The Arizona High School baseball season officially started this past Monday and we are excited to get out to continue our coverage this spring. On Sunday, February 9th, PBR Arizona wrapped up their preseason schedule in Mesa, Arizona with our Preseason Identification that will be the last HS aged event until the Arizona High School season concludes. We began our post-event analysis earlier this week with our Statistical Analysis, taking a look at the top statistical performers in each category. This identification event gave us some good knowledge into some players that we haven't seen before. We also got a chance to see a couple of players we haven't seen in a couple months. 

Today, we continue our analysis with an early look at some of the initial takeaways from the Preseason ID in Part Two of our Quick Hits.

QUICK HITS (PART two)

JUNIORS

+ 2021 RHP/OF Cayden Musgrove (Basha, AZ)- 6-foot-3 190-pounds, some strength & durability to frame, strong legs, looks noticeably leaner than back in mid December. Hits from upright base using a leg kick to generate leverage. Long swing with extra movement. Turns the barrel early, getting around the baseball. Pull approach with average contact, some pop at 88mph. Pitches from tall/fall delivery with some effort. Straight FB from H ¾ slot sat 78-80mph with slight occasional run. Threw two BB’s that were similar in shape. BB was throwing at L ¾ arm slot at 62-66mph.

+ 2021 LHP/OF Damien Tipton (Betty H. Fairfax, AZ)- 5-foot-10 155-pounds, small with strong legs, some projectability. Two-way player that had a good day on the mound. Threw with max effort from ¾ slot, quick arm. FB was thrown for strikes at 79-81mph with late run. Varying shape on his CV at 70-74mph, showed above average on a couple pitches. CH was a better pitch that had some high spin, thrown down in zone with some sinking action.

Sophomore FOllows

+ 2022 C/3B/RHP Thomas DeChesaro (Saguaro, AZ)- 5-foot-10 160-pounds, lean athletic build, some present athleticism. Ran a 7.18 60-yard dash. Solid day all around, especially defensively. Versatile player that showed some decent actions at 3 positions. Overall quick arm and some natural arm strength. Quick Releases behind the plate, popping up out of his crouch. Solid footwork in the INF. Fields ball cleanly, funneling baseball to belt buckle. Carry on throws at 81mph. Average hitter that had trouble timing his movements. Showed Quick, long arm action on the mound with some effort. Straight FB sat 80-82mph from L3/4 slot. Inconsistent CV at 67-68mph with varying shape, missing up. He threw a good one or two. CH cuts at 71-73mph. Interesting player to monitor going forward.

+ 2022 3B/1B Jorge Febres (Red Mountain, AZ)- 5-foot-11 200-pounds, above average strength to frame with some durability. Hits from a squared balanced base using a knee turn leg lift to transfer energy into the back leg. Showed some body control. Looked to drive the baseball with an aggressive swing. Middle/ pull approach with some pop at 85mph. More athletic actions in the INF than his 7.97 60-yard dash time would suggest. Above average foot work, fielding balls cleanly with direction going towards 1B. 79mph arm strength across the diamond. Development should be followed.

+ 2022 3B/1B Dante Turgeon (Benjamin Franklin, AZ)- 6-foot-2 188-pounds, some strength with average athleticism & mobility. Had the top exit velocity of the day at 94mph. Hits from tall upright base with medium leg lift, getting tall in back leg. Throws his hands at the baseball, cutting himself off at times. Middle approach with pop. Average feet and stiff actions in the INF. 70mph arm strength across the diamond. Future first basemen.

Standout Freshmen

+ 2023 OF/3B Christian Roncal (Sunrise Mountain, AZ)- 5-foot-10 160-pounds, lean frame with present strength, looks bigger than his size says. Hits with a middle/pull approach from body load toe tap trigger. Overall quick movements at the plate with extra movement pre-pitch. Hard line drive contact with some lift at 88mph. Good pop for size. Quick feet in the OF with some carry on his throws at 80mph. Should improve across the board over time.

Young Buck

+ 2024 LHP/OF Matthew Stork (Hamilton, AZ)- 5-foot-7 145-pounds, young body that hasn't begun maturing. One of the youngest players at the event. Liked his future projection on the mound. Threw from H ¾ slot with short arm action and easy effort. Straight FB sat 69-72mph with slight sink on a couple pitches. Mixed in some good off-speed. Threw a late sharp SL with 2/8 shape at 65-66mph. ASR CH had some sink at 67-68mph. Ball came out clean with smooth rhythm. Monitor as he starts physically maturing and getting stronger.

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