THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION
| 2,384 MLB PLAYERS | 15,801 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
2,384 MLB PLAYERS | 15,801 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Create Account
Sign in Create Account
College  | Story | 3/1/2017

Week 2 College Player Spotlight

Photo: Steve Fiorindo
 


Perfect Game College Player Database | Week 1 Player Database Spotlight

Every week during the 2017 college baseball season we will be pulling at least one report, and corresponding video when available, of a player entered into the College Player Database. All of these reports can be found in one, easy-to-find place as linked above, and can also be accessed off of the individual PG player profile pages. To access all of the reports you will need a College Baseball Ticket (CBT) subscription. To learn more about the CBT and to sign up today please visit this link.

Here are the players, school-by-school, who were added to the database from the second week of the 2017 college baseball season:

Oregon: David Peterson, Tim Susnara, A.J. Balta, James Acuna
UC Irvine: Keston Hiura, Andrew Pallante
Utah: Jayson Rose, Riley Ottesen
Ohio State: Ryan Feltner
Lipscomb: Michael Gigliotti, Brady Puckett, Jeffrey Passantino, Zeke Dodson, Lee Solomon
Missouri State: Jake Burger, Jeremy Eierman, Trey Turner, Dylan Coleman
Middle Tennessee State: Austin Dennis




Keston Hiura, OF, UC Irvine (Junior, draft eligible in 2017)

Hiura, a preseason First Team All-American, can flat hit. He’s a pure hitter that resembles Howie Kendrick with more pop and more willingness to hit for power. Hiura uses a big leg kick, works the middle of field well and has an excellent feel for the barrel. He hit a bomb of a home run to left-center field in UC Irvine’s 11-5 loss to Oregon as part of the Tony Gwynn Classic in San Diego.  Similar to Kendrick, Hiura looks like a second baseman or left fielder at next level (mostly based on past looks as he served as the Anteaters designated hitter in this game).  Regardless of his future position he offers a bat-first profile that could hit near the top of a lineup.


Jake Burger, 3B/1B, Missouri State (Junior, draft eligible in 2017)

Burger has an average arm with plenty enough arm strength (about 88-89 mph out of the hand) to stay at third. He has quick transfers but his feet are a little heavy and he is slow coming in on balls. Burger made two errors in the first inning of Sunday’s game against Middle Tennessee State (a 5-0 Missouri State win) which seemed to remove him mentally from most of the rest of the game. One error was a throwing error that pushed the second baseman off the bag. The wildness of his throws does seem to be a concern as his throws were all over the place during pre-game infield drills on Saturday as well. The other error was him booting a scorched ground ball right to him. While this was only a two-game look it has been speculated in the past that a move across the diamond to first base may be in Burger’s future.

What isn’t a question is his power and the ability to make in-game adjustments. In Saturday’s game Lipscomb’s Jeffrey Passantino got Burger to chase a slider that was well outside for a strikeout in his first at-bat. However, in the second at-bat, again against Passantino, Burger laid off that pitch. He ended up just missing a home run, hitting a 385-foot flyout to center field with a 5.74-second hang time. By the third at-bat Burger jumped all over a first-pitch fastball hitting it for a home run.

His ability to make in-game adjustments is impressive and is on par with 2015 first-round pick Christin Stewart. In his fourth at-bat on Saturday he ripped a line drive that hung up just a little bit too long as the left fielder was able to make a play on it. However, during Sunday’s game he could not make the adjustments. The Middle Tennessee State pitchers pounded sliders away causing him to expand the zone resulting in two unmemorable grounders and strikeouts on sliders away. Finally, he got a pulled hard ground ball double up the third base line in his final at-bat of that game.

Burger compares favorably to 2016 first-round pick, Will Craig. They have the same bat speed, swing plane, load and arm strength, and both have questions defensively that may end up pushing both of them off third to first.

Overall, the power is a plus tool with the arm being about league average at third. If he carries his 2016 production into 2017 he could be drafted in the back end of the first round thanks to his impressive potential at the plate.



College | Story | 12/25/2025

2025 Year in Review: College

Craig Cozart
Article Image
The LSU Tigers Win It All Again For the second time in the last three years, the LSU Tigers, led by head coach Jay Johnson secured the national title. The national championship was the eight in LUS program history as they swept Coastal Carolina in the MCWS championship series. As a result, Johnson was virtually a unanimous choice for National Coach of the Year on media outlets and is the fastest coach to win multiple CWS championships at a single school. The tournament’s Most Outstanding Player was Tigers’ lefthanded ace and Perfect Game First-Team All-American, Kade Anderson highlighted by his complete-game shutout in Game 1 of the CWS Finals. The roster was a tremendous blend of offensive firepower, frontline pitching and elite defense, leaving opponents with very few avenues to victory. PG Second-Team All-American, Jared Jones was the heart of the lineup with his 20...
Tournaments | Story | 12/29/2025

PG Expands Presence in Pacific Rim

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
    667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923  www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA      FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    PERFECT GAME EXPANDS PRESENCE IN PACIFIC RIM, STRENGTHENING YOUTH BASEBALL DEVELOPMENT    Sanford, Florida (Monday, December 29, 2025) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced a significant expansion of its presence across the Asia-Pacific Zone, with a strategic focus on the 10-15 year-old age group. The initiative will be led in partnership with longtime Japanese youth baseball executive and coach Takaharu Nasu, as Perfect Game continues to grow its global footprint and strengthen pathways for elite youth...
Showcase | Story | 12/27/2025

Main Event Invades Fort Myers

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
    667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923  www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA      FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    PERFECT GAME CLOSES OUT 2025 WITH MAIN EVENT SHOWCASE  AT JETBLUE PARK IN FT. MYERS, FLORIDA    Nearly 1,000 players expected at largest showcase of the year  that has produced over 1,000 MLB Draft picks    Ft. Myers, Florida (Saturday, December 27, 2025) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, will host its 2025 Main Event Showcase from December 28–31 at JetBlue Park, the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox, in the Fort Myers area.    The Main Event is the largest showcase Perfect Game holds annually,...
Draft | Rankings | 12/26/2025

2026 MLB Draft Board Update

Vincent Cervino
Article Image
The calendar is just days away from being flipped over to 2026, and while the players may be on break, it’s clear that they are just itching to get back on the field and compete once again, with another season of college baseball right around the corner. For prep players (especially in warm-weather states), the season’s right around the corner, and players will be back on the ball fields sooner than later. With that said, the PG Draft Team came together and got to work on a 2026 MLB Draft Board update. A little pre-season shake-up and expansion as we took our board from the Top 150 names to the Top 300 names, in preparation for the 2026 college and prep seasons to begin. The 2025 MLB Draft Lottery occurred earlier in December and shed some light on what the draft order will look like in 2026, with the Chicago White Sox taking home the first overall pick, followed by the Tampa...
PG Select Baseball Festival | General | 12/26/2025

2025 Year in Review: PGAAC, ASG, Festivals

Jheremy Brown
Article Image
All-Star Game Continues To Thrive We’re only a couple of years into having the PG All-Star Game around, an underclass event attached to the All-American weekend, this year played in Petco two days before the Classic. The talent that is a part of it continues to grow to significant levels, and this year was a mix of young guys and some newer names that left lasting impressions. The two hardest throwing guys in the game were the only 2028s in attendance, Striker Pence and Dexter McCleon Jr who both were upper-90s as guys who just started their sophomore year, while the loudest moment of the day came when Kinon Bastian obliterated a pitch into the top deck of the famous Western Supply building in left field, something that we’ll remember for a long time. Extra Swings In The All-American Derby One of the best events every All-American weekend is getting to see these guys with...
High School | General | 12/24/2025

2025 Year In Review: High School

Cam McElwaney
Article Image
IMG Academy Takes Home the National Title Every year IMG Academy comes into the spring with top-to-bottom one of the top rosters in the country and every year have the expectation of winning the national championship. Well in 2025 they did just that after finishing the spring 24-1, winning the High School Showdown, and winning 15 straight games to end their season. Their high end offensive ability was on full display throughout the year and they will once again be one of the most talented teams in the country in ’26 as they look to go back-to-back. Two Top-10 Picks in the MLB Draft Headline National Players of the Year It was another loaded crop that took home the National Players of the Year as both Ethan Holliday, the National Player of the Year, and Seth Hernandez, National Pitcher of the Year, heard their names called within the first-10 picks in the MLB Draft. Another first...
Draft | Rankings | 12/24/2025

Top 2027 Collegiate Draft Prospects

Isaiah Burrows
Article Image
With the 2025 cycle officially behind us and the calendar nearly flipping over to 2026, it is time to start looking ahead to the future. More importantly, start looking ahead to the next season of college baseball and what that may mean for draft-eligible players with big dreams of continuing their journey. While the 2026 MLB Draft is now on the horizon, we are looking ahead to the future even further – to see which players have already made impacts upon their arrival to college campuses. We have already dropped our 2028 Top 75 collegiate prospects board, but this one is our Top 100 college prospects who will be eligible for the 2027 class. These are the Top 100 players in our eyes for this group, and many of them have already shown up on campus and been impactful in many ways. Whether its our top-ranked player in Oregon State’s Dax Whitney or ninth-ranked William Schmidt...
Draft | Rankings | 12/23/2025

Top 2028 Collegiate Draft Prospects

Vincent Cervino
Article Image
The college players in the 2028 draft class have yet to step on campus, but they're positioned to make an immediate impact. Several high end talents either turned down significant money last year or honored strong college commitments, resulting in their arrival on campus this fall. The class is currently led by a trio of high-upside arms in Jack Bauer, Angel Cervantes, and Cameron Appenzeller. They are followed by a deep group of bats that rounds out a strong, high end Top-10. Rk. Name Level Pos. B-T School Hometown State 1 Jack Bauer C LHP L-L Mississippi State Frankfort IL 2 Angel Cervantes C RHP R-R UCLA Lynwood CA 3 Cameron Appenzeller C LHP L-L Tennessee Springfield IL 4 Brayden Jaksa C C R-R Oregon Fremont  CA 5 JD Stein C SS R-R Wake Forest Carmel IN 6 Mason Ligenza C OF L-L Pittsburgh Brockton PA 7 Ty Peeples C OF L-R Georgia Lavonia GA 8 Lucas Franco C SS L-R TCU Katy TX 9...
Juco | Story | 12/23/2025

2025 Year in Review: JUCO

Blaine Peterson
Article Image
Looking Back at the 2025 Top 10  Matt Barr (‘25 Niagara, ‘26 Minnesota Twins) Bursting onto the scene last winter, footage of an indoor bullpen rocketed Barr onto the radar of many. Explosive fastball reaches near triple digits with incredible spin numbers across the secondaries. Huge numbers at Niagara earned him the title of the first Juco player drafted in 2025. JC Vanek (‘25 Chipola, ‘26 Kansas City Royals) Just a professional hitter. Vanek for two years at Chipola was an impossible out. While there are questions if the power will ever reach what it takes to play first base at the big league level, the bat and quality defensive skillset at first base may carry. Donovan Becerra (‘25 New Mexico, ‘26 Texas Tech) One of the more high octane arms anywhere in the country last year. Can reach back for upper 90’s and has shown serious swing and...
Draft | Story | 12/22/2025

2025 Year in Review: Draft

Isaiah Burrows
Article Image
2025 Year in Review: Draft We’ve reached the end of the 2025 calendar year, and while we’ve already jumped in on the 2026 cycle with some of the fall events and post-draft content we’ve had here at Perfect Game, there’s still one more piece on the docket, and that’s the 2025 Year-In-Review piece here from the PG Draft staff.  The 2025 MLB Draft took place in July, when many highly talented players heard their names called and continued their journey through the game to the next level. There’s already been some of those names making noise in the minors and guys who are moving up prospect lists and becoming names to know for MLB fans digging deep into the future of their organizations. While we are going to “close the book” on 2025 with this article, these players still have many years ahead of them, and many blank pages to continue...
Loading more articles...