It’s Mattingly Week! 

(It’s also fine to refer to this week as Christmas in July.) 

The second day of the AABC Don Mattingly World Series is a critical one. Well, they’re all critical, but day two means teams could position themselves as 2-0 in their bracket or be faced with an early bracket-elimination game. Like Monday, there were plenty of impressive performances to track. Let’s take a look at some day two takeaways:

(These are comprised almost entirely of in-person looks and other major standouts from our coverage. Obviously, not every team or every player who did something well is going to make this story, but we invite everyone to tune into the coverage at FiveTool.org to see the endless amount of videos.)

1) I saw a couple of things that reminded me why Dallas Tigers – Bergman’s Sawyer Farr and Dulins Dodgers Prime-Godwin’s Wyatt Sanford, both Texas A&M commitments, are such highly-rated prospects who will now be on the pro radar since the 2023 MLB Draft finished. After whiffing against a good, backfoot slider from talented right-handed pitcher Ridge Morgan, Farr saw a similar pitch later in the same at-bat and smacked it to the right field wall for a double. It was an outstanding example of making an adjustment during an at-bat and showed Farr might see the baseball in a way most others don’t. 

Sanford’s play isn’t as obvious, but it displayed why many people think he’s the best defensive shortstop in Texas and one of the best in the nation. On a ground ball hit towards the hole at shortstop, Sanford didn’t do what almost every other shortstop his age would do – settle for a backhand play. Instead, Sanford effortlessly moved to get in position to come around the baseball and field it out in front, which allowed him to make an easier play and throw to first base. Later in the game, Sanford pulled a 90 MPH fastball for a hard single and also ran down the line in 4.18 seconds. 

Farr’s Tigers teammate Sawyer Strosnider had one of the best swings of the day when he handled a good sinking fastball by smashing a screaming line drive into right field. Another MLB Draft prospect, Strosnider, who attends Brock High School and is committed to TCU, was also up to 90 MPH with an interesting three-pitch mix on the mound, routinely made contact, ran 4.19 down the line and also just missed hitting a two-run homer the opposite way when it barely missed the foul pole. 

2) 5 Star Performance 2024 DFW 2024 – National began its tournament by scoring a combined 27 runs in two blowout wins. Zeke Seone, one of the few committed prospects on the team, had the loudest day thanks to an impressive homer run that showed what his bat speed can do when the barrel gets to the baseball out front.

I think college coaches in attendance would benefit from sitting on this team for at least a game. Landon Hutcheson (Frenship) continues to rack up hits at an impressive rate and is part of an outfield that should be the fastest and most athletic in the event. He didn’t have a big day statistically, but Timothy Haynes showed which should be one of the better right-handed swings in the event. On the mound, Rockwall’s Keller Lindeman as up to 87 MPH in 2.0 scoreless frames with four strikeouts. He was, once again, a strike-throwing machine. 

3) Stix 2024 Scout left-handed pitcher Trent Collier, a Grayson commit, punched out 13 hitters in 6.0 impressive frames. With a fastball up to 88 MPH that created a lot of whiffs in the hitting zone, Collier frustrated the opposition with a heater that punched above its weight and a changeup down and to his arm side. 

He wasn’t the only arm on his team who impressed. With a hint of crossfire to his delivery and a low three-quarters slot with good shoulder rotation, Boyd right-handed pitcher Braden McIntire fired 6.0 innings and gave up just one hit with seven strikeouts. His fastball was up to 87 MPH and his ability to throw all his pitches for strikes, including a breaking ball that sometimes looked like a curve and slider other times, allowed him to have a lot of success. 

4) Evaluating baseball players is really, really hard. You might think it’s easy. Trust me. It’s not and especially when you publish your thoughts for the world to read. So, when I get a chance to highlight some guys who made me look smart, I’ll grab that opportunity; not all the time, but every now and then. Now is one of those times. 

After we featured Houston Heat 2024 Scout’s Parker Blackman, he mashed a homer and also drilled a deep triple to the wall in center field. He can really fly around the bases and in center field. But the sneaky impact from the left side has now resulted in another homer in a Five Tool event. Plus, Oscar Salazar, an uncommitted two-way prospect who is a righty on the mound, tossed 4.1 no-hit innings. 

5) While we’re on the subject of players who caught my eye in the past, Texas Angels 2024 Keaton left-handed hitting outfielder Zach Gingrich showed the exciting tools that really stood out during the spring. A Smithson Valley product, Gingrich is a noticeably physical prospect who is turning his added strength to loud contact and bat speed. 

He demolished a homer to dead-center and then sent two screaming liners into the outfield – one pulled and one for a double to left-center. Gingrich’s swing has improved since the last time I’ve seen him and his hands work even quicker/better through the zone. I think there’s a real chance Gingrich could play center field at the next level and he’s also been up to 89 MPH on the mound with a very interesting profile there, too. Gingrich looked like a prospect college coaches in attendance need to get an extended look at. 

But Texas Cannons-2024 Chamblee/Patterson took advantage of shaky control on the mound that game and finished Tuesday 2-0. Jonathan Massengale (Krum) helped keep a loaded Texas Angels lineup in check by repeatedly running down balls in center field. He tracks the ball easily, naturally and made playing defense in that spot look relatively easy. 

It’s almost becoming a joke at this point how much I’m writing about pitchers from Keller but there was another really intriguing one on the mound yesterday even though it was just an inning. Right-hander Levi Shaffer was up to 90 MPH while closing out the victory over Texas Angels and featured a relatively easy delivery with an arm that worked well out of a three-quarters slot. 

6) While we’re discussing short relief appearances, Marucci Elite Texas 2024 Dunn right-hander Casan Evans (St. Pius X) faced two batters, by design, and threw only fastballs 92-94 MPH with spin up to 2400 RPM. Evans’ arm looked quick and the ball came out really well. Following a loss in their first game, Marucci Elite Texas 2024 Dunn began to flex its muscle some in its second game. 

Donte Lewis (St. Thomas) drilled a triple to the wall in center field and would later add a loud single pulled through the infield. Playing third base, Lewis also made a tough, charging play on a slow roller and the strength his hands are able to add to his barrel showed when he jumped on fastballs in fastball counts. He's one of several talented uncommitted players that should have college coaches’ attention. Austin Godwin (Cy-Fair) tattooed a couple of balls that found gloves and looked like he has some of the best right-handed raw power in the tournament. 

Like Godwin, Lake Creek catcher Parker Smith doesn’t have anything to show for his impressive at-bats yet, but his right-handed swing immediately became one of my favorites thus far. And he showed his power when he hit a majestic, towering, deep fly ball down the left field line that was so loud off the bat the crowd immediately became silent off impact. 

Coleman Ryan first made my radar spring of 2022 when he put on a wizardly show defensively at shortstop for Tomball. Last night, I saw him up to 90 MPH on the mound with a quick arm and some feel for spin. He scattered the fastball around and is still new to pitching, but it was an interesting look from a guy who has also been 4.0 down the line from the right side and can defend in a premium spot. And the list goes on… we’ll see if this team can turn it around and its talent can show with a run deep into its bracket. 

The team that handed Marucci Elite Texas 2024 Dunn its opening loss was TBT Ballers 17U National, who finished 2-0 Tuesday thanks in large part to the bat of Midlothian Heritage product Caleb Railey. The right-handed hitter established himself as a batter to follow when he mashed a no-doubt bomb way over the left field fence. It was an impressive swing against a fastball up in the zone and Railey’s steady head through his swing, which featured good rotation and hands working directly to the baseball after some late separation in the timing, should allow him to repeat what he does in the batter’s box well. 

7) The nightcap Tuesday featured Hawaii 2G Elite Toro and OK Fuel, which turned into a seemingly endless show of talented arms on the mound. Cale Sudderth, a big, imposing left-handed hitter and pitcher, caught my attention Monday and then became the star of Tuesday night’s show. He went 2-for-3 against really good pitching and also pitched 6.0 solid innings. He gave up just two runs on six hits, two walks and punched out seven against one of the tournament’s most talented lineups. With a fastball up to 89 MPH that got whiffs up and down in the zone, Sudderth (Lone Grove; Oklahoma) also mixed in a short curveball at 70-75 MPH to keep hitters guessing. Oklahoma State commitment and standout shortstop Braylon Brooks came in to close and got the job done with a fastball up to 90 MPH.

Tall, athletic right-handed pitcher Ka'imi Kahalekai gave Hawaii Elite 2G Toro a strong outing on the mound and showcased why he’s one of the most intriguing uncommitted right-handed pitchers in the tournament. But the major standout on the mound from Hawaii was Taylin Oana. In 2.0 brilliant innings, the Pima College signee from Kaiser (Hawaii) punched out four batters and generated whiffs with all his pitches – fastball (sinker, too), curveball and changeup. In particular, the spin of his overhand breaking ball really stood out and his delivery is one to bet on long-term. 

Dustin McComas
Senior Editor