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2,401 MLB PLAYERS | 15,805 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Tournaments  | Story | 5/23/2024

West Memorial Day Classic Preview

During the holiday weekend, Perfect Game will be hosting its West Memorial Day Classic throughout sunny Arizona. Starting Friday and ending Monday, 137 hungry teams will come to compete and emerge as tournament winners. 

In the event's history, there have been near countless college commits, a Major Leaguer, and 153 players drafted in total. Like in the past, there will be age groups up from 13U to 18U, and each group will have their tournaments gathered at different baseball stadiums around the valley, such as Goodyear Ballpark, Peoria Sports Complex, Riverview Complex, and the Surprise Spring Training Complex. There will be 14 teams in 13U, 26 in 14U, 28 in 15U, 34 in 16U, 21 in 17U, and 15 in 18U, all traveling from different parts of America to battle in front of scouts, fans, and family. Many of last year's champion organizations will return to try to go back-to-back in their different leagues. The event starts with up to four, five, and or six teams placed in a pool to compete in a set of games for the first part of the tournament. Keep up with this classic by subscribing to DiamondKast where all stats and scores will be kept throughout the event. With 374 ranked players, 49 of whom are committed already, you don’t want to miss out on all the talent to watch this weekend. 



With a new summer circuit just on the horizon out in Arizona, we're going to switch things up a bit in terms of a preview for the West Memorial Day and look at a team to watch in each division, as well as highlight a key prospect to watch, who in this iteration will be Oregon State signee Dax Whitney, a talented right-hander out of Idaho. 

13u: AZ 643 Baseball

AZ 643 Baseball 13U team is set to face off in the 13U West Memorial Day Classic for their ninth event since the start of their membership in 2023. Starting in Pool B, their first three games are scheduled for Friday-Monday hosted at the Riverview Complex. Led by coach and owner Jeff Landry, this Gilbert, Arizona team looks to carry on their impressive 21-8-2 record and improve from fourth place based on last tournament's results. 

Overall, this team has a .315 batting average with eight players hitting above .300. The leader of the pack, hitting.439 with a 1.281 OPS, is first baseman and left-handed pitcher Evan Hedlund who recently won MVP and was named to the All-Tournament Team for pitching and batting in the 2024 13U 42 Classic (OPEN). On the mound, he also leads his team with 40 strikeouts so far in 17 games pitched. Two star pitchers are sub1.95 ERAs including infielder and right-handed pitcher Branden Cox. Cox is averaging a 1.11 ERA, the best on the team. He has pitched 38 innings, allowing 38 hits and only eight runs across the diamond. He was also awarded an MVPitching title during the 2024 13U Arizona PG Championship Series Tour 2 (OPEN). With four MVP awards and 57 All-Tournament Players already crowned, this young team has a lot of potential to keep an eye on. 

14u: Canes West Signature

Coming down from Irvine, California, the Canes West 2028 Signature team will participate in the 14U West Memorial Day Classic at the Goodyear Ballpark. Canes competing in Pool D will face MMW Arizona 2028 Gold for their first game on Friday morning. Players and coach JoJo Storniolo will embark on their 10th event of the year in hopes of coming out champions like the Canes West 2027 team did in last year's Memorial event. 

With a 22-14-1 record so far, a lot of that success carries from the heavy-hitting roster. The team bats.381 on average, with 21 players hitting above .328 with 743 hits and 614 runs scored. Standing on top is first baseman James Nolan, with a .604 batting average and an OPS of 1.483 and 29 hits out of 48 at-bats. Nolan claims nine All-Tournament Team titles, three of which are from 2023-2024. Another star bat is the team home run leader with five and shortstop Tj Otis, hitting .504 and has a 1.489 OPS, the highest on the team. He is the second-ranked shortstop in his hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. He also has posted a 2.88 ERA in 11 games. Speaking of pitching, this team has plenty of depth with seven players throwing 3.00 or lower. The top strikeout arm is left-handed pitcher Nico Buscemi with 59. Max Nibarger in 20 games has a 3.00 ERA, Nathan Reaney a 2.35 within 41.2 innings, and Eli Iopa averages a 1.27 ERA in six games. Another key arm with fewer games is right-handed pitcher Carson Cato, with a 0.00 ERA who has allowed just seven hits while striking out eight with four unearned runs allowed. Behind him is Richard Cruz Iii, who had a 0.74 ERA with only 3 runs against. With 80 total All-Tournament Players and a multi-talented roster, there are many names to look for when the Canes take the field this weekend as they bounce back from the 2024 14U Huntington Beach Super Regional NIT (MAJOR) last month.
 
15u: Canes West AZ

As the number one ranked team in their West region and the top No. 84 team nationally, the Canes West AZ roster is ready for the 2024 15U West Memorial Day Classic hosted at Goodyear Ballpark. With an 8-2-0 record after participating in two tournaments last year, they join their first tournament in 2024 to improve from third place after their past event in October. 

Going into this event, 11 players are hitting .308 or higher, so expect a lot of offensive power from this team's lineup. Five of them hit in the .400 batting average, and the only bat hitting .500 is the third overall ranked player in New Mexico in utility player Colton Floyd. Behind Floyd for fourth in the New Mexico state ranking is Jonah Utash, who is hitting .450 with 18 hits in 16 games. Erick Jimenez is wrapping up the top three; he sports a .447 average in 38 at-bats. Even with only two home runs, this team relies heavily on singles and doubles to score. As for arms, there’s right-hand pitcher Jacoby Noble who has a 3.00 ERA in 23.1 innings with 28 strikeouts, fourth-ranked Arizona HS prospect Jimenez tosses 2.07 in 20.1 and leads the team with 30 punch-outs, and Maddox Wahlenmaier with a low 0.32 ERA in five games pitched with the third most strikeouts with 23 and counting. While these three carry the most strikeouts, there are a lot of other strong arms in the bullpen averaging 3.00 ERA and below in the roster. With all that talent and much more, the Canes will set forth a small drive from Scottsdale to Goodyear for their first game against the AZ Runners Scout Team as part of Pool B on Friday morning. 

16u: LVR Baseball

Heading into the Memorial Day Classic as champions from their last event in 2023, the LVR Baseball team looks to build off their undefeated record of 7-0. There’s a brightly lit spotlight as they enter this event coming down from Las Vegas, Nevada as the No. 14 Nationally ranked team. 

There are a lot of players whose talent helps this team remain undefeated, starting in the batter's box. There are six hitters throughout the lineup hitting above .346. The top three leads off with utility player Randall Riley III with a .500 average through a small sample size of just 18 at-bats. Next up is the sixth overall ranked prospect in Nevada, Dallon Cegavske who's hitting .457 and leads the team with two homers, 20 RBI, and a 1.287 OPS. Third is the number-one prospect in Nevada, Aiden Farrell, who has a .429 average in only seven games. With plenty off offensive depth there also comes their array of quality pitching. The third top pitching prospect also in Nevada is right-handed pitcher Brayden Lenahan with a 2.27 ERA. He is tied at 26 strikeouts with right-handed pitcher Chase Delprete, who's sporting a 3.89 ERA. This LVR team has nine All-Tournament Players whose names include those already mentioned, such as Cegavske, Farrell, and Riley, who also won an MVPicher award during the 2023 Fall National Championship. With a lot of star power on this team, there’s a solid chance to come back on top for the second event in a row. 

17u: Hawaii Elite 2G National

The Hawaii Elite 2G National team looks to turn the page during the West Memorial Day Classic, entering as a top 30 team in the country as the club is looking to repeat as they won the 16u West Memorial Day last year.

The bats came out a little slow in their first tournament, but they have the fire power to put up runs in bunches and should be expected to do so this weekend. This team currently has seven players batting above .333. The most notable is outfielder Alaka'i Kiakona, who's hitting .500 in 2024 PG events and is tied with Kainoa Kaneshiro, a University of Nevada commit. Behind them with a .429 average is Nicholas Nashiwa, and then tied at .400 are Caynen Kagami and Tanner Fujino. This roster also has seven primary pitchers listed as well. Kiakona, who sports a 0.88 ERA and leads the team with 16 strikeouts in eight innings, will be a go-to arm for the tougher pool play matchup and is one of the top arms in the state. The coaching staff  can also rely on right-handed pitcher Jayden Hunt, who has a 3.00 ERA and is a top ten pitching prospect in Hawaii as well as left-handed pitcher Cade Wehrsig who is currently the state's No. 19 prospect. This team still has much promise and look to repeat their title as they fly into Surprise, Arizona, this upcoming weekend to compete in Pool C. 

Prospect Profile: Dax Whitney

Right-handed pitcher Dax Whitney will participate in the West Memorial Day Classic for the third time. After committing to the Oregon State Beavers as he completes his senior year, Whitney comes to Arizona. He attracts many eyes behind the backstop as Idaho's No.1 pitching and overall prospect. 

In the past, Whitney has only ever played in the Memorial Day Classic dating back to 2022 and is doing so with much success. During that year, he reached 88 mph with his fastball, 70 mph on the curveball, 79 mph on the slider, and showed a 77 mph change-up. He threw four innings of work on five strikeouts and no hits in the two games he pitched. Last year, he grew from an average 83-88 mph fastball to a 90-92 fastball range. He also increased the speed of his three other pitches, adding eight mph to his curveball, four mph to his slider, and five mph to his change-up after pitching one inning with 13 strikeouts and one hit in the tournament. As a three-time All-Tournament Player and a national level-type prospect, Whitney is committed to improve his game as the numbers show. He was a teammate in 2023 on the Bandits Post 56 team.  This time around he will compete in the 18U age group with the Bandits. Their first four games as a team in Pool C will be at the Surprise Spring Training Complex starting Friday at 8:30 a.m. against the Badlands Baseball. Don’t miss a chance to see Whitney pitch during this event by attending or keeping up live on DiamondKast to see how much he has grown since the last Memorial Day Classic.  

Tournaments | Story | 3/31/2026

14u East Spring Opener Scout Notes

Perfect Game Staff
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Roman Keister (2030, Dade City, FL) Could not miss the barrel this weekend tallying 6 hits including 2 triples and 4 RBI. Starts the load early and controls his body well, the up the middle approach really plays in game. Also worked from off the mound for an inning and picked up a punch out.  Colton Russo (2030, Coral Springs, FL) Showed off the power burning outfielders all weekend. 5 hits including two triples that carried over the CF and RF heads. Has a good understanding about using the lower half in the swing and the bat to ball skills really impressed.  Karson Blakney (2030, St. Augustine, FL) Made his impact in a big way this week, collecting the win in the quarterfinals. In his outing he went 5 shutout innings and struck out 5 while only allowing 2 hits. Worked in the mid 70s with the FB and topped out at 78. Also produced on offense driving in 5 RBI on 4 hits. ...
College | Story | 4/7/2026

College Players of the Week: April 7

Craig Cozart
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April 7th Perfect Game/Player of the Week:  Andrew Williamson, OF, UCF  The UCF Knights (20-9) are coming off one of their biggest series victories in years when they went to Morgantown and took down the Mountaineers to take control of the Big 12 regular season standings.  The offense put on quite the performance and Andrew Williamson set the tone by leaving the yard in his first at-bat of the weekend launching a towering home run over the centerfield wall.  The 6-0/195 lefty from St. Petersburg, FL has one of the sweetest strokes in the college game today and when he goes, so do the Knights.  In the 3-game series, the junior collected 6 hits in his 10 at-bats, scoring 6 runs, on 5 walks, a double and he launched 3 home runs all told.  While he had a stretch earlier in the season where he was searching for his stroke a bit, he is getting locked in at the...
College | Rankings | 4/6/2026

College Top 25: April 6

Vincent Cervino
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With another week in the books, some teams at the top continue to prove they are elite, and others continue to fall by the wayside.  Meanwhile, there were several teams that had been lingering outside the Top 25 that had huge weekends to put themselves in the thick of things as every weekend has significant consequences for good or for bad.  The No. 1 UCLA Bruins (29-2) have now pushed their win streak to an incredible 23-games as they swept USC (27-6) who was previously ranked No. 7 in the poll.  The Bruins are off to a perfect (15-0) start in Big Ten play and are without a doubt the most complete team in the country right now.  The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (26-5) move up to No. 2 this week after they dismantled now No. 12 Auburn (22-9) in the midweek and then swept Cal on the West Coast last weekend.  Texas (26-5) moves down one spot to No. 3 this week after...
Draft | Mock Draft | 4/3/2026

PG Staff Mock Draft

Jheremy Brown
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Welcome to another Perfect Game Mock Draft. This is not your typical mock draft as it features 15 different GMs drafting the first two rounds of the draft. Each member of the mock draft was assigned two teams and as such will be drafting all of the picks in the first two rounds for each responsible team. The actual draft order will be presented below and we will dive into how teams made their selections and how they feel about the players drafted. It is important to note that this is not how we think the draft will play out in almost any capacity. This is simply an exercise 4 months ahead of time with a large portion of the scouting staff and some picks fall under personal favorites, best available, and a multitude of other factors. Chicago White Sox 1:1 Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA | 1:41 Jack Radel, RHP, Notre Dame The White Sox don’t overthink here and select Roch Cholowsky, who has...
High School | General | 4/2/2026

High School Notebook: April 2

Steve Fiorindo
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Lennex Minor (‘28 CA) absolutely destroys this offering to the PS for a 2-run shot. 2-4 on the day w/ 4 driven in. Athletic in the box w/ a quick stroke and strength throughout the frame. Also closed out the game running the FB up to 88 in a St. Bernard win #PGHS @PG_Scouting pic.twitter.com/KF7BsKGcm7 — Perfect Game California (@California_PG) March 29, 2026 Lennex Minor, MIF/P, St. Bernard (2028) Minor had a massive day in my look this past Saturday in a game being played at the University of San Diego.  The sophomore had a pair of hits, one which was a no-doubt homer, and drove in four.  Minor’s athleticism jumps out on the field with twitchy actions both at the dish and in the dirt.  He features a 6-foot, 170-pound frame with room to add and generates from a strong lower half and exceptionally quick hands.  Showing two-way potential, he made an...
High School | General | 4/2/2026

NHSI Scout Notebook

Cam McElwaney
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An extended look at ‘26 RHP Wilson Andersen… 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 6 K. @HailStateBB signee. #NHSI26 @JesuitBaseball @Florida_PG @PG_Draft @PGAllAmerican https://t.co/VLwECd2qZ8 pic.twitter.com/JbTFR3Gd2l — Perfect Game Scout (@PG_Scouting) March 30, 2026 Wilson Andersen, RHP, Tampa Jesuit  Andersen got the ball on day two of the event and showed a quick tempo, pounding the zone with a power mix. He ran the fastball up to 97 mph, working comfortably in the mid-90s, with a power curveball/changeup mix he showed confidence in. He’s one of the top right-handers in the class that saw his stock rise in Cary. Andersen is signed with Mississippi State.    An extended look at ‘26 RHP Cooper Sides… 5 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K. @LSUbaseball signee. #NHSI26 @olubaseball @PG_Draft @California_PG https://t.co/Ag1MfBAR5a pic.twitter.com/5wSszVjBn8...
All American Game | Story | 4/2/2026

All American Classic Heading to Citizens Bank

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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 DICK’S ALL-AMERICAN CLASSIC HEADED TO CITIZENS BANK PARK IN 2026   Perfect Game makes debut at iconic Phillies venue during America’s 250th birthday celebration   Former Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel named Honorary Chairman of All-American Classic   Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Thursday, April 2, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced that the 2026 Perfect Game DICK’S All-American Classic will be played at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, marking the first time a Perfect Game event has ever been held at the iconic home of the Philadelphia Phillies.   The game will take place on...
College | Rankings | 4/1/2026

DII/DIII/NAIA Rankings Update: April 1

Nick Herfordt
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Welcome to another week of Perfect Game Small School baseball — and if you're looking for clarity at the top, you've come to the wrong place. Across all three classifications, the No. 1 spot is very much an open question, and nobody is sleeping comfortably right now. In NCAA Division II, Pittsburg State is stumbling at precisely the wrong moment, leaving the door cracked wide open for hungry challengers to come knocking. In the NAIA, defending national champion LSU Shreveport has dropped four straight and suddenly looks far more vulnerable than a program of their pedigree ever expects to be. And in NCAA Division III, the race for the top ranking is less a competition and more a ten-car pileup of elite programs, none of whom have done enough to pull away — and all of whom have done plenty to deserve it. Three classifications, three vacancies at the top, and a whole lot of...
Juco | Story | 4/1/2026

JUCO Top 25: April 1

Troy Sutherland
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Another week of JUCO baseball and another week full of wins for No. 1 ranked Johnson County . The Cavaliers have won 18 games in a row and have swept through the Jayhawk Conference to this point, setting a new school home run record along the way. Walters State returns to the top 5 this week on the strength of a 12-game winning streak. Both McLennan and Pearl River are coming off of undefeated weeks and look like strong top 10 caliber teams, while Midland (now 30-3) continues to climb in the rankings for the third consecutive week. For the first time all year this ranking will feature 4 California schools as Palomar joins Ohlone, Fresno City and Santa Ana in the JUCO rankings. Check back in next week for an update as most of JUCO baseball is now past its halfway point in the 2026 season. RK School Week Overall 1 Johnson County (KS) 4-0 34-2 2 Gaston (NC) 2-1 35-3 3 Walters State (TN) 3-0...
College | Story | 4/1/2026

Collegiate Midseason All-Americans

Vincent Cervino
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Collegiate Midseason Awards * denotes Midseason Award Winner - All-Americans chosen based on statistics, prospect status, future projection, among other factors - Only true freshmen considered for Freshmen All-American teams - All Statistics as of Monday, March 30th First Team Hitters Pos. Name School Class AVG OBP SLG R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB C Vahn Lackey Georgia Tech JR .423 .541 .845 36 41 9 1 10 36 7 1B Quinton Coats Cincinnati SO .360 .441 .896 38 45 8 1 19 46 7 2B Jarren Advincula Georgia Tech JR .411 .489 .563 31 46 2 0 5 30 5 3B Ace Reese Mississippi State JR .330 .417 .661 32 36 12 0 8 37 1 SS Roch Cholowsky UCLA JR .350 .493 .730 39 35 8 0 10 32 1 IF Dee Kennedy Kansas State JR .430 .549 .910 44 43 10 1 12 43 15 OF Will Gasparino UCLA JR .351 .468 .794 31 34 5 1 12 38 1 OF AJ Gracia Virginia JR .350 .504 .650 37 36 7 0 8 24 1 OF Landon Hairston* Arizona State SO .469 .551 1.027 44...
High School | Rankings | 3/31/2026

High School Top 50: March 31

Tyler Russo
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Another pair of weeks has gone by this high school season and with that we have another High School Top-50 Update. Southern states are within a few weeks of the end of the season while some northern states are just getting started this week. Through the end of the spring, we will be bringing you updates to the Top-50 along with state rankings updates coming soon. For the first time in 2026, we have a new #1 in the country as Orange Lutheran (CA) takes over the top spot after winning the NHSI. Venice (FL) came in second place at the NHSI after a thrilling game against Orange Lutheran and comes in at #2. Previous #1 team in the country St. John Bosco (CA) rounds out the top-3 and will have a big showdown against Orange Lutheran starting tonight. Barbe (LA) boasts a 26-1 record and comes in at #4 while Corona (CA) continues to string together wins and holds down the #5 spot in this update....
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