THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION
| 2,623 MLB PLAYERS | 16,400 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
2,623 MLB PLAYERS | 16,400 MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS
Sign in Create Account
Sign in Create Account
Tournaments  | Story | 6/3/2019

PG European Classic: Day 4

David Rawnsley
Photo: Ignas Pauliukevicius (Perfect Game)

PG European Classic: Day 1 Notes | Days 2-3 Notes
BRNO, CZE: The Lithuanian United Team 16u is a perfect example of where baseball is in Eastern Europe. The team came to the PG European Classic last year with mostly the same team and has improved significantly over the past 12 months. Their primary source of games at home is to play in the Lithuanian Adult League against much older players.

The manager/director of the Lithuanian team, in addition to youth baseball across the country, is Virmidas Neverauskas. If that last name sounds familiar, he is the father of Pittsburgh Pirates righthanded pitcher Dovydas Neverauskas, who might be the most unlikely Big League player ever considering his background growing up in Lithuania.

Virmidas Neverauskas was literally one of the first baseball players in Lithuania and helped start the first organized team in the country. For his son to climb the highest mountain in baseball so soon after the first seed of baseball was planted in the country is incredible in context.

A perfect example of the reality of where baseball in Lithuania and in Eastern Europe is at present can be captured in watching their outfielder Ignas Pauliukevicius (2021, Kaunas, LTU) play over a few games. Pauliukevicius is 16 years old and has an outstanding 6-foot-2, 175-pound athletic build. He performed extremely well in the PG Series testing all the athletes participated in here in Brno and recorded one of the strongest grip strengths ever recorded in PG Series participation. He’s the type of athlete who could be a three-sport standout right now at an American high school. The ball explodes off his bat when he squares it up, he runs well and he was 81 mph off the mound with very raw mechanics. But his present baseball skills are so young that he would have trouble at least initially competing with his age peers in the United States. On one play on Sunday, Pauliukevicius was on second base when a clean single was hit to left field. Neverauskas was coaching third base and had a clear stop sign out almost as soon as the ball landed in the outfield, but Pauliukevicius ran right through it head down. You could see Neverauskas’ head drop and his hand go to his forehead even before the play at the plate as if to say, “Yes, I will continue to work hard with these players and help them improve but we still have a long way to go.”

Top 16U Overall Prospect

Team National Cadets shortstop Merlin-Tyrus Bendlin has consistently impressed this scout throughout the European Classic with his high-level athleticism and skills at shortstop defensively. He’s a very live-bodied athlete with bounce in all his actions and can really work through a ball well at shortstop and get rid of it quickly. Based on his 30-yard time in testing (3.81) he is probably at 6.7-6.8 type runner in the 60 and it would be very easy to give him a PG 9 grade for his fielding. Bendlin’s swing is quick and twitchy and he showed power today with a double off the left field fence, so he’s not just a high-level defender. He’s 16 years, 10 months old and will receive his high school certificate next year, so he’s the equivalent of a 2020 player in the United States. Impressively, Bendlin is also the youngest player ever to play in the top division of the German Bundesliga after making the Mannheim Tornados team this year. Bendlin can certainly play middle infield at a mid-level D1 school and probably at many higher level D1 schools.

16U Final Standings

Czech Baseball Academy Red 5-0
Czech Baseball Academy Blue 4-1
National Team Cadets 4-1
KMC Ambassadors 3-2
Czech National Team 2-2-1
Lithuanian Baseball 1-4
Czech Baseball Academy White 2-3
Ukraine United Team 16U 1-3-1
Hrosi Brno 16U 2-3
Slovakia 15U 0-5


16U Most Valuable Player
Catcher Matej Vlach (2022, Hluboká Nad Vltavou, CZE) hit in the leadoff spot for the runner-up Czech Baseball Academy Blue team and executed his role perfectly, going 8-for-14 at the plate in addition to drawing four walks, stealing six bases and scoring eight runs in five games. In addition, his walk off single in Czech Blue’s 6-5 win over National Team Cadets enabled his team to reach the championship game.

16U Most Valuable Pitcher/Top 16U Pitching Prospect

Lefthander Tomas Hrbek (2020, Brno, CZE) started two games for the champion Czech Baseball Academy Red team, picking up two wins, including throwing five innings of three-hit baseball in the championship game. Hrbek has a strong and projectable 6-foot athletic build and a very smooth delivery and arm action that produced a fastball up to 83 mph to go with a nice low-70’s slider.  Hrbek is 16 years, 5 months old and there is no question that he’ll throw harder as he further matures physically and he already has the delivery, pitchability and arm action to build from.

12U Final Standings

Czech Baseball Academy Green 5-0
Czech National Team 12U 4-1
Technicka Brno 12U 4-1
Hrosi Brno 12U 3-2
Euro Baseball Tour 12U 3-2
Ukraine United Team 12U 2-3
KMC Ambassadors 2-3
Slovakia 12U 1-4
Czech Baseball Academy Orange 1-4
Lithuania Baseball 12U 0-5

12U Most Valuable Player
Benjamin O'Rourke was an offensive force for the champion Czech Baseball Academy Green team, going 10-for-13 at the plate with five doubles, a home run and 12 RBI in five games. Of course, Czech Green did hit .573 with 23 extra base hits while scoring 70 runs in five wins, so O’Rourke had plenty of help from his teammates. He also took a start on the mound and picked up a win.

12U Most Valuable Pitcher

Martin Senk of Technicka Brno 12U threw a six-inning complete game against the Ukraine United Team in a 5-1 Technicka win, striking out nine hitters and only allowing one hit. He also contributed offensively to Technicka’s overall 4-1 record, going 6-for-14 with two doubles and a home run while scoring 10 runs overall.

Reflections on Brno and Baseball

The differences between the Czech Republic, specifically the city of Brno (pop. 300,000 +/-), and the United States couldn’t be more stark in many ways.  Yes, a Marriott Courtyard in Brno is indistinguishable from anywhere else in the world and cars drive on the right side of the road and I didn’t hear a song on the ballpark speakers I hadn’t heard before.  Map apps work on your phone. And there are plenty of the ubiquitous American fast food restaurants, although why a Czech citizen would choose to eat at a Burger King or KFC is beyond me.

The food we ate over the course of almost a week was stunningly good and amazingly clean. There are numerous food preservatives and additives that are banned in Europe that are common in the United States and the impact of not using them is immediately obvious. The breads, pastries and meats leap out for their freshness and flavor and the Czech people certainly love their sweet pastries (don’t even ask about a dumpling stuffed with fresh strawberries). There are fresh fruit and vegetables with everything. Once one leaves the city center there are gardens everywhere. The fields along the highways are lush green with winter wheat ready for harvest and interspersed with vineyards.

And everything is mind numbingly inexpensive. One of our party had a steak one night that would have run $50 at least at home; it was the equivalent of $8.50 in Czech Koruna. The spaghetti with pancetta and anchovies I had at the same meal was simply the best pasta I’ve ever tasted; it was about $7. One can never get tired of spending $1.25 for a pour of Pilsner Urquell or Starobrno. Using the ample public transportation costs $2/day.

The picturesque city center, located about a mile from our hotel was beautiful, cultural and spotlessly clean. It was completely safe to walk back alone to the hotel after midnight. And, of course, everything in Brno, like most of Europe, is old and has a history. The spectacular St. Peter and Paul Cathedral was originally built on the same site late in the 11th century and has been updated many times since. Brno was the capital of Monrovia long before the United States existed. The Starobrno Brewery is a continuation of a brewery originally founded in 1325.

But baseball, as it often does, seems to transcend cultural and living conditions. The fields and facilities were excellent and tended to with meticulous care with the same type of equipment one would find at thousands of fields across the United States. The 16-year-old and younger athletes played hard and were happy at successes, both individual and team, and disappointed with failure. The rhythms of the game were instantly recognizable to any baseball fan, whether it be in the quick call for a time out after a stolen base or the flaps down rounding of first base by an excited player after a key RBI single.

The reality is that it is very unlikely that there was a future Major League player in Brno this week and probably not even a future minor league player. There will be another Dovydas Neverauskas from a smaller European baseball country someday and there will certainly be another Max Kepler from a Germany or Italy or even perhaps the Czech Republic as well. There were many young players here this week who could play at various college programs across the United States and it is important to get especially those players playing against as high level of competition as possible so that their skills can improve.

But moving beyond the top players here, the most important role of the PG European Classic now and into the future is to continue to plant the seeds of the future baseball coaches and leaders across the region. For there to be another Dovydas Neverauskas, you first have to have the coach with the motivation and knowledge to grow the player.

One of the coaches for the Ukraine United team was seen walking around the City Stadium field meticulously taking pictures of everything down to the most basic grounds crew tools.  When asked what he was doing, he responded in broken English, “We do not have baseball fields like this in the Ukraine. I want to build one. With my own hands. To do this I must know what I will need.”

Those are the baseball seeds that are being planted.
Give us your feedback
Tournaments | Story | 9/9/2026

PG Wood Bat Fall Kickoff Scout Notes
Tyler Henninger
Article Image
Evan Thompson (‘29, AZ) showcasing the all-fields power with this ground rule double the other way. Immense power upside. Really fun offensive profile #FallKickoff https://t.co/l551KirUOf pic.twitter.com/QW0AIeg59g — Perfect Game Four Corners (@PG_FourCorners) September 7, 2026 Evan Thompson (2029, Gilbert, Ariz.) put on an offensive clinic throughout the weekend, going 8-for-13 with three extra-base hits. He capped off his MVP performance with a walkoff home run to take home the championship. Thompson is one of the premier players in the 2029 class. A fluid left-handed stroke consistently finds barrels. There is all fields power present that will only continue to develop further. It would not be a surprise if Thimpson ends up the top ranked player in the class when it is all said and done.  Chase Fillman (2028, Goodyear, Ariz.) put together a loud summer circuit and...
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/8/2026

What Profiles Are Valued Most at Top of Draft

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
The landscape of the MLB Draft continues to evolve each and every year. What teams value at the top of the draft can change based on the strength of a particular class, shifts in player development philosophy, and, perhaps most importantly, the way organizations evaluate risk and upside. Some trends are subtle, while others become impossible to ignore when viewed across multiple years. For this study, I set out to answer one question: What player profiles do teams value at the top of the draft? To answer it, I analyzed the Top-100 picks from each of the last six drafts (2021-2026). That gives us 600 total selections to examine and provides a large enough sample to identify both the profiles that have remained consistently popular and those that have gained or lost significant ground. The data was broken down by position, handedness and level to create individual player profiles. While...
Read More
General | General | 9/7/2026

First Look: Class of 2031 Rankings

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/7/2026

Chubb Jones Jr. Enrolls Early

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
Harry Chubb Jones Jr. is getting an early start on the next chapter of his baseball career. The Perfect Game All-American announced Sunday that he will enroll early at the University of Alabama, giving the Crimson Tide an early addition from one of the more intriguing two-way prospects in the 2027 class. See y’all at The Joe! πŸ‘πŸΎπŸ‘πŸΎπŸ‘πŸΎ pic.twitter.com/Kn0T0mJxq7 — 6._.chubbjones (@chubb_hitter) September 6, 2026 Jones, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound SS/RHP from Georgia, was ranked No. 39 in the 2027 class and came in at No. 83 on the initial Top-100 2027 Draft Board. Chubb Jones Jr (‘27 GA) smokes this one the other way for an RBI single & we’re all level in the 6th. Adv bat speed, impacts w/ authority to all fields #PGAAC@PG_Georgia pic.twitter.com/FZ46IvYVp1 — Dick’s Sporting Goods All-American Classic (@PGAllAmerican) August 16, 2026 The McEachern...
Read More
Draft | Story | 9/7/2026

2027 MLB Draft: PG Content Hub

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
No more having to search for articles pertaining to the 2027 MLB Draft as we will keep it all centrally located here, in the PG Content Hub, leading up to the first pick next July. Tyler Henninger, Joey Cohen, Michael Albee and Ryan Miller, along with the rest of the Perfect Game staff, will continue to provide you with the latest info as it pertains to this 2027 crop.  Article Date Initial Follow List July 12 Way Too Early Mock July 13 Realistic Expectations of 1:1 August 11 Preview: Collegiate RHP August 21  Draft Board: Top 100 August 28 Way Too Early 1:1 Predictions September 4 Chubb Jones Jr. Enrolls Early September 7 Preview: Collegiate LHP September 7 What Profiles are Valued Most at Top of Draft September 9
Read More
Draft | Rankings | 9/7/2026

2027 Draft Preview: Collegiate LHP

Ryan Miller
Article Image
2027 MLB Draft Profile Preview: Collegiate Right-Handed Pitchers The collegiate left-handed pitching class is always a popular demographic, and this year’s is no different. The group contains a mix of power pitch mixes and polished pitch-ability, with healthy representation from power four schools and a handful of mid-majors. Below we look at this year’s top college left-handers. An extended look at LHP Tomas Valincius (@HailStateBB)... 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K https://t.co/lCHgGnsdbi pic.twitter.com/Vm3nQkAukc — PG College Baseball (@PGCollegeBall) May 28, 2026 Tomas Valincius, Mississippi State Valincius followed head coach Brian O’Connor from Virginia to Mississippi State and immediately established himself as their ace last spring. The Illinois native posted a 3.50 ERA over 17 starts in 2026, striking out 33.5% of hitters and walking just five percent....
Read More
General | General | 9/6/2026

Update: Class of 2030 Rankings

Perfect Game Staff
Article Image
Read More
Draft | Prospect Scouting Reports | 9/4/2026

2027 Draft: Way Too Early 1:1 Predictions

Tyler Henninger
Article Image
2027 Top 100 Draft Board  Current Favorite: SS Dylan Seward, Norco HS (Calif.) In our first iteration of the 2027 Draft Board, Norco shortstop Dylan Seward ranks No. 1 overall. The switch-hitter is an ultra-twitchy player with a lot to like on both sides of the ball. He is a supreme athlete that should stick up the middle. Explosiveness is shown in all aspects of his game and gives the profiles big time upside.  In the event that Seward does not go 1:1, each member of our draft team selected a player that they think could wind up in that spot. We are still nearly a full year away from draft day, but here are our “Way Too Early” predictions for the 1st overall pick next July.  Henni’s Pick: C/UTL Gavin Kelly, West Virginia    Gavin Kelly (@WVUBaseball) sends this over the wall in CF for a solo πŸ’£ (100 EV/ 416 ft). Adv. hitter with accurate...
Read More
General | General | 9/3/2026

Class of 2029 Rankings Update

Article Image
Read More
Softball | Softball Tournament | 9/3/2026

Iowa City Scouting Showcase 14U &16U Divisions

Dave Durbala
Article Image
IOWA CITY, IA - Perfect Game Softball Iowa City Scouting Showcase, August 29 - 30, 2026. Fifty-Four teams, competing across three divisions in the 14u - 18u age classifications opened up our Fall schedule playing in a five game showcase style format. For the several college coaches in attendance, they were able to get quality looks at numerous uncommitted 27’ and 28’ graduation year class athletes, as well as having the opportunity to watch some of the quality younger athletes as they put their talent on display. Below are write-ups of some of our top performers over the weekend in the 14 & 16u age divisions. 14U DIVISION Josie Moen (2031 Urbandale, IA) is an athletic OF for TN Mojo 2030 Evans. Working from the left side, Moen was nearly unstoppable while showing defenses her slapping abilities. With great barrel awareness and footwork, Moen utilized the bunt, soft slap...
Read More
Loading more articles...
About Perfect Game :: Contact us :: Terms of Use :: Privacy Policy :: Testimonials :: Job Opportunities
Copyright 1994-2026 by Perfect Game. All rights reserved. No portion of this information may be reprinted or reproduced without the written consent of Perfect Game.