2017 WWBA South Qualifier: Daily Leaders | Day 1 Notes
Hunter Pence Baseball Danielson finished the day with a 1-1 record but got two strong starts from both of their starting pitchers in Pepperdine commit Reed Smith (2019, Cypress, Texas) and Texas A&M commit JJ Goss (2019, Cypress, Texas).
Smith started game one and showed the outstanding pitchability that he has during the summer circuit. The 5-foot-10 righthander is a bit undersized for a starting pitcher but he shows quality arm speed and has the ability to create deception while disrupting opposing hitter's timing at the plate. Smith started the game working in the 80-83 mph range and got stronger as the game went on, working in the 85-88 mph range in his final two innings. Smith throws the whole kitchen sink at you; he’ll change arm slots, mix up the pace, shift eye levels, and throw his entire repertoire in an effort to disrupt the hitter’s timing and it worked for the most part. He would ramp up the velocity on the fastball if he needed a big pitch but was most comfortable throwing sliders and changeups. Smith is an advanced pitcher on the mound and he was very tough to time and square up on Saturday morning.
Goss has had a very eventful summer at Perfect Game events and his outing on Saturday, although it might have been his best thus far, felt like another typical performance expected out of the righthander. The native Texan turned in a masterful performance during HP’s second game on Friday as Goss tossed a one-hit complete game shutout while striking out eleven batters. He had every one of his pitches working whether it was the fastball, which worked 86-90 mph for the majority of the game, or one of his secondary offerings. Goss likes to pitch backwards and he often started at-bats with a changeup or slider and had no issue doing so in fastball counts as well. The slider was up to 81 mph with short, late bite to the pitch and was very effective at back-dooring lefthanded hitters. The changeup was also an effective offering with good fade to the arm side in the low-80s. Goss remains one of the top arms in the country for the 2019 class and he looks like he is only continuing to get more and more comfortable on the mound.
Despite not being near the top of the pack in terms of pure velocity, righthander Chandler Arnold (2018, Mesquite, Texas) was nearly unhittable in his start today and helped propel Stix Baseball into the playoffs. The 6-foot-2, 161-pound righthander is incredibly lean and projectable with a loose, easy delivery and very good arm speed. After recently impressing at the South Top Prospect Showcase, Arnold took to the rubber and worked around a longer opening frame. Following the first where he allowed four runs, only three of them earned, Arnold was unhittable thanks to his ability to pound the strike zone with his 83-86 mph fastball, which flashed late life to it, and put hitters away with two strikes. Arnold’s curveball was the go-to pitch on Saturday afternoon as the pitch had sharp, late tilt to it with 11/5 shape. He could spot the pitch up to either corner of the plate for called strikes and the pitch was especially effective at enticing righthanded hitters to chase out of the strike zone. The projection is the big play here for Arnold as it isn’t unrealistic to see a big velocity jump coming in the future, whether that be during his senior year or at Louisiana-Monroe.
One of the better offensive performances of the day came from University of Texas commit Lance Ford (2018, Kerrville, Texas). The twitchy, athletic shortstop moves very well both on the bases and in the field with quick bursts that highlight his athleticism. The lefthanded swing is short and quick through the zone and he showed good gap-to-gap power including a willingness to drive the ball hard to the opposite field. There’s natural loft to the swing path and has an innate feel for contact with the barrel which allows him to drive the ball hard through the point of contact. Ford collected three hits on the day including two doubles, one to each gap, as he hustled around the bases. He also closed the game out on the rubber on Friday running his fastball up to 86 mph and collecting two strikeouts which highlighted his arm strength over at short.
The pitching matchup of the day belonged to a matchup between Spencer Arrighetti (2018, Katy, Texas) and Javan Smitherman (2018, Kilgore, Texas) late in the afternoon as both arms showcased their various skill sets.
Arrighetti stands tall with a physical frame of a listed 6-foot-2, 205-pounds. The righthanded Texas Christian commit showed a very polished and clean delivery. Arrighetti’s delivery was repeatable with a simple turn step into a leg lift directly at the belt over the balance point. The arm action is full throughout an easy arm path and he released the ball from a high three-quarter arm slot which culminated in a fastball that was able to generate heavy life down in the strike zone. He pounded the strike zone and had a remarkably efficient outing. Arrighetti could work the fastball to either side of the plate and ran the pitch in the 87-89 mph range throughout his two innings on the hill in which he needed just 27 pitches. He didn't go to his off speed pitches regularly but the one he had the most confidence in was his changeup, which was a softer offering that showed sink and downward tumble.
Smitherman fits nicely into the profile of a true sinker-ball pitcher with a fastball up to 89 mph and power sink to the pitch. The 5-foot-10, 165-pound Dallas Baptist commit worked four-plus innings on the mound and, in addition to the extreme life on the fastball, was able to create a good angle on the fastball with a lower three-quarter arm slot. Smitherman was at his best working corner to corner and low in the strike zone where he took advantage of the aggressiveness of the opposition to hit into easy ground outs. Smitherman mixed in a curveball with 11/5 shape that primarily functioned to be thrown for strikes. He ran into some trouble later on when he would leave the fastball up in the strike zone, but still showed good overall tools to be able to get hitters out at the next level.
Marucci Elite Texas Austin finished 2-1 on the tournament and one of the more physical hitters in the event was cleanup hitter Ashton Davis (2019, Pflugerville, Texas). The 6-foot-4, 210-pound frame is well-built with immense strength and physicality throughout. He has shown the ability to drive the ball well out in front of the plate with very good strength through the point of contact and did so again on Saturday. On Friday, he launched a home run to the pull side and on Saturday he hit two more hard line drives to the pull side part of the field. The power is intriguing when you factor in the frame and requisite bat speed, but he also impressed on the mound as he worked his fastball in the mid-80s and struck out thirteen batters in five innings.
Another physical righthanded bat, Price Siemering (2019, Dripping Springs, Texas) played a big offensive role in Action Baseball’s pool play sweep into the playoff round. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound slugger has a similar profile to that of Davis and showed the ability to drive the ball well to the gap. The swing path is a bit longer but he can impact the ball hard to the pull side. It will be interesting to follow how well that strength and size will be able to transfer consistently to the game but he has certainly shown flashes of it.
Alberto Gonzalez (2018, Laredo, Texas) had a big summer and showed similarly impressive tools during his relief stint on Saturday night. The 6-foot-2, 178-pound righthander has a very physical frame and was able to run his fastball up to 90 mph early in the game. He showed a quick arm action with a bit of a stab in the back of the full path and delivered from a higher arm slot on the hill. The uncommitted senior had the fastball working in the 88-90 mph range and spotted the pitch well to either side of the plate early on. He would set hitters up nicely to get ahead in the count and put the away with an elevated fastball or a two-strike curveball. The breaker had 12/6 shape with softer break to it but garnered a good amount of swings and misses.
Another righthander who impressed, both Friday and yesterday, was uncommitted Ezequiel Marroquin (2019, San Juan, Texas). He came in to close the game out on Friday night and struck out two batters while running his fastball up to 90 mph in the process. He got the nod to start on Saturday and though he didn't flash the same velocity, he still showed the same swing and miss-type stuff as he struck out seven in four innings of work. The high school junior has a physical and athletic frame with still room to fill out and add strength. He was able to run his fastball in the 84-87 mph range from a shorter arm action that has length and looseness. There is raw arm speed and talent in the delivery and consistently got on top of the fastball to pound the lower third of the strike zone. He lands online and as he continues to develop and utilize his lower half more consistently has the tools to be a very talented pitcher.
The 6PM matchup between the Nola Monsters 2018 and Premier Baseball Futures – Evans proved to be of the more contested matchups of the event thus far and both teams had their fair share of talent on display.
Righthander Blake Brogdon (2019, Cypress, Texas) got the nod for Premier and put together a strong start and stifled the Nola offense through three scoreless. They eventually broke through in the fourth inning but he still showed quality tools on the mound throughout his performance. The Rice commit worked his fastball in the 86-90 mph range throughout the first three innings and was able to rack up a good amount of swing and miss within the strike zone. Brogdon has a simple, compact delivery with a leg lift that allows him to drive well down the mound. He gets good extension and follows through upon release and the fastball, although mostly true in terms of life, was able to get by hitters easily. The arm action was compact and easy and the ball came out of the hand clean. Brogdon showed three pitches but the difference maker was the curveball. The pitch offered consistent 12/6 shape and late bite when it was located down in the strike zone.
Ian Landreneau (2018, River Ridge, La.) opposed Brogdon on the mound and he was nothing short of masterful. The Mississippi Gulf Coast commit tossed a complete game shutout while striking out six batters in the strong effort. It wasn’t only that the stuff was good, but that Landreneau worked his way out of trouble a couple of times and was still able to keep the score tied. The 6-foot, 180-pound righthander is lean and strong with the athleticism to repeat a high-energy delivery well. The arm action was a bit shorter through the back and he delivered from an over-the-top arm slot. Landreneau sat in the 83-86 mph range throughout the performance and he would occasionally cut his arm across his body when working to the glove side to create late cutting life which stifled lefthanded hitters. He mixed in a tight curveball in the low-70s that fell out of the strike zone and worked as an effective two-strike offering as it came out on a similar plane to his fastball.
Coming out in relief of Brogdon was fellow Big 12 commit Ryan Segner (2018, Fredericksburg, Texas) as the future Baylor Bear showed an extremely talented arm. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound listing is probably a bit conservative as he looked closer to 6-foot-5 than he did 6-foot-2. The attraction on the profile is the length, looseness, and snap that the arm action created to ramp up the velocity up to 91 mph, where he sat consistently early on. The fastball was electric and worked well to either side of the plate, and especially up in the strike zone to create chases at the eye level. He created easy downhill plane on the fastball low in the strike zone and flashed a tight slider in the upper-70s that was best when riding down and away from righthanded hitters. Segner’s fastball is true in life which can lead to hard hit contact when the ball is in the middle, but the stuff was good enough to rack up five strikeouts in two innings of work.
One of the bigger hits of the day came off the bat of Louisiana-Lafayette commit Dexter Jordan Jr (2018, Hattiesburg, Miss.). The righthanded hitter is an incredibly physical athlete at 6-foot-2, 200-pounds and that strength and size makes him a real threat in the batter’s box. He took a very impressive at-bat late in the game to ice the victory. Jordan was down to an 0-2 count, fouled the next pitch off, and then turned on the next 90 mph fastball over the inside corner to crush a double down the left field line. Jordan showed incredible strength in his hands and wrist with the requisite hand speed to turn the barrel over the inner half of the plate and still be able to impact the ball with that kind of strength. He didn’t even start the game because of an illness but came in later to put up one of the more important hits of the event thus far.
The defensive skills and athleticism of Adarius Myers (2018, Seminary, Miss.) showed out extremely well during the game as Myers made a number of difficult plays in center field look routine. The Louisiana Tech commit is a very good runner, PG has a recorded 60 time under 7.00 seconds over a year ago so it’s not outrageous to assume has has improved in that department, and has consistently turned in sub-4.30 second run times during the weekend. What makes him stand out is the jump off the bat that he gets to make correct reads and get to where he needs to be very quickly. Myers didn’t have much luck with the bat on Saturday evening but there are quality tools there for a leadoff profile, especially when considering his speed as well.