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Tournaments  | Story | 6/3/2021

Winter Work Fueling Success For Knaak

Photo: Aidan Knaak (Knaak family)
Throughout the winter offseason, Aidan Knaak had one goal on his mind: an invite to the 2021 Perfect Game Jr. National Showcase. To do so, he knew he had to work.
 
Knaak, a right-handed pitcher in the 2023 class, believes he’s always had command of his arsenal of four pitches. The Fort Myers, Fla. native put out a stellar performance at the 2020 National Underclass Showcase-Main Event in December, locating his stuff and shutting down some of the top bats in his class. However, Knaak’s fastball topped out at 84 mph and sat in the low-80s. To get his invite, Knaak began to grind to build velocity.
 
“Velocity has been a big part of this offseason for me,” Knaak said. “Locating has never really been an issue, but I needed to get some extra velo behind my pitches.”
 
On his quest for more miles per hour, Knaak, who ranks on the High Follow list by Perfect Game, started to go to Randy Sullivan’s Florida Baseball ARMory. The ARMory, which specializes in young pitchers building velocity on their fastballs, trains many of the Gulf Coast’s top talents, along with major leaguers such as Jake Odorizzi, Jamison Taillon and Justin Verlander. At the ARMory, Knaak got into weightlifting, focusing on deadlift and split squats to build power behind his delivery. In doing so, Knaak says he has put on 10-15 pounds in the past five months.
 
On top of his budding strength, Knaak has also continued to grow. Knaak’s father, Robert, says that the 16-year-old has gained two inches over the last few months. He now stands at 5-foot-11 and has filled more into his frame, weighing in at 170 pounds.
 
“He’s always been a good pitcher in terms of his delivery and off-speed stuff,” Robert said. “But the work he’s put in with the ARMory has really taken his game to the next level.”
 
As the summer season began, Aidan was determined to display his new skills. Participating in the 2021 Sunshine East Showcase, his fastball climbed as high as 89 mph and now sat in the high-80s. Knaak was named to the Showcase’s Top Prospect List amongst many of the region’s highest talents for his performance. Going into his first competitive tournament of the summer, the 2021 PG 16u East Memorial Day Classic, Knaak focused on building off his strong showing.
 
“I was feeling good and feeling confident,” Knaak said. “I was locating well and starting to break hitters down and just focused on doing that.”
 
At the East Memorial Day Classic, Knaak looked as dominant as he’d ever been. Playing for the Florida Burn 2023, Knaak started the team’s first game on Saturday, May 29, against Victus Elite Fl. He only threw two innings but fanned six batters, recording every out via strikeout and only allowing one hit and no walks in the process. Knaak then took the bump against the X Team 2023 in the tournament’s quarterfinals and continued his command of opposing batters. Hurling five shutout innings, Knaak struck out six more batters, allowing just one hit and one walk, with a fastball ranging from 85-89 mph. Despite the Burn losing in the championship game, Knaak took home MV-Pitcher honors, which he was truly honored to receive.
 
“I felt like my hard work paid off,” Knaak said. “I worked really hard over the past five months, and I was starting to get recognized for it.”
 
While Knaak’s increased velocity has undoubtedly enhanced his performance on the mound, he contributes a lot of his success to his off-speed pitches. Knaak throws a curveball, slider and changeup, which all range from the low- to mid-70s. However, Knaak made use of this past year’s shutdown to develop a new pitch, a splitter, which he says was a critical factor in putting away hitters last weekend at the East Memorial.
 
“I had a lot of free time during quarantine, so I decided to develop this new pitch,” Knaak said. “I was already able to locate my other pitches, so I was like, ‘why not have another pitch?’ I think it gives me a bigger advantage over hitters too.”
 
Despite his new notoriety, Knaak is currently uncommitted. However, with the NCAA baseball recruiting period opening up on June 8, college coaches will likely come seeking Knaak’s elite velocity and breaking ball.
 
Since setting those goals in December, Knaak has receiving an invite to the 2021 Jr. National Showcase, which takes place at the East Cobb Complex in Marietta, Ga., from June 12-16, where he will get a chance to be seen by more programs and scouts.
 
“We’re really excited about him getting to play against good competition,” Robert said. “It will be really good for him to compete against elite talent.”
 
Knowing the recent precedent he’s set in Perfect Game events, Aidan wants to continue to make a name for himself and showcase his growing abilities.
 
“Playing in the [East Memorial Day] Classic was a great experience,” Knaak said. “Pitching well in an event like that, I now need to really prove to myself and everyone else that I can continue to do what I know I can do.”

Tournaments | Story | 1/27/2026

MLK East Scout Notes Recap

Perfect Game Staff
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‘28 OF Jakob Groeschel (OH) continues to impress with the bat on the circuit, picked up 2 2Bs in the first game today. Really athletic, went 4.4 on turn; easy to dream on all the traits. #MLKEast @PG_OhioValley pic.twitter.com/wOIwnGKnkg — Perfect Game Florida (@Florida_PG) January 17, 2026 2028 OF Jakob Groeschel (Springfield, Ohio) broke out at this event last year hitting a casual .909, and although he didn’t turn in quite the same performance, he hit a strong .462 with 4 extra-base hits, 5 walks, 5 bags and only struck out once. He’s a pretty dynamic athlete who can do a lot of things well, but the bat is the calling card as he just lives on the barrel and has no problem handling all kinds of pitching. It’s a simple swing, but he’s got fast hands and he can really impact the ball without being overly physical yet.  2030 RHP Michael Vazquez...
Draft | Rankings | 3/20/2026

2026 Draft Board: Top 300

Vincent Cervino
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The 2026 MLB Draft class is shaping up to be one of the better in recent memory and, potentially, the best class in the last decade. It’s led by UCLA superstar shortstop Roch Cholowsky, a true five-tool prospect who’s the early favorite for 1:1. One of the most popular pieces of industry feedback when constructing this list was some variation of “Roch is too low” or “go up on Roch” and he’s the best college prospect since 2019 when Adley Rutschman (Oregon State, Orioles) was the consensus No. 1 prospect. Similarly to 2019, there’s a superstar Texas prep shortstop at No. 2, in 2019 it was Bobby Witt Jr. (Colleyville Heritage, Royals) and this year it’s Grady Emerson. Both Emerson and Alabama’s Justin Lebron would have been solid 1:1 candidates in years where Roch Cholowsky is not eligible and both have All-Star potential....
Press Release | Press Release | 3/19/2026

PG Teams Up with OZ Ball Tournaments PTY

Perfect Game Staff
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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 NAMES OZ BALL TOURNAMENTS PTY AS OFFICIAL AREA DIRECTOR IN AUSTRALIA, EXPANDING GLOBAL FOOTPRINT   Sanford, Florida (Thursday, March 19, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced that it has entered into a new international partnership with Oz Ball Tournaments Pty, naming the organization as an official Perfect Game Area Director in Australia. The agreement establishes Perfect Game-licensed tournaments and showcases across major Australian markets, including Sydney, Brisbane/Gold Coast, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.     Australian events will operate under the Perfect Game brand, delivering the same...
Press Release | Press Release | 3/18/2026

PG Introduces Individual Player Entry

Perfect Game Staff
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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 INTRODUCES INDIVIDUAL PLAYER ENTRY, EXPANDING ACCESS TO ELITE NATIONAL EVENTS   Athletes Can Now Compete in Select National Tournaments Through Structured ‘Team PG’ Rosters   Sanford, Florida (Wednesday, March 18, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced the launch of Individual Player Entry, a new initiative designed to provide athletes the opportunity to compete in select national events even if their primary team is not attending.   Through the program, players can now register individually and be placed on a structured “Team PG” roster, allowing them to participate fully in...
Juco | Rankings | 3/18/2026

JUCO Top 25: March 18

Blaine Peterson
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This week brings a new top team to the rankings as Johnson County (KS), on the strength of 10 consecutive wins and a 26-2 record, claims the overall number 1 spot. The Cavaliers have made 3 consecutive trips to the JUCO World Series and have the talent to make it back there again this spring. Florida Southwestern and Chipola have seemingly separated themselves as the most consistent teams in Florida. Welcome to the top 5 to the Gaston Rhinos who will be one of the first teams to 30 wins this spring. Pearl River stays as the top NJCAA D2 team and Fresno City stays as the top Juco team in California; both are coming off undefeated 2 week stretches. Welcome back to the top 25 to John A. Logan who is now 20-7 overall and have played one of the toughest schedules of anyone. And for the first time in several years welcome to the top 25 to the College of Southern Idaho, the Golden Eagles have...
High School | General | 3/18/2026

Class of 2026: Preseason HS All-Americans

Perfect Game Staff
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College | Rankings | 3/18/2026

DII/DIII/NAIA Rankings Update: March 18

Nick Herfordt
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In every major sport, the championship is decided in the postseason. You can lose games all year, get hot at the right time, and walk away with the hardware. The regular season is a rehearsal. The playoffs are the show.  The championship belt changes that. Borrowed from professional wrestling, boxing and ultimate fighting, the belt travels the moment the holder loses — no brackets, no seeding, no second chances. A random Tuesday non-conference game in Milledgeville, Georgia  becomes a title fight. A spring trip to Florida becomes a gauntlet. The defending national champion can lose the belt before February is over.  We’re tracking three belts this season — NCAA Division II, NAIA, and NCAA Division III — each starting with the defending national champion. The results have been exactly as chaotic as you’d expect.  Worth noting along the...
High School | Rankings | 3/17/2026

High School Top 50 Update: March 17

Tyler Russo
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We have another update to the National Top-50 after two weeks of even more games being played in the southern states along with seasons just starting to kick off across the country. We’re quickly approaching another stellar high school event, the NHSI in Cary, and with that will come even more movement in these rankings. St. John Bosco (CA) continues to hold firm at the No. 1 position after a 4-0 start to their season. Venice (FL) has been rolling throughout the early portion of the year and jumps up to No. 2 in the country. One of the biggest movers in this update is The Bennett School (TX) jumping from unranked to No. 8 in the country after beating a handful of top ranked programs to start the year. Some other big movers inside the top-10 are Barbe (LA), who jumps from No. 18 to No. 5 in this update as well as Aledo (TX) who jumps from No. 20 to No. 9. The rest of the top-10...
College | Story | 3/17/2026

College Players of the Week: March 17

Vincent Cervino
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March 17th Perfect Game/Player of the Week: Vahn Lackey, C, Georgia Tech The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (17-3) came into the season with the highest external expectations in decades based on the anticipation of their offensive potential. To this point they have not only met those lofty expectations, but twenty games in they may have exceeded them. While there are plenty of high-level prospects up and down the lineup, with all that star power Vahn Lackey has stood out. Sure to be one of the first catchers selected in this year’s MLB Draft with his comprehensive skillset, he projects well as an everyday backstop at the next level. However, his overall athleticism stands out as we saw this week when he had a game where he played every defensive position on the field except pitcher. At the plate over four games including a series victory at Clemson last week, he went 9 for 15, scoring...
College | Rankings | 3/16/2026

College Top 25: March 16

Vincent Cervino
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Collegiate Player Report Database As each week of the college baseball season passes, we continue to be entertained at an incredible level with high level drama at every turn.  Conference play is under way and the national landscape is starting to make a bit more sense.  The development and strength of individual players is on full-display and there continue to be upsets on occasion that sends the message no team can relax for one moment.  For the most part, the Top 10 remains unchanged with some reshuffling as No. 1 UCLA (17-2) holds on to the top spot with yet another perfect (4-0) week after sweeping Michigan.  The No. 2 Texas Longhorns (18-1) did drop their first game of the season in Game 1 of SEC play but won the series against Ole Miss and finished the week with a (3-1) record.  The Georgia Tech Yellowjackets (17-3) passed their first real road test of the...
Draft | Story | 3/13/2026

PG Draft: Under the Radar Preps

Tyler Henninger
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PG Draft: Under the Radar Preps As the spring season gets underway, the showcase circuit and early high-level tournaments have already provided our scouts with some intriguing first looks at this year’s crop of prospects. At the same time, we’ve been tracking the buzz among team evaluators, listening closely to the names that keep coming up in conversations and the players clubs are making sure they get eyes on this spring. Every year, a handful of prospects quietly slip beneath the radar during the fall and winter months, only to reemerge once the games start counting again. Sometimes it’s the result of a productive offseason in the weight room, a noticeable jump in velocity, or a step forward in skill development. Other times, it’s simply a player finally getting the opportunity and the stage to show what’s been building behind the scenes. The spring has a...
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