2015
WWBA World Championship: Leaderboard | All-Tournament Team
As
I reflect back on my first ever trip to Jupiter for the WWBA World
Championships, this event exceeded all of my expectations and then
some. Jupiter, as it is commonly known, is a baseball bonanza.
Here
are my four main takeaways and I'll detail these in the paragraphs
ahead: there are things that make the Jupiter experience unique; the
tools of certain individual players here were extreme; some of the
player vs. player showdowns were captivating; and Jupiter reminds us
what the game of baseball is all about.
First,
Jupiter is unlike any other baseball event I've attended.
Jupiter's
core principle is "six and six," meaning you are going to see
six games per day and get six hours of sleep per night. This is
certainly a grind but it creates the same kind of fatigue that a
six-year old child would experience from a trip to Disney World. One
must caffeinate early and often or else risk missing a great baseball
moment.
The
hundreds of golf carts that envelop the fields are now the iconic
visual for what this event has become. The golf carts' purpose is
counter-intuitive as they serve more as stadium seats than
transportation. The golf carts also reinforce the small-town feel of
our game since you are sure to be offered a seat by someone in a
random golf cart on more than one occaison. Six games in one day is a
long time to be on your feet. Now do that for four days.
As
Jupiter heads into the playoff round and only 17 of the original 85
teams remain, the unique "overtime" rules kick into play
for tie games. After seven innings of play, or the allotted time
limit has been reached, the subsequent innings are begun with the
bases loaded and one out until a winner emerges. This is penalty
kicks on steroids and the tension reaches meteoric levels.
Second,
and as I mentioned on Twitter throughout the weekend, some of these
elite players possess carrying tools that make your trip to Jupiter
worth it all on their own.
Catchers
M.J. Melendez (Mets Scout Team/Scorpions) and Cooper Johnson (Reds
Midwest Scout Team) threw frozen ropes all over the place and their
defensive chops are exceptional. In fact, we certainly appreciated
their opponents' fearlessness in trying to run on these two despite
the fact that this is a lower percentage strategy than playing the
lottery. Alabama State and Mississippi are their respective
commitments, but both receivers feel like longshots to see a college
campus.
Matt
Manning's (EvoShield Canes) fastball jumps at the hitters and he
could be comped to two-time first rounder Phil Bickford. Both
righthanders possess fastballs that sit in the low-90s but play up
significantly because of the life on those pitches. We saw maybe one
good pass at Manning's fastball all weekend (by Washington commit Ben
Baird) and that included his semifinal outing versus the very
talented GBG Marucci team. Manning could potentially play both
basketball and baseball at Loyola Marymount yet he certainly looks
the part of a first round pick in next June's draft.
Cole
Turney (Texas Scout Team Yankees) swings it with an authority rarely
seen at his age. His significant leg kick creates light tower power
but yet he has the athleticism to maintain control of the barrel. I'm
a sucker for an advanced lefthander hitter and I fear that Cole
Turney will break my heart by never making it to Fayetteville to play
for Dave Van Horn and the Razorbacks.
Third,
the individual matchups we witnessed may be the only thing capable of
trumping the previously mentioned tools.
Lefthander
Richard Gregory (South Carolina commit) threw a gem against a stacked
Mets Scout Team/Scorpions team that featured two of his future SEC East
comprades in Brady Smith (Florida commit) and Carlos Cortes (South
Carolina commit). Gregory took a 1-0 lead into the seventh inning
only to have Cortes, who Gregory had struck out looking just two
innings earlier, hit a laser up the middle to drive in the go ahead
run. Cortes possesses one of the purer hit tools in the 2016 class.
Ryan
Zeferjahn (Kansas commit) faced off against Alex Kirilloff (Liberty
commit) so we saw how one of the best fastballs in the 2016 class
would fare versus one of the best lefthanded bats. Zeferjahn, who is
highly projectible and sat in the low-90s, was clearly impressive but
Kirilloff won this battle as he hit two balls right on the screws.
My
favorite scene of the weekend featured Nick Allen (Southern
California commit) leading his CBA Marucci team into a crucial pool
play game against Andrew Baker (Florida commit) and Chet Lemon's
Juice. Allen and Baker may both be undersized but they play with an
elite level energy and these two often will their teams to victory
with their incredible intensity. CBA Marucci won a highly spirited
contest on this day but both of these players will bring a winning
spirit to their college programs if they make it to campus. We may be
talking about these two as the best defensive infielder (Allen) and
outfielder (Baker) in college baseball someday soon.
Finally,
and most importantly, the game of baseball provides relationships
that last a lifetime and Jupiter reinforced that for me in spades.
I
spent time in Jupiter with a former college teammate of mine who is a
now national crosschecker for a pro team. I also had a blast seeing
three men who coached me in college and now are professional scouts
as well. I caught up with one of my former players who was just
promoted to a crosschecker position and I couldn't be more proud of
him. I saw a good buddy from my hometown who brought a travel team to
Jupiter. And I enjoyed the company of so many scouts and coaches who
I've known since I cut my teeth as a young college assistant coach.
These
relationships are ones I cherish and that is why my first Jupiter was
priceless. We are so fortunate to work in this great game, it is
truly a gift.