Prep Baseball Report

NorCal ProCase Preview: Catchers


Blaine Clemmens
Northern CA Director of Scouting

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LATHROP, CA. - The inaugural Northern California ProCase Preview had 35 players taking part in the showcase where players were put through traditional showcase workout that included the 60-yard sprint, two rounds of batting practice (some used wood only, some used wood in one round and BBCOR in the other), defensive workouts at respective positions (multiple spots for a few players), and concluded with main diamond mound bullpen sessions where the pitchers' stats were compiled.

Note: All showcase videos have been added to player profiles. We will post reports by position this week (corner INFs, outfielders, MIFs, RHPs). They are ordered by their throwing velocity, followed by exit velocity.

CLICK HERE FOR SORTABLE PLAYER STATISTICS INCLUDING TRACKMAN AND BLAST MOTION DATA

Griffen Sotomayor, Turlock (CA), 2022 - Washington State commit
Positional Profile: C/3B
Body: 6-0, 195-pounds. Thick and powerful, present strength throughout.
Hit: RHH. Wide feet, barrel relaxed over shoulder, slight crouch, balanced set-up, slight lift to small stride, short quick trigger, generates bat speed easily. Quiet yet violent, controls barrel w/life throughout the swing, generates power w/out over swinging; 21.6 max rotational acceleration (18.58 avg), 59% on plane efficiency, 81% LDs/fly balls.
Power: 96 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 21.4 max hand speed, 73.8 max bat speed (67.4 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 78 mph. Strong arm with tailing action and inconsistent carry, the raw arm is present to develop above avg C/T skills.
Defense: 1.96-2.01 pop times. Lower body and arm were out of sync in C/T display, athletically bounced out of squat, wide base as receiver w/agility, strong soft hands, swallows up the pitch w/excellent presentation.
Run: 7.25 runner in the 60.

Conner Smith, Capital Christian (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/3B
Body: 6-3, 190-pounds. Long and lanky, athletically  put together, highly projectable.
Hit: RHH. Wide feet, off the plate, squared feet, hands held high, balanced, small stride lift to slightly closed stride. Loose hands, quiet head, controls barrel, projectable swing for future playable power; 64% on plane efficiency, 50% LDs.
Power: 95 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 22.8 max hand speed (20.82 avg), 74.6 max bat speed (68.77 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 78 mph. Raw arm is strong, mechanics led to inconsistent carry though throws were generally in-line to the bag.
Defense: 1.95-2.09 pop times. Tall at release in C/T mechanics, soft strong hands, has agility for block/control, show/drop relax/stick glove work as receiver.
Run: 7.35 runner in the 60.

Jacob Cullen, Vista Del Lago (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C
Body: 6-2, 175-pounds. Lanky body with athletic proportions and room for size/strength.
Hit: RHH. Tall, balanced, square feet, slight lift to stride, quiet hands, creates barrel tilt. Controls barrel, glides into stride plant, torquey hips, wristy finish, whips barrel; 66% on plane efficiency, 50% LDs, 37.5% fly balls.
Power: 92 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 20.1 max hand speed, 68.8 max bat speed (64.93 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 78 mph. Easy quick arm, flick release, consistently around bag, occasional trailed on arm side.
Defense: 1.93-2.11 pop times. Quiet efficient release, athletic quick feet, agile receiver, soft to stick receive, sees pitch early with quiet actions.
Run: 7.33 runner in the 60.

Gavin Ducker, Palma (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/1B
Body: 6-2, 205-pounds. Thick and strong, athletic proportions, strong core.
Hit: RHH. Wide feet, high hands, slight crouch, very slightly open, into legs early, knee lift into stride, small quiet hand load. Quick trigger, direct to ball, crash stride into contact, powerful torque and rotation, punishing contact, keeps top hand above the ball; 23 max rotational acceleration (18.52 avg), 61% on plane efficiency, 66.7% fly balls.
Power: 95 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 23.2 max hand speed (21.63 avg), 77.1 max bat speed (71.53 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 77 mph. Quick strong arm, clean transfer, throws tailed to arm side.
Defense: 2.00-2.12 pop times. Sat a bit high on pops, showed agility while receiving in multiple set-ups, target/drop relax/catch technique, strong hands, can stick it.
Run: 7.58 runner in the 60.

Ryan Lee, St. Francis (Mountain View, CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/3B/OF
Body: 5-11, 190-pounds. No change from recent viewing; Broad upper body, has present strength, built well.
Hit: RHH. Narrow feet, tall stance, starts with lower hands before raising up to shoulder height, long controlled stride, aggressive set up to lift the ball. Steep attack angle, lively hands, ball jumps off barrel, aims to lift and he accomplishes that; 66% on plane efficiency, 31.3% LDs, 50% fly balls.
Power: 94 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 20.6 max hand speed, 72.5 max bat speed (63.91 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 77 mph. INF - 84 mph. OF - 86 mph. Throws track in-line, C/T throws were high but over the bag, quick loose INF/OF arm, legit arm strength plays at all 3 positions, pats ball into glove in both INF/OF.
Defense: 1.98-2.01 pop times. Massages ball into zone behind plate, soft strong hands, confident in his glove skills, athletic feet translated to all 3 spots (C/3B/OF).
Run: 7.25 runner in the 60.

Zachary Yorke, Archbishop Mitty (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/3B/1B
Body: 6-0, 260-pounds. Thick and stout, wide with ample lower body strength.
Hit: LHH. Balance, slight pinched knee crouch, squared feet, loads hands to lower slot from pre-pitch set-up, sets hands to lift the ball. Rhythmic swing, ball attacker, stays above ball, two hand finish, punishing pull side power, fairly small swing with ability to generate abv avg power; 17.2 max rotational acceleration, 78% on plane efficiency, 41.2% LDs, 47.1% fly balls.
Power: 97 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 22.2 max hand speed, 74.9 max bat speed (67.8 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 76 mph. Longer arm action for C position, loose arm, raw arm strength is present though inconsistent carry to bag in C workout.
Defense: 2.01-2.12 pop times. Sits low, strong soft hands, ball didn't move a bit when received, confident receiving skills, got out of crouch well on block/recover, sees ball early w/understanding of which pitches need framing and which are balls.
Run: 7.81 runner in the 60.

Jack Vanoncini, Carlmont (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/UTL
Body: 6-2, 185-pounds. Long and lanky build with present athleticism and budding strength.
Hit: RHH. Slight early weight to back leg, early barrel set-up behind head, square feet, small stride (almost none), deep load of hands creates stretch/tension, tips upper body a bit at start of swing. Loose hands, lively swing, projects to have power that plays primarily to pull side though flashed CF/RCF juice; 53% on plane efficiency, 68.8% LDs/fly balls.
Power: 91 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 21.6 max hand speed, 69.5 max bat speed (67 avg).
Arm: RH. C - 75 mph. INF - 84 mph. OF - 86 mph. Loose athletic arm, flick arm stroke, INF/OF throws carried well, arm projects above avg at any spot though mechanics behind plate create inconsistency.
Defense: 1.95-2.09 pop times. Sweeps glove to throwing hand in exchange, bit of a high set-up in C/T drill, athletic feet, moves gracefully, soft hands translated to all 3 positions, UTL profile.
Run: 7.36 runner in the 60.

Tyson Smith, St. Francis (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: C/2B
Body: 5-11, 175-pounds. Well-proportioned, strength starting to show.
Hit: LHH. Balanced, slightly open, relaxed hands, small smooth load, reverse toe tap prior to in-line stride, maintains balance throughout swing. Controls barrel, can spray/shoot ball to all fields, line drive oriented stroke with barrel awareness; 65% on plane efficiency, 59% LDs, 37.5% fly balls.
Power: 86 mph exit velocity in live BP via TrackMan. 68 max bat speed.
Arm: RH. C - 68 mph. INF - 72 mph. Deep-ish arm action behind plate, inconsistent carry w/some tailing action, in INF showed playable arm for 2B position.
Defense: 2.14-2.27 pop times. Solid glove skills both at C and INF, quiet receiver, works below the ball on the low pitch.
Run: 7.49 runner in the 60.

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