The 2023 Utter Family Dealerships Pudge Rodriguez World Classic, powered by Scott Birmingham - Baird Private Wealth Management, wrapped up an entertaining, competitive day one greeted by the occasional annoying hard drizzle and divine temperatures in the 70s. The competition, like the weather, will surely heat up in the very near future, but day one presented plenty of high-level baseball from the morning’s first pitch until the Dallas Patriots hitting a bases-clearing, walk-off triple to wrap up action at the Z-Plex Texas Sports Village in Melissa. Here are five things that caught my eye during day one:

1) Obviously, I didn’t see all the pitchers who threw Tuesday. But I did see Nick Foster of Fort Worth Country Day and Stix 2025 Prospects Black and came away very impressed. A skinny right-hander with a loose frame and loose, quick arm, Foster touched 87 MPH with his fastball that featured spin in the 2300 RPM range at times. A natural spinner of the baseball, Foster flashed a couple of true overhand curveballs with as high as 2647 RPM that predictably overwhelmed hitters at 73-75 MPH and he also showed a changeup at around 81 MPH and a slider, too. 

When Foster missed, he generally missed where he was aiming and showed signs of promising command in the future of his fastball, which he moved to both sides of the plate. Given the way Foster spun the baseball, threw strikes and how he looked on the mound, he’s especially exciting because there is plenty of upside remaining. 

2) Let’s keep it in the Stix family and also a great baseball family: Stix Scout 2025 infielder Eli Willits, a 2026 prospect from Fort Cobb-Broxton, Oklahoma, is without question one of the best prospects and players in the event. I was floored to read he’s just a 2026 prospect because he played the game at such an advanced level and managed to stand out on a loaded team full of dudes. Older brother Jaxon Willits is among our favorite Five Tool performers ever, but I’d be lying if I said I don’t think little brother Eli, who is committed to Oklahoma, could be better, which is quite a statement considering Jaxon was an Area Code standout and one of the nation's best seniors. 

From the left side, Willits showed high-level bat-to-ball skill, good control of the barrel, the ability to come up big in the clutch and he ran well, too. Defensively, Willits made playing the hot corner look easy, converting a couple of tough chances on a slick turf confidently and impressively. 

3) The talk of the late afternoon games was LBC National – Agis/Craft center fielder Walker Hill because his center field defense was so good he nearly won his team the game by seemingly robbing Stix 2025 Scout of at least five extra-base hits. I say “robbing” but the reality is he was so good off the bat with his reads, routes and tracking balls into the gaps that his level of defense made it look like he was constantly robbing the opponent of extra bases. 

In addition to his excellent, game-changing defense, the Boerne prospect handled the bat well and pulled a hard single late in the game with promising feel for controlling the barrel through the hitting zone. 

4) Bouncing around from field to field means seeing a lot of different teams instead of sitting at one game the entire time. After seeing Slammers Austin, I’m especially excited to give it an extended look later this week. Up-and-down the lineup there was a high level of competitiveness and impressive physicality and athleticism. Slammers Austin had a look of a team who could go toe-to-toe with anyone, which will be tested tonight when it faces Stix 2025 Scout. 

Right-handed pitcher Ethan Zufall (Broomfield) was very impressive on the mound with a fastball up to 89 MPH and a slider he could bury near the backfoot of left-handed hitters. 

5) There were a lot of quality catchers to watch on Tuesday, but Scooter New of Texas Braves Blue deserves special recognition. He caught two runners stealing, which on its own is impressive but not extraordinary. How the Arlington Heights prospect did it really stood out. 

Behind the dish, he has one of the quickest transfers I’ve seen this year and resulted in a 1.9 in-game pop; the ball hits his glove and gets into and out of his hand so extremely fast that it results in him throwing to a spot near the bag instead of an infielder. He was like a quarterback throwing a deep comeback route to a spot near the sideline 20 yards away before the receiver had even come out of his break and turned his head around. Although a bit undersized for the position, New moves really well and should continue to grow. 

Dustin McComas
Senior Editor