LATEST PG SHOWCASE REPORT
2004 National Underclass Dec 28-30
Blanchard is a 5-11 junior catcher from Missouri who appears bigger and stronger than his listed size. He also plays third base and pitches. Blanchard uses his strength well at the plate. He has a nice rock back load and when he keeps his weight closed and back generates very good bat speed with a gap to gap power approach. Blanchard has a high leg kick and lots of hand movement and might benefit from simplifying his approach a bit, but the raw talent is there to be a nice hitter at the next level. Defensively, Blanchard showed good arm strength with a long arm stroke and release. He still needs to work on his shifting and blocking fundamentals. Blanchard looked pretty good defensively in a short look at third base and made one nice diving play to get an out. Blanchard threw a couple of very effective innings, showing a 78-79 mph fastball with life and a 69-72 mph breaking ball that had some serious bite to it at times. One of our scouts felt that with his breaking ball (a Major League breaking ball”) that Blanchard had more potential on the mound than as a catcher. Blanchard is a good student.