High School : : General
Friday, February 15, 2019

Regional HS Preview: Southwest

Brian Sakowski        
Photo: DJ Jefferson (Perfect Game)

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2019 Perfect Game High School Preview Index

Southwest Region: Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah

Top 10 Southwest Region High Schools

Rk. Nat'l School '18 Rec. '18 Finish
1 18 Desert Oasis (Nev.) 30-5 NIAA 4A Sunset Semifinals
2 27 Hamilton (Ariz.) 19-12 AIA 6A 2nd Round
3 45 La Cueva (N.M.) 27-3 NMAA 6A State Champs
4 49 Palo Verde (Nev.) 31-9 NIAA 4A State Champs
5 NR Corona Del Sol (Ariz.)
 22-5 AIA 6A Play-In
6 NR Dixie (Utah) 27-3 UHSAA 4A State Champs
7 NR Basic (Nev.)
 32-7
 NIAA 4A State Finals
8 NR Bishop Gorman (Nev.)
 26-9
 NIAA 4A Sunset 1st Round
9 NR Jordan (Utah) 24-6 UHSAA 5A State Champs
10 NR Nogales (Ariz.) 31-5 AIA 4A State Champs




Southwest Region Dream Team

C - Kody Huff, Sr., Horizon HS (Ariz.)
Huff, a Stanford signee, earns high marks from scouts for his overall feel for the game as well as his in-game intelligence. A solid athlete who moves well behind the plate, Huff is lauded for his defensive abilities and acumen behind the plate, and his receiving and throwing skills are also high end. Offensively he has a quality stroke with a good approach and some raw power, giving him very good two-way catcher upside at the next level. 

1B - Sean Rimmer, Sr., Mountain View HS (Ariz.) 
Rimmer fits the mold of the big, physical first base prospect with significant raw power. A Brigham Young signee, Rimmer has pretty quality raw power from the right side of the plate and that is brought about in part by his advanced physicality and strength. Primarily a corner guy, Rimmer has the ability to play first base and left field and could potentially be a pitching prospect in college as well, as he's been into the high-80s off the bump. 

2B - Carson Tucker, Jr., Mountain Pointe HS (Ariz.) 
One of the few underclassmen on this list, Tucker enters his junior season at Mountain Pointe ranked the No. 118 player overall in the class of 2020. He's a gifted middle infield prospect with plenty of range and athleticism to go along with very good hands and feet, and he's capable of playing either spot up the middle. Offensively he has a simple, repeatable approach and overall swing, doing a good job to use the whole field with quality contact skills. 

SS - Colton McIntosh, Sr., Shadow Mountain HS (Ariz.) 
McIntosh could have also earned the nod as the two-way player in the region, given his abilities both as a positional player and a righthanded pitcher. He's been up to 93 mph on the bump, but is primarily an infielder. He's a solid athlete with good fundamentals in the infield, and plays a steady shortstop, where that arm strength helps him as well. A switch-hitter as well, McIntosh shows good hands and some raw pop from both sides of the plate, and will take a nice, well-rounded toolset with him to Arizona next year. 

3B - Ethan Long, Jr., Mountain Pointe HS (Ariz.)
Long would warrant mentioning as a two-way talent as well, as he gets easily into the 90s on the mound. We're slotting him into the third base slot here as a power-hitting corner infielder with plenty of arm strength as well as raw power. He's a very intriguing two-way talent, as stated, who could very easily find himself an early two-way contributor at third base upon arrival at Arkansas. 

OF - Joe McLaughlin, Sr., Hamilton HS (Ariz.) 
One of the toolsiest players in the region, McLaughlin, an Oregon State signee, has pretty serious upside. His two loudest tools are his arm strength and speed, as he was clocked up to 96 mph on his throws while also running a 6.57 second 60-yard dash, making both plus raw tools. His athleticism stands out, and while he's raw at the plate, there's bat speed and impact off the barrel there. It's not hard to envision him being a legitimate draft target after a few years at OSU. 

OF - Carson Wells, Jr., Bishop Gorman HS (Nev.)
Wells, a junior at perennial powerhouse Bishop Gorman, stands out for his athleticism and well-rounded toolset. A Southern California commit, Wells is a lefthanded hitter with a quick, linear stroke that allows him to spray line drives to all fields and fit the mold as a top of the order hitter with his plus speed as well. A quality defender in the outfield with range and athleticism to go along with that speed, Wells also has quality arm strength out there. 

OF - Thomas Dilandri, So., Home School (Nev.) 
The lone sophomore on this list, Dilandri is the ninth-ranked player in the class of 2021 rankings. An outfielder who likely profiles in a corner long term, Dilandri is a solid athlete and defender with quality arm strength as well. His biggest strength is with the bat, where, as a righthanded hitter, he shows an excellent combination of bat speed and fluidity to go along with advanced strength, allowing him to drive the ball with ease and giving him some of the better power projection in the country. 

UT - Aaron Roberts, Sr., Desert Oasis HS (Nev.)
Roberts is one of the more intriguing two-way prospects in the country, given his prowess both on the mound and with the bat, where he brings with him serious thunder from the right side of the plate. He's been into the mid-90s on the mound, pairing with it a quality breaking ball, and offers two loud tools overall in that raw power and arm strength. He'll be an intriguing follow this spring, and could be an immediate impact player at Cal next spring. 

P - DJ Jefferson, Sr., Desert Oasis HS (Nev.) 
A long, lean righthander, Jefferson has long been lauded for his projectable frame and plus arm speed. He's been into the mid-90s with his fastball at times, showing the ability to work the ball downhill, and his extension metrics rate well. The body certainly projects well, with plenty of room to gain strength, and there's a pretty significant velocity ceiling here. His breaking ball has improved over time and shows flashes of sharpness now, and he's an interesting draft follow in the four corners area. 

P - Cy Nielson, Sr., Spanish Fork HS (Utah)
Nielson advanced a bit more onto the national radar last fall at the 2018 Ways to Play Powered by MLB and PG, where he took the mound for the Canes National club and threw really well. Well-built and physical, Neilson has a fair bit of deception in his delivery and works in the 87-91 mph range with the fastball, pairing with it a sharp, late-breaking slider. He's going to get a lot of looks this spring from scouts in the four corners area, and if he's taken strides forward, could be an intriguing draft riser in a few months. 

P - Chandler Murphy, Sr., Liberty HS (Ariz.) 
Murphy has been a consistent performer in PG events over the years, and is an intriguing draft follow. He has a nice, projectable frame that could hold more strength, and shows a loose arm stroke that generates fastballs into the low-90s. His breaking ball has good spin, and though it gets a bit slurvy at times, it has good late bite that can miss bats. He's also shown feel for a solid, fading changeup as well. He does an excellent job of throwing strikes with everything as well. 

P - Jaden Agassi, Jr., Home School (Nev.)
An underclassman, Agassi enters his junior season in Nevada with some of the highest upside of anyone out there, even if he his a year away from being eligible for the draft. With good size, excellent arm speed, and ever-improving stuff, Agassi is on the national radar for a reason. He's into the low-90s with his fastball, sinks it well, and has come a long ways with his breaking ball, now showing some power and bite to the break. 

P - Davis Heller, Sr., Mesquite HS (Ariz.) 
Heller's extreme size already makes him standout, but he's also an intriguing pitching prospect, to say the least. He stands 6-foot-8 and is strong despite his leanness, and has all kinds of projection remaining. He's been up to 91 mph with his fastball, but, as one would expect, throws it with extreme plane to the plate and the pitch features some heaviness to go along with it. He also does a good job of spinning a curveball, and as he continues to refine his mechanical profile, his upside is vast.


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