6/28/2015 3:44:00 PM
Mentioned prior for his previous one inning outing, University of Florida left-hander A.J. Puk was given the start for game two of the doubleheader against Chinese Taipei. Puk wasn’t as sharp was he was the first time he threw for the Stars and Stripes and a majority of the six hits he allowed came on fastballs that were elevated up in the zone. Of course though, when he was down in the zone his stuff was near unhittable and showed off a full three-pitch mix through his three-plus innings of work.
Listed at 6-foot-7, 225-pounds, Puk came out attacking hitters with a fastball that sat predominately at 94-95 mph with a handful of 96s and a peak of 97 mph. Maintaining his balance well through his delivery, the Iowa native and former Perfect Game All-American stays short and quick through the back side before creating severe angle and downhill plane in on righthanded hitters. Puk uses his long levers to his advantage through his delivery as he generates solid extension out front and incorporates his lower half nicely into his delivery, finishing online towards the plate.
With such ease used to generate his plus-fastball velocity, Puk also showed a feel for both his slider and changeup, a pitch he didn’t throw in his one inning stint earlier. His slider works in the low-80s and while maintaining the arm action he shows on his fastball, Puk is able to generate tight rotation with short depth on the pitch. He also knows how to use the pitch to set up his fastball as he executed such a sequence with precision. Facing a righthanded hitter Puk went after him with two sliders and quickly got up in the count 0-2. Rather than going back to his slider like the hitter appeared to think was coming, Puk busted him in on the inner black with a 94 mph fastball, expertly spotted low to his glove side.
After showing plenty of velocity with their starter Puk, the Collegiate National Team called on University of Georgia righthander Robert Tyler who pitched well enough to earn his second win of the summer and showed the ability to execute pitches when he needed to the most. Standing at a lean but strong 6-foot-4, 217-pounds, Tyler is able to produce some of the easier velocity on the team and in the entire 2016 draft class.
Called in out of the bullpen with two runners on and two out Tyler went to work immediately. The Georgia native started the at-bat with a 76 mph breaking ball before going 96-97-96 mph to pick up a swinging strikeout on an elevated fastball. With a full and fluid arm action, the rising junior was able to generate a tremendous amount of late running life to his fastball when he worked down in the zone sitting 92-96 mph. Over his two innings of work he did walk two batters, as he would occasionally finish with an upright, but was ultimately able to keep the opposing offense at bay and help the Stars and Stripes sweep the doubleheader.
His curveball showed sharper 11-5 break with depth up to 79 mph and he showed it as frequently as he did his changeup. Maintaining his slot on the changeup well, Tyler is able to generate diving life down in the zone with the low-80s offering while mixing all three-pitches effectively. As mentioned above the former Perfect Game All-American is able to create some of the easiest velocity in amateur baseball as the ball comes out cleanly and is difficult to square up when located down in the zone.
After Tyler got the first two of in the seventh inning, Oregon’s Stephen Nogosek was brought in with the tying run in scoring position. Having seen the righthander earlier in the week, Nogosek came out showing a firmer fastball that sat a tick or two better than it did a few days prior.
Nogosek works from an up-tempo delivery with a short and fast arm coming through the back and set the tone with his first pitch of the game coming across at 95 mph. With high energy in his delivery adding some deception to his stuff, Nogosek sat 92-95 mph with his fastball and at times showed big running life to his glove side, especially when located down in the zone. Striking out a total of six batters for his seven outs, the rising junior finished five of them with either an 94 or 95 mph fastball including his final pitch of the game where he spotted a heater to his glove side for a swinging third strike.
While the velocity is noteworthy it was Nogosek’s ability to throw his slider for strikes in any count that was key as it set up the big fastball. For instance when he came in out of the ‘pen in the seventh Nogosek went 78 mph slider for a strike, a 77 mph slider for a strike, missed with an elevated 95 mph fastball before finishing the hitter with a 77 mph curveball for a swinging third strike. With late breaking life and tilt consistently in the upper-70s, the California native showed a solid feel for the pitch with the ability to double up the offering before coming at the batter with a big fastball.
Florida center fielder Buddy Reed picked up his sixth hit in just three games with Team USA and it was his loudest contact of all six. Full of fast-twitch muscle and possessing the highest levels of athleticism, the switch-hitting Reed dug into the lefthanded batter’s box with runners on base. Keeping his weight back well on an outer half changeup, the Maryland native extended his arms and drove the pitch off the Blue Monster in left field plating two runs to put USA up 2-1.
Texas A&M rising junior Nick Banks followed Reed and brought him around to put the Stars and Stripes up 3-1. Showing a strong feel for the barrel and an approach that allows him to use all fields, Banks squared a pitch for a single back up the middle picking up his team-high 10th hit this summer.
Bryson Brigman put together quite the freshman season at the University of San Diego, finishing second on the team with a .339 average just nine points behind first-round pick Kyle Holder. The California native hasn’t stopped hitting since trading in his Toreros’ uniform for his USA one, showing a long and fluid path to the ball, keeping his barrel in the zone for a while. Showing solid contact skills and the ability to use all fields, Brigman pulled the barrel head in on a fastball and squared it up for a double to the left-center field gap.
The defense Brigman has provided at second base has been just as impressive over the past week as his contact skills. An above average runner with light actions on his feet, Brigman shows solid range with soft hands and a quick first step, reading the ball off the barrel very well.