General | Blog | 6/16/2026
Wolforth Throwing Mentorship: Article 66
Ron Wolforth
The Number That Just Killed MLB Expansion: 1,217 USA Today's Bob Nightengale dropped a bomb shell recently that the baseball world is still digesting. Major League Baseball wants to expand to 32 teams. Team executives are quietly opposing it and the reason has nothing to do with cities or money. They cannot find enough healthy pitchers. Between 2020 and 2024, professional baseball performed 1,026 Tommy John surgeries at the minor-league level alone. Another 191 at the Major League level. More than twelve hundred elbow reconstructions in five years on the best young pitchers in the world. That is not bad luck. That is a system reporting a verdict on itself. For fifteen years, the youth-baseball industry has chased one number: velocity significantly more than projectability and arm care. Recruiters scout by it. Social...
Draft |
Story |
7/30/2026
2026 MLB Draft Signing Deadline Recap
Tyler Henninger
As of Monday at 5 p.m. ET, the 2026 MLB Draft is officially complete. The signing deadline has passed, meaning we now know every team’s finalized draft class and exactly how much each player signed for. Entering the draft, it was clear there was a distinct top tier consisting of Roch Cholowsky, Grady Emerson, and Vahn Lackey. That separation became even more evident once contracts were signed. Cholowsky became the first player in draft history to sign for more than $10 million, agreeing to a record-setting $10,347,500 bonus with the White Sox. Emerson set a new high school signing bonus record at $9,747,500, the second-largest bonus ever awarded to a draft pick. Lackey rounded out the trio with a $9,497,500 bonus, the third-largest signing bonus in MLB Draft history. Those weren’t the only records set. Teams combined to spend $402,481,143 in signing bonuses, surpassing last...
Tournaments |
Championship |
7/30/2026
Blue Wave Battle & Prevail at 14u Classic
Kinley Kitchens
For Excel Blue Wave, the summer was never about being perfect. It was about getting better. After a season filled with challenges, growth, and plenty of learning along the way, Excel Blue Wave put everything together when it mattered most, defeating SBG Sox Prime, Al 9-3 to capture the 2026 14U Perfect Game Hoover Classic championship. For Excel Blue Wave Coach Forrest Heacock, watching the group celebrate with a championship trophy was especially meaningful because of everything it took to get there. “It hasn’t been the easiest summer, and have battled a lot,” Coach Heacock said. “The kids have improved so much over the summer, and that is really what it’s all about at this age. It’s really just about improving at this age, and to see them be able to put it together, and just really compete together and play as a team, I couldn’t be...
Tournaments |
Championship |
7/30/2026
Excel Leaves No Doubt at 15u Hoover Classic
Kinley Kitchens
Excel Blue Wave National wasn’t leaving Hoover empty-handed. At least, that was the message head coach Wes Henderson gave his team. After a summer filled with strong performances but without a tournament title to show for them, Excel Blue Wave National entered the 2026 15U Perfect Game Hoover Classic with one more opportunity to finish the season the way they wanted. This time, they left no doubt. Excel Blue Wave National defeated East Coast Sox 2029 Victus, 12-0 in the championship game, combining a balanced offensive attack with a strong performance on the mound to secure their first tournament title of the summer. “It’s been a special group,” Coach Henderson said. “They fought really hard, and they played really well this summer, and this is the first championship that we’ve been able to bring home. We typically...
Tournaments |
Championship |
7/29/2026
"Excel"ling Through the Hoover Classic
Kinley Kitchens
After a long summer of baseball, Excel Blue Wave National had one final opportunity to end it the way every team hopes to. Together, having fun, and as champions. Excel Blue Wave National closed their summer with a 13-9 victory over Excel Blue Wave American – Morrison to capture the 2026 16U Perfect Game Hoover Classic championship. In a game that required contributions throughout the lineup and seven innings of competition, the Excel Blue Wave National relied on the same qualities and approach that had carried the group all summer. With talent, perseverance and a chemistry built far beyond the baseball field, they were unstoppable. For head coach Brennan McCullough, there couldn’t have been a much better way for his players to finish their final weekend together . “It’s great,” Coach McCullough said. “We’ve had a long...
Tournaments |
Story |
7/29/2026
16u West WS Scout Notes: Days 3-4
Quinton Hall
16u West World Series Scout Notes: Days 1-2 Jason Lizotte (‘28 | NV) Smooth LHH, hunts pitches down in the zone he can rip to the middle & PS w/ a downhill & direct path. Some strength in the hands w/ feel for the barrel #PGWS pic.twitter.com/kbK5Ayvhd7 — Perfect Game Four Corners (@PG_FourCorners) July 27, 2026 Jason Lizotte (2028 | Las Vegas, NV) The 5-foot-9, 145-pound left-handed hitter and outfielder was a spark plug all weekend for MTBA Dawgs 2028, finishing with seven hits, eight runs scored, one double, one triple, four RBI, three stolen bases, and four walks without a strikeout. Lizotte refused to give away an at-bat, consistently working hitter’s counts before spraying line drives all over the field. The left-handed swing stays short and direct with plenty of feel for the barrel, and once he reached base, he immediately put pressure on the defense with...
Tournaments |
Championship |
7/29/2026
SBA Sox Save Best for Last
Kinley Kitchens
Sometimes the best ending comes after a season of figuring things out. For SBG Sox American, the summer wasn’t always seamless. The team spent their early weeks learning where players fit best, building chemistry and searching for the combination that would allow them to play their best baseball. By the final weekend, they found it. SBG Sox American closed their summer with a 7-5 victory over Dirtbags Midsouth 2027 Black to capture the 2026 17U Perfect Game Hoover Classic championship, putting together one final winning performance in the last tournament this group would share this summer. For SBG Sox Coach Cooper Williams, that made taking home the championship trophy even more meaningful. “It’s been great, especially for it being their last summer event,” Coach Williams said. “It’s really cool for them to kind of pull this thing out for...
Tournaments |
Story |
7/29/2026
East World Series Scout Notes
Perfect Game Staff
Evan Brand (2027, Acworth, Ga.) has been solid at the plate all summer and did not slow down late in the summer. This week, Brand was able to hit just under the .700 mark and tallied three extra base hits, including a homer. The switch hitter has a fluid barrel path with plus feel for the barrel to all fields. The lower half also moves with some rhythm, and the switch hitting ability with the accuracy to the barrel provides plenty of intrigue. The middle infielder is committed to Georgia Tech. Atley Schwarzrock (‘27 GA) catches of all of the first pitch he sees launching it over the wall in left for a 2-run 💣 sending it with some heat; stays loose in his progressing ripping the barrel thru the zone with some strength behind it and staying tall on impact. #EastWS… pic.twitter.com/oGxbPQN1W0 — Perfect Game Georgia (@PG_Georgia) July 27, 2026 Atley Schwarzrock (2027,...
Tournaments |
Story |
7/29/2026
17u World Series Scout Notes: Days 3-5
Perfect Game Staff
17u World Series Scout Notes: Days 1-2 Lukas Waite (‘27, CA) showed LOUD stuff out of the pen. 6-2/205 frame. High-end athlete on the mound. FB sat 92-95 (T96). SL at 80-82 generated uncomfortable whiffs #PGWS @California_PG @PG_Uncommitted pic.twitter.com/UXaVxqA2kv — Perfect Game Four Corners (@PG_FourCorners) July 27, 2026 Lukas Waite (2027, San Diego, Calif.) came out of the pen on day four and showcased the loudest stuff out of the entire event. The recently named PG All-American ran the fastball up to 96 mph and sat 92-95 mph throughout the outing. A slider at 80-82 mph was lethal. It tunnels well off the heater and gets uncomfortable whiffs often. Waite features a 6-2, 205-pound frame that moves extremely well. There is supreme athleticism throughout the delivery that stands out. The upside is extremely high and will be sure to draw heavy draft interest during this...
All American Game |
Story |
7/29/2026
Victorino & Girardi Tabbed PGAAC Managers
667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SHANE VICTORINO AND JOE GIRARDI NAMED MANAGERS FOR PERFECT GAME DICK'S ALL-AMERICAN CLASSIC AT CITIZENS BANK PARK Former Phillies Stars to Lead Nation's Top High School Baseball Players on August 16 in Philadelphia Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Wednesday, July 29, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced that former Phillies All-Star outfielder Shane Victorino and former Phillies manager Joe Girardi will serve as managers for Team East and Team West, respectively, at the 2026 Perfect Game DICK'S All-American Classic, taking place on Sunday, August 16, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pa. Joining Girardi and...
College |
Story |
7/28/2026
Coppy's Corner: July 28 Summer Edition
John Coppolella
The amateur players in the Cape Cod Baseball League are the future stars of the 2027 MLB Draft. The league runs from June 13th through August 2nd. Games are played at historic stadiums in Old New England towns. It’s beautiful and charming. Hollywood even made a movie about the Cape Cod League ~25 years ago called Summer Catch. It scored an 8% (!) on Rotten Tomatoes, but, on the plus side, it featured 2001 Jessica Biel in a starring role. It was so much fun writing Coppy’s Column this spring. My hope is to highlight a pitcher and position player each week from the Cape. And, who knows, maybe somewhere out there Jessica Biel is reading it. Player of the Week: Blake Schaaf – Bourne Braves Schaaf had a big week, going 12-for-22 (.545 AVG) with 3 Doubles, 4 Stolen Bases, and 9 Runs Scored. It’s been the continuation of a terrific summer for the...