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Tournaments  | Story  | 7/22/2018

17u World Series Notes: Day 3

David Rawnsley     
Photo: William Morris (Perfect Game)

17u Perfect Game World Series: Event Page | Daily Leaders
Scout Notes: Day 1 | Day 2

St. Louis Pirates catcher Kurtis Byrne (2019, Chesterfield, Mo.) has been swinging a hot bat but that is hardly unusual for the TCU commit.  He's gone 5-for-5 over the last two days, including three doubles, and finished pool play 6-for-11 with four RBI.  Bryne is ranked 72nd overall in the 2019 class largely based on his powerful righthanded bat, although he is a solid receiver who should be able to stay at that position at the next level.
 
Righthander Ryan Vanderhei (2019, Goodyear, Ariz.) is the walking definition of a projectable young pitcher.  Vanderhei stands 6-foot-6, 175-pounds with unusually long arms and plenty of natural athleticism and looseness.  He has some of the normal issues extra tall pitchers have keeping their upper and lower halves synced up in his delivery but his arm is very loose and fluid coming through with plus extension out front.  Vanderhei, whose father is a 6-foot-7 former All-American swimmer with a seven-foot wing span, worked in the 86-89 mph range for two innings for North East Baseball on Saturday and showed bat breaking running life on his two-seamer.  Vanderhei is committed to Kansas.
 
The top uncommitted prospect on the Mariners Quad on Saturday could well have been Trosky National Team right hander Nate Fleischli (2019, Atherton, Calif.).  Fleischli is a solidly built 6-foot-5, 210-pound athlete with an easy delivery and high three-quarters arm action who threw 86-90 mph with a 77 mph breaking ball while only needing 25 pitches to get through two scoreless innings.  Fleischli also has outstanding grades according to the PG database and would be a great fit for any number of high level academic schools.
 
Another Trosky National rising senior who is uncommitted but who definitely looks like he has the potential to pitch in college is righthander August Souza (2019, Reno, Nev.).  Souza, who is pitching in his first Perfect Game event, is a loose and projectable 6-foot-2, 185-pound build and has a whippy right arm that topped out at 89 mph over four and a third innings of shutout baseball.  Souza relied heavily on his lively fastball and will have to further improve his secondary pitches but it's easy to see him as a low-90s hurler as he physically matures.
 
BPA's Colton McIntosh (2019, Phoenix, Ariz.) went to the recent Perfect Game National Showcase as a switch-hitting middle infielder with an Arizona commit and is the 257th-ranked player in the PG 2019 class rankings.  Called on to eat innings after the early morning lightning delay disrupted the pitching plans of many teams, McIntosh showed that he could be a two-way player at Arizona, working in the 90-93 mph with his fastball over two shutout innings.  He has a very rotational delivery with some energy at release and only threw fastballs but he had good life on the ball and threw strikes to go with the velocity.
 
It's not often you see a reliever get into double figures in strikeouts but that's what Canes National righthander Nick Hoffmann (2019, Centerville, Ohio) did over five innings on Saturday, striking out ten while allowing only two hits and an unearned run and picking up the win in a Canes come from behind 4-3 win.  Hoffman, as has been noted in his PG showcase reports, has a deceptive delivery that hides the ball very well behind his 6-foot-3 frame and his fastball really jumps on hitters while sitting in the 86-90 mph range.  Hoffman also threw an effective mid-70s curveball for strikes and maintained his stuff very well over 95 pitches.  He is a Clemson commit.
 
PG All-American outfielder Jerrion Ealy (2019, Carthage, Miss.) made his only appearance in the 17u World Series on Saturday, going 1-for-2 with a hit by pitch, a sacrifice fly and two RBI for Team Georgia.  Ealy, who is the fourth-ranked player in the PG class rankings, tried to use his elite level speed to steal once (after stealing 16 bases at the recent WWBA 17u National Championships) and he slipped when his feet flew out from under him as he exploded on his first step.  His one hit was a sharp line drive single to left field.
 
USA Prime Elite righthander Blake Mayfield (2019, Flower Mound, Texas) turned in a gutsy performance while throwing a complete game with 104 pitches in Prime Elite's 4-3 come-from-behind victory in a must-win game for the playoffs.  Mayfield, the 115th-ranked player in the 2019 class and a Texas A&M commit, topped out at 92 mph early but struggled with his fastball location and curveball feel before settling over the last three innings while Prime Elite scored all four of their runs.  The ability to compete without one's best stuff and make adjustments is something that scouts highly value seeing in events like this 17u World Series.
 
Mayfield was helped by shortstop Logan Kohler (2019, Little Elm, Texas) and outfielder Caden Trinkle (2019, Hillsboro, Texas).  Kohler turned in a couple of outstanding defensive plays in the early innings to help Mayfield out of jams, while Trinkle continued his hot hitting, going 3-for-3 and scoring two runs to bring his average to .667 for the World Series.  Kohler and Trinkle are slated to be Big 12 rivals next at Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, respectively.

– David Rawnsley





Gabriel Hughes (2019, Eagle, Idaho) ended up taking the tough-luck loss for Baseball Northwest on Saturday morning, but the big, physical Idaho native who is young for the grade still impressed scouts on the Padres side of the Peoria complex quite a bit. Hughes has a lot to like from a physical standpoint, with a strong build, long limbs, and some projection remaining—to summarize, he certainly looks the part of a righthanded starter at the next level. The arm action stands out as above-average, quick and efficient through the back, consistently allowing him to be timed up coming through release. He worked up to 90 mph with the fastball, a straighter pitch that is susceptible when left up in the zone, but he did show the ability to work down in the zone with it, negating some of the potential concerns when commanded down in the zone. The equalizer is his slider, thrown very firmly in the 78-82 mph range, with sharp, downer bite—a pitch that has a chance to end up plus for him long term. He also worked in a very firm changeup that he shows the ability to replicate his arm speed on, giving him a very projectable three-pitch mix moving forward. 

NorCal Baseball got the win over Hughes and Baseball Northwest 2-1, with William Bartlett (Portola Valley, Calif.) standing out, as he’s done all weekend down here. Bartlett has had a huge week with the bat thus far, slashing .556/.636/.778 from the middle of the lineup, showing off both solid power in his swing to go along with a high-quality approach and hit-ability. He attends IMG Academy though a NorCal native, so he’ll be especially interesting to follow this spring, as a student at one of the most heavily-scouted institutions in the country. 

Nick Wallerstedt (2019, Tempe, Ariz.) got the start for Wilson Sandlot on Saturday morning and impressed over his four innings, pounding the zone with 70 percent strikes and working in the 85-88 mph range with his fastball. He scattered two hits with no walks, allowing only and unearned run. And outstanding athlete who is also a plus runner and adept outfielder who could be a two-way player at the next level, Wallerstedt looks very comfortable on the mound, showing the ability to repeat his delivery with ease and throw both his pitches for strikes. He projects extremely well and it wouldn’t be a surprise to anyone if he explodes onto the draft radar in the spring.


 


In Game 2 of Wilson Sandlot’s doubleheader, highly-touted lefthander Brock Selvidge (2021, Chandler, Ariz.) got the start. He lost his command a bit towards the end of his outing and got hit, but the young lefthander and recent LSU commit still shows supreme upside. He’s very lithely-built, with long limbs and sky-high physical projection, and the ease of his mechanical operation speaks to high-level command in the future. He worked up to 87 mph early on with his fastball, settling more into the 82-85 mph range as the game wore on, creating plane to the plate from a high three quarters slot and doing a good job of moving the fastball around the zone. The curveball is a bit soft right now but that’s wholly irrelevant in terms of projecting the pitch, as it features very tight spin, excellent depth, and good deception out of the hand, looking every bit like it’ll be a plus pitch for him at maturity. 




Sticks Baseball Academy sent William Morris (2019, Austin, Ark.) to the mound for the start vs. Blackhawks National, and though the big lefty didn’t have his best outing, there’s still a lot to like to his profile. He worked up to 91 mph with his fastball, showing the ability to extend through release well and generate angle to the plate. He’s got some mechanical refinements to make, but is going to Arkansas, where pitching coach Wes Johnson is one of the best in the country. He has a good idea of a breaking ball as well, manipulating the shape of the pitch between more of a true curveball and a slurvy breaker, but still generating good spin and late break on either variation of the pitch. 

Caiden Matheny (2019, Murrieta, Calif.) had a loud day for the Blackhawks, tripling loudly into the left-center gap and then adding a bomb of a home run to the pull side in his next at-bat, collecting four RBI on the day. There’s a lot to like to the profile, with quality athleticism, above-average speed, and a strong arm from the outfield. There’s obviously significant power from the right side as well, showing the ability to drive the baseball when squared up, and the overall collection of tools is certainly enticing. 

The Blackhawks sent Zachary Martinez (2019, Glendale, Ariz.) to the mound and the medium-framed righthander was solid, as he usually is. He creates good angles to the plate from an extended slot and has some deception to the delivery with a hip turn over the rubber, working up to 92 mph with his fastball and flashing the ability to work side-to-side with the pitch. His slurvy breaking ball is thrown in the mid- to upper-70s and when tunneled correctly, shows as a potentially average pitch for him. 

GBG Marucci finished pool play at 3-1 following a win on Saturday evening over US Elite by a score of 6-4. Cole Dale (2019, Los Angeles, Calif.) got the start and the win, scattering 3 hits and a walk over 4 2/3 scoreless innings, picking up six strikeouts as well. He worked in the 84-88 mph range for the most part with his fastball, generating good arm side life to the pitch and some sink when located down as well. He’s got a full array of offspeed pitches as well, showing a slower curveball at 72-74 mph that he can steal a strike with, a sharper-biting slider at 76-78 mph that can generate swings and misses, as well as a nascent cutter that he threw at 81 mph with subtle slicing life, a pitch that helps him miss barrels but isn’t a swing-and-miss pitch at present. He did a fair job of throwing strikes and pitches with an attack mentality, and looks to be a quality arm that will do well at the next level. 

– Brian Sakowski
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