THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION
| 2,625 MLB PLAYERS | 16,400 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
2,625 MLB PLAYERS | 16,400 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Sign in Create Account
Sign in Create Account
High School  | General | 5/9/2018

PG Iowa Spring League Wrap

Patrick Ebert
Photo: Jarred Kelenic (Perfect Game)

Although Mother Nature didn’t allow for things to go quite as planned the past two months, the Perfect Game Iowa Spring League wrapped up on Sunday as the Wisconsin-based Hitters Baseball program played a doubleheader against the host Iowa Select Black team in Independence, Iowa. Iowa Select won both games, storming back from a 4-3 deficit in the top of the ninth of the second game to win 8-4 after winning the first game 4-2.

The seven-week series was initially set up by Perfect Game’s Steve James and the Hitters’ R.J. Fergus as an opportunity to showcase the players from each program, and as expected it was the bats of the Hitters and the arms of Iowa Select that stood out the most. There were quite a few scouts to take in Sunday’s action, with numerous cross-checkers in town to watch the action with particular interest in PG All-American outfielder Jarred Kelenic.


Jarred Kelenic, OF, Hitters Baseball



Kelenic is a well-known player, one of the top high school prospects in the nation who could be taken among the top 10 overall picks in this year’s draft. He participated in last summer’s Perfect Game All-American Classic, and while he impressed at the plate there he especially stood out by making a really nice running catch to rob fellow PG All-American and lefthanded slugger Nick Decker of extra bases.

After going 8-for-9 with three doubles and a home run on Saturday, Kelenic continued his hot hitting into Sunday’s action facing Iowa Select Black’s impressive collection of pitchers. He opened the first game with his hardest hit ball of the day, a line drive double that was scorched up the middle. The Hitters Baseball program emphasizes the importance of staying on top of the ball and hitting lasers to all parts of the field and Kelenic has done a good job to embrace this approach. He added another double in the second game of the doubleheader on Sunday as well as a hard hit single up the box off of the game’s hardest throwing pitcher, Connor Van Scoyoc.

Kelenic’s physicality is evident, as he’s a tightly wound and well-put together athlete that still has room to add strength without losing the looseness to his actions. A lefthanded hitter, he has a direct swing path to the ball with lightning quick hands and wrists, which gives him very good bat speed. While he can (and does) hit home runs, when he does hit them out they tend to be more of the laser variety than the tall, majestic variety since he stays on top of the ball so well. His bat-to-ball skills are impressive, as when the bat leaves his shoulder he has a knack for squaring the ball up and hitting it hard to all parts of the field.

He didn’t have the opportunity to put his speed to the test but he glides to balls in the outfield, gets good reads and is always moving in the right direction off the crack of the bat. Kelenic has run the 60-yard dash in the 6.50-6.60 second range in the past and can stretch extra-base hits on the basepaths.

His best defensive tool is his arm, as he had the opportunity to show off that tool a few times in game action, firing seeds to both both third base and home plate that resembled how the ball looks off of his bat. Not only were the throws made with great velocity but they were online and on the money and didn’t appear to sail more than 10-15 feet off the ground.


Alex Binelas, 3B, Hitters Baseball



We last reported on Binelas about a month ago, when these two teams matched up at the Hitters’ indoor facility in Southeastern Wisconsin. Binelas and Kelenic have been teammates on the Hitters for several years now and you can see a lot of similarities in their setup within the lefthanded batter’s box and their overall hitting mechanics.

And also like Kelenic, Binelas enjoyed a strong showing at the plate over the weekend. On Saturday he was 3-for-7 with a home run and five RBIs. In the two games on Sunday he went a combined 3-for-8 with a pair of doubles, and all three hits came off the bat hard. On one of his doubles he did a nice job staying back on the pitch and driving it oppo to the gap in left-center field, and he also went back-to-back with Kelenic in the third inning of Game 2, ripping a single off of Connor Van Scoyoc that brought home Kelenic.

Binelas’ approach is no-nonsense, as there aren’t wasted movements and he does a good job making consistent, hard contact with advanced bat-to-ball skills. There is somewhat of a swing-and-miss element to his game, but there’s also very exciting offensive upside with the ability to drive the ball from one gap to the other. While he currently stays on top of the ball well, like Kelenic, to hit line drives, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him develop more loft power as he swings the bat more like a prototypical lefthanded slugger.

Defensively he has more than enough arm strength for the hot corner (he also made an appearance on the mound to get the Hitters out of a bases loaded situation with one out in the final inning) and made all of the plays he needed to. He has rangy, well-proportioned strength at a listed 6-foot-2, 210-pounds, and it’s easy to envision him bulking up to the 220-225 pound range in the next 3-4 years, which could occur at Louisville, where he has committed to play collegiately.


AJ Vukovich, 3B/RHP, Hitters Baseball



Vukovich is a name to tuck away for a couple of years, currently a sophomore in high school that has been playing up due to his size, physicality and impressive skills on a baseball field. Like Kelenic and Binelas, he too has committed to play at Louisville. Vukovich still has refinements to be made at the plate, but thanks to the leverage he creates in his righthanded swing due to his 6-foot-5, 205-pound stature, he already can put a charge into the ball with the ability to drive the ball out to any part of the park. On Sunday he only collected one base hit, but it was a memorable one, smoking a line drive single to the outfield that drove in a run. He’s at his best staying short to the ball but that can be difficult at times given his long levers, but when he’s able to extend out front the ball can travel a long, long way.

Due to Binelas patrolling third base Vukovich spent most of his day at first, but he has more than enough athleticism and arm strength to play the hot corner or even a corner outfield spot at the next level. However, some may view his talents to be greater on the mound, as he has already touched the low-90s on occasion with a promising breaking ball. While he did throw a couple of innings on this day, allowing just one base hit while fanning a pair of batters, his fastball and curveball were both down in the velo department as compared to past viewings; his fastball sat in the mid-80s and his curveball was thrown right around 70 mph.


Brayden Frazier, SS, Iowa Select Black



Frazier is a gamer, a player quickly identified as a coach’s favorite (and not surprisingly his father serves as a coach for the Iowa Select program). He’s not especially toolsed-up but he plays the game hard, is a good athlete and always seems to come through with a big hit and/or play defensively. He has played all over the infield and shows good lateral movements, soft hands and a strong arm across the infield. While he’s not an especially twitchy athlete, he just gets the job done and should be able to play the shortstop position at least through college as he has committed to play in-state at Iowa with enough versatility to play second and third base as he progresses.

His tools are solid across the board, with low-90s arm strength across the diamond and solid straight-line speed. In the batter’s box he does a nice job squaring up the baseball, showing mostly gap-to-gap power at this point in time, although there is some over-the-fence pop, both presently and in regards to future projection. He has a strong and athletic, broad-shouldered build at 5-foot-11, 190-pounds.

In the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader Frazier collected a pair of hard-hit doubles smacked to the outfield gaps, and overall went 3-for-6 on the day, adding a hard-hit single in the first game. That hit might have been the most impressive of the day, as he did a nice job dropping the bat head down to make contact on a pitch down in the zone to drive it back up the middle. He ended up advancing to second base on the throw as the hit drove in a pair of runs.


Tyler Lewis, RHP, Iowa Select Black



Lewis has been an interesting pitcher to watch develop, with a large and burly 6-foot-4, 235-pound frame. He attacked hitters on Sunday slinging the ball from a deceptive three-quarters arm slot, which helped create a fair amount of late movement on his fastball. For the most part he pitches to contact and is able to induce ground balls early in the count when his command is on. He also throws a low- to mid-70s curveball, a hard-spinning pitch that he does a pretty good job of dropping in for strikes while keeping hitters’ timing off when sequenced well with his fastball.

Throwing three innings in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader, Lewis didn’t allow a base hit, allowing two runs (one was earned) on three walks while striking out three. He has committed to play at Indian Hills CC and will be an interesting player to follow year-by-year at the junior college level.


Connor Van Scoyoc, RHP, Iowa Select Black



Van Scoyoc is no stranger to Perfect Game events and has been part of the Iowa Select program for quite some time. He quickly passes the eye test with a tall, strong and well-proportioned 6-foot-5, 200-pound athletic build. He has good balance and rhythm on the mound and repeats his mechanics well. It’s easy to envision him having another velocity jump let in the tank, as he peaked at 93 mph indoors about a month ago and reached 92 in the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader, which made him the hardest throwing pitcher of the day.

He did a good job to cruise through the first two innings of work but ran into trouble the next two during his four-inning stint, which included back-to-back hard-hit RBI singles allowed to the Hitters’ top two batsmen – Jarred Kelenic and Alex Binelas – in the third inning. His fastball settled into the 88-90 mph range, and he did a good job mixing in his usual low- to mid-70s curveball. He also tossed a changeup or two in the low-80s, a pitch that shows promise that he’ll need to simply throw more often to gain more comfort with.

There remains quite a bit to like about Van Scoyoc’s profile given his size, ability to power the ball downhill and the potential for a strong three-pitch repertoire. While that gives him the potential to be drafted this June, he could join his brother, Spencer, at Arizona State for further development.


Nic McCay, RHP, Iowa Select Black

After Hitters Baseball scored a pair of runs in both the third and fourth innings to take a 4-1 lead of the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader, Nic McCay came in and shut things down, something he has done all spring long during league play while giving his teammates the opportunity to come back and win the ballgame, which they did. He fired four hitless, scoreless innings on this day, walking a pair and striking out eight Hitters’ batters. The fastball sat in the 86-89 mph range, peaking at 90, while mixing in a low- to mid-70s curveball. He did a nice job sequencing between the two pitches to keep the opposing hitters off balance with a fearless, bulldog-type approach on the mound.

It’s easy to envision him adding a few ticks to his current velocity as his arm works really well with good arm speed and a clean delivery. His curveball is an advanced pitch, with good shape and bite while getting explosive downward movement towards homeplate. At a listed 6-foot-2, 180-pounds, he is a well-balanced, well-proportioned athlete that has committed to play for South Dakota State.


Levi Usher, OF, Iowa Select Black

Usher didn’t stand out at the plate as much on Sunday as he did roughly a month ago in my last viewing. In each of the two games he went 0-for-2 with a walk, and the walks stand as proof of his advanced discipline at the plate and willingness to take a free pass. In all of his plate appearances he did a good job taking pitches and waiting for something he could barrel up, something he didn’t do particularly well on this day, but the approach still helped his team win.

What did stand out was his arm strength. Usher, like his 2017 PG All-American West squad teammate and fellow outfielder Jarred Kelenic, had a few opportunities to show off his impressive arm during game action, which included one outfield assist. On a high fly ball to center field and a runner at second base, Usher came up firing to third base after making the catch, throwing a laser to the third baseman to nail the runner (Alex Binelas) trying to advance. He also made a few throws home, all of which were thrown with great velocity and on target.

That arm strength served him well on the mound as well, as he tossed an inning in the first game of the doubleheader firing 85-88 mph fastballs that led to a pair of strikeouts. He has committed to play near his hometown at Kirkwood CC, but it will be interesting to see where he goes in the draft given his game-changing speed, arm strength and overall offensive upside.
Give us your feedback
High School | General | 8/17/2026

Scott Wins MVP Two Ways
Jim Salisbury
Article Image
PHILADELPHIA – When the folks at Perfect Game reached out to invite him to pitch in the 2026 PG All-Star Game for rising sophomores and juniors, Cullen Scott had one request. “You mind if I get a couple of at-bats, too?” Along with his dad, Scott traveled from the family’s home in Texas to Citizens Bank Park. The trip proved to be a huge success as he starred on the mound and at the plate and was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. Scott, 16, pitched a scoreless first inning and struck out two. In the fourth inning, he belted a grand slam six rows up into the left-field seats to lead the National team’s 6-1 win over the American team. “He showed us why he’s here as a pitcher and a hitter,” said Greg Sabers, PG’s vice president of scouting and showcases. "He’s one of the top pitchers here, but he’s too good a...
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/11/2026

PG Draft: Potential Risers Into Top 50

Michael Albee
Article Image
We are in the early stages of the 2027 cycle and there is still plenty of time for players to make significant jumps up the board. While our current Top-100 provides an early look at the class, several players just outside that group have the upside to make a run at becoming Top-50 pick by next July. With that in mind, each member of the draft team each selected one college player and one prep player they believe could make the jump into the Top-50 over the course of the spring. These are the names to keep an eye on as the 2027 draft picture continues to develop. Joey’s Picks:   Jake Cueto (27 FL) goes oppo πŸ’£ on a mid-90s LonL heater. Performing at a very high level, hitting .464 with 5 homers. Excellent hit/run combo and here comes the juice! #PGHS #Miami commit @Florida_PG pic.twitter.com/g4gtml81mm — Perfect Game Scout (@PG_Scouting) April 1, 2026 Prep: OF, Jake...
Read More
Tournaments | Story | 9/9/2026

PG Wood Bat Fall Kickoff Scout Notes

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
Evan Thompson (‘29, AZ) showcasing the all-fields power with this ground rule double the other way. Immense power upside. Really fun offensive profile #FallKickoff https://t.co/l551KirUOf pic.twitter.com/QW0AIeg59g — Perfect Game Four Corners (@PG_FourCorners) September 7, 2026 Evan Thompson (2029, Gilbert, Ariz.) put on an offensive clinic throughout the weekend, going 8-for-13 with three extra-base hits. He capped off his MVP performance with a walkoff home run to take home the championship. Thompson is one of the premier players in the 2029 class. A fluid left-handed stroke consistently finds barrels. There is all fields power present that will only continue to develop further. It would not be a surprise if Thimpson ends up the top ranked player in the class when it is all said and done.  Chase Fillman (2028, Goodyear, Ariz.) put together a loud summer circuit and...
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/8/2026

What Profiles Are Valued Most at Top of Draft

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
The landscape of the MLB Draft continues to evolve each and every year. What teams value at the top of the draft can change based on the strength of a particular class, shifts in player development philosophy, and, perhaps most importantly, the way organizations evaluate risk and upside. Some trends are subtle, while others become impossible to ignore when viewed across multiple years. For this study, I set out to answer one question: What player profiles do teams value at the top of the draft? To answer it, I analyzed the Top-100 picks from each of the last six drafts (2021-2026). That gives us 600 total selections to examine and provides a large enough sample to identify both the profiles that have remained consistently popular and those that have gained or lost significant ground. The data was broken down by position, handedness and level to create individual player profiles. While...
Read More
General | General | 9/7/2026

First Look: Class of 2031 Rankings

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/7/2026

Chubb Jones Jr. Enrolls Early

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
Harry Chubb Jones Jr. is getting an early start on the next chapter of his baseball career. The Perfect Game All-American announced Sunday that he will enroll early at the University of Alabama, giving the Crimson Tide an early addition from one of the more intriguing two-way prospects in the 2027 class. See y’all at The Joe! πŸ‘πŸΎπŸ‘πŸΎπŸ‘πŸΎ pic.twitter.com/Kn0T0mJxq7 — 6._.chubbjones (@chubb_hitter) September 6, 2026 Jones, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound SS/RHP from Georgia, was ranked No. 39 in the 2027 class and came in at No. 83 on the initial Top-100 2027 Draft Board. Chubb Jones Jr (‘27 GA) smokes this one the other way for an RBI single & we’re all level in the 6th. Adv bat speed, impacts w/ authority to all fields #PGAAC@PG_Georgia pic.twitter.com/FZ46IvYVp1 — Dick’s Sporting Goods All-American Classic (@PGAllAmerican) August 16, 2026 The McEachern...
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/7/2026

2027 MLB Draft: PG Content Hub

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
No more having to search for articles pertaining to the 2027 MLB Draft as we will keep it all centrally located here, in the PG Content Hub, leading up to the first pick next July. Tyler Henninger, Joey Cohen, Michael Albee and Ryan Miller, along with the rest of the Perfect Game staff, will continue to provide you with the latest info as it pertains to this 2027 crop.  Article Date Initial Follow List July 12 Way Too Early Mock July 13 Realistic Expectations of 1:1 August 11 Preview: Collegiate RHP August 21  Draft Board: Top 100 August 28 Way Too Early 1:1 Predictions September 4 Chubb Jones Jr. Enrolls Early September 7 Preview: Collegiate LHP September 7 What Profiles are Valued Most at Top of Draft September 9 Potential Risers Into The Top 50 September 11
Read More
Draft | Rankings | 9/7/2026

2027 Draft Preview: Collegiate LHP

Ryan Miller
Article Image
2027 MLB Draft Profile Preview: Collegiate Right-Handed Pitchers The collegiate left-handed pitching class is always a popular demographic, and this year’s is no different. The group contains a mix of power pitch mixes and polished pitch-ability, with healthy representation from power four schools and a handful of mid-majors. Below we look at this year’s top college left-handers. An extended look at LHP Tomas Valincius (@HailStateBB)... 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K https://t.co/lCHgGnsdbi pic.twitter.com/Vm3nQkAukc — PG College Baseball (@PGCollegeBall) May 28, 2026 Tomas Valincius, Mississippi State Valincius followed head coach Brian O’Connor from Virginia to Mississippi State and immediately established himself as their ace last spring. The Illinois native posted a 3.50 ERA over 17 starts in 2026, striking out 33.5% of hitters and walking just five percent....
Read More
General | General | 9/6/2026

Update: Class of 2030 Rankings

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
Read More
Draft | Prospect Scouting Reports | 9/4/2026

2027 Draft: Way Too Early 1:1 Predictions

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
2027 Top 100 Draft Board  Current Favorite: SS Dylan Seward, Norco HS (Calif.) In our first iteration of the 2027 Draft Board, Norco shortstop Dylan Seward ranks No. 1 overall. The switch-hitter is an ultra-twitchy player with a lot to like on both sides of the ball. He is a supreme athlete that should stick up the middle. Explosiveness is shown in all aspects of his game and gives the profiles big time upside.  In the event that Seward does not go 1:1, each member of our draft team selected a player that they think could wind up in that spot. We are still nearly a full year away from draft day, but here are our “Way Too Early” predictions for the 1st overall pick next July.  Henni’s Pick: C/UTL Gavin Kelly, West Virginia    Gavin Kelly (@WVUBaseball) sends this over the wall in CF for a solo πŸ’£ (100 EV/ 416 ft). Adv. hitter with accurate...
Read More
General | General | 9/3/2026

Class of 2029 Rankings Update

Article Image
Read More
Loading more articles...
About Perfect Game :: Contact us :: Terms of Use :: Privacy Policy :: Testimonials :: Job Opportunities
Copyright 1994-2026 by Perfect Game. All rights reserved. No portion of this information may be reprinted or reproduced without the written consent of Perfect Game.