Coach Bob National Invitational | March 16-28, 2015


The 2015 edition of the Coach Bob National Invitational marks the seventh time the tournament will be played since the first pitch of the event was thrown back in 2009. Each year in the middle of March, high school fields all over the state of Arizona welcome teams from all over the country, mostly from the western half of the country, and invite them to play against high-level competition while soaking up the Arizona sun.

The tournament is named after legendary high school coach Bob Weinheimer, who wrapped up his illustrious 44-year coaching career at Boulder Creek High School, one of the main sites for the tournament. Boulder Creek’s current coach, Joe McDonald, has a done a tremendous job of inviting quality talent to the tournament, growing yet again in numbers as there are 114 teams in 2015, up from 105 last spring.

Of the six different sub-divisions within the tournament – All-Star, National, American, AAA, Premier, and Classic – five champions return and look to capture another title in 2015. It won’t be easy as teams come from all over, representing 13 states, including Florida, all of whom have a championship on their minds.

One change that is occurring for the first time this year in the National Division of the tournament is the introduction of bracket play. Whoever comes out on top will truly deserve the title of “Champion” as the field is loaded with big-time arms, well-rounded teams and potent bats that are capable of changing a game with a single swing.

Amidst the talent set to take the field are three Perfect Game All-Americans, one from Oregon and two others from Colorado.

Parker Kelly is one of several Division I commits on a talented Westview (Ore.) team and has begun to make the transition to catcher after taking a majority of his reps at third base. Highlands Ranch (Colo.) shortstop Nick Shumpert is one of the top players in the 2015 high school class and was first seen by a PG staff member playing for Heritage High School at Coach Bob during Shumpert’s freshman year. Rounding out the All-American trio is Legend (Colo.) outfielder Greg Pickett who shows as much strength and power potential as any other player in the entire class.

Talented players are far from scarce as shown below with several players committed to prominent colleges, some of which are nationally ranked per the Perfect Game Collegiate Staff. While on the topic of nationally ranked clubs, Fayetteville East in Arkansas is the lone high school team heading into the tournament as a top 50 ranked team according to PG's high school team rankings, though several teams have the talent to make a run throughout the spring.

Here is a list of the top prospects that will be in attendance broken down by class along with their college commitments:


2015:

Nick Shumpert, SS, Highlands Ranch (Colo.) – Kentucky
Greg Pickett, OF, Legend (Colo.) – Mississippi State
Tyler Williams, OF, Kellis (Ariz.) – Arizona State
Parker Kelly, 3B/C, Westview (Ore.) – Oregon
Andy Pagnozzi, RHP, Fayetteville (Ark.) – Mississippi
Karsen Lindell, RHP, West Linn (Ore.) – Washington
Jonas Wyatt, RHP, Quartz Hill (Calif.) – San Diego State
Jordan Stephens, SS, Legend (Colo.) – Dallas Baptist
Jacob Bennett, RHP, Tualatin (Ore.) – Oregon
Tyler Wyatt, SS/RHP, Liberty (Ariz.) – Grand Canyon
Rudy Karre, SS, Liberty (Ariz.) – Kansas
Peyton Remy, RHP, Legend (Colo.) – New Mexico
Zak Taylor, C, Sherwood (Ore.) – Oregon State
Giovanni Lopez, SS/RHP, Millennium (Ariz.) – uncommitted
Colton Sakamoto, OF, Westview (Ore.) – Oregon
Terrence Robertson, OF, Valley Vista (Ariz.) – uncommitted
Grant Smith, RHP, Millennium (Ariz.) – Utah
Cody Davenport, RHP, Fayetteville (Ark.) – Central Arkansas
Drew Tyler, SS, Fayetteville (Ark.) – Arkansas
Grant Koch, C, Fayetteville (Ark.) – Arkansas
Walker Powell, RHP, Fayetteville (Ark.) – Southern Mississippi

2016:

Gregory Veliz, RHP/SS, Key West (Fla.) – Miami
Maverick Handley, C, Mullen (Colo.) – Stanford
Wyatt Featherston, OF, Green Mountain (Colo.) – uncommitted
Kenyon Yovan, RHP/3B, Westview (Ore.) – Oregon
Cameron Cannon, SS, Mountain Ridge (Ariz.) – uncommitted
Paul Tillotson, RHP, Lewis-Palmer (Colo.) – Nebraska
Adley Rutschman, RHP, Sherwood (Ore.) – Oregon State
Tommy Gillman, SS, Columbine (Colo.) – Texas A&M
Kasey Ford, RHP, Bentonville (Ark.) – Kansas State
Justin Williams, 3B, Kellis (Ariz.) – uncommitted
Jordan Williams, OF, Kellis (Ariz.) – uncommitted
Mitchell Allen, RHP, Boulder Creek (Ariz.) – San Diego State

2017:

Boyd Vander Kooi, RHP, Skyline (Ariz.) – Oregon
Matt Schroer, RHP, Arcardia (Ariz.) – Louisiana State
Tim Tawa, OF, West Linn (Ore.) – Stanford
Jordan Mambaje, C, Sandy (Ore.) – Oregon State



Four Teams to Watch:


Fayetteville East, Arkansas
Fayetteville East made a deep run into the state playoffs last spring with a roster full of mostly juniors, all of whom return for their senior year and look to make another run with a different result. Leading the team is senior righthander Andy Pagnozzi, an Ole Miss commit, who shows as good of pitchability and command of a full arsenal as anybody in the country. The supporting staff amongst pitchers is just as impressive as they feature righthanders Cody Davenport (Central Arkansas commit), Walker Powell (Southern Mississippi) and Joey Boushelle (Kansas State) as well as junior lefthander Joey Savin (uncommitted). The offense features a few University of Arkansas commits in senior catcher Grant Koch and senior shortstop Drew Tyler. Koch is a solid receiver behind the plate and moves well on his feet, and like Tyler, shows strength and carry off the barrel from the right side.

Read these Jeff Dahn features on Fayetteville East from last fall and at least year's Coach Bob National Invitational.


Legend, Colorado
Legend is ready to take the next step forward in 2015 as senior outfielder Greg Pickett will be with them for a full spring after having to sit out the first half of last year after transferring into Legend. Once he jumped in the lineup last spring though Pickett was nearly impossible to get out, hitting five home runs with another three extra-base hits in the 10 games he was allowed to participate in. Jordan Stephens is a quick-twitch senior shortstop who is committed to Dallas Baptist and will set the tempo for the offense at the top of the order while providing solid defense up the middle. Senior righthander Peyton Remy, a New Mexico commit, rounds out Legend’s three seniors who are ranked amongst the top five players in the state. Remy has a projectable 6-foot-2 frame and has run his fastball up to 91 mph, looking to lead a staff that features other players committed to play at the next level.

Read Jeff Dahn's recent feature on Legend High School as part of Perfect Game's 2015 high school baseball preview content.


West Linn, Oregon and Westview, Oregon

The Beaver state sends out a large amount of teams for the Coach Bob tournament, many of which have big-time talent on the field. Of the 24 Oregon teams heading south, both West Linn and Westview feature two solid teams and are full of talent committed to play at the next level. Westview will need that talent firing on all cylinders as they are in the bracket play of the National Division, while West Linn is one of eight members in the All-Star Division.

West Linn will be led by senior Karsen Lindell, a University of Washington commit who impressed last summer at the Area Code Games, and early reports have been superb on the righthander. Junior righty Daniel Ferrario shows big arm strength and is also a Division I commit, choosing to attend Oregon State, while fellow junior righty Trevor Wells shows a quick arm with a fastball that gets into the upper-80s. Both junior first baseman/righthanded pitcher Will Matthiessen and sophomore outfielder Tim Tawa are committed to Stanford and bring different strengths offensively. Tawa has big speed and looks to set the table at the top of the lineup while the 6-foot-4 Matthiessen shows big strength from the right side and will also spend time on the mound.

Like West Linn, Westview High School has a plethora of players committed to play at the Division I level. Both senior catcher/third baseman Parker Kelly and senior outfielder Colton Sakamoto are committed to the University of Oregon and will be relied upon for their abilities on the field and with the bat. Junior Kenyon Yovan will have to wait another year before joining his teammates at the University of Oregon but will be a big arm with a low-90s fastball as well as a power bat in the middle of the lineup. Joining Yovan on the mound is senior righthander Teagan Lind, a Washington State commit, and 6-foot-6 senior lefty Mark Finkelnburg, a Loyola Marymount commit, providing both depth and experience on the mound.

Read Jeff Dahn's recent feature on Westview High School as part of Perfect Game's 2015 high school baseball preview content.