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| 2,497 MLB PLAYERS | 15,833 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
2,497 MLB PLAYERS | 15,833 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
College  | Story | 7/10/2026

Cape Cod Notebook No. 1

Photo: Rowan Kelly (Miranda Flores/UCSB Athletics)
Cape Cod League Scouting Notebook 

Maverick Rizy | Ole Miss | RHP | Brewster Whitecaps 



The towering 6-foot-9, 250-pound right-hander continues to stand out with one of the more unique looks on the Cape, pairing a massive frame with a low three-quarter slot that creates difficult angles for hitters. While his fastball velocity was down from its typical mid-90s range during this look, working mostly 90-92 mph, it still generated plenty of swing-and-miss. He paired the heater with an 81-83 mph gyro slider featuring tight bullet-spin action and mixed in an 85-mph changeup with quality separation. Rizy battled his command early in the outing I saw, before settling in to strike out five over three innings, showing the ability to adjust as the game progressed. Through 12.2 Cape League innings, he has recorded 18 strikeouts, and his combination of size, deception, and projectability continues to make him a high follow. 


Rowan Kelly | UC Santa Barbara | OF | Orleans Firebirds 

Kelly has emerged as one of the more polished offensive performers on the Cape this summer, combining elite bat-to-ball skills with advanced strike-zone discipline and consistent quality of contact. Following a standout sophomore campaign at UC Santa Barbara in which he slashed .342/.440/.487 with 78 hits, 15 doubles, and nearly as many walks (30) as strikeouts (33), Kelly has seamlessly carried that approach into Orleans, hitting .308/.471/.410 through his first 11 games. Despite a line-drive approach, he has flashed impressive top-end exit velocities that hint at additional power to come, while his elite contact ability, disciplined swing decisions, and offensive consistency continue to make him one of the Cape League's more intriguing bats. 

Tyler Smolinski | Kansas State | INF | Harwich Mariners 

Smolinski has emerged as one of the Cape League's hottest hitters this summer, pairing an efficient barrel path with a smooth left-handed swing that consistently produces loud, pull-side contact and extra-base damage. After a breakout sophomore season at Kansas State, where he slashed .339/.440/.619 with 18 doubles and 45 RBI, he's carried that production into the Cape Cod League, hitting .309/.427/.574 through his first 19 games with Harwich. His 11 extra-base hits, including four home runs, are a testament to how well his power has translated to wood bats, making him one of the Cape's most dangerous offensive performers this summer. 

Payton Manca | Florida State | LHP | Brewster Whitecaps 

The 6-foot-6, 256-pound left-hander features a big, durable frame and an easy, repeatable operation that allows him to consistently attack the strike zone. In the start I saw, Manca tossed five scoreless innings, striking out five. His fastball sat 90-93 mph and accounted for 87% of his pitches (60 of 69), yet it continued to generate plenty of swing-and-miss and put-away ability thanks to its life through the zone and his ability to locate it to all four quadrants of the strike zone. He complemented the heater with a low-80s slider, a mid-to-upper-70s curveball, and a low-80s changeup that has flashed quality swing-and-miss. Manca's combination of size, strike-throwing ability, and confidence in his fastball has helped establish him as one of the Cape League's most effective starters this summer.  



Bino Watters | LSU | OF/1B | Chatham Anglers 

Watters has carried the momentum from two highly productive seasons at Notre Dame into the Cape Cod League before transferring to LSU. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound left-handed hitter features a smooth, controlled swing with an advanced approach, consistently finding the barrel while showing plenty of juice to all fields. Across two seasons at Notre Dame, he slashed .343/.442/.584 with 131 hits, 27 doubles, 19 home runs, and 90 RBI, establishing himself as one of the ACC's most productive bats. He's continued that offensive success with the Chatham Anglers this summer, hitting .300/.405/.400 through his first 17 games while drawing 11 walks. Watters polished offensive approach, consistent barrel control, and all-fields power give him one of the more complete offensive profiles on the Cape this summer. 

College | Story | 7/7/2026

USA Collegiate National Team: Stripes

Craig Cozart
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Collegiate National Team: Stars Notes Quick Hits  Each year at the end of June and beginning of July, top collegiate baseball talent from around the nation arrives in Cary, NC at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.  Typically, the rosters are filled with top underclass, non-draft-eligible talent but this year, we will see a sprinkling of upper-classmen as the coaches evaluate just under 60 players to get to their final 28 roster spots.  For a total of two weeks, the Stars Squad and the Stripes Squad will compete against outside competition in North Carolina as well as Virginia before finishing their slate with 5-games against each other at the NTC Complex.  Once the final roster has been announced the team will depart for Taiwan to compete in the 2026 World Baseball Championships, July 11-15.    CNT Stripes Position Players  Nico Partida ...
Tournaments | Story | 7/13/2026

17u Elite Scout Notes: Days 1-2

Perfect Game Staff
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High speed look at the FF-SL-CH from '27 RHP Liam McGeady (OH)... #NatElite @PG_OhioValley @Cincy_Legends https://t.co/hhoDL7DBbi pic.twitter.com/Ts79GLPGoU — Perfect Game Scout (@PG_Scouting) July 12, 2026 Liam McGeady (2027, Liberty Township, Ohio) had the stuff working on Saturday morning, getting the start for Legends Scout 2027. The uncommitted right-hander ran it up to 91 and sat 88-90 with a full starter’s mix. All three of the secondaries played well and project moving forward. The curveball worked in the mid-70s with good depth and healthy shape. The slider operated in the 79-82 range with gyro spin and short break. McGeady rounded out the repertoire with a changeup that showed big fade and depth, proving effective versus lefties. He ended the outing going five ⅔ innings, allowing no earned runs on four hits, striking out six total. The tall and long 6-foot-5,...
Draft | Mock Draft | 7/13/2026

2027 Mock Draft: Way Too Early Ediition

Vincent Cervino
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With the 2026 MLB Draft officially complete, let's quickly turn our eyes to the 2027 group and do a way too early mock draft. Leading the way is shortstop Brendan Lawson out of the University of Florida, setting the trend as three of the top four names all call shortstop home with Dylan Seward and Carter Hadnot. If shortstops aren't your thing for any which reason, maybe hard throwing left-handers tickle your fancy whether it be prep Connor Salerno, Tomas Valincius from Mississippi State or Dylan Volantis, a dominant arm from the University of Texas.  Pick Team Name Pos. School 1 Los Angeles Angels Brendan Lawson SS Florida 2 Kansas City Royals Dylan Seward SS Norco (Calif.) 3 Colorado Rockies Landon Hairston OF Arizona State 4 New York Mets Carter Hadnot SS Aquinas (Calif.) 5 Athletics Connor Salerno LHP Sun Valley (N.C.) 6 Cincinnati Reds Tomas Valincius LHP Mississippi State 7...
Draft | Story | 7/12/2026

2027 MLB Draft: Initial Follow List

Vincent Cervino
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With the 2026 MLB Draft in the books, our focus now shifts to a new group of players ready to take center stage as the 2027 draft cycle begins. Our initial 2027 Follow List serves as an early snapshot of the players who should draw plenty of attention over the next year. This new crop of talent features collegiate players coming off loud spring seasons, alongside prep prospects who have already flashed big upside as underclassman.  As always, this list will evolve throughout the year. Some players will continue to elevate their stock, while others will jump onto the radar and force their way into the conversation. So, without further ado, let the fun begin.  The road to the 2027 MLB Draft starts now. Name Level Pos. B-T School Hometown State Commitment Adrian Rodriguez C 3B/OF S-R Texas Flower Mound TX Aidan King C RHP L-R Florida Bryceville FL Bino Watters C OF L-L LSU...
Tournaments | Story | 7/12/2026

14u BCS Scout Notes

Perfect Game Staff
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Austin Way (2030, Yulee, FL) was 2-3 in game four, driving in a run and scoring once himself. Picked it well defensively at shortstop but really showed out in the box today. Works the barrel path to the middle of the field and whips the barrel through the zone. The RHH creates lift in the turn, and the ball jumps off the bat hot.  Sutton Walling (2029, Ponte Vedra, FL) is an athletic 5’11/160lb infielder who gets it done on both sides of the ball. Dominated at the plate right behind his teammate Way in the batting order going 3-3 with two doubles. He does a really good job with the barrel accuracy and works through contact with heavy hands. Lots of project-ability in the profile and is having a sneaky great week at the plate. Banks Kennedy (2030, Arcadia, FL) received it well behind the dish and was the leading force in this one driving in three rbis. He ended up going 2-3...
Draft | Story | 7/12/2026

2026 MLB Draft: Best Available

Tyler Henninger
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2026 MLB Draft: Best Available for Day Two  A total of 135 players heard their name called on Saturday. As always, signability, bonus pool strategy, and organizational preferences play a major role in how the board unfolds. With that being said, we saw a majority of the top half off the board get selected, but there are a number of players ranked inside our Top 150 that remain available. From high-upside prep talent to polished college performers, these are the top names still available according to our Final Top 500 Draft Board.  Top Prep Bats Available (with Top-500 Board Rankings) 38. Archer Horn, SS/RHP, St. Ignatius College Prep (CA) 58. Blake Bowen, OF, JSerra Catholic (CA) 64. James Tronstein, SS/OF, Harvard-Westlake (CA) 66. Noah Wilson, OF, McCallie School (TN) 71. Cole Koeninger, SS/RHP, Keller (TX) 77. Sean Dunlap, C, Crown Point (IN) 82. Alex Weingartner, OF//RHP,...
Tournaments | Story | 7/11/2026

17U National Elite Heads to Hoover

Kinley Kitchens
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Another week, another big tournament makes its way to Hoover.  This week, 104 of the nation’s top 17U teams will make their way to Hoover for the 2026 Perfect Game 17U National Elite Championship.  Featuring nationally ranked teams, Division I commits, and many of the country’s top 2027 players, the tournament promises another week of elite competition as teams battle for one of the biggest championships of the summer.  With many players already committed to some of the nation’s top college programs, every game in Hoover this week offers a glimpse into the future of college baseball.  Now entering its eighth year, the National Elite Championship continues to bring in the nation’s best. Past champions include Team Elite Scout Team, Canes National, USA Prime National, Scorpions/Giants Scout Team, 5 Star Performance National, Knights Knation Scout...
Draft | Story | 7/12/2026

2026 MLB Draft: Day One Recap

Tyler Henninger
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Storylines Heavy College Run Early We came into the day knowing that there were a lot of talented college players at the top of the board, more specifically college bats. That came to light very early in the day, as we saw just two prep players selected within the first ten picks. The college preference lasted throughout most of the entire first round. Nearly 75% of the first 40 selections were college players. It is clear teams want players at the top of the draft that can quickly get through the system and help the big league club as soon as possible. Underslot Strategy Throughout this cycle, we knew that once you get past the first handful of picks the difference in value you were getting for let say pick ten was not that difference compared to pick 30. Because there was a large collection of players that are relatively close in value, teams were looking to get creative. We saw this...
Draft | Mock Draft | 7/11/2026

Final 2026 MLB Mock Draft

Vincent Cervino
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It's draft day and that means it's time for our final Mock Draft with the 2026 group. 1. Chicago White Sox | Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA It’s between Roch and Grady Emerson at this pick, though there have been heavy rumors of a very late deal potentially with another top 5 pick. This boils down to negotiations and we think that they will get there.  2. Tampa Bay Rays | Grady Emerson, SS, Fort Worth Christian (Tex.) If Grady isn’t the first pick then he is almost certain to be the second pick. The Rays like to get creative but Emerson is a well worth prospect in his own right.  3.  Minnesota Twins | Vahn Lackey, C, Georgia Tech This is likely the floor for Roch Cholowsky, though the Twins might prefer Lackey to Roch outright. They are thought to be in on the top college players with Emerson a distant third.  4. San Francisco Giants | Jackson Flora, RHP, UC...
Tournaments | Story | 7/10/2026

Ohio Valley Regional Scout Notes

Perfect Game Staff
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‘28 INF Christian Ramirez (OH) WALKS IT OFF for @CincyDBulls2028 to win the chip! Has shown impressive tools throughout the weekend and in this AB showed the ability to adjust to the offspeed and win the game. #OVElite pic.twitter.com/J3MXJXFnbM — Perfect Game Ohio Valley (@PG_OhioValley) July 5, 2026 Christian Ramirez (2028, Mason, Ohio) helped his team win the championship batting out of the two-hole. Though he didn’t win tournament MVP, Ramirez was my favorite player to watch take a plate appearance. He has an advanced feel for the zone and sees the ball out of the pitcher’s hand quicker than most. Ramirez led the tournament with eight walks, batting .375 with a .583 on-base percentage. Much more than just the approach, the swing is efficient with little wasted movement, creates quality separation, and puts him in an excellent position at contact. With such an...
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