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Leagues  | Story  | 4/7/2017

Spring League Week 4 Preview

Steve James     
Week 4 of the Iowa Spring League looks to be a really good one.  The Hitters and Wisconsin STiKS will be coming to Iowa to compete in the Spring League.  There are quite a few quality match ups with a lot of top players this weekend.  The weather is going to be great so it ought to be a great weekend of baseball!

Top Pitching Match-ups of the Weekend

Sunday is the big day for the top pitching match-ups of the weekend.  The Navy Seals will be playing against Hitters Navy at the University of Iowa with a noon start.  The Navy Seals will be pitching Ben Probst (2017 - Dowling Catholic) and John Swanda (2017 - Roosevelt) while the Hitters Navy counter with Austin Milbauer (2017 - Mukwonago) and Jarred Kelenic (Waukesha West).  Probst has been pitching steady at 90-91 MPH touching a 92 with command of his fastball and feel for 3 pitches.  Swanda has pitched at 85-88 MPH with his fastball and showed a sharp curve ball in his last outing.  They will have a tough task keeping the Hitters Navy lineup in check as they always have guys who compete at a high level and can hit.  Mihlbauer is a TCU commit who has pitched at a high level in numerous PG tournaments and showcases.  He consistently throws 3 pitches for strikes with good run on his fastball and late movement on all his pitches.  Most people know the Louisville commit Kelenic for his bat - rightfully so as he's one of the top hitters in the country in the 2018 class.  However he also has the ability to pitch at a high level and we've had him up to 90 MPH multiple times at PG events and have heard he's been better than that.  He's a top level prospect who really competes.

In the 2 PM Sunday at Iowa will pit the Golden Bears vs Hitters Navy.  The Golden Bears will send Connor Van Scoyoc (2018 - Jefferson) and Connor Schultz (2017 - Cedar Falls) to the mound against Ryan Bader (2017 - Mukwonago) and Alex Binelas (2018 - Oak Creek).  Van Scoyoc and Schultz have been very good to this point in the Spring League with both topping at 88 MPH and both throwing 3 pitches for strikes.  Bader is a Northwestern commit who throws in the mid 80's and throws 3 pitches for strikes.  He's shown good pitchability in the past and projects for more velocity.  Binelas is a Louisville commit who is a primary third baseman who can really hit.  Like Kelenic, he can also pitch and has been up to 86 MPH in PG events.  My guess is he'll be a tick or more better than that this weekend.  

Black Magic 2018 arms vs Wisconsin STiKS 2018s

On Saturday at Iowa, the Black Magic will be throwing 4 quality arms vs. the Wisconsin STiKS 2018's.  The combination of Austin Krob (2018 - Lisbon), Trever Brown (2018 - Don Bosco), Jarret Blunt (2018 - Ottumwa), and Jake Bockenstedt (2018 - Washington) look to shut down the STiKS.  Krob is a 3 pitches for strikes lefty who re-discovered his 2 seam fastball in his Wednesday bullpen session.  Look for that pitch to be very effective this weekend for him.  Brown made a jump to 86 MPH on his fastball last weekend and there's more in the tank.  Blunt has been very good this spring locating 3 pitches and working steady at 83-84 MPH with more to come.  Bockenstedt has really improved his command this off-season and looks to make a velocity jump with the warm temps this weekend.  The STiKS 2018's top arm is Illinois State commit Bryce Konitzer (2018 - Mukwonago).  He's been up to 84 MPH last fall in the Kernels Tournament, and looks to pitch at higher velos this weekend.  

Grey Wolves vs Hitters Red

The Grey Wolves will send Luke Llewellyn (2018 - Urbandale) and Luke Patzner (2018 - Urbandale) to the mound vs the Hitters Red on Saturday.  Patzner has been very good the past 2 outings pitching steady at 86-89 MPH with better feel for his off-speed stuff.  Llewellyn has been very effective this spring leading the league in strikeouts while pitching at 82-84 MPH.  There's more velocity in there with some adjustments and the body projects well.  They'll be facing a tough Hitters Red lineup which boasts 4 D1 commits.  Kade Vander Molen (2018 - Pella Christian), Jaden Rolffs (2018 - Pella), and Jake Helland (2018 - Lake St. Louis, MO) lead the Grey Wolves in hits and are among the league leaders in multiple categories.  Look for them to make an impact at the plate.

Iowa commits vs STiKS 2017's

Iowa commits Clayton Nettleton (2018 - Davenport West) and Cam Baumann (2017 - Fairfield) take on the STiKS 2017's on Sunday.  Nettleton has pitched well all spring at 85-88 MPH touching 89 MPH while throwing his off-speed for strikes.  Baumann looks to make his usual velocity climb throughout the spring as he's topped at 84 MPH so far but should be touching 90 MPH in the next couple of weeks.  The STiKS top arm is Oregon State commit Nathan Burns (2017 - West Bend West).  He has a loose easy arm action and has pitched at 87-89 MPH for us in the past.  The velocity projects and he throws a ton of strikes.  

Top Players to watch from Hitters and STiKS

Hitters Navy

Name Pos College Commitment Year
Aide,Nathan OF Madison College 2017
Bader ,Ryan P Northwestern 2017
Binelas,Alex 3B U of Louisville 2018
Demant,Dawson SS Northern Illinois University 2018
Devorkin,Sam C Rock Valley CC 2017
Kelenic,Jarred OF University of Louisville 2018
Leonard,Trey OF University of Louisville 2017
Mihlbauer,Austin P Texas Christian University 2017
Rodriguez,Alex SS Northern Illinois University 2017
Sisk,Patrick 3B Furman University 2017

Hitters Red

Name Pos College Commitment Year
Jamroziak,Steve OF University of Oklahoma 2019
Toetz,Paul 3B University of Indiana 2019
Vukovich,AJ 3B University of Louisville 2020
Watson,Xavier SS University of Illinois 2019

Wisconsin STiKS

 Name   Pos  College Commitment  Year 
Bryce Konitzer P/IF Illinois State 2018
Pete Ahn IF Michigan State 2017
Evan Albrecht IF Purdue 2018
Nathan Burns P Oregon State 2017
Joey Scaffifi OF Milwaukee 2017
Jack Thelen C Milwaukee 2017
Jason Abatto IF Wisconsin Whitewater 2017
MJ Houdek C St. Thomas 2017
Dylan Moser OF Milwaukee Tech 2017
Mike Lehner IF McHenry CC 2017
John VanderPloeg IF/P St. Cloud St. 2017
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