THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION
| 2,619 MLB PLAYERS | 16,397 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
2,619 MLB PLAYERS | 16,397 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Sign in Create Account
Sign in Create Account
Summer Collegiate  | Story | 8/21/2018

Shenton named summer POY

Nate Schweers
Photo: Austin Shenton

After turning in one of the most impressive summer seasons in recent history, Austin Shenton has been named the 2018 Perfect Game/Rawlings Summer Collegiate Player of the Year for the 2018 season. Starring for the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod Baseball League, the honor comes off the heels of earning championship series MVP honors during the Gatemen’s title run.

Shenton, a rising junior from Bellingham, Washington, collected a second-best 30 RBI during the 2018 Cape Cod Baseball League regular season. After helping lead the Gatemen to the playoffs, Shenton was able to drive in 12 runs over six playoff games. The primary third baseman was trying to make the most of the extended summer, and he certainly finished on a great note.

“They [Wareham] were the only team in the Cape to offer me a full-time contract, so a big thanks for this honor goes to them for sure,” said Shenton in a phone interview last week. “It was a really great environment all summer and the entire Gatemen community embraced us. The coaches made it easy to play, and my teammates were a great group of guys that made it fun to show up and play every day.”

Support from the community is a major key to any successful summer baseball season, and Shenton’s Gatemen made it easy to come out to the ballpark and support all summer. Wareham finished the regular season with an impressive 25-17-2 record before going a flawless 6-0 in postseason play.

While the summer grind can be a long one, Shenton relished the chance to play in one of the country’s most prestigious summer baseball leagues. Prior to the playoffs, Shenton made sure his parents knew he was staying there to win.

“Mentally, I kept thinking to myself about how cool it would be to win the whole thing and finish on top of the Cape Cod League,” Shenton recalled. “There is only one team in the country that can say they were the best of the best, and at the end of the day I told my parents that we were going to win the whole thing.”

Every summer, the nation’s top college baseball players gather in the Cape Cod Baseball League to show their skill-set in front of fans and professional scouts alike. A strong summer like the one Shenton had can be enough to get a prospective player on a draft board, and this is something that makes the Cape Cod League so special.

“Once we got past the first couple weeks of the summer, the stands were just littered with scouts,” Shenton added. “It was really awesome. Every single day I had something to prove because there are so many different people watching. You are under a microscope up there, and you just have to try and do your best with good at-bats and good innings in the field. If I do those things and be a good teammate all summer, that is hopefully something the scouts will see.”

Hitters aren’t the only players with something to prove to scouts in the Massachusetts-based league. Some of the nation’s top arms are often toeing the rubber for any one of the league’s 10 teams, and that means it is important to go to bat with a calm mindset and good approach.

“I think Don Sneddon our manager really helped me out with creating an approach to allow me to succeed. He wouldn't let me get too high or too low. At the plate, I was just trying to be on time all summer. I started out pretty hot, and I think that helped me build the confidence to be able to do it all summer.”

Shenton was certainly able to swing a hot bat throughout the entire summer for the Gatemen. He hit .349 with four home runs and the 30 RBI during the 2018 Cape Cod regular season, and he was able to build on that great regular season with a magical run in the playoffs. Shenton hit .522 with three home runs and 12 RBI in the Gatemen’s six playoff games, and that was good enough for Gatemen head coach Don Sneddon.

“To play at such a high level and intensity for the full 10 weeks was such an interesting ride from Austin,” said coach Sneddon. “If you think of the summer like a cross country ride, the ride changes, but he never did. He was always full intensity and full speed ahead.”

During a grueling summer season, having a guy like Shenton can make it a special season. He was constantly working to get better as the summer went on and that was something that caught the eye of his coach.

“He made an adjustment on his own near the end of the summer,” Sneddon said. “He wanted to change his launch angle and get more lift on the ball. He is one of the few guys I have ever coached that can actually make the adjustment mentally. He worked on that in batting practice constantly, and he was one of the guys that embraced my style of batting practice and worked hard.”

After a strong summer, the Florida International Panthers and head coach Mervyl Melendez should be excited about the return of Austin Shenton this fall. Hoping to build on a strong sophomore campaign where he hit .344 with nine home runs and 29 RBI, Shenton is excited to get back to campus for another year.

“We have great coaches that are going to lead us, but we really have a lot of young talent that is coming back and coming in this year,” said Shenton. “I think we have 15 or 16 freshman play at some point last year, and I think we never really faced a team that we didn't match up well with from top to bottom. I’m really excited about it, and I think that if we put it all together it could be a really special year for us.”

Prior to his time at FIU Shenton enjoyed a productive career on the travel circuit. Despite hailing from Washington he participated at some of Perfect Game’s bigger showcase and tournament events, playing with travel programs including Team Northwest, Marucci Elite and FTB. He was twice named to the All-Tournament team at the WWBA World Championship in Jupiter, Fla., and earned a perfect grade of 10 at the 2015 PG National Showcase.

As a sophomore Shenton finished second in batting with a .344 average. He also hit 11 doubles and nine homers with 29 RBI as a member of a young FIU squad that finished the year 26-28 and has much brighter days ahead of them under new leadership. Another special year in the navy and gold of the Panthers would add to what has been an incredibly impressive 12 months for Austin Shenton on the baseball field.

For a player that has shown up to the ballpark and consistently hit all year long, the sky is the limit.

“I appreciate this honor so much. It is just a lot of hard work that I have put in over the last year. It's a testament to the Wareham Gatemen and their organization as well. They gave me an opportunity to play in the Cape and win this award.”


Previous PG/Rawlings Summer Collegiate National Players of the Year:

2011: Shaun Cooper
2012: Sean Manaea
2013: Max Pentecost
2014: Phil Bickford
2015: Nick Senzel
2016: Bret Boswell
2017: James Outman
Give us your feedback
Summer Collegiate | Story | 9/26/2023

Cape Cod: Best of the Rest
Vincent Cervino
Article Image
Cape Cod Top 100 Prospect List | Cape Cod Top 2025 Prospects * indicates draft eligible sophomore ^ indicates incoming transfer Name Pos. Team School Hometown State Andrew Sundean C Hyannis UCF Lakeland FL Bradke Lohry^ IF Hyannis Tennessee Trinity FL Cam Schuelke^ RHP Hyannis Mississippi State Dorr MI Carter Lovasz RHP Hyannis William & Mary Midlothian VA Colby Shelton*^ IF Falmouth Florida Lithia FL Colin Tuft^ OF Orleans Tulane Vienna VA Daniel Corona^ IF Cotuit Missouri Brooklyn NY Derek Clark^ LHP Orleans West Virginia Petersburg MI Duce Gourson IF Falmouth UCLA San Diego CA Eddie Micheletti OF Orleans George Washington Wilmington DE Enzo Apodada^ OF YD Baylor Scottsdale CA Evan Truitt RHP Orleans Charleston Southern Berlin MD Finnegan Wall RHP YD UC Irvine Hesperia CA Garrett Coe RHP Falmouth Uconn Lakeside CT Ian Petrutz OF Bourne Maryland Mantua NJ Jakob Christian^ 1B YD...
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 💣 (100 EV/ 416 ft). Adv. hitter with accurate...
Read More
General | General | 9/3/2026

Class of 2029 Rankings Update

Article Image
Read More
Softball | Softball Tournament | 9/3/2026

Iowa City Scouting Showcase 14U &16U Divisions

Dave Durbala
Article Image
IOWA CITY, IA - Perfect Game Softball Iowa City Scouting Showcase, August 29 - 30, 2026. Fifty-Four teams, competing across three divisions in the 14u - 18u age classifications opened up our Fall schedule playing in a five game showcase style format. For the several college coaches in attendance, they were able to get quality looks at numerous uncommitted 27’ and 28’ graduation year class athletes, as well as having the opportunity to watch some of the quality younger athletes as they put their talent on display. Below are write-ups of some of our top performers over the weekend in the 14 & 16u age divisions. 14U DIVISION Josie Moen (2031 Urbandale, IA) is an athletic OF for TN Mojo 2030 Evans. Working from the left side, Moen was nearly unstoppable while showing defenses her slapping abilities. With great barrel awareness and footwork, Moen utilized the bunt, soft slap...
Read More
Softball | Softball Tournament | 9/3/2026

Iowa City Scouting Showcase 18U Division

Ashley Mears
Article Image
Perfect Game Iowa City Scouting Showcase August 29-30 Ashley Mears It was a great weekend to kick off the Fall 2026 tournament campaign in Iowa City. The fields were packed with college coaches from across the Midwest, providing a great opportunity for players to showcase their talents. Both hitters and pitchers put on quite a show, and there were plenty of standout performances to take note of. We are excited to continue following these players and see what the rest of the fall has in store! Gillian Hansen (2028 New Brighton, MN) of the 18u MN Force Impact Standering was an absolute force to be reckoned with at the plate this weekend. Hansen possesses a strong, athletic build that translates into impressive power. Standing parallel to the plate, she utilizes her lower half effectively and does an excellent job of staying through the ball and extending through the zone. Hansen led the...
Read More
Press Release | Press Release | 9/3/2026

PG Launches Global Country Partner Program

Article Image
  667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   PERFECT GAME LAUNCHES NEW GLOBAL COUNTRY PARTNER PROGRAM TO EXPAND INTERNATIONAL BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL PATHWAYS   Sanford, Florida (Thursday, September 3, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced the launch of its new Country Partner Program, an initiative designed to expand Perfect Game’s international presence while creating new opportunities for aspiring athletes around the world.  Through the Country Partner Program, select organizations will become the exclusive Perfect Game partner within their respective countries through annual licensing agreements. Each Country Partner will be responsible for managing local...
Read More
Press Release | Press Release | 9/1/2026

PG Hires Nuovo-Golden in South Carolina

Article Image
  667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   PERFECT GAME SOFTBALL EXPANDS REGIONAL TOURNAMENT OPERATIONS WITH KEY HIRE IN SOUTH CAROLINA   Greenville, South Carolina (Monday, August 31, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced an addition to its Southeast tournament operations team with the hiring of Michelle Nuovo-Golden as Operations Director.   In her role, Nuovo-Golden will oversee regional venue management, team relations and event logistics across South Carolina focusing on expanding Perfect Game’s fastpitch footprint within the core markets which include Columbia, Lexington, Greenville, Anderson and the surrounding regions.   Nuovo-Golden transitions to...
Read More
Draft | Rankings | 8/28/2026

2027 MLB Draft Board

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
The 2026 MLB Draft is official in the books as those players have been signed and have begun their pro career. That means it is time to turn the page and dive into the 2027 class. This class features an intriguing mix of arms both from the prep and college ranks, along with an enticing position player pool. Today, we unveil our first 2027 MLB Draft Board, ranking the Top-100 prospects in the class. There is still plenty of time for new names to emerge and established ones to rise or fall, but here is where things stand as we begin this cycle.  Rk. Name Level Pos. B-T School Hometown State Commitment 1 Dylan Seward H SS S-R Norco Eastvale CA Tennessee 2 Brendan Lawson C SS L-R Florida Toronto ON 3 Dax Whitney C RHP R-R Oregon State Blackfoot ID 4 Gavin Kelly C C/UTL R-R West Virginia Presto PA 5 Tomas Valincius C LHP L-L Mississippi State Lockport IL 6 Malachi Butler H SS L-R...
Read More
Tournaments | Story | 8/26/2026

Underclass Area Codes: Standout Arms

Joey Cohen
Article Image
Year in and year out when the best young talent from across the country is packed into one national-level event the arms tend to win the week. That feels especially true in today’s amateur game where velocity, pitch design and high-level training in general are being introduced earlier than ever, allowing young pitchers to develop impactful stuff at a faster rate than younger hitters can consistently catch up to it. The Underclass Area Code Games are no exception and this year there was no shortage of arms that made you stop and take notice. Narrowing it down to 10 was difficult, but I focused on the pitchers who either displayed starter-type traits, brought something genuinely different from a delivery standpoint whether it was slot, height, crossfire or deception or simply possessed an outlier element of stuff that separated them from the pack. These are the 10 arms that stood...
Read More
Draft | Story | 8/23/2026

2026 MLB Draft Report Cards: NL East

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
With the 2026 MLB Draft officially in the books, it’s time to evaluate how each team performed. Every draft class was graded using the standard 20-80 scouting scale with risk factor assigned. While these grades won’t be proven right or wrong for years, they reflect the overall talent, value, and upside each organization added to its system. NL East Atlanta Braves  Grade: 55 Risk: High Notable Selections: OF AJ Gracia (1st rd) | OF Carter Beck (PPI) | RHP Kaiden McCarthy (2nd rd) | RHP Jensen Hirschkorn (3rd rd)   OF AJ Gracia (@UVABaseball) is seeing the ball really well & picked up a couple of hits, including a 2B into RCF. Smooth LH stroke & easy impact. Showed + pwr in BP, 46 BB: 36 K. Jr./'26 elig. @PG_Draft pic.twitter.com/C4rSc0ZNIc — PG College Baseball (@PGCollegeBall) May 30, 2026 Atlanta had $15,870,800 to spend in this year’s draft,...
Read More
Draft | Story | 8/22/2026

2026 MLB Draft Report Cards: AL East

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
With the 2026 MLB Draft officially in the books, it’s time to evaluate how each team performed. Every draft class was graded using the standard 20-80 scouting scale with risk factor assigned. While these grades won’t be proven right or wrong for years, they reflect the overall talent, value, and upside each organization added to its system. AL East Baltimore Orioles Grade: 50 Risk: High Notable Selections: OF Eric Booth Jr. (1st rd) | OF Ty Head (2nd rd) | OF Kevin Roberts Jr (4th rd)  Eric Booth Jr. (26 MS) goes big fly 💣 that carried out oppo. Explosive athlete w/ huge LH juice & tools. Big time in several facets. #NatElite #Vandy commit. @PG_DeepSouth pic.twitter.com/kXl7ZVyD9G — Perfect Game Scout (@PG_Scouting) July 12, 2025 Baltimore was about middle of the pack in terms of money available this year, having $13.1m to spend on their class. Booth Jr. is a...
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.