Southeast Showcases produce 1st-round picks

Jim Ecker

Are you thinking about attending the Southeast Top or Underclass Showcase this August and can’t make up your mind? Here are a few facts that might help you decide.

Nine first-round draft picks have attended a Southeast Showcase over the years, including the hottest prospect in spring training this year in Jason Heyward. Most of those guys signed million-dollar bonuses and became rich before they played a single inning of minor-league ball.

Just about every college in the Atlantic Coast Conference has signed players who have attended a Southeast Showcase. The same is true of most of the schools in the Southeastern Conference, along with such colleges as Stanford, Hawaii, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Arizona State, Harvard, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, San Diego, Michigan and Air Force.

Maybe you think you live too far away from Marietta, Ga., where the Southeast Showcases will be held again this year. Well, consider that players have flocked to these showcases from 27 different states, Puerto Rico, Canada and Honduras.

There’s no reason not to attend.

The Southeast Top Showcase and the Southeast Underclass Showcase will be held simultaneously at the East Cobb Complex in Marietta, Ga., on Aug. 21-22. The Southeast Top Showcase is intended for players who will graduate high school in the Class of 2011, while the Southeast Underclass Showcase is for players who will graduate high school in 2012, 2013 and 2014.

The registration process for these premier Perfect Game events is very simple, as always. Just return to the home page at www.PerfectGame.org and click on “Showcases” in the upper left-hand corner of the page. Scroll down to the showcase you want and click on “Request an Invite.” It’s as easy as that.

This is the eighth year for the Southeast Top Showcase, which has attracted 778 players over the years. Andrew Toles and Rico Goldstone both were clocked in 6.4 seconds in the 60-yard dash at the Southeast Top in 2009, which is moving very well.

This is the seventh year for the Southeast Underclass Showcase, which has produced a pair of first-round picks in Ethan Martin and Jeremy Jeffress. Martin also attended a Southeast Top Showcase and received a $1.73 million bonus when he signed with the Dodgers in 2008.

The other first-round picks who attended a Southeast Top Showcase are Jeremy Bleich (Yanks), Charlie Culberson (Giants), Chad Jenkins (Blue Jays), Joshua Smoker (Nationals), Nathan Vineyard (Mets) and Zack Wheeler (Giants).

Who’s next?

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