strength as he took a fastball in on his hands into the gap the other way for a stand-up triple. He runs well with long, athletic strides and showed a great deal of athleticism out of a long, lanky body. The hands work very well at the plate and the maturity in the approach clearly stands out as he handles pitches all around the zone and lays off when needed. Like the previous two, Clark will be a very exciting uncommitted prospect to watch as the week progresses.

-Tyler Russo

The starting pitcher for the Team Elite 15U Scout Team was Kaden Martin (2022, Knoxville, Tenn.). Martin stands at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds and is very athletic. Throwing from the left side with his very fluid windup and delivery, he threw his fastball at 84 mph. His curveball was 66 mph with some great movement that kept hitters on their heels. Martin was able to command the zone during his outing and he threw three innings of shutout baseball with two strikeouts. Martin still has a lot of time to develop as a player before college ball and it will be exciting to see how much he improves.

Game two starter for Team Elite 15u Scout Team was lefthander Camron Hill (2021, Fayetteville, Ga.). Standing at 6-foot-4, he uses his long legs to get down the mound and his fastball at 84 mph really gets on hitters in a hurry. He also showed a slider with tight break at 76 mph. Hill also hides the ball very well throughout his delivery and is very deceptive with his pitches. Due to rain, his outing was cut short but he threw three innings and only allowed one run.

Christian Howe (2021, Danville, Ky.) was the starting pitcher for Kentucky Mustang Arsenal on Wednesday. After settling in on the mound, he had his fastball at 86 mph with good movement to it. He also showed a curveball at 71 mph that had good break. He has a very slow windup with a high leg kick but explodes down the mound with his long arms. He used his fastball up in the zone very effectively, getting a lot of swing and misses. Howe stands at 6-foot-3, 185 pounds and will get stronger over time and his velocity will continue to increase also.

-Parker Fronk

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