3/16/2012 9:59:46 AM
Saguaro Offense Stands Out
-Austin Anderson (2012) is a player with a strong build and aggressive left-handed stroke with pop in his bat. Also, a good athlete who can run and plays the game hard.
-Matt Morris (2012) is a good defensive shortstop with quick feet and solid actions. He also has a compact swing with good bat control at the plate, spraying line drives to all fields.
-Zach Gibbons (2012) has the most bat speed of the Saguaro hitters and has a power approach at the plate with a wide base and lots of extension. He is a good defensive CF and showed arm strength. He has been up to87 on the mound at PG events.
-Chris Akmon (2012) projects the most physically of the Saguaro seniors with a long, lean frame. He shows a smooth swing with good contact skills and the ability to drive the ball to all fields.
-Desert Ridge SS Riley Unroe (2013) is one of the best underclass prospects we have seen this week. A lean athletic SS, he has quick feet and athleticism with very quick hands and very good feel for the SS position.He is a switch hitter, but swung from the right side in his first three at bats Thursday against a pair of Saguaro southpaws. He has quickness in his bat with bat control, a very good approach at the plate and the ability to drive pitches on the inner half to left field.
Desert Mountain Cruises over Houston Christian
-Desert Mountain RHP Cody Erickson (2013), who has stood out as an athletic SS, was the story as he took a perfect game into the sixth and a no hitter into the 7th innings, ending with a one-hit shutout. He sat 83-86, touching 87 in the early innings. He worked his fastball to both sides of the plate and showed very good feel for a 75-78 mph changeup and 74-75mph curveball. A quick worker with a quick tempo delivery, Erickson rolled thru the Houston Christian lineup, rarely needing more than 15 pitches in an inning.
-Erickson also showed bat speed at the plate and the ability to square up pitches and drive the ball.
-Ben Rodriguez (2013) is a big, strong player who definitely looks the part. He moves well for his size and is a good defender around the 1Bbag. He projects for big power and currently drives the ball to right field.When he develops the ability to pull the ball with power he has a chance to do a lot of damage.
-David Greer (2013) is a lean, projectable athlete who projects very well. He is a bit raw at the plate but has a quiet approach and can hit the ball to all fields. He is a very good defender at 3B with soft hands, quick actions and a very good arm with easy carry.
Cozens Power Chaparral
-Chaparral 2012 RF Dylan Cozens flexed his massive muscles in the Firebirds route of Cactus Shadows. Cozens crushed a 2-run Home Run that clanked off of the scoreboard behind the fence in left center field in the first inning. After drawing a walk in his second at bat Cozens stole second and came around to score. In his third trip to the plate he tagged a first pitch fastball over the fence in right, before grounding out hard to first base in his final trip to the plate. Cozens generates power with a direct swing path and is able to drive the ball without having to elongate his swing to create bat speed thanks to his physical strength.
-Cactus Shadows 2012 3B Eduardo Castro stood out during the pre-game warm-ups for the way he carried himself. Though he had a quiet day struggling to stay back against lower velocity pitchers who were called up from the JV to eat innings, Castro showed good bat speed and all-around strength. He plays the game with good energy.