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PG Select Baseball Festival  | General | 8/29/2018

Select Festival rolls into Year 3

Photo: Maurice Hampton Jr. (Perfect Game)

FORT MYERS, Fla. – Two years ago this Labor Day weekend, while standing near a dugout on one of the back-practice fields at the jetBlue Park Player Development Complex, Estero (Fla.) High School head coach Gary White took a look around while 40 of the top 14u age-eligible players from across the country went through a practice session; he was liking what he saw.

“I think, as usual, Perfect Game has knocked it out of the park. (PG) has done an incredible job in a short amount of time setting everything up,” White said. “It goes beyond the baseball game itself. I know they’ve raised a bunch of money for the children’s hospital, which really should be on the forefront, because it’s the most important thing.”

White was speaking a day before the inaugural Perfect Game 14u Select Baseball Festival was played on Sunday, Sept. 4, 2016, at jetBlue Park. That first Festival brought together top prospects from the classes of 2019 and 2020 to perform in the all-star game event that was televised live nationally.

The momentum generated by the inaugural Festival in 2016 carried over into last year’s Select Festival weekend and continues to build steam heading into this weekend’s 3rd annual PG 14u Select Baseball Festival.

Forty-four of the top players from the national classes of 2021 and 2022 will congregate at the jetBlue Park complex and at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa in Bonita Springs for a third straight year. The game itself will air on CBS Sports Network this Sunday with the first pitch scheduled for 7:08 p.m. (EDT).

Proceeds from the event will once again benefit the Golisano Children’s Hospital, where the players will visit for two hours on Friday afternoon. They have been involved in fund-raising for the hospital since receiving their invitations to the Festival; past players raised more than $53,000 the first two years.

Rosters at the first two Festivals were divided geographically into an “East” team and a “West” team, but that changes this year. The two 22-man teams will be guided by former big-league pitchers Tom Gordon and Scott Erickson and will be named Team Gordon and Team Erickson, respectively.

The West won the 2016 Festival game, 3-1, with nine of their pitchers combining on a three-hitter with 15 strikeouts and four walks; eight East pitchers combined on a seven-hitter, striking out 13 but walking seven.

The West’s Calvin Harris, a 2020 left-handed hitting catcher from Peosta, Iowa, delivered a two-run single in the bottom of the second inning to give his team all the runs they ultimately would need, and he was named the inaugural Most Valuable Player.

“The atmosphere out here was something else,” Harris told PG postgame. “The talent of everyone out here was amazing and this has definitely been a great experience. It’s definitely something that I’ll never forget.”

Another prominent player on the West roster in 2016 was Maurice Hampton Jr., a 2019 outfielder and baseball/football Louisiana State commit from Arlington, Tenn. Hampton made history this summer when he became the first PG Select Baseball Festival alumnus to be invited to the PG All-American Classic in San Diego, and event he performed at on Aug. 12.

“Playing in the Select Festival in 2016 was a great experience because I got to play with and against the best players in my age group,” Hampton told PG this summer. “After that experience, whether or not I would play in the All-American game was always in the back of my head. Feeling what it was like to be an All-American at the 14u level really drove me to work hard over the next two or three years.”

2019 third baseman Liam Deegan from Richmond, Va., won the Festival’s inaugural Home Run Challenge.

The East team bounced back to win last year’s Festival, 5-1, a game that once again featured some standout pitching performances, especially from the members of the East staff. Those nine pitchers combined on a nine-inning, 14-strikeout one-hitter, with 2020 right-hander Alex Edmondson from Simpsonville, S.C., striking out the side in the fourth; nine West pitchers combined on a nine-strikeout five-hitter.

The East’s Joel Perez Jr., a dynamic 2020 infielder from Miramar, Fla., singled twice, drove in a run, scored a run, stole a base and made a highlight-reel defensive play while playing third base, and was named the Most Valuable Player.

“This experience was great,” Perez Jr. said postgame. “I was very happy when they selected me for (the PG Select Baseball Festival) because I usually don’t get picked for all this stuff, but now I’m getting (my name) out there. Playing with these boys, it was a great time. And I had a lot of fun going to the hospital and playing with the kids and making their day.”

Blaze Jordan, a 2021 first baseman from Southaven, Miss.,and the No. 1-ranked national prospect in his class, won the 2017 PG Select Baseball Festival Home Run Challenge.




PG Select Baseball Festival | General | 4/21/2026

Select Festival Dates/Locations Announced

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    667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923  www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA      FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    PERFECT GAME ANNOUNCES DATES AND VENUES FOR   2026 SLATE OF SELECT FESTIVALS    Sanford, Florida (Tuesday, April 21, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced dates and venues for its 2026 Select Festivals, a premiere series of invitation-only events showcasing many of the nation’s top young prospects at the 11U, 12U, 13U and 14U levels.    The Select Festivals provide elite players with a unique opportunity to compete alongside and against the best talent in their age group while experiencing a...
Tournaments | Story | 6/13/2026

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Perfect Game Staff
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Quintin Blackwell (2030, Hercules, California) has, literally, been unstoppable this weekend for Premier Banditos Deleon. In six plate appearances, he has a walk and five hits. Doing it all with a double and two triples, while stealing three bags. Plenty of coil on the front side. Hands work through zone and the barrel stays on plane for a long time. High upside bat that makes an already deep Banditos lineup even deeper. Kenson Buth (2027, Trophy Club, Texas) has been an absolute weapon on both ends for Stix 2027 Scout. At the plate, he’s 6-9 with two doubles, a triple, and a home run. Linear approach with a ton of bat speed. Plenty of impact at the bottom of the zone and showing some ability to do serious damage in the middle of the field. On the mound, he went four quality innings, punching out three. The fastball lived 86-90 with carry. Good feel for the slider in the mid 70s....
Tournaments | Story | 6/12/2026

AZ All-State Ready to Take Place

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This weekend, eight teams will head to Goodyear Ballpark for the 2026 PG Arizona All-State tournament, setting the stage for what should be an exciting few days of baseball. With teams traveling from across the city, the field will be packed with talent and plenty of championship contenders. Among the teams competing in 16U are AZ Select, Marucci Athletics 2028 Grannis, Overfly 2028, Phoenix Phillies, Team Dinger 2028, T-Rex East Valley, USA Scout Team AZ 16U, and West Coast Ghost AZ 16U. Each team enters the weekend with its own strengths and goals, creating several intriguing storylines to follow throughout pool play and bracket action. One of the biggest teams to watch this weekend will be 10-10, T-Rex East Valley. Whether it's dominant pitching, high-powered offenses, or strong defensive play, T-Rex East Valley has already shown they can compete at a high level this season. A few...
Tournaments | Story | 6/12/2026

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13u & 14u PG Elite Scout Notes: Days 1-2 Tucker Richardson (2030, Mobile, Ala.) has already made a name for himself and he continued to play at the expected high level during his time in Hoover, finishing the tournament with a robust .700 average, collecting at least one base hit in each of his team’s games. Now the No. 10 ranked prospect in the country, Richardson more than once showed the ability to read and react to spin out of the pitcher’s hand, barreling up baseballs for a couple of his hits on the tournament. As much as the bat stands out, the defensive actions in the dirt are even better as he’s arguably the best defender in the class, making the most difficult plays look routing, including one where he charged hard on a slow roller with momentum taking him towards the third base dugout but thanks to the big arm, he was able to make the play look second...
College | Story | 6/11/2026

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Collegiate Postseason Awards | Collegiate All Americans First Team Hitters Pos. Name School Class AVG OBP SLG R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB C Alonzo Alvarez Miami FR 0.341 0.439 0.551 40 57 13 2 6 32 3 1B Ethin Bingaman Auburn FR 0.330 0.415 0.581 60 71 9 0 15 50 4 2B Ethan Ball Virginia Tech FR 0.310 0.420 0.660 43 63 18 1 17 52 3 3B Nico Partida Texas A&M FR 0.306 0.408 0.550 45 55 8 0 12 43 4 SS Jett Kenady California FR 0.320 0.350 0.573 36 66 17 1 11 34 1 IF Linkin Garcia Texas Tech FR 0.338 0.387 0.489 53 78 21 1 4 59 1 OF Angel Laya Oregon FR 0.296 0.396 0.538 49 66 10 1 14 47 5 OF Anthony Pack Jr. Texas FR 0.359 0.485 0.597 58 74 16 0 11 52 20 OF Jacob Parker* Mississippi State FR 0.339 0.449 0.732 51 57 10 1 18 62 7 OF Teddy Tokheim Stanford FR 0.352 0.414 0.704 40 70 19 0 17 47 0 UT Drew Grego Nebraska FR 0.326 0.417 0.531 33 57 13 1 7 44 5 DH Enzo Infelise Cincinnati FR 0.374...
Tournaments | Story | 6/11/2026

PG East WWBA to Get Underway

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One of the summer’s premier events returns to the Hoover area this week as the 2026 Perfect Game East WWBA Championship gets underway. Now in its seventh year, the event has become a staple on the summer travel baseball calendar, bringing together some of the top organizations and prospects from across the country. A total of 132 teams will compete across three age divisions, including 38 teams in the 15U division, 48 teams in the 16U division, and 46 teams in the 17U division. Past champions include organizations such as Top Gun Team Alabama, EBC, USA Prime Alabama, and defending champion USA Prime Southeast 15U. As always, the tournament field features some of the nation’s top-ranked players. In the 15U division, all eyes will be on Alabama right-hander Tristan Blalock, the No. 23 ranked player nationally in the 2029 class and the top ranked player in Alabama. Blalock...
Tournaments | Championship | 6/11/2026

Team Elite Takes Another PG Elite

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After capturing last year’s championship, Team Elite Scout 14U returned to Hoover looking to prove their success was no fluke. Four days later, they accomplished exactly that. Behind strong pitching, timely hitting, and the confidence that has defined the team throughout the tournament, Team Elite Scout 14U defeated SBA Bolts National 14U to claim the 2026 PG 14U National Elite Championship and secure back-to-back titles. “It’s awesome,” Team Elite Coach Blankenship said. “This is our first event of the year, so it’s good to get it to start with them, and they won it last year, so I know they are excited to do that back-to-back, so it’s pretty awesome.” The championship game showcased many of the same qualities that carried Team Elite through the tournament. Ryan Johnson delivered 4.1 scoreless innings on the mound, allowing just two hits...
Tournaments | Story | 6/11/2026

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Following an exciting weekend filled with standout performances at the 17u Beast of the East Invitational, Lonestar Baseball Club National capped off its impressive run by earning co-champion honors after the championship game was cut short due to inclement weather with a 6-4 score in their favor. Lonestar's strong start to the summer was fueled by dominant pitching performances and an explosive offensive attack throughout the lineup.  “It was definitely fun to see our boys compete the way they did against solid competition and have the success they did,” Lonestar National head coach Brad Dydalewicz said. “It was a great team effort to start the summer season. This team is a special group of ball players and spectacular young men that play hard and compete their tails off. They enjoy playing together and have a ton of fun on the field. It makes it fun to coach for...
Tournaments | Story | 6/11/2026

SE Summer Showdown Preview

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East Cobb will host some of the top teams from near and far as over 100 different teams spanning the 13-18u age divisions will compete for a championship at the PG Southeast Summer Showdown to help their summer start strong. The highly anticipated premier Perfect Game event will commence with pool play on Thursday, June 11th while champions will be crowned on Monday, July 15th. The 13u Major division will be the youngest age group competing this weekend, but the talent will still be on full display. Doc Baseball American headlines the 11-team tournament, entering the weekend as the top ranked team in the Southeast Region, and the No. 7 team nationally. 14u will play as another major tournament and will feature three nationally ranked teams, including the No. 8 ranked 13u squad, East Cobb Astros 13u, who will compete in an older division for the second time this year. The No. 27 and No....
Tournaments | Story | 6/11/2026

Midwest Elite Scout Notes

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Adan Rojas (2027, Streamwood, Ill.) turned in one of the more dominant pitching performances of the weekend, striking out 10 over 5 innings while consistently dictating at-bats. The fastball worked 77–80 mph, topping at 82, and he showed the ability to elevate and miss bats when needed. His slider at 67–70 mph played as a real separator pitch, generating uncomfortable swings and late decisions. Showed strong tempo on the mound and never allowed hitters to settle in rhythm. What stood out most was his ability to maintain attack mode while still showing feel for sequencing.   Cruz Jaramillo (2030, Mount Pleasant, Wisc.) brought consistent energy to the lineup all weekend and was a tough out from start to finish. Finished with 8 hits over the tournament. The swing is compact with a strong intent to impact, and he does a nice job staying on time with his stride. When he...
Tournaments | Story | 6/10/2026

Top Prospects Set to Shine at Florida WS

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The Florida World Series returns to Fort Myers this weekend, bringing together teams from across the state for one of Florida’s premier summer events. The four-day tournament will feature competition in the 14U through 18U age divisions as teams battle for a World Series championship. From June 11-14, some of Florida’s top prospects will take the field looking to lead their teams to a title. The 18U division features some of the tournament’s top talent, including five players ranked among the top 500 prospects nationally, three of whom play for Swamp Baseball. Outfielders Nicholas Raber and Austin Schoolcraft along with right-hand pitcher Tyler Reeder will play for Swamp Baseball. Raber is a Fort Myers native and is committed to John Melvin Christian College. He has been one of Swamp’s top offensive contributors this season. The outfielder owns a .873 OPS with...
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