14u WWBA National Championship: Event Page | Daily Leaders | Day 1 Scout Notes
Jacob Miller (2022, Baltimore, Ohio) proved on the mound Saturday that he is, and likely will be for a long time, one of the top arms in the 2022 class. He features an array of pitches, a highly projectable 6-foot, 145-pound frame, and good velocity. Reaching 87 mph with his fastball and not seeming to supply much effort in doing so, Miller also throws a curveball and a changeup for strikes making hitter’s chances of timing him up very slim and on this day nonexistent. On this day, Miller was nothing short of spectacular striking out eight of the 12 hitters he faced while only walking two. He did not allow a hit, and more noteworthy, did not find a single opposing hitter’s barrel.
The rising Ohio high school freshman pitches with tempo both in his delivery as well as in between pitches. He does so while pitching completely under control and with intriguingly low effort. His arm works as well and he hides the ball through the back side from his full arm action. Miller’s fastball has occasional cutting action while sitting consistently in the 83-86 mph range while peaking his top velocity of 87 in his third inning of work which is noteworthy as well. He showed a curveball as well as a changeup that both show plenty of potential to be nice secondary offerings to his lively fastball. The ceiling for Miller is limitless at this point and it will be fun to watch as he matures both physically and on the bump.
Sai Campos (2021, Alice, Texas) is a projectable righthanded pitcher with a quick arm and a good overall feel for the strike zone especially with his fastball that sat consistently in the 80-82 mph range. The young righty featured a curveball with some depth and 11-to-5 shape that complemented the fastball nicely. Campos, who was clearly on a pitch limit, was pulled after a short start after dealing throughout. He has a smooth delivery that stays online with tempo as he leads with his hip down the mound. His pitches comes from a full arm action that works nicely through the back staying online throughout.
Tywone Malone (2021, Morganville, N.J.) did it all for his Buchman Baseball team on Saturday morning topping out at 83 mph and also hitting a long home run to the left-center field gap. Malone is as physical of a presence that one will find at the 14u age group standing at 6-foot-4, 255-pounds with incredible strength present. The heavy hitter and strike thrower has outstanding strength present both in his arm and his swing. Seeming effortless while swinging the bat, Malone does a really good job of hitting the baseball out in front with natural leverage and extension through the point of contact. While still young for his class is extremely well matured for his class as well as the 2022 graduate competition he is competing against this week in Georgia.
Malone’s teammate Rocko Brzezniak (2022, Matawan, N.J.) is an insanely advanced hitter and already proving that he may be the top hitter in his class. Still early in the looks given, but Brzezniak has made his presence known on the showcase circuit this spring putting on raw hitting and power displays in batting practice and he took that barrel feel and raw bat speed into game mode. Brzezniak did not miss any of the three baseballs he put in play in all three attempts hitting them all on the nose of the barrel. Brzezniak’s approach is simple and his execution is done well moving his quick hands straight to the baseball and ripping the barrel through the hitting zone. In his three chances Saturday, Brzezniak roped a double to his pull side, hit a sacrifice fly deep to left-center, and drove a ball deep into the left-center field gap for a triple. Combining an ultra athletic and projectable build, raw bat speed and outstanding barrel feel, the corner infielder from New Jersey is a special hitter in the 2022 class.
Aidan Murphy (2022, Greenwood, Ind.) had a nice day on the mound facing off against a talented Banditos lineup. Murphy was not fazed as he pitched extremely well and missed many barrels with his fastball that topped out at 79 mph. Still young and developing physically, Murphy has a clean arm action that, as he matures, should improve velocity and arm strength gradually while producing a nice final result. Murphy pitched to his pitch count limit striking out seven batters in 5 1/3 innings of work. Murphy varied speeds with his fastball and curveball while also showing an advanced feel for the strike zone with both of his offerings. Murphy is still quite young and projectable, but it will be interesting to see how he develops on the mound in the future after putting on an impressive showing on this day.
Getting a quick look at Mason Morris (2022, Felton, Del.), the righthanded hitting primary catcher, started at third base in this viewing and was impressive both at the plate and at the hot corner. Morris has terrific hand speed at the plate that plays into his swing well. In two of his three appearances at the plate, Morris jumped on a first pitch fastball and squared the baseball up during each of those aforementioned at-bats. Morris is a good-looking young player athletic and will likely continue to fill out nicely producing even more added bat speed.
Tucker Stockman (2022, Athens, Ala.) can flat out hit the baseball and he did so early and often in the Dulin Dodgers-Wright’s 9-1 run-rule victory. His swing is simple with a line drive plane and an advanced approach. Stockman hunts the ball over the plate early in the count before shortening up with two strikes. Stockman roped a pair of line drive singles in this game and both came while having two strikes on him. Stockman is a physical primary catcher who got the start as the designated hitter while manning the cleanup spot in this one. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound prospect has plenty of present strength to his frame and it shows up in his swing especially in his wrists. His wrist strength is extremely advanced and it helped him collect his two hits in this contest.
Matthew Wolfe (2022, Westerville, Ohio) stood out on the diamond in a big way for Ohio Elite Schaffer in multiple ways with the first coming defensively at shortstop. Wolfe darted quickly to his right to make a diving stab on a hard hit ball to the 5-6 hole. Without hesitation, Wolfe gathered to one knee and fired a strike to first base from a low arm slot showing the strength to his arm and one of the more dazzling plays of the tournament thus far. Later Wolfe took his talents to the batter’s box where he may be the most polished showing plenty of bat speed and the ability to square up the baseball. He did so in the fifth inning by turning a fastball around straight back up the middle for a hard line drive single. Finally, Wolfe took to the mound to close out the striking out five batters in three innings of work. Although a primary shortstop, Wolfe is an interesting piece on the mound showing his true two-way ability with a fastball up to 80 mph with sink and an already swing-and-miss pitch in his late biting curveball. Wolfe ceiling is as high as anybody’s primary at shortstop but also on the mound as well standing at a super projectable 6-foot-1, 160-pounds.
Eli Serrano (2022, Gainesville, Va.) has a stand out pitcher’s build with plenty of projection still to come. Ranging from 76-82 mph with his fastball, Serrano has the velocity at his age to get hitters out as well as add more in the future. Coming from a three-quarters lefthanded arm slot, the 6-foot-3, 152-pound throws enough strikes to be successful for a long time. The rising high school freshman pitched four innings while striking out four and not allowing a hit in the contest. As for his mechanics, he strides down the mound well for his size and when getting out over his front foot, generates lots of extension to the plate. In doing so, Serrano creates plane when down in the zone. He does throw with some effort, but his arm works fully and cleanly with more in the tank as he matures.
– Gregory Gerard
One of the biggest takeaways from covering the 14u level is our ability to track players from early in their career and follow for years to come. From physical growth to a steady climb in velocity, you can build a timeline of sorts and that’s something that’s already well underway for Dylan Lesko (2022, Dacula, Ga.), albeit a shorter span given his age. Dating back just over a year, Lesko saw his fastball clock in at 81 mph (a noteworthy mark for a 13 year old) which jumped to 84 a couple months later, to his present day velocity which has him topping out at 87 mph.
Standing at a long and projectable 6-foot-2, 170-pounds, Lesko has worked as a primary catcher for the East Cobb program but has begun the transition to a primary pitcher, though his athleticism and skills with the bat will very much keep him in the lineup and suiting up behind the plate. Spending so much time as a catcher has helped shape Lesko’s arm action into a shorter, compact one to allow for a quick release on attempted base theft, but it also allows him to keep it simple on the mound which in turn leads to a bevy of strikes. His listed measurables speak towards obvious projection and so does his overall arm speed on the mound.
In what ultimately was a six inning outing for Lesko, in which he punched out 11, allowed just one hit and issued two walks, the young righthander was in control the entire time. He opened up the outing with a fastball that sat in the 84-86 mph range and bumped more than a couple 87s over the first few frames. As mentioned above his arm stroke is both compact and quick, which when coupled with his athleticism and ability to repeat his delivery, translated into plenty of strikes to either side of the plate. And along with the velocity, Lesko was able to generate some late running life, especially to his glove side, as you can see in the video above.
Paired with his fastball, Lesko also showed the making of a solid secondary in his curveball and what it lacks in power right now, it makes up for with shape and feel to land it for strikes. The pitch worked mostly in the upper-60s and peaked as high as 71 mph with 12-to-6 shape, serving both as a put away offering as well as a pitch to keep hitters off balance and from sitting fastball only. Keep close tabs on Lesko as there’s plenty of projection remaining and there could be another jump in there as early as the end of this summer.
Strong armed, physically advanced, hard throwing and lefthanded. These are all adjectives you can use to describe Ty Federici (2022, Dallas, Pa.), as are athletic and projectable, and even though he’s listed at 6-foot, 205-pounds, Federici will only continue to add strength to his frame as he develops physically over the next few years. He was handed the ball for game two on day two for his MVP team and worked three rather clean innings, setting him up to return later in the week.
After just a couple of warm up pitches you can tell Federici isn’t your typical 14u pitcher as he sports a compact set of mechanics and a fast left arm that helped run his fastball up to 88 mph. The velocity came easy for the young southpaw as he sat comfortably in the 84-87 mph early in the contest and still bumped 86 mph in the third inning whenever he needed it to record a strikeout, something he did for seven of his nine recorded outs. His delivery is a simple one and he does an excellent job of incorporating his strong lower half to drive down the mound, staying online towards the plate.
As one may expect, Federici’s mid- to- upper-80s fastball was enough to dominate hitters at this level and when you consider the angle and short running life the pitch offers through the zone, it becomes all the more challenging. He only flashed it twice this outing, but Federici has the potential for a second weapon in his slider, a pitch that crossed at 78 mph then 75 mph on the two times he showed it. With a similar release point, the Pennsylvania native spun it well with obvious hand speed, keeping the pitch tight through the zone with late life and the ability to get it to a righthanded hitter’s back foot. Keep an eye on Federici as the velocity will only continue to climb and it could very well happen sooner rather than later.
A standout from the 14u South Showcase earlier this spring, Rylan Galvan (2022, Sinton, Texas) continued to show impressive tools and an advanced feel for the game on both sides of the ball. Athletically built at 5-foot-10, 160-pounds, with plenty of looseness to his actions and ample physical projection remaining, Galvan quickly showed off his skill and athleticism at shortstop on one play in particular. On a soft flair that looked like it was going to dump in behind shortstop and into shallow left field, Galvan immediately broke back, tracked the ball, and fully extended upwards to catch the ball at the apex of his jump and come down with the out. In between innings he makes taking ground balls look natural with soft hands and fluid footwork, as well as a strong arm across the diamond. Offensively the young Texas native picked up a well struck line drive single to his pull side in his third at-bat, raising his average to .375 on the tournament while showing some of the better bat speed we’ve seen thus far in the tournament.
Speaking of bat speed, Sal Stewart (2022, Miami, Fla.) showed plenty when he was able to get the bat off his shoulder for US Elite as he scored a line drive right at the third baseman, sandwiching that at-bat between a walk and a hit by pitch. Physically gifted at 6-foot-1, 180-pounds and looking like he may be even an inch taller, Stewart looks to do damage on every single pitch, loading with intent each time which speaks to his plan as a hitter. When he did unload and he let the barrel go, the young prospect out of Florida showcased a simple yet direct and fast path to the ball and connected for one of the louder barrels at the point of contact.
Defensively Stewart was just as impressive as he moves around like a 5-foot-9 middle infielder with lightness to his footwork and plenty of softness to his hands. His mobility and body control were both highlighted on a single play in which he ranged to his left to cut off a soft chopper and maintained his balanced despite throwing across his body and not being able to plant his feet for a strike to first base.
Just coming off his freshman season at Anacoco High School, shortstop Landry Alligood (2021, Anacoco, La.) had a nice day at the dish for the Louisiana Tigers and showed talent on both sides of the ball that warrants additional looks this tournament. Well built at 5-foot-10, 160-pounds but still projecting for additional strength, Alligood proved to be a presence in the middle of the order with a couple of hard barrels, including a triple to the pull side gap which plated a couple runs and allowed him to show his speed going from first to third. He does a nice job of staying short and compact to the ball while showcasing strength to his hands offensively, but also softness to them defensively. On one soft chopper Alligood was able to show his athleticism as he broke in on the charge, picked the ball, dropped his arm slot and threw across his body accurately and in one continuous motion.
Hitting atop the US Elite lineup, center fielder Alex Knapp (2021, Lancaster, Pa.) brings plenty of quick-twitch and looseness to the leadoff position and showed well on both sides of the ball on day two of the 14u WWBA. Though he ultimately went hitless in the game, Knapp put a short and direct path on display, driving a long foul ball down the left field line in his first at-bat that would have gone for a home run had it stayed fair. That said, he shows an approach at the plate and is able to work the count while handling the barrel and brings a speed component to the base paths as well as center field. The foot quickness he possesses on the bases translates nicely onto defense as he shows a first quick step as well as the ability to cover ground with good reads off the bat.
On a Dallas Tigers team that’s loaded with physicality, Joshua Hoover (2022, Heath, Texas) and Walker Polk (2022; Coppell, Texas) are two that quickly pass the eye test when they dig into the batter’s box, and they showed the skill to match their advanced strength in yesterday’s contest.
Polk, a primary catcher who’s listed at 6-foot-1, 210-pounds and shows arm strength behind the plate, got some reps on the corner yesterday and went 4-for-4 on the day with a couple of hard hit singles to the middle and pull side, as well as a triple to give him a current .667 batting average on the tournament. The bat speed and strength at point of contact are evident for Polk, showing some fluidity to the barrel through the zone, all components that also help sum up Joshua Hoover’s swing.
Hoover stands at 6-foot-1, 190-pounds and while he picked up just one hit, it was an impressive one as he showed looseness to his hands and the ability to get extended out front and drive the ball the opposite way, picking up a hard hit single into the right-center gap.
The starting shortstop for the Indiana Bulls, Tucker Biven (2022, New Albany, Ind.) certainly showed some things to like offensively, hitting in the middle of the order and creating some separation to his swing, but he also impressed during his quick stint on the mound to close out the first of his team’s two games on the day. Working exclusively out of the stretch Biven showed a quick right arm which proved to be on time at release and ran his fastball up to 84 mph while sitting in the low-80s over his 1 1/3 innings of work. In that stretch Biven punched out two and filled the zone while mixing in a low-70s, 11-to-5 shaped curveball for strikes.
A primary catcher who has just begun pitching, Tanner Chelette (2022; Spring, Texas) has intriguing upside on the mound as he stands at a long and projectable 6-foot-2, 150-pounds and shows a long and whip-like arm action on the mound. It was a quick two inning look at Chelette on the mound but he still showed plenty of things to like moving forward, especially with added reps on the mound. With the quickness of his arm action Chelette was able to run his fastball up to 85 mph and worked comfortably in the 82-84 mph range, working around the zone with occasional angle. The projection is obvious given his listed height and weight and the fact that he's relatively new to pitching and as he continues to refine his delivery and incorporate additional lower half into his drive and finish, there’s certain to be another couple jumps left in the tank.
– Jheremy Brown
There are more than a few indicators that evaluators and coaches look for in prospects at the 14u age level and 5-Star third baseman Brogan Napier (2021, Saint Augustine, Fla.) meets more than the minimum of those standards. The size is the first thing that jumps off the page as the 6-foot-2, 185-pound prospect is physically advanced and is likely often the biggest player on the field. The athleticism does shine through despite the size however, as Napier made a number of nimble plays at third to both sides and even a nice charge where he remained balanced and showed off the strong arm; he was later recorded up to 85 mph on the mound. Napier’s size, strength, and bat speed all play well through the swing as the swing itself has a very simple and easy trigger to start with requisite looseness and natural loft to the plane too. Napier’s plate discipline and approach are both advanced but showed off the pretty impressive strength as he drove a pitch a few inches off the outer part of the plate for a loud double that one-hopped the wall. Napier checks most of those aforementioned indicators and thanks to his physicality, strength, and power looks to be one of the more impressive position prospects thus far.
Beaver Valley Red erupted for a 12-spot in their lone game of the day and there were numerous offensive heroics, however Jackson Hower (2021, Erie, Pa.) and Colten Shaffer (2022, New Castle, Penn.) showed off some solid, and projectable, offensive tools.
Hower stands out immediately in the middle of the Beaver Valley lineup as he erupted for a five hit day, including a home run, on day one of the event. The righthanded hitter has a full swing path with advanced bat speed for the age as he is able to generate some barrel whip through the hitting zone which allows him to create significant impact strength. He notched a couple of hits on the day and the raw bat speed allows him to generate hard contact even to the opposite field when he’s late. The stride into the swing is a bit drifty at times but the significance of the impact strength certainly stands out for the age.
Shaffer was impressive in most facets of the game: calling a strong game behind the plate, showing a strong swing out of the leadoff spot, and even stealing a couple of bags. The primary catcher isn’t super flashy behind the plate, but he has good feel for the position, blocks balls in the dirt while receiving well, and handles everything at a pretty consistent, and above average standard. The swing path has the requisite fluidity and balance to it while the barrel control is certainly advanced for the age. He racked up one hit on the day but the combination of solid tools on both sides makes Shaffer very intriguing.
Another young catcher who stood out during Saturday’s action was Andrew Woods (2022, Monroe, La.) of the Louisiana Knights, and although he didn’t rack up a hit on the day, the foundational tools are there on both sides to be a follow-worthy young prospect. The 6-foot-1, 160-pound backstop shows desirable traits behind the dish with some feel for catch-and-throw skills, a strong arm and popped 2.1s consistently in between innings. Woods made a really nice play in the middle innings where he dropped and blocked a breaking ball in the dirt, got to his feet quickly, and threw out a runner trying to advance to second on a delayed steal. The swing path is fairly clean with some loft and he shifts his weight well out in front, though he did not collect a hit during the game.
The EC Sox Prime are off to a hot start in the tournament thus far and physical leadoff man Stone Blanton (2022, Jackson, Miss.) has lead the charge with a current .625 batting average in the tournament thus far. The physicality immediately stands out as the 6-foot-3, 195-pound outfielder already has collected Division I interest from colleges to play football at the next level. The hands are quick through a short, tight swing path and he collected his first two RBI of the evening on an opposite field double to drive in two runs. Blanton ended up driving in four runs in the game and the athleticism and speed is also very advanced as he was clocked 4.5 second time to first base on a turn. Blanton has a lot of raw tools and has a very intriguing ceiling on the baseball diamond.
There might not have been a shortstop who got to more batted balls in the infield than Matt Heavner (2022, Lincolnton, N.C.) of the South Charlotte Panthers. The shortstop recently impressed at the 14u Southeast Showcase, and is currently batting over .300 in the middle of the order for the undefeated Panthers. The twitch athleticism is very advanced for the age and he moves very well to both sides with quick transfers to the throwing hand which allow him to record extra outs and help out the pitching staff for the Panthers. The speed plays offensively too as he recorded a best home to first time of 4.40 seconds, but the defensive instincts and overall prowess ooze interest.
In a complete game victory during their first game of the evening, righthander Caleb Walker (2021, Asheboro, N.C.) showed off a lively arm and racked up nine strikeouts over six innings while allowing just one earned run. The righthander has some looseness and whip to the arm stroke with a slightly cross-body delivery that featured a fastball up to 84 mph early on. Walker eventually settled into the 78-82 mph range, but worked well to attack with the fastball and power it by some hitters. He also mixed in a breaking ball that he could land for strikes, but the swing-and-miss type of stuff in conjunction with the advanced velocity culminated for a very strong outing.
The Keystone Bombers exploded for nine runs in their evening victory on Saturday and Justin Garcia (2021, Pompton Lakes, N.J.) was in the middle of the order to do some damage for the squad. Garcia is a very physical and strong prospect, standing at a listed 5-foot-8 and 190-pounds, with a very easy and quick trigger to start the swing. The strength obviously stands out as he roped a couple of baseballs early on that showed his bat speed and power potential through extension. He laced a hard hit line out to the shortstop while, in the next at-bat, smoked a 94 mph exit velocity double down the line to the pull side that one-hopped the wall. The strength and power are clearly advanced for a young prospect and that makes him an instant threat for opposing pitchers.
Twitch, athleticism, and speed are rare to find out of such young prospects but Swingman middle infielder J.P. Cunningham (2022, Lancaster, S.C.) put on a clinic all evening in that very regard. He posted a best run time of 4.3 seconds to first base, also 4.4 on a turn, which made for an impact sequence during his first at-bat. Cunningham showed off his hand quickness to turn the barrel over a fastball on the inner half to rip it to left field for a line drive single. Next, he stole second base on the next pitch and was able to advance all the way home on a sacrifice bunt on the pitch after. He moves well in the infield, he started at second base during this game, and the raw quickness of the bat and hitting tools combined with the speed make him a very intriguing prospect.
Starting off the nightcap for the Tri State Arsenal Scout Team was righthander James Triantos (2022, McLean, Va.) who recently stood out at the 14u Florida Showcase. Triantos has a very fast arm for the age and ran his fastball up to 85 mph in the early portion of the game while sitting in the 81-84 mph range and not being afraid to challenge up in the strike zone. The arm stroke was online and he hides the ball well which makes his explosive release of the fastball from a higher slot that much more deceptive and hard to pick up for the opposing hitters. The breaking ball is a difference maker for Triantos as he has great feel for his big-breaking 12-to-6 curveball in the low-70s. He commanded the pitch well and could land it for strikes all while replicating the arm speed and delivery on the pitch as well. There is slight effort to the release but Triantos pounded the zone and got a lot of ugly chases as he racked up eight strikeouts and allowed only one hit in 4 1/3 innings pitched.
– Vincent Cervino