Prep Baseball Report

Preseason All-State: Catcher Reports


PBR Georgia Staff

The Preseason All-State was held January 8th at LakePoint Sports. This event was a great chance to see where the athletes were at after a long off season of hard work. These players will be names that we follow throughout the high schools season. The Preseason All-State is a great time for us see these athletes before their season begins. These players went through extended pro-style workout that included batting practice using Trackman and Blast Motion, ran the 60 yard dash using Swift Performance, and much more. Pitchers were able to throw in simulated bullpens during the workout and were able to get numbers and metrics off of our Trackman unit, such as pitch velocity, spin rate, horizontal & vertical movement & much more. There were some players who showed up and continued to build off of prior performances, but there were also some new names who jumped onto our radar with a strong showing on Sunday.

Continuing our post-event coverage for this event, we take a look back at all catchers that were in attendance at the event. 

Top Catching Prospects

Ariston Veasey C / RHP / Starr's Mill, GA / 2024

Position Profile: C/RHP One of the best catchers in the country for 2025.
Body: 6-1, 188-pounds. Large frame with lean muscle throughout. High waist, strong lower half.
Hit: RHH. Narrow base, knees inside feet for optimal center of balance. Active rhythm in hips & hands. Would like to see chest & hands coil to back hip (during load) more gradually at the exact pace and time of his stride. The upper half works into launch position slightly early (before stride foot lands) causing the hands to slow down and wait for landing. It's amazing how well his swings works with that slight discrepancy. Easy fix, much more power coming when that syncs up. Very aggressive with his lower half and this creates serious momentum and allows his backside to fire through his lead leg for knee to knee clearance. Direct, knob led path with occasional sweep. Very good feel for inside out path. Close to becoming a truly dynamic bat.
Power: 97 max exit velocity, averaged 89.3 mph. 379' max distance. Loft to all fields. Ball absolutely jumps off barrel.
Arm: RH. C-86 mph. Plus or better arm strength with a fluid, short catcher arm action H3/4 slot. Arm works close and connected to body.
Defense: 1.89-1.97 pop times. Showed patience and strong hands as a receiver, explodes out of crouch and stayed on his legs with nice footwork and direction on throws. Quick transfer that will only get quicker.
Run: 7.27 runner in the 60.

Michael Hunter Stonecipher C / RHP / Clarke Central , GA / 2025

Position Profile: C/RHP One of the best catchers in the 2025 class. Very well rounded game and he's far from physical maturity.
Body: 5-11, 180-pounds. Broad shoulders, lean muscled frame.
Hit: RHH. Narrow setup, smooth rhythm throughout, crouches down into an athletic positon as he loads hands, short stride, great timing and balance, explosive lower half. Consistent barrel path is short to the zone, long through, lags in the zone, advanced feel for the barrel, can spray the ball with driving force to all fields.
Power: 92 max exit velocity, averaged 80.3 mph. 357' max distance. Backspin barrels to both gaps with serious carry.
Arm: LH. C-78 mph. Traditional catcher's arm action, short, quick, over-the-top, throws carry and are accuate.
Defense: 1.92-2.01 pop times. Advanced throughout, Soft glove, feel for receiving, plays through the ball with quick, clean footwork, quick exchanges, gets to release quickly.

Kaden Alford C / 1B / Mount Pisgah Christian, GA / 2023

Position Profile: C/1B
Body: 6-0, 190-pounds.
Hit: RHH.
Power: 93 max exit velocity, averaged 84.9 mph. 338' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-79 mph.
Defense: 2.00-2.07 pop times.

Lenox Lively C / 1B / Swainsboro, GA / 2024

Position Profile: C/1B Offensive catcher with power potential.
Body: 6-3, 190-pounds. Large frame, lean muscled throughout. High waisted.
Hit: LHH. Wide base with nice weight distribution, back side dominant. Relaxed hands, vertical motionless barrel. Hips start hands in swing, very good separation timing. Consistently catches ball on barrel outside of front foot. Shorter, level swing that can steepen or lessen barrel angle vs diff pitch locations.
Power: 93 max exit velocity, averaged 87.4 mph. 341' max distance. Mixture of top spin and back spin doubles & singles to right center gap and down line.
Arm: RH. C-74 mph. Deliberate OH arm action.
Defense: 1.98-2.05 pop times. Patient reciever, solid direction and momentum toward bag.
Run: 7.33 runner in the 60.

Sam Summerlin C / OF / Westwood, GA / 2025

Position Profile: C/OF
Body: 6-2, 180-pounds. Broad shoulders, long levers. High waist.
Hit: LHH. Athletic, medium base with knees inside feet. Compact forward move, compact swing overall. Hips start hands in swing, very well timed separation. More direct path with some sweep. Late barrel angle adds loft when hands stay inside ball.
Power: 90 max exit velocity, averaged 83.5 mph. 337' max distance. Mixture of top spin and back spin. Carries to gaps.
Arm: RH. C-76 mph. Short, natural catcher arm action OH slot.
Defense: 2.05-2.14 pop times. Patient reciever, good direction to bag w/ shoulders, hips. Feet move well. Above avg transfer for age.
Run: 7.30 runner in the 60.

Best of the rest (alphabetically)

Conner Christopher
Positional Profile: C/2B
Body: 5-7, 155-pounds. Smaller, proportional frame.
Hits: RHH. Tall Slightly open stance. Chest load hands for him, solid balance. Short, direct path, hands work well close to body.
Power: 86 max exit velocity, averaged 74.1 MPH. 280' max distance. Top spin line drives to left side, backspin to oppo gap.
Arm: RH. C-74 mph. Short OH arm action with quick release.
Defense: 2.08-2.12 pop times. Clean reciever with nice footwork, quick transfer for age.
Run: 7.08 runner in the 60.
Brock Clements
Positional Profile: C/OF
Body: 5-11, 175-pounds. Proportional, lean muscled frame.
Hits: RHH. Wide, slightly open base. Creates power from the ground up, minimal head movement. Quiet rhythm in hands, well timed. Short, direct path. Matches plane well.
Power: 91 max exit velocity, averaged 83.5 MPH. 316' max distance. Back spin doubles to both gaps.
Arm: RH. C-77 mph. Short 3/4 arm action was very accurate.
Defense: 2.00-2.08 pop times. Patient reciever, good direction and footwork.
Run: 7.50 runner in the 60.
Andrew Doherty
Positional Profile: C/OF
Body: 6-0, 175-pounds. Long, lean frame, plenty of room to add
Hits: RHH. Balanced, upright setup, keeps it simple throughout, minimal load as he transfers weight onto back-side, short stride, good balance. Barrel path is short to the zone, level through, getting on plane early, quick hand and bat speed, middle/pull approach.
Power: 89 max exit velocity, averaged 77.2 MPH. 309' max distance. Line drives to all fields.
Arm: RH. C-75 mph. Short, quick arm, slight hitch as he loads up on back-side, throws carry.
Defense: 2.19-2.26 pop times. Fields position cleanly, flexible lower half, works through with clean footwork, clean on exchanges, can be long at-times.
Run: 7.03 runner in the 60.
Neyland Hulsey
Positional Profile: C/3B
Body: 5-9, 150-pounds. Stocky, medium frame.
Hits: LHH. One of the more balanced, well sequenced swings in the event. Athletic base knees inside feet, innate feel for separation. Chest loads hands for him. Very good linear connection. Short, direct path with optimal launch angle to create back spin.
Power: 83 max exit velocity, averaged 65.4 MPH. 305' max distance. Ball carries with back spin to both gaps and down lines.
Arm: RH. C-71 mph. Short OH arm action fits for the position. Improving a consistent release point will help pop time.
Defense: 2.10-2.19 pop times. Solid reciever. Footwork needs to continue to improve as well as direction on throws. Plenty athletic to adjust. Exchange is solid.
Run: 7.88 runner in the 60.
Will Roan
Positional Profile: C/3B
Body: 5-9, 165-pounds. Medium, proportional frame. Lean muscled
Hits: RHH. Narrow base with good rhythm between him and hands. Rides backside in stride well, creating good linear connection. Short, direct path with some sweep.
Power: 90 max exit velocity, averaged 73.7 MPH. 201' max distance. top spin line drives.
Arm: RH. C-68 mph. Short OH arm action with acuracy.
Defense: 2.19-2.29 pop times. Solid direction on throws, solid recieving.
Run: 7.32 runner in the 60.
Sam Tomczak
Positional Profile: C/OF
Body: 5-9, 160-pounds. Medium frame with tons of present strength. Strong lower half.
Hits: RHH. Athletic base just outside shoulders with quiet movement in hands. Relaxed upper half takes pressure off hands with chest load, makes for optimal linear connection. Short path that can manipulate the barrel to any pitch in any location.
Power: 81 max exit velocity, averaged 75.1 MPH. 277' max distance. Backspin line drives to both gaps with ease.
Arm: RH. C-74 mph. OF-79 mph. Quick, short arm action H3/4 slot. All throws carry with impressive accuracy.
Defense: 2.10-2.16 pop times. Strong hands as reciever, quick feet with nice direction. Explodes out of crouch.
Run: 7.56 runner in the 60.
Alex Whiteside
Aidan Wray
Positional Profile: C/RHP
Body: 5-10, 165-pounds. High-waisted frame with present strength throughout, particularly in lower half
Hits: RHH. slightly open stance with balance and flex in his legs, hands held high with a high back elbow and a little bat wrap quick hands with some whip to the barrel, stays patient over back leg before stride, then incorporates lower half and lets the hands fly through the zone
Power: 90 max exit velocity, averaged 83.6 MPH. 258' max distance.
Arm: RH. C-75 mph. quick transfer directly into throwing position behind the plate, accurate throws with good carry
Defense: 2.04-2.12 pop times. confident feet, does a nice job staying low and flexible when receiving
Run: 7.69 runner in the 60.