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Tournaments  | Story | 7/13/2016

17u BCS Finals Day 2 Scout Notes

Brandon Hohl


Day 1 Notes | Daily Leaders | Top Ranked Players Team Database

The second day of the 2016 17u BCS Finals begins at Terry Park with two uncommitted, non-ranked players that were really impressive facing each other. On the mound, it was uncommitted righthander Nick Stoner (2017, Elizabethtown, Pa.) representing the Keystone State Bombers. Stoner and his skinny frame stands tall on the mound with his hands at his chest, hands raised with his high leg lift creating some coil. Nick, then drives off his back leg into a long stride synced with a long arm swing allowing his arm to gain speed at his over-the-top release point. While there’s direction to home plate, and he will fall off to first base side, he remains under control of his finish despite a head whack. Stoner sat 88-90 and touching 91 mph with his fastball attacking hitters early and working dominantly to his arm side. The fastball showed arm-side run and set the tone for his pitch sequences. He mixed a changeup at 72-75 mph and a 78 mph curveball once ahead with the fastball. The change showed depth and late arm-side run causing righthanded hitters to swing over it. He struggled with command of the curveball, and despite his tendency to spike the breaking pitch, it was most effective when thrown at the shoulder of righthanded hitters allowing for the sharp 11-to-4 movement to take shape. Stoner’s head whack added some deception to his off-speed pitches as well. Overall, Stoner’s outing was impressive, as he maintained his velocity and hit 91 mph on his 81st pitch of the game and did not lose velocity in the stretch while showing advanced pitchability while controlling the run game with varying holds and leg lifts.

Facing off against Stoner and the Keystone State Bombers was uncommitted prospect Josh Rulli (2017, Riverview, Fla.) and the 2017 Scorpions South Purple. Rulli, a catcher and a third baseman, is listed at 5-foot-10 185-pounds and has a strong and thick frame, showcasing that strength in his righthanded swing. At the plate, Rulli has an athletic, hinged stance with jis knees bent and shoulders leveraged over his toes. His hands are slightly in front of his back shoulder with his barrel tipped towards the pitcher. As he loads Rulli maintains his barrel angle as long as possible bringing him to a strong launch position, with his stride he creates elastic tension between the hands and lead leg that results in a lot of bat speed and power potential, finishing in the lower half power-L position, and working up to the ball. Josh had three at-bats against Stoner and the one that stood out the most was his last. Based on previous at-bats it was clear that Rulli went in to his third plate appearance anticipating he was not going to see a fastball. He was able to recognize some of Stoner’s best curveballs in his outing, laying off a wipe-out spiked curveball and singling on a 1-2 curveball. Rulli finished the day 2-for-3 with both hits coming off Stoner and is batting .500 in the BCS Finals.

Over at JetBlue Ballpark and Red Sox spring training complex, the 17u Super25 National Championship began. And we begin with another Perfect Game Top 150 prospect from the 643 DP Cougars, lefthander Brant Hurter. The Georgia Tech commit stands at 6-for-6, 230-pounds with a very tall and projectable frame on the mound. He sets his hands high, keeping them close to his chest, with a high leg lift and internal rotation creating torque in the rear leg and putting his body in a powerful position. He has a short quick stride that he syncs with a quick arm action and low three-quarters release. Hurters strides closed and finished around with his lead leg, with his direction taking him to the third base line. Brant worked his fastball at 84-86 mph, touching 87 (he was up to 89 mph at the National Showcase) that showed life and was most effective when he commanded the inside part of the plate. His length and extension added to the perceived velocity the hitters were seeing. He occasionally would miss far into the lefthanded batter’s box or leave his fastball up over the middle of the plate, which is where hitters saw the majority of their success off Hurter.

Hurter mixes in a changeup at 72-75 mph with depth and good arm action. He preferred his firm curveball over the changeup in this game, sitting at 68 mph, showing late break that was effective against lefthanded hitters. If Brant can add a slider to his repertoire he’d be devastating to face for both left and righthanded batters, as the pitch angle he creates with his low three-quarters slot and direction to the righthanded batter’s box would make a great combination for a wipe-out, back-foot slider. The Georgia Tech commit finished the day with six innings allowing six hits and three walks while striking out nine to earn the win.

It’s hard to see someone the size of Georgia State commit Stephen Cullen (2017, Braselton, Ga.) step into the batter’s box and not stop to see what happens. At 6-foot-4, 220-pounds, the Triton Rays Scout Team corner infielder and three-hole hitter didn’t disappoint and led the way for them offensively. Standing tall with his hands slightly above the shoulder and bat vertical, Stephen begins his swing with a small gather to the rear leg with a leg lift, coiling his front side as he falls into his landing leg with a long stride, generating a lot of force forward into the direction of the oncoming pitch. He uses a barrel tip as a timing mechanism with the pitchers release point to give his barrel the best chance to accelerate in the zone. Hunting fastballs, Cullen doubled to deep left-center in his first at-bat plating two runs. He finished the game 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI and a run scored. From the short period I saw Cullen his approach at the plate seemed to be to drive the ball in the air, as the only time any of the balls that the Georgia State commit put in play touched the ground were when they landed. Living in the air is an approach he should continue to maintain because it fits the type of player he is and will be in his future.

Uncommitted Chandler World outfielder, Ian Diaz (2017, Philadelphia, Pa.) also grabbed attention at the plate. Sharing a similar body type to the previously mentioned Josh Rulli, Diaz stands at 5-foot-10, 185-pounds with a strong and athletic build. He has a tall, narrow stance with his hands set above his shoulder by the ear. Keeping the back leg braced throughout his swing he begins a leg lift while simultaneously tipping the barrel and dropping the hands into a low launch position below the shoulder. Utilizing a long stride, Diaz creates separation and elastic tension leading to easy bat speed. What I think will be the most beneficial to Diaz in his future is that he is able to stay on the pitch plane with his bat path for a very long time. He does by holding his hands back as long as possible and letting the barrel fall around his shoulder, which tends to create a positive attack angle (ZEPP) to the ball. Another factor that stood out in his swing was his ability to finish with his back foot off the ground at contact. This shows me that Diaz knows how to generate a lot of power into his lead leg and therefore into the pitch. This is not something that is necessary to a successful swing but is an advanced movement we don’t see a lot of amateur hitters do. He finished the game 1-for-3 and I’m really looking forward to seeing more of Ian in the days to come at the PG Super25.
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