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PBR at The Rock 13U & 14U: Day 2 Quick Hits

June 1, 2019
By Wisconsin Staff

The PBR Wisconsin team battled thunder, lightning, and rain on Day Two of the PBR at The Rock Championships, but we were still able to snag some highlights from the action on a rain-shortened slate. Below, we have a few notes and some analysis from the best of Day Two.

In case you missed it, we also compiled all of the highlights from a loaded Day One in a Quick Hits story you can find by clicking here.

+ Despite the downpour he had to deal with, Quad City Hitmen Elite 13U’s Dawson Peterson (Riverdale, IL, 2024) might have stolen the show on an abbreviated Day Two. The 2024 grad had a dynamic day on both the mound and in the box, helping the Hitmen win a pair of games. At the plate in the two games combined, Peterson was nearly unstoppable and went 4-for-5, with three doubles, two walks, and four RBIs from the Hitmen’s three-spot. The extra-large 6-footer couldn’t stop finding the barrel, either. The explosive contact he was making resulted in a couple of baseballs that tested the capacity of The Rock – and one of his doubles even banged off the fence deep into the left-center gap. He’s a natural power threat with a feel for the strike zone who makes consistent loud contact.

And he can pitch. Peterson started the Hitmen’s first game of the day and was nothing short of dominant, striking out seven batters in three scoreless innings of work. A rain delay shortened his start, but Peterson struck out two batters in his team’s second game, and earned a save for the Hitmen in the process. His fastball reached a top speed of 77 mph, and sat between 72-76 mph. His curveball sat between 57-60 with a 12/6 shape, while his changeup’s velocity ranged between 63-64 mph and was thrown near-fastball arm speed. Peterson filled up the zone with all his pitches, especially his fastball, as he threw 71 percent of his pitches for strikes. His final line on the mound, in two Day Two appearances: 4 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, BB, 9 K, SV.

+ Two catchers caught our attention on Saturday, both representing the 2023 class: Quad City Cannons’ Solen Munson (Dubuque Hempstead, IA) and STiKS Black’s Thomas Curry (Arrowhead).

For Munson, he demonstrated some premium arm strength from behind the plate. He showed it off several times on Day Two, most notably from his knees. At 5-foot-10, 140 pounds, Munson possesses a typical strong catcher’s build. His defensive actions stood out the most, with accuracy. He’s a natural receiver with soft and quiet hands, and showed above-average skills as a blocker. On top of his defensive prowess, Munson swings a compact left-handed bat that flashed some jump off the barrel hitting out of the two-hole.

Curry also looks the part from behind the dish. He looks to be high-level backstop at the next level, demonstrating the ability to block, receive, and has plus arm strength for his age. The future Arrowhead prospect has a strong, athletic frame and is already an advanced receiver and blocker. He was popping the 2.19-2.37 range between innings with the help of his plus arm strength for his age. From the right-handed batter’s box, Curry also takes an advanced approach at the plate and flashed the kind of bat strength that produced gap-to-gap results. In Day Two action, Curry went 1-for-2 with a single and hard line-drive out hit right to the second baseman. It looks like he’s going to have a chance to make an early impact in high school if he keeps this pace up.

+ PTA Cardinal 14U’s shortstop, Max Hennemann (Oak Creek, 2023), shined in Franklin on Saturday. That could be something the local high school will have to get used to, considering Hennemann looks like he’ll be joining rivals Oak Creek in the fall. He’s a left-handed-hitting middle infield prospect who spent the day setting the table for his teammates, as they got off to a quick 3-0 lead. He’s already demonstrating an elite defensive feel and athleticism for his age. Hennemann has a knack for making the hard plays look easy, showing advanced arm strength and actions for his age, and it plays short and over-the-top with carry. At the plate, he showed above-average bat speed and strength, and was also able to speed up and around the basepaths. Most notably, he crushed a triple into the right-center gap, offering up the potential of some pull-side pop if he’s able to add some strength to his 5-foot-10 frame as he continues to grow and mature.

+ Tennemann’s teammate E.J. Kuster (Greendale, 2023) provided the middle-of-the-order punch for PTA Cardinal 14U. The right/right first baseman was aggressive in the batter’s box on Day Two and it led to two hard-hit doubles, both pulled into the left-center gap – and one actually looked like it had to juice to clear the fence off the barrel. Kuster’s big 6-foot-2 frame helps him create some leverage at the plate, leading to some power potential from the right side.

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