After getting an extended look at the 2024 and 2026 classes last weekend during the opening weekend of the Texas Twelve Scout League, I was back in Katy for a couple of days to get an in-person look at four of the 2025 teams. Notes on the Red Sox, Black, South Texas Navy and Gold teams:

2025 RED SOX
Ridge Point right-handed pitcher and left-handed hitting first baseman Mason Murphy is a fascinating and intriguing prospect long-term. An imposing 6-5, 230-pound pitcher with arm strength, Murphy’s fastball touched 89 MPH and it’s an especially interesting pitch because at times it takes the shape of a sinker with a spin rate around 1,800-1,900 RPM and other times the RPM jumps up to around 2,500 with both carry and run. 

A tight end in football, Murphy, who is uncommitted, is still learning how to leverage his physicality and lower half into his delivery and could be a pitcher who throws really, really hard in the future. His breaking ball, which kind of looked like a knuckle-curve because of its grip and lower spin rate, is a work in progress, but the changeup flashes as a potential swing-and-miss offering against left-handed hitters. As a hitter, he had a couple of knocks in the second game Friday, showed some bat-to-ball ability and that he isn’t looking to try to pull everything with power. 

Another tall right-hander, Nathan Johnson (Seven Lakes) routinely beat hitters with his fastball even in fastball counts. The pitch was up to 86 MPH with some carry through the zone and his lower release height coupled with his 6-5 frame created a little extra giddy-up through the zone. Johnson’s breaking ball settled in at 65-67 MPH with some sweep and is a developing pitch. With the bat, Johnson pulled a hard extra-base hit and looks like a future middle-of-the-order bat who moved well for his size and age. 

Perhaps the best changeup of the week came courtesy of Kinkaid right-handed pitcher and Texas A&M commitment Jack Paris. He has a lot of confidence in the pitch, which featured barely any vertical movement and a lot of horizontal life with good extension through the finish. At around 75 MPH and 1500 RPM, Paris’s changeup looked like a future plus pitch. His fastball settled in around 85 MPH with some sink and his curveball was 76 MPH and is still a work in progress. 

Katy right-hander Aiden Barrientes touched 86 MPH in a short appearance with some carry through the zone and a curveball with spin up to 2400 RPM at 72 MPH. The uncommitted prospect showed strike-throwing tendencies and also flashed a changeup (71 MPH) and slider (75 MPH). Blaine Bullard, a Texas A&M commitment from Klein Cain, fired strikes from the left side with his fastball (up to 84 MPH) and slider (71 MPH). He moved well on the mound with some command of his fastball to his glove side. 

But he's undoubtedly a dude with the stick from the left side and really showed that during Friday’s action with high-level at-bats and bat-to-ball skill consistently. Friendswood’s Dane Perry touched 83 MPH on the mound, but once he put the catcher’s gear, it was obvious he’s a future catcher at Texas Tech. Interestingly, he reminded me of former Friendswood standout and current Texas Tech catcher Dylan Maxcey behind the dish. Perry is listed at 5-8 and moves with impressive agility as a receiver and in the run game, with the skill and arm strength to impact the run game; he even back-picked a runner at second base during game action. At the plate, he showed really quick hands, handled the barrel, and jumped all over hittable fastballs in good counts. 

George Ranch right-handed hitter Blake Beheler had no issue timing pitches and took some of the best swings on the team. His strength shows in the way the ball comes off the barrel and he showed he could get to pitches down in the zone as well as mash mistakes in the heart of the plate. Lucas Franco, a TCU commitment, looked a little fatigued, but also impressed in the batter’s box mentally; after getting fooled by a changeup, he immediately hit the next one he saw in a similar location for a single. He seems to have good strike zone awareness and saw the ball well. 

Keller left-handed hitter Bach Hartwig easily timed pitches, probably the best of anyone on Friday, and utilized advanced bat-to-ball skill to make quality contact consistently. William Van Wie had one of the highlights during Friday’s action when he hammered a deep double to the wall in left field. 

2025 GOLD
Buckle up when Strake Jesuit’s Logan Lorenz is up at the plate. A physical left-handed hitter with a sturdy, strong frame that still has some projection, Lorenz tattooed baseballs and had the swing of the day during Thursday’s action. Lorenz pounded a screaming liner that rolled to the wall in center field and probably didn’t get higher than three feet off the ground; it was a loud 99.5 MPH off the bat and a true representation of his ability to impact the baseball. 

Another loud moment at the plate came courtesy of Hudson Bardwell (The Woodlands Christian Academy), who understands who he is as a hitter – a pull hitter with pop. He got his arms extended and put the barrel on a fastball away and was still able to pull it out for a solo homer to left field. Stephen Shavlan (Spring Branch Memorial), Landon Ellstrom (Cypress Ranch), and Nolan Veeder (Cinco Ranch) all timed quality fastballs well and all put the barrel on the baseball at least once during Thursday and Friday’s games. Left-handed hitter Caden Hinze handled an inside fastball well with a short swing and hands that quickly worked through the zone. 

Although he pitched with some traffic on base, I thought Jaden Loggins (Fulshear) was impressive because he looked like he can truly pitch and execute. A thin 6-1, Loggins threw a fastball (81 MPH), curveball (66 MPH), slider (71 MPH) and changeup (72) MPH. In particular, the changeup was very impressive with spin around 1,000 RPM and fastball arm action that created some late tumble and whiffs against lefties. Speaking of quality changeups, Isaac Ly of Kinkaid threw one of the best ones of the weekend at 72 MPH with around 1,200 RPM. He’s not going to beat guys often with his fastball, but he was able to throw both his curveball and changeup for strikes in fastball counts. 

2025 BLACK
Concordia Lutheran’s Cole Lanclos caught my eye before his sophomore season, which ended very well, and getting another in-person look reinforced that he’s one of the top uncommitted two-way talents in the Houston area. Offensively, it seemed like Lanclos was always on base and when he got on base, he took second base on the first pitch before sometimes stealing third, too. He’s a skilled infielder who bounced around to different positions effortlessly and the game came easy to him. 

On the mound from a lower slot, Lanclos fired sinking fastballs up to 85 MPH. At first, he could only get his fastball to his arm side, which is initially where he missed. But later in his Thursday outing, Lanclos started hammering the glove side with fastballs, too. At times, his breaking ball took the shape of a curveball around 72 MPH and other times it looked like a slider around 74 MPH. Given his lower slot and lower release height, the slider will likely emerge as the better offering, but he did have some feel for spinning the curve. A good athlete and skilled player, Lanclos appeared poised for a big summer. 

The Black team should have some of the better depth and talent on the mound wherever it is this summer. TCU commitment and Katy right-hander Cade Nelson was extremely impressive. At around 6-5 and 185 pounds, you’d expect Nelson to be a bit awkward and stiff on the mound. He was the opposite. He moved well, repeated, and utilized a clean, quick arm to fire fastballs up to 89 MPH with some carry and run. Occasionally, he’d throw what looked like a sinker and other times it was more of a true four-seamer. 

Nelson’s breaking ball bounced between a slider (77 MPH) and curveball (73-75 MPH), showing some feel and knowledge of how to manipulate the shape. At 78 MPH, Nelson threw a changeup with a lot of run and was able to execute it for strikes. He looked like a high-level pitching prospect long-term and a good early commitment by TCU. 

The Woodlands right-hander Erich Daigle emerged as a key piece out of the bullpen for one of the state’s best pitching staffs. He’ll have a chance to shine this summer in a more prominent role and is poised to take off. Daigle, who appeared to be around 6-1, touched 88 MPH with his fastball that occasionally showed some impressive vertical movement and carry through the zone; at times against lefties, he threw a fastball with some sink to the arm side. But the standout pitch was the slider, which touched 79 MPH with 2426 RPM. It’s a true slider with short, tight break and he also featured a promising changeup at 74 MPH. 

From the left side, Bridgeland’s Christopher Gutierrez ran his fastball up to 87 MPH and threw a changeup at 79 MPH. Another good athlete and right-handed pitcher was Caleb Holifield (The Woodlands). It’s rare to see a right-handed pitcher pick off a runner at first base and especially rare to see it happen twice. Holifield picked off two runners, showcasing his impressive athleticism with a quick move on the mound. He ran his fastball up to 84 MPH and his short, sharp breaking ball settled in around 72 MPH. 

The Black team features several athletic left-handed hitters who had strong days at the plate during Thursday and Friday’s action. Kai Hood (A&M Consolidated) played a solid center field and used strong hands/wrists in the batter’s box; at times, his barrel feel got away from him when he unleased his swing, but he created some surprising impact considering his thin frame and enjoyed a really impressive all-around day Friday. He was one of the best players during this week’s games. Travis Reid (Fulshear) destroyed a pitch for an extra-base hit and is a good mover both offensively and defensively. His high school and summer teammate Mason Schultz had one of the loudest swings on Friday when he roped a hard, run-scoring double to the fence.

Carter Nannini (Seven Lakes) stayed back on a changeup and whacked a hard double during Friday action. Yarel Delgado is another left-handed hitter who was a threat on the bases and looked the part when he was in motion. From the right side, Caden Schindler (Clear Creek) reached out and created some surprising carry off the barrel without getting off his best swing, and surprised some outfielders who were burned for an extra-base hit. Wyatt Davis (Lake Creek) got the bat to pitches down in the strike zone with success. 

2025 SOUTH TEXAS NAVY
Coaches of this team will love what they have to work with in the middle of the infield. Jake Barron, who really stood out defensively for Tomball Memorial during the regular season and playoffs, made play after play after play defensively. A thin 5-11, once Barron fills out and adds some strength to his physical makeup, he could really take off because the skill, especially with the glove, is already standing out each time he takes the field. 

Jayden Paluseo (Flour Bluff) impressed with his bat from the right side, glove on the infield but is probably a better catcher than anything else. His makeup and athletic profile fit well behind the dish. The game comes easy to him. Gian Fernandez, a big-bodied right-handed hitter from The Woodlands, created some very loud contact off the barrel. 

Dustin McComas
Senior Editor