FORT MYERS, Fla. – When looking back at the previous 19 years the Perfect Game WWBA Underclass World Championship has been staged in Southwest Florida’s Lee and Charlotte counties, what is most striking is not just the event’s longevity but its enduring star-power.
And while nearly 2,600 WWBA Under World alumni have been selected in the MLB Amateur Draft and 329 of them have gone on to play in the major leagues, the most exciting element associated with the tournament is what it brings to the table in the here and now. That here and now is upon us.
The 20th annual PG WWBA Underclass World Championship is set to begin what is always an entertaining extended weekend of play on Thursday (Sept. 30) with the semifinal and championship games slated to be played at JetBlue Park –Fenway South – on Monday (Oct. 4).
The JetBlue Park Player Development Complex is one of 18 venues that will be utilized and joins the Lee County Player Development 5-Plex, CenturyLink Sports Complex, Charlotte Sports Park, City of Palms Park and venerable old Terry Park as current or former MLB spring training facilities that will host games.
Those venues have beared witness to some pretty remarkable happenings over the past 19 years, starting with Georgia’s East Cobb Astros winning the inaugural event in 2002 (they added outright titles in ’05 and ’06 an shared one with the Scorpions in ’18).
Last year’s 2020 WWBA Under World was pure craziness when a combination of obstacles caused by both the Covid-19 pandemic and the weather forced tournament directors to alter the format and name co-champions: Texas Twelve Maroon 2002 (Texas) and the Canes 17u American (Virginia).
This weekend, scouts and fans alike can expect to see new variations of not just those teams but hundreds more, and no one should leave disappointed. The talent-level on the rosters of the 208 teams converging here from across the country and Puerto Rico is through the roof with many of the best high school juniors, sophomores and freshmen set to get after it.
As of early this week, 21 of the top 50 overall prospects from the class of 2023 were rostered, as were 17 of the top 50 from the class of 2024; three of the top-28 2025s had also found spots.
The same programs seem to be represented more often than not when it comes to housing those elite prospects, and they’re all familiar names – both the prospect and the program.
The Canes National 17u, seemingly forever a championship threat, hits the ground running with (all 2023s) outfielder Cole Eaton (No. 25-ranked, Tennessee commit), shortstop Kevin McGonigle (No. 34 Auburn), first baseman Zach Wadas (No. 39, TCU), right-hander Dylan Questad (No. 43, Arkansas) and shortstop Trent Caraway (No. 44, Oregon State).
The Top Tier Roos American 2023, a Florida-based team that enjoyed tremendous success during the fall of 2020, counters with left-hander Wesley Mendes (No. 14, Vanderbilt) and shortstops Steven Milam (No. 40, LSU) and Cade Kurland (No. 42, Florida).
Georgia’s 5 Star National 17u Black, also a championship threat wherever they show up, features catcher Riley Jackson (No. 26, Florida State) and outfielder Drew Burress (No. 30, uncommitted). The Carrollton, Texas-based USA Prime National can present a ton of talent with the likes of right-hander Bryce Eldridge (No. 15, Alabama) and outfielder Ashton Larson (No. 33, LSU) just out of the top-50 2023s, with plenty more top-500 types right behind.
It never ends, really. Other 2023s in top-50 include the South Charlotte Panthers outfielder Walker Jenkins (No. 4, North Carolina) and right-hander Chance Mako (No. 50, N.C. State); the Dirtbags 17u Camo outfielder TayShaun Walton (No. 6, Miami); MLB Breakthrough Series 2023 shortstop Antonio Anderson (No. 10, Georgia Tech); Ostingers Baseball Academy shortstop Arjun Nimmala shortstop Arjun Nimmala (No. 13, Florida State) and Elite Squad third baseman Daniel Cuvet No. 17 Miami).
There are at least two squads, the Canes National 16u and the East Cobb Astros 16u, who put a capital “U” in underclass when it comes to competing for the championship having built their rosters with some of the nation’s best from the class of 2024.
The Canes National 16u are paced by third baseman Andre’ Modugno (No. 7, Duke), right-hander Chase Mobley (No. 13, Florida State), shortstop Owen Paino (No. 16, Ole Miss) and third baseman Carson Messina (No. 44, South Carolina).
The East Cobb Astros 16u, meanwhile, counter with shortstop Bryce Clavon (No. 8, Oklahoma) and shortstop Ethan Murray (No. 17, Georgia Tech). The MLB Breakthrough Series 2023, already fortified with a wealth of juniors, can also serve-up 2024s third baseman Aiden Harris (No. 10, Virginia), right-hander Tristan Bristow (No. 19, uncommitted) and shortstop David Hogg II (No. 47, Oklahoma).
Team Elite/Atlanta Braves Scout Team outfielder Michael Mullinax (No. 9, Georgia) is another top-50 2024 sure to draw a lot of attention this weekend. The top 2025s in attendance include South Charlotte Panthers 2023 right-hander Samuel Cozart (No. 2, Mississippi State), Real Ballers 2023 National Team shortstop Luis Ayden Almeyda (No. 6, uncommitted) and Foundation Sports Underclass-Austin shortstop Eli Pitts.
One of the first alumni of the PG WWBA Underclass World Championship to reach the major leagues was outfielder Dexter Fowler from Alpharetta, Ga. Fowler, a 2004 grad who was invited to the PG All-American Classic in 2003, was at the WWBA Under World in that inaugural year of 2002.
He played with the East Cobb Baseball organization while in high school and was a member of the Astros team that won the PG WWBA World Championship in Jupiter in 2003, a year after he was at the WWBA Under World.
“Everything seemed to happen so fast back then,” Fowler told PG during a conversation in 2013 while at spring training with the Colorado Rockies. “It’s hard to believe that it was that long ago but I remember thinking, hey, I’m going to have a chance to be in the big leagues and now here I am, going into my fifth season.”
It was a dream for Fowler in 2002, just as it is now for all of these other top underclass prospects who will put their talents on display over the next five days at the PG WWBA Underclass World Championship. And dreams, after all are meant to become reality for those bold enough to pursue the biggest of all dreams.