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Tournaments  | Story  | 6/23/2018

14u WWBA Scout Notes: Day 1

Jheremy Brown      Vincent Cervino      Greg Gerard     
Photo: Lamar King (Perfect Game)

14u WWBA National Championship: Event Page | Daily Leaders

One of the biggest benefits of scouting the 14u WWBA World Championships is our ability to discover and identify young players, some of whom are new on the scene and others who have already made a name for themselves in some capacity. Opening day provided me with my first look at Canes National catcher Lamar King (2022, Rosedale, Md.) and the first impression was a positive one. Already standing at a long and athletic 6-foot-2, 195-pounds, King immediately catches one’s attention with his present strength and future projection. And while the build may lead to you think his bat is the loudest tool, it was actually his defense behind the plate that was most impressive.

King maintained looseness and flexibility behind the plate, bouncing around well while showing no issues squaring balls in the dirt of his chest and recovering, two things he showed on one pitch which resulted in an out at third base when the runner attempted to advance. He receives and presents the ball very well for a 14u backstop, showing strong wrists as well as a quick transfer and good carry on this throws down to second.

While the defense stands out, King also showed well with the stick from the right side with some present tools and components to his swing that will only continue to develop with strength. At times he would drift to his front side with his weight shift though he did show was he was capable of when keeping his weight back as he drilled a double to the pull side gap, staying short to the ball with some strength off the barrel. It’s early in the process but King certainly shows ingredients to like on both sides of the ball.

Chris Campanella (2021, Congers, N.Y.) came in out of the ‘pen for the Canes and provided 3 1/3 innings of one-run (unearned) baseball, ultimately taking home the victory in the opening game of pool play. While not overly physical at 5-foot-10, 150-pounds, Campanella showed a quick right arm from which he was able to run his fastball up to 83 mph a time or two and did a nice job of filling the zone while living in the 79-81 mph range early on. Staying compact through the back with his arm stroke allowed for plenty of strikes, as well as plane to his fastball as he offers a simple set of mechanics which project moving forward as he continues to implement additional lower half into his drive. Along with the heater Campanella showed the ability to lands his curveball for strikes, a 12-to-6 shaped pitch that working the in the mid-60s.

The tool most often associated with a leadoff hitter is his speed and that’s just what Michael Allen (2022; Greenville, N.C.) brings to the table for the Canes offense. Already turning in above average run times down the line, Allen’s speed is a true weapon at this level as it immediately puts the pressure on the defense for any ball put in play. Over his three at-bats the righthanded hitting Allen showed no problem putting the ball in play, staying short to it with loose hands while picking up a single to his pull side later in the game. He can continue to implement additional lower half and weight shift into his swing, but Allen already shows tools that need to be followed moving forward.

Playing in his first Perfect Game event, shortstop Gavin Guidry (2022, Lake Charles, La.) shows a lot of what you’re looking for in a young prospect, from the looseness to his overall actions defensively, takes in the box, and of course the swing itself. With a long and lean 6-foot, 150-pound build, the physical projection for Guidry is obvious, making his tools all the more enticing down the round. Though he wasn’t challenged defensively early in the game he still moved around well with his footwork and showed an easy arm across the diamond in between innings. There are plenty of things to like offensively too, a few components he showed immediately in his first at-bat. With every pitch he took, Guidry was locked and loaded, taking each ball with intent and ready to pounce whenever the ball was in his zone. His first at-bat of the tournament yielded a line drive over the second baseman’s head with which he came busting out of the box, read the play, and put his speed on display by stretching a would-be single into a two base knock.

It was a very quick look at righthander Sai Campos (2021, Alice, Texas) of the Banditos Scout Team, as in one inning, as Mother Nature had different plans for the opening day of pool play and ultimately washed the game out in the bottom of the first. Although it was brief, Campos still showed ingredients on the mound to like which were highlighted by the feel of his three pitches, landing any offering for strikes at any point. At 5-foot-11, 150-pounds Campos projects physically but also shows a loose and low effort arm stroke which helped produce a 79-81 mph fastball. Once he settled in and found his release point Campos showed the ability to sink his fastball, work ahead in the count, and ultimately unlock his secondaries in a late fading changeup and 12-to-6 shaped curveball with depth.

Xavier Arias (2021, La Vernia, Texas) did a little bit of everything in D-BAT’s opening round victory, both offensively and defensively at shortstop while also pitching an inning to ultimately earn the win. Broadly built with lots of present strength, Arias found the barrel a couple of times with a shorter, direct stroke which resulted in some hard contact back up the middle. Getting the start at shortstop for D-BAT, Arias made a couple of nice plays, highlighted by a play to his backhand in the hole which he picked well and in one motion made one-hop throw across the diamond. He also made a nice over-the-shoulder basket type catch in shallow left field, showing athleticism as well as hand-eye coordination to complete the play.

Strongly built at 5-foot-10, 180-pounds, righthander Wilson Woodcox (2022, Houston, Texas) was dominant on the mound for the Columbia Angles as he put together five innings of one-hit baseball while striking out 12. Woodcox’ strength allowed him to maintain his velocity well, bumping 83 mph early on and sat within in the 79-82 mph range throughout, all the while filling the zone and missing bats. The velocity comes easy for the young righty who has been up to 86 mph in the past per his PG profile and he did a nice job of staying short through back with his arm stroke, hiding the ball well. His low-70s curveball was a go-to offering and one that he showed comfort in landing for strikes with 11-to-5 shape.

Similar to what Michael Allen (above) is to the Canes, Lleyton Lackey (2022, Grovetown, Ga.) is to the East Cobb Astros as he’s a quick-twitch table setter atop the lineup. Lackey quickly showed off his speed down the bases as he ran a 4.21 on a routine 4-3 but hustled out of the box and shows the type of speed that would allow for an extra base on a ball hit to the gap. Listed as a switch-hitter, Lackey took all of his reps lefthanded and showed a short, direct path with quick hands, picking up a single to the opposite field while also picking up a stolen base.




You’ll be able to find players in the 14u WWBA built similarly to East Cobb catcher Jared Jones (2022, Marietta, Ga.) who stands 6-foot-3, 220-pounds, but they may not necessarily show the movements and athleticism, along with projection, that Jones offers. The starting catcher and four-hole hitter, Jones moves well behind the plate despite his size and age combination and receives it pretty well, sticking pitches out front while showing some bounce in his footwork. And while there’s some length to his transfer on his throws, he consistently got on top of the ball and showed true carry on his throws and plenty of accuracy to the bag.

Of course with a frame like Jones’ and the fact that he’s the cleanup hitter you’d expect juice in his bat and that may just be his biggest asset on the diamond. It didn’t take Jones long to make his presence felt on offense, doubling in his first trip to the plate to the pull side gap. The result itself is impressive given the fact these players are 14u but consider this: Jones was caught out on his front foot and hit the ball off the end of his bat (swinging wood) and still managed to one-hop the wall, showing the strength in his swing.

– Jheremy Brown



Starting game one of the tournament for Canes National over at Joe Cowan Park on Friday was righthander Nathan Fink (2022, Charlottesville, Va.) who had an abbreviated outing but still showed advanced velocity early on with projectable pitching tools. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound righthander is still a young, raw, arm but with plenty of positives and upside to the existing profile. Fink touched 86 mph on his fastball in his first inning of work and settled into the 79-84 mph range throughout the duration. He had to battle some command issues throughout, but features a compact, repeatable arm stroke with an over the top arm slot that crates some plane when leveraged into the lower third of the strike zone. Fink flashed a curveball that showed promise, however lived off attacking hitters with his fastball, a pitch that was located best to the glove side. Fink will surely see another outing this tournament but he is one to monitor as the frame, arm speed, and projection are all big follows for the young prospect.




Young for his class, righthander Tanner Langley (2021, Nashville, Tenn.) got the nod on the mound for the Rawlings Southeast Mavericks and showed pretty impressive stuff highlighted by advanced physicality to the build to go along with a very impressive breaking ball. Langley worked a quick three innings on the mound but had the strikeout stuff working as he punched out six batters while surrendering zero walks on the day. Langley stands at a well-built 6-foot-1, 195-pounds and worked from a shorter arm path through release with requiste arm speed and some effort at times. He worked to both sides effectively with intent and lived in the 80-84 mph range throughout while topping out at 85 mph during this look. The aforementioned curveball was a difference maker, with significant depth and good shape and consistency. The pitch showed 11-to-5 break and he had very good feel for it, either making it fall out of the strike zone or landing the pitch for strikes.

Elite Squad needed a seven-run rally in the bottom of the sixth inning to come back and win their game and one of the bigger hits during that rally was off the bat of Raymond Bermudez (2022, Plantation, Fla.) who ripped a ball into the corner to score a couple of runs. The lanky, 6-foot and 145-pound build with a loose overall swing path lend for power projection onto the frame and he already shows the ability to turn the barrel over with intent to pull the ball. The swing shows him get extended well through contact and flashes leverage when working to pull like he did on the aforementioned triple. Bermudez is an interesting follow and one of the key cogs for what should be yet another talented Elite Squad team.

Righthander Nick Judd (2022, Owensboro, Ky.) got the win for Knights Baseball Platinum during one of the evening games on Friday’s schedule and the righthander showed solid tools on the mound with impressive two-way ability too. Judd sinks the fastball well and features a very short arm stroke that allows him to hide the ball and allow the fastball velocity to play up to a degree. The pitch topped out at 83 mph during the start and he sat mostly 80-83 while attacking with the fastball and only flashing a few breaking balls. The fastball has a tendency to flatten out when up in the zone but he did a good job at limiting those pitches and instead working for weakly hit ground balls. Judd also bats third in the lineup and notched a single during the victory on Monday.

– Vincent Cervino



J.J. Hood (2022, West Pittston, Pa.) went the distance in a run rule winning affair to complete a no-hitter. Hood put together a complete performance on the mound striking out nine batters in his five-inning start. Hood’s fastball ranged from 78-81 mph with his fastball from a compact arm action. Hood has lots of promise as a pitcher moving forward as he throws from a low effort delivery getting good lower half usage down the mound. He projects for more velocity moving forward and already has an advanced idea of how to pitch. His pitchability and overall execution of his two pitches were outstanding this day. The righthander from Pennsylvania showed some feel to spin for his 11-to-5 curveball in the upper-60s. Hood has a quick arm and really hides the baseball well through the back making it hard for hitters to pick up the ball especially on this day. Hood’s ceiling is high as he continues to progress into his high school years as a pitcher.

Richie Kerstetter (2021, Fairfield, Conn.) had one of the loudest days of any hitter at LakePoint on Friday. Kerstetter connected on a pair of squared up doubles to both center field and right field. He also just missed a pitch and drove it deep to his pull side for a long fly out. Kerstetter has plenty of strength to his swing and is one of the younger players in his 2021 class. The primary lefthanded pitcher also plays first base as he did in this contest and showed plenty of agile movements and flexibility near the first base bag.

– Gregory Gerard
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