Processing..
logo
Where MLB scouts, college coaches, and top high school prospects meet.
☰
×
player profile search
Five Tool WS: Wednesday, Thursday Scouting
07/23/2021

Five Tool World Series: Wednesday and Thursday Scouting Notes

TOMBALL – The Five Tool World Series kicked off Wednesday across multiple locations with a majority of the 15U-18U action taking place at Premier Baseball, and players of all ages showed that while the summer schedule is winding down, they’re not done playing at a high level.

Next Level Baseball 2023 – Davis claimed victory in both its Wednesday contests and did so in impressive fashion. Klein Collins shortstop Colton Griffin dazzled with both the glove and the bat. From the left side, Griffin, currently uncommitted, displayed some of the quickest hands of the day and noticeable bat-to-ball skill. Although he doesn’t sell out for power and to lift, his swing is a pretty one designed to create extra-base hits and works well with athletic, quick hip rotation in the batter’s box.

Griffin played with a slow heartbeat and never looked overwhelmed. Defensively, he showed his range and instincts by sprinting into shallow center field and diving to snag a pop up to help preserve a one-run lead late in the game. Listed at 5-10, 165 pounds, Griffin displayed the hands, athleticism and actions required to stay on the dirt defensively.

 

His teammate Brock Ireland had the game of the day when he blasted two homers and then followed that with another big fly on Thursday. A physically mature power hitter in the 2023 class, Ireland, a product of Conroe High School, swings with aggressive intent and some length in the swing designed to hammer the baseball to his pull side. His swing came up empty occasionally, but when he made contact, the ball really jumped off his bat. 

Last week on the same field, Klein Oak’s Bret Deegan stood out on the mound for Next Level 2023 – Davis. On Wednesday, the third baseman impressed with the bat. Deegan carried himself with a ton of competitive confidence on the mound and did so in the batter’s box as well. Although he showed some of his juice when he can pull the ball from the right side, Deegan also showed an approach capable of hitting the ball to all parts of the field. 

While the 16U competition turned heads at the plate, the 17U division featured a lot of spin on the mound. Fort Bend Austin and Houston Athletics 17U Gold lefty Ryan Dugas touched 83 MPH and flashed one of the best curveballs of the day with late, big, sharp break. From a three-quarters slot, Dugas created some run occasionally on his fastball and also showed promising feel for a changeup. But the breaking ball was the big standout. He was one of three 17U pitchers who didn’t feature noteworthy velocity but did feature advanced feel for spin. 

Another pitcher in this category opposed Dugas in the same game – HP Baseball 2022 Copeland right-hander Jaime Montemayor. Although he was only up to 81 MPH, the Sterling High School prospect punched out six hitters across 5.0 scoreless innings and gave up just one hit and two walks. Routinely, Montemayor’s advanced feel for spinning the baseball baffled opposing hitters, often creating uncomfortable swings and takes. 

He threw a 65-67 MPH hook with big break; 70-72 MLB slider with distinctly different shape; and he showed a swing and miss changeup as well. With strength present in his lower half already, it’s possible Montemayor has some velocity in the tank that will soon come. 

Later on Wednesday, 2022 right-hander Sam Letz (Tivy) tossed 6.1 innings for LBC National Flores against Dallas Tigers Cienega/Beaven 17U and gave up just two runs on three hits, two walks and he struck out seven. Letz showed a clean, repeatable delivery and spun a high quality overhand curveball that racked up swings and misses and also showed a changeup with some late sink. 

Like Dugas and Montemayor, Letz didn’t wow with fastball velocity. He touched 82 MPH repeatedly. However, college and junior college coaches confident they can develop velocity or that there’s more to come out of a clean delivery and arm action could find some diamonds in the rough with these three pitchers because of their standout feel for spin. 

The Dallas Tigers Cienega/Beaven 17U benefitted late from a big hit from Lane Snow. With a short finish to his powerful swing from the right side, Snow, from Joshua High School, showed a lot of loud pull-side pop. 

On Thursday, teammate Jake Weaver (Waco Midway), who played center field, was a big standout with the bat. From the left side, the athletic leadoff hitter showed a powerful, short-levered swing that could get to pitches up and especially down in the zone, which included lining a double off the wall in right field. Dylan Darnall helped the Tigers finish off a victory by smashing a double off the wall in left-center and finished the game with five RBI after hitting a double the opposite way earlier in the game. 

On the mound for the Tigers, Hayden Stapleton (Waco Midway) showed noteworthy athleticism and velocity. The right-hander touched 86 MPH with a fastball that played well when it was in the strike zone and an inconsistent 72-74 MPH slider. At times, Stapleton’s arm action negatively impacted his fastball control and ability to get to his breaking ball and finish out front. That said, he showed there is more velocity to come. 

Another right-hander in the same game featured similar velocity – LBC National Flores’ Aiden Beuman. He pitched just .2 innings, but featured a fastball up to 87 MPH and an inconsistent breaking ball 73-78 MPH. 

Canes Southwest Premier’s Adam Vaughn, a big right-hander from Cedar Park, touched 88 MPH. Although his control was erratic in a short outing, Vaughn showed arm strength and a glimpse of a sharp breaking ball.

15U AND 16U NOTES…
5 Star Performance 15U Gold’s Paul Acosta looks like a major bat in the 2024 class. The Cinco Ranch product has advanced bat speed, bat-to-ball skill, and pitch recognition for his age to go along with a pretty swing from the left-hand side that creates some separation. 

Tomball’s Braeden Scherzer hit leadoff from the left side for Houston Heat 2024 – Red and showed some surprising pop, nearly hitting a homer the opposite way to begin a game. Although Scherzer’s front foot likes to creep towards first base to finish his legkick, he doesn’t sell out to pull the ball and showed a bat capable of hitting the ball hard up the middle and the opposite way. 

Teammate and catcher Jake Farish used a 2.15 pop time to catch a runner stealing and for a young player with his physicality he moved well behind the plate with a strong arm and intriguing bat. 

Premier Baseball 2024 Moore’s Braylon Mitchell (Cypress Creek) has the body of an impressive track athlete and some real baseball skill with the glove and in the batter’s box. Mitchell showed soft hands and confident actions at third base, and in the batter’s box, the right-handed hitter impacted the baseball with an athletic swing. Big-time projection all-around. 

Teammate Miles Syptak (Bridgeland) is tall, long 2024 athlete who has a raw swing in the batter’s box, but when he gets his arms extended and connects, he can already drive the baseball out of the yard with authority. As he matures and gets more comfortable with his long-levered swing, his noteworthy raw power should show more often.

Wheelhouse Baseball 2024’s EJ Garcia (Klein Oak) is definitely another hitter to follow closely in the 2024 class. Thanks to his hand separation and rhythm/timing in the batter’s box, Garcia, a right-handed hitter, unleashes bat speed and a good-looking swing that leads to impressive power. Although his homer on Wednesday stood out, it was his at-bat later that was more noteworthy. 

Against USA Prime – Cannon’s Gunner Greene, a big 2024 right-hander from Pearland Dawson, Garcia smoked a changeup into the right-center gap for a double. It was noteworthy because Greene was up to 87 MPH on the mound, and it’s rare for 2024 players to see that type of velocity. Plus, Greene’s control was erratic and the changeup Garcia hit was one of the only ones the big righty showed. 

Greene’s teammate Terrence Carr made the defensive play of the day when he jumped at the wall in left field to rob an extra-base hit, an impressive show of awareness and athleticism. Later in the same inning, he dove full-extension and nearly robbed another extra-base hit. 

Texas Oilers 16U Hamblin right-hander Matthew Hayes showed the best fastball command of any pitcher during Wednesday’s action. Although he issued four walks, it wasn’t indicative of his ability to work both sides of the plate with a fastball up to 81 MPH. The righty from Howe High School lacked feel for spin, but repeated a simple delivery and finished his fastball with intent. 

Cedar Park and GPS Legends 16U J Elmore’s Brooks Dillman, a speedy left-handed hitter, showed he could make solid contact consistently with impressive hand-eye coordination. 

Dustin McComas – follow me on Twitter @DustinLMcComas
Senior Editor
Five Tool Baseball

More Baseball News