The 2023 AABC Don Mattingly World Series was loaded with 64 teams from Texas, nearby states and even Canada. That means the list of notable performances, standout players, and uncommitted prospects is a very, very long one. And we’re thrilled to share the event included 122 scouts from 83 different colleges or professional organizations.

Our scouting coverage from the event will feature eight lengthy stories – hope you packed a sandwich because I wrote a lot of words - to cover the eight pools of teams. While our scouting team couldn’t be everywhere at once, obviously, we’ve also spent hours looking at our excellent video coverage, which you can find on player profiles and under the AABC Don Mattingly World Series event page here at FiveTool.org. 

We’ll continue with Pool 2 teams and will begin with the team who won its pool with a 22-6 victory to advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament:

(Consider all players mentioned uncommitted prospects unless otherwise noted.)

Dallas Tigers – Bergman
After surviving a thrilling, high-scoring quarterfinal game against 5 Star Performance DFW 2024 – National, Dallas Tigers – Bergman run-ruled its semifinal opponent before coming up just short in the title game. That quarterfinal win came courtesy of a loud, majestic grand slam hit deep into the night sky by Oklahoma State commitment Caleb Hoover (Rockwall-Heath). A lot of credit goes to Hoover from developing his body physically and clearly putting in time away from the field to turn himself into a strong, physical, two-way prospect. As a hitter, Hoover does a good job of starting upright and sinking his weight towards the ground while he times pitches, allowing him to leverage his lower half while he rotates with a quick, short swing with a path to do damage in the air. 

He ended up with a .474/.630/.789 slash line after 27 plate appearances with eight walks and four strikeouts. A lot of his damage is going to be done to the pull side, and he understands who he is as a hitter. On the mound, I came away impressed with Hoover’s deep arsenal, feel for pitching and strike-throwing. The righty featured a fastball (86-89 MPH), curveball (68-70 MPH), slider (75-77 MPH) and changeup (80-82 MPH). In 6.1 innings, he gave up just one earned run on three hits, one walk and struck out nine. Although his breaking ball spin rates were below average, the look of the pitches visually did what he wanted them to do. 

I don’t know if we could track this, but my guess is Sawyer Farr might end up one of the most productive hitters in Five Tool history. The Boswell prospect and Texas A&M commitment always performs and his final AABC Don Mattingly World Series was no different. Farr hit .500/.645/.909 with eight walks and three strikeouts across 32 plate appearances. A switch-hitter, Farr obviously does most of his damage from the left side, but he showed the feel for making quality contact and handling the bat from the right side, too. He stood out in all areas: pitch recognition; adjustments during at-bats; competitiveness (4.08 seconds down the line in the top of the seventh inning to keep the championship game alive); defense; mental approach; athleticism. It was all on display. Farr cemented his status as one of the top players in the state and nation. It’s hard not to look at Farr’s frame and profile and not think of former Texas A&M shortstop and Atlanta Braves first-round pick Braden Shewmake. 

Speaking of guys who cemented themselves as top players and prospects, Brock’s Sawyer Strosnider ended up following Hoover’s grand slam in the next inning with a deep, walk-off single to right field during the Tigers’ quarterfinal win. And like Farr, Strosnider, a left-handed hitting outfielder and pitcher committed to TCU, blasted a homer in the semifinal. An impressive athlete who was an all-region pick as a basketball player and finished runner-up at State in the high jump, Strosnider can legitimately do it all on the field. 

As a hitter, he creates a rubber band-like effect with his hands moving back towards the catcher and steadily held as his weight moves forward before he unleashes his quick, strong hands with the barrel following through the zone in a way that suggests he’s probably not going to be a hitter with a high whiff rate. He finished with a .417/.548/.667 slash line with only two strikeouts and led the team with 13 runs scored. As a pitcher, Strosnider was up to 90 MPH in 2.0 innings with four strikeouts. In addition to complimenting his fastball with a curveball, his changeup spin was as low as 1100 RPM and can create some whiffs against right-handed hitters. 

While Jack Hickerson, a Baylor commitment, didn’t feature the usual velocity we’re used to seeing (sat 84-86 MPH mostly and touched 88 MPH) he was easily one of the most productive pitchers in the tournament. In two starts, Hickerson didn’t give up an earned run in 9.0 innings, struck out 16, walked just two and only gave up seven hits. Caden Richardson punched out eight in 3.1 innings with a fastball up to 90 MPH, slider at 77-80 MPH and curveball with spin up to 2300 RPM at 72 MPH. He had distinct feel for two breakers and a short takeaway out of the glove. Another right-hander up to 90 MPH, Cooper Moore walked three and struck out four in 3.2 innings.

In 8.0 scoreless innings, Liberty Christian right-hander Alex Caddell gave up just three hits, walked three and struck out nine. He was another right-hander with a short takeaway and arm path, which appeared to add some deception to his fastball and sharp slider (75-77 MPH) versus right-handers. Recent Oklahoma commitment Berkeley Roddy showed arm strength during his 1.2 innings but inconsistent control. Texas commitment Zachary Applegate didn’t enjoy much success on the mound, but he did as a hitter with a .500/.647/.750 slash line and only one strikeout in 17 plate appearances. A big, strong left-handed hitter, Applegate blasted a homer and can put a charge into mistakes with some pull-side thump. 

Typically, when DBU snags an early commitment from a position player, that player can really hit. Colton Roquemore can hit and had some impressive barrel feel/accuracy from the left side with just one strikeout in 30 plate appearances. Another member of that 2024 DBU commitment list, Park Prater is still working his way back to get on the mound, but he mashed a grand slam the opposite way to show his standout two-way ability. ACU commitment Brady Gray looked the part of a future college catcher - physical, strong, skilled behind the dish. 

Dallas Bandits 2024 National
Unfortunately for the Bandits, they ran out of gas and arms when they met Dallas Tigers – Bergman for a chance to stay alive and reach the quarterfinal of the tournament. But they competed well beforehand. Rodney Haywood (Acellus; Missouri) is a player whose tools caught my eye in the fall, and he smacked a line drive, solo homer out to right field. Eastfield 2023 signee Jorge Herrera was among the team’s most productive hitters, ending the tournament with a .455/.538/.545 slash line. 

Big and strong with a noticeable vertical angle to accompany his swing, Lake Highlands right-handed hitter Mathew Hutchinson can mash baseballs to the pull-side and even mis-hit an extra-base hit the opposite way, a true sign of his strength. 

Dirtbags Tx – 2024
Ridge Morgan, a Texas commitment from Westwood High School, threw much better than his four earned runs in 3.0 innings suggests. He was on the wrong end of a couple of at-bats against Strosnider and Farr and his defense didn’t provide much help. If anything, Morgan threw too many strikes and his misses out of the zone were quality lines. Morgan sat 87-89 MPH with his sinker (1700-1900 RPM) that had its usual arm-side life and snapped off sliders with spin up to 2700 RPM at 78-89 MPH with a changeup at 80 MPH. At times, the right-hander put his slider near the backfoot of lefties and was also able to throw it for a strike earlier in counts. 

I remain convinced that if Morgan added a true four-seam fastball to his arsenal, it would sit comfortably in the low 90s with room to bump up close to 95 MPH. He has more arm strength than the radar gun shows. His arm path is a bit of an unorthodox one with somewhat late hand break and a non-traditional look to get the ball up to head level before rotation of his shoulders begins to fire to home plate, from a near sidearm slot, after foot plant. Considering his feel for spin, strike-throwing and arm strength, there are a lot of present ingredients that make Morgan an intriguing developmental candidate at the next level. 

The Central Texas outfield duo of Colby DeMars (Liberty Hill) and Nick Dunch (Round Rock) both had swing-and-miss issues at times, but also both showed their intriguing right-handed pop with homers; DeMars blasted two in the same game. Jackson Gula, a left-handed hitter from Westwood, played a solid center field and hit .333/.429/.333 with some speed in his profile. Round Rock 2025 catcher Chris Alsobrooks stood out during the spring with his right-handed bat speed and intriguing pop, and he more than held his own in the Mattingly both offensively and defensively. He’ll likely be catching lefty Sam DeLong often for the Dragons next season. DeLong sat 83-86 MPH with his fastball, which featured a hint of tilt/run, and also spun a curveball with slight two-plane break at 70-71 MPH with a standout changeup around 75 MPH and 1500 spin. With some feel for pitching, throwing strikes and a quality changeup, DeLong should emerge as a key piece for Round Rock next season. 

UBC 17U Badarack
Byron Burrell, a 5-7 center fielder with a compact yet physical frame, covered a ton of ground in center field and created some surprising juice off the bat from the right side. Despite putting the ball in play hard at a solid rate, Propser’s William Adimora didn’t have much to show for it in the stat book. However, he moved down the line from the right side in 4.3 seconds, has some pop as a hitter, has a good 6-1, 180-pound physical frame and is an interesting all-around talent. Howard College commitment Reece Lunsford performed well at the plate with a .333/.455/.556 slash line that included a triple when he showed off his plus wheels. 

In 1.1 innings, Ethan Atchley, a Rice commitment, showed a swing-and-miss slider with good shape and spin. McKinney right-handed pitcher Anthony Sanchez baffled hitters with his ability to seamlessly use a sidearm or three-quarters slot with some feel for spin. He threw 8.2 scoreless innings across two appearances and gave up just five hits, walked three and struck out nine. 

C2 Baseball Texas Scout 2024
After my first look at Tyer Ryden (Clear Springs) on the mound, I left a fan and really intrigued by his long-term upside. A skinny, undersized right-hander who appeared to be around 5-9, Ryden spun one of the tournament’s best curveballs – a 73-76 MPH swing-and-miss weapon with spin routinely near 2700 RPM. Additionally, Ryden touched 88 MPH with his fastball, which attacked home plate with a bit of angle and tilt, and he also had true feel for a 75 MPH changeup that he immediately used for a strike to his arm side against the first left-handed batter he faced. 

Lutheran South Academy prospect Roland Aguillon is a 6-2 righty who was up to 89 MPH with a low slot/unique release that helped create some sink. Aguillon spun a two-plane curveball at 74 MPH and also a harder slider at 78 MPH. Friendswood right-hander hitter Blake Encarnacion is an interesting, projectable right-handed pitcher with a loose frame and arm. The game sped up on him and UBC 17U Badarack got the best of him with a big first inning, but he was also up to 91 MPH with some promising feel for spin. I’ve long been a fan of Chile Timmons’ (Clear Falls) two-way skill and baseball makeup. In 4.0 innings, he punched out seven batters thanks mostly to a breaking ball with good spin that racked up whiffs. 

Andrew Fonte, a San Jacinto commitment, has catch-and-throw skill that sticks out, especially with his arm strength. Big, physical, left-handed slugger Reed Mallett (Deer Park) showed his strength when he launched a two-run homer and hit .538/.500/1.000. 

OTHER NOTES 
- Canes Southwest – Young 2024 catcher Caden Young had an impressive spring at Allen High School and is among the long list of uncommitted catchers with notable all-around skill and ability. Rains High School is a sneaky good place to find some talent and two-way standout Shawn Robertson is a part of that. On the mound, he struck out six in 4.0 innings and as a right-handed hitter he had two extra-base hits in eight at-bats. 

- Holden Hering, a big, imposing right-hander in the 2025 class from College Station High School, put himself on the map of the college coaches in attendance. With a fastball up to 90 MPH and a relatively easy, low-effort operation on the mound with good shoulder flexibility/rotation, Hering struck out eight batters in 4.0 innings. 

Teammate Landon Graham has very, very active hands while timing pitches, but also created the type of contact that would make you turn your head if you were at an adjacent field. Plano West right-handed hitter Mitchell Morton looked like a future D1 prospect with an impressive frame, and he ended up hitting .429/.636/.571 with just one strikeout. 

Dustin McComas
Senior Editor