THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION

| 2,384 MLB PLAYERS | 15,804 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS

2,384 MLB PLAYERS | 15,804 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS

Create Account

Tournaments | Story | 7/7/2016

17u WWBA Day 6 Scout Notes

Matt Czechanski

Photo: Perfect Game

Day 1 Notes | Day 2 Notes | Day 3 Notes | Day 4 Notes | Day 5 Notes
Daily Leaders | Top Ranked Players Team Database

On the last day of pool play several teams were saving their arms with their chances of winning their pools on the line. After an extensive rain delay, the HBF Maroons sent out Michigan commit Jeff Criswell (2017, Mich.). Criswell is very projectable physically with a long, lean frame and square shoulders listed at 6-foot-3, 185-pounds. He starts on the mound with a very big leg kick that comes well past his waist. He collapses his backside some and has slight spine tilt into his delivery. He threw from a three-quarters arm slot and showed a slight hook at the end of his throwing motion. He showed good arm strength on the mound, slightly more present than arm speed and landed on an open front leg. The future Wolverine generated good arm-side run on his fastball that worked and held 87-90 mph and hit 92 mph in the middle innings. His top secondary offering was an 11-to-5 shaped curveball that showed depth, albeit softer spin up to 75 mph. He was able to get the pitch over for strikes and doubled down on it, showing good confidence. Criswell also threw a big, sweeping slider on rare occasion up to 78, but it’s possible he just yanked a curveball on one pitch.

It would not be a day at a PG event without a standout play made by shortstop Nick Allen (2017, Cal.). The athletic infielder made a full leaping play up the middle to save a base hit in the bottom of the first. It was a full extension catch onto the center field grass with a very quick first step. Allen showed off the same agility and athleticism by stealing both second and third after his first inning walk. He gets very impressive jumps on the bases and constantly keeps pressure on the pitcher.

One of the better pure bats in the high school ranks lies with outfielder Calvin Mitchell (2017, Cal.). Mitchell has loads of strength in his frame with a compact lower half and very strong wrists. His hands work exceptionally well through the zone with plus bat speed and a strong line drive plane. The San Diego commit works the ball well to all fields with a quick toe tap into his swing and good rhythm at the plate. The ball comes off the barrel loudly as he shows off the strength and bat speed through the zone. At the plate he collected a pair of base this with the hardest being a double to the opposite field.

After an additional delay, the Central Florida Gators took the field and continue their impressive run through tournament play. Some of the loudest, awe-inspiring contact on Wednesday was delivered by shortstop Tyler Callihan (2019, Fla.). The very projectable 5-foot-11, 180-pound infielder absolutely decimated a home run down the right field line. The ball cleared a tent just beyond the wall and its final destination has yet to be determined. It left the bat at 96 mph and traveled 398 feet. Not to get caught up in one swing, but the sound off the barrel with strength was something to behold. And to top that off, with his team up by eight in the bottom of the sixth, he made a ranging play that ended up in a normal fielding spot for the shortstop and threw across his body to nail the runner at first and end the game. He showed impressive range with a strong arm overall impressive footwork.

Taking the mound for the Game On West Braves was South Carolina commit, Aaron Brown (2017, Tenn.). The strongly built 6-foot-4, 205-pound starter showed a longer, looser arm action on the mound from a three-quarters arm slot with good extension and downhill angle. Brown showed very impressive arm strength on the mound working his fastball 86-89 mph and hitting 90 mph on several occasions with arm-side life to the pitch. He generated swings and misses on his fastball up in the zone, but found barrels when attempting to place it in the lower third and the riding action taking it to the middle of the plate. The balls, to his credit, were hit on the ground, and thanks to his defenders he avoided trouble. Given his intent on the mound and arm action, it would not be a surprise to see his velocity tick up in the future with good projection remaining. Brown also mixed in a changeup on the mound with very impressive late fade. The pitch showed the potential to be an above average offering as he replicated the arm speed and overall feel for it. He doubled down on it routinely and got several swings and misses when pushing it down and out of the zone.

– Matt Czechanski

As has been custom this week at the 17u WWBA National Championship, the day usually starts off with some kind of gigantic righthanded pitcher taking the mound. On Wednesday, this was no different, as 6-foot-6, 225-pound Joe Boyle (2017, Mo.) started for the St. Louis Pirates Strickland. Boyle’s developmental trajectory has been exciting to follow over the past year-plus, and he took another step forward at this event. Though he struggled with fastball command, Boyle showed the type of physicality, arm strength, and ease of delivery that suggests a tremendous upside. He touched as high 96 mph, working pretty easily downhill at 93-95 early on, with an easy arm action and plus arm speed that projects for even more velocity moving forward. The fastball is nearly unhittable when commanded down in the strike zone due to a combination of raw velocity, plane, movement, and extension, and the aforementioned developmental trajectory gives him a ceiling that is potentially limitless. He’s committed to the University of Notre Dame, but if he continues on the upward trend he’s set in the past year or so, it seems he’s more likely to be a first rounder than a Fighting Irish.

Boyle’s teammate, first baseman John Bischoff (2017, Mo.), is uncommitted as of this writing but his offensive impact looks to be a quality fit in college baseball. His swing is lofted and built for power, and he generates quality backspin off the barrel with good strength. He shows the ability to stay back and drive the ball, with plenty of pop to the pull field, including a long double over the right fielder’s head in game action on Wednesday morning.

A Texas A&M commitment, righthanded pitcher Tylor Fischer (2017, Texas) absolutely looks the part of a future Texas flamethrower, as the 6-foot-4, 165-pound righty combines an ideal amount of physical projection with intense arm speed to give him excellent velocity projection moving forward. He worked in the 88-92 mph range on Wednesday, generating tremendous life on the pitch to the arm side as well as some sinking action when down. He’s able to run the fastball way in on the hands of right-handed hitters, eliciting some very weak swings on pitches that ended up well off the plate inside, simply due to the amount of late life found on the pitch.

Later in the day, Team Elite Prime 17’s and Games On Braves locked into a very good game, one which ended well after midnight in a 3-3 tie. Several players from each side stood out.

Connor Thomas (2016, Ga.) showcased some really good stuff, and he’s going to be an impact arm at Georgia Tech, potentially as soon as next season. The skinny, projectable lefthander worked 84-88 mph for the most part from a tough three-quarters arm slot, creating lots of angle on the fastball and being very tough to pick up in general. The weapon, however, was the breaking ball, a sharp slurvy offering with tons of spin (up to 2900 per TrackMan, a huge stat by itself), generating lots of swings and misses and otherwise uncomfortable swings from both right and lefthanded hitters. At his best, he pounds the zone downhill to both sides, and his arm speed and frame both suggest velocity gains in the future, to go along with that swing-and-miss breaking ball.

Morgan Copeland (2017, Ga.) caught for Game On, and showed big potential both behind the plate and at it. He lifted and separated all over an elevated fastball, driving it deep into the night for a long home run, and his bat speed, lofted swing path, and raw strength project for many more home runs in the future. He has well above average arm strength behind the plate as well, popping consistently in the 1.95-2.05 seconds range in game action, with lots of twitch. He may end up being a better pitching prospect, as more than a few scouts noted that could be a mid-90s guy on the mound as well.

Late in the game, Game On brought in reliever Logan Ward (2017, Ga.), and he lit up the radar guns almost immediately, clocking as high as 92 mph several times on both the guns behind the plate and the TrackMan technology. He has a very quick arm and generates downhill plane despite his size, in addition to good natural heaviness on the pitch. He hides the ball well and got a few swings and misses on fastballs even as low as 88-89 mph from the stretch. He worked mostly with his fastball, flashing one slider at 82 mph with some sharpness, but the bread-and-butter pitch here was undoubtedly the fastball.

– Brian Sakowski

PERFECTGAME.TV

Give us your feedback

Tournaments | Story | 1/27/2026

MLK East Scout Notes Recap

Perfect Game Staff

‘28 OF Jakob Groeschel (OH) continues to impress with the bat on the circuit, picked up 2 2Bs in the first game today. Really athletic, went 4.4 on turn; easy to dream on all the traits. #MLKEast @PG_OhioValley pic.twitter.com/wOIwnGKnkg — Perfect Game Florida (@Florida_PG) January 17, 2026 2028 OF Jakob Groeschel (Springfield, Ohio) broke out at this event last year hitting a casual .909, and although he didn’t turn in quite the same performance, he hit a strong .462 with 4 extra-base hits, 5 walks, 5 bags and only struck out once. He’s a pretty dynamic athlete who can do a lot of things well, but the bat is the calling card as he just lives on the barrel and has no problem handling all kinds of pitching. It’s a simple swing, but he’s got fast hands and he can really impact the ball without being overly physical yet. 2030 RHP Michael Vazquez...

College | Story | 2/6/2026

Conference Preview: Ohio Valley

Kyler Peterson

High School | General | 2/6/2026

California All Region & Top Tools

David Rawnsley

The 2026 class is one of the best in recent memory for the state of California, with 18 players ranking among the top 100 in the Perfect Game national rankings. Three PG All-Americans, IF Trey Ebel, OF Isaiah Hearn and RHP Logan Georges were all edged out of places on the California All-Region Team as a result. And although the 2027 class doesn’t look as deep, it does feature three Top Six players in SS Dylan Seward, LHP Jared Grindlinger and SS Carter Hadnot. Not surprisingly, California high schools are very well represented in the Perfect Game Pre-Season Top 50 rankings, particularly with 2025 Trinity League champion St. John Bosco beginning the season as the top ranked team in the country. A very deep Orange Lutheran squad holds down the third spot in the rankings, with 12th ranked De La Salle being the top team from Northern California. Corona (17th),...

College | Story | 2/6/2026

Conference Preview: Atlantic 10

Marcus Thomas

2026 College Preview Index | Preseason Top 25 | Preseason Collegiate All-Americans For all of Perfect Game's conference previews as part of the 2026 college baseball preview content, the 2025 records and all-conference teams are available for free. The conference top prospects and individual team breakdowns can be viewed with a subscription. 2025 Records Teams are listed in alphabetical order Team W L W L Davidson 19 12 28 29 Dayton 14 16 27 31 Fordham 15 15 25 33 George Mason 20 10 40 21 George Washington 14 16 27 27 La Salle* - - - - Rhode Island 23 8 39 20 Richmond 14 16 33 19 St. Joseph’s 17 13 24 28 St. Louis ...

High School | General | 2/5/2026

Georgia Region Top Teams

Tyler Russo

Georgia All Region Team & Top Tools Rk School Record 1 Etowah 34-4 2 Blessed Trinity 34-9 3 Parkview 26-11 4 Houston County 33-7 5 Lowndes 28-13 6 Walton 34-8 7 Buford 25-9 8 Pope 31-5 9 North Cobb Christian 24-11-1 10 Harrison 23-14 11 Newnan 32-5 12 North Paulding 28-10 13 Marist 30-7 14 Cartersville 32-10 15 Denmark 19-14 16 North Oconee 27-8 17 Loganville 29-8 18 Morgan County 32-10 19 North Gwinnett 35-5 20 Carrollton 23-12 21 Troup County 32-9 22 Hillgrove 21-13 23 River Ridge 25-15 24 Pickens 32-7 25 McEachern 24-8

Draft | Story | 2/6/2026

PG Draft: Mid-Major Picks to Click

Tyler Henninger

While Power 4 prospects tend to soak up the bulk of the industry buzz, there’s plenty of legitimate talent lurking at the mid-major level. These are competitive programs that are loaded with players who have real tools, physicality, and performance track records that translate beyond their conference. Below are nine mid-major prospects we expect evaluators to be in early and often on this spring. Ethan Norby, LHP, East Carolina (Rank: 155) Norby is an undersized left-hander, but has produced strong numbers over two years at ECU. The left-hander has produced a 3.80 ERA with 182 strikeouts over 149 1/3 innings. While the velocity does not stand out, Norby can still miss bats with the heater. It works in the low-90’s and creeps towards 95 mph at times. Quality extension for his size and high spin allow that offering to get on hitters, resulting in weak contact as well as whiffs....

High School | General | 2/5/2026

Georgia HS All Region & Top Tools

David Rawnsley

Georgia has its usual depth of high-level athletes and Perfect Game All-Americans, although three 2027 players did make the All-Region team. There are an unusual number of two-way prospects among the All-Region players, a testament to the big arms that the state has right now. Two Georgia high schools are ranked in the top 10 of the PG Pre-Season High School Top 50 rankings and the Georgia high school ranks are annually among the most competitive in the country. Etowah is the highest ranked team at 5th overall, while Blessed Trinity Catholic checks in at 8th. Parkview is the only other Georgia team in the top 50, holding down the 34th spot. OF-RHP Dexter McCleon Jr will be fixture on the Georgia All-Region team for the next two years but the top ranked prospect in the 2028 class will have to take a back seat to his elders this year. McCleon’s absurd...

High School | Rankings | 2/4/2026

Florida Region Top Teams

Tyler Russo

Florida All Region Team & Top Tools Rk School Record 1 Stoneman Douglas 31-2 2 Tampa Jesuit 25-10 3 Trinity Christian Academy 30-5 4 South Walton 31-4 5 IMG Academy 24-1 6 Venice 29-5 7 Bishop Verot 32-3 8 American Heritage (Plantation) 29-6 9 St. Thomas Aquinas 29-6-1 10 Doral Academy Charter 27-8-1 11 North Broward Prep 23-8 12 Lincoln 24-11 13 Mater Academy 25-9-1 14 The First Academy 30-4 15 Alonso 21-13 16 St. John's Country Day 26-9 17 Bishop Snyder 23-8 18 Spruce Creek 30-4 19 Buchholz 33-3 20 Lake Mary 15-15 21 Miami Springs 28-3 22 Jupiter 25-10 23 Plant City 16-12 24 Berkeley Prep 25-10 25 Winter Park 25-6

College | Story | 2/4/2026

Conference Preview: Northeast

Jason Phillips

2026 College Preview Index | Preseason Top 25 | Preseason Collegiate All-Americans For all of Perfect Game's conference previews as part of the 2026 college baseball preview content, the 2025 records and all-conference teams are available for free. The conference top prospects and individual team breakdowns can be viewed with a subscription. 2025 Records Teams are listed in alphabetical order* Team W L W L CCSU 23 7 31 17 Coppin State 13 17 15 34 Delaware State 6 24 7 34 FDU 16 14 16 37 LeMoyne 17 13 20 28 LIU 24 6 35 23 UMES 6 24 7 41 Mercyhurst 15 15 17 35 New Haven* 12 12 24 20 Norfolk State 4 26 4 38 Stonehill 18 12 20 32 Wagner 23 7 31 22 *Member Northeast-10 DII Preseason All Conference Team Pos. Name School Stats/Notes C Frankie Ferrentino CCSU .281-13-35, 9 2Bs, (Merrimack), Double digit HR all 3 years at Merrimack 1B Jayden Walker Mercyhurst .314-12-40, 10...

Press Release | Press Release | 2/4/2026

Baseball Meets Hollywood For Great Cause

Jim Salisbury

BASEBALL MEETS HOLLYWOOD FOR A GREAT CAUSE There’s no crying in baseball, but there is laughing, and there was lots and lots of it -- for a great cause -- last Saturday night in Hollywood, California. Perfect Game and its Believe in Baseball Foundation assembled a star-studded cast of comics and guests for the inaugural “In the Spirit of the Game” dinner and auction. The event was held at the iconic Laugh Factory, a historic venue that, in baseball terms, would be equivalent to Dodger Stadium or Wrigley Field. Late-night superstar Jay Leno took a turn on stage. So did comedic aces Tiffany Haddish, Nikki Glaser, Dustin Ybarra and Gary Cannon. “It was 4 ½ hours of straight laughter,” said PG commissioner Dennis Gilbert, still beaming a couple of days later. “It was a really nice success.” No one kept score at the event, but...

College | Story | 2/5/2026

Conference Preview: Western Athletic

Scott Rankin

2026 College Preview Index | Preseason Top 25 | Preseason Collegiate All-Americans For all of Perfect Game's conference previews as part of the 2026 college baseball preview content, the 2025 records and all-conference teams are available for free. The conference top prospects and individual team breakdowns can be viewed with a subscription. 2025 Records Teams are listed in alphabetical order* Team W L W L Abilene Christian 34 23 15 9 Cal Baptist 30 27 12 12 Sacramento State 32 26 15 9 Tarleton State 24 32 12 12 UT Arlington 21 33 11 13 Utah Tech 24 31 9 15 Utah Valley 29 29 13 11 Preseason All-Conference Team Pos. Name School Stats/Notes C Mason Strong Utah Valley 1st team All-WAC in ‘25 hitting .366 and leading the conference in hits. Also hit 11 Home Runs 1B Grant Watkins Abilene Christian .292 with 14 Home Runs and drove in 48 runs in...

Loading more articles...

PERFECTGAME.TV

SPEND MORE. SAVE MORE.

Event Types

Special Events

Featured

Baseball Showcases

Player Rankings

DRAFT BOARD

Team Rankings

Travel Team Rankings

College Rankings

Softball Player Rankings

Top Ranked Players

PG Rawlings Preseason All American

Top Ranked Teams

Recruiting Menu

Event Results

PG EVENT CONTENT

HIGH SCHOOL CONTENT

MLB DRAFT CONTENT

COLLEGE CONTENT

RECENT ARTICLES

PG Alumni

NOTABLE MLB PLAYERS

About Perfect Game