Prep Baseball Report

Illinois Lightning Scout Day: Data Dive


Kevin Cronin
Tech Analyst, Area Scout

TRACKMAN

We'll continue to roll out the data we gathered from this event, starting with the analytics we have at our disposal from our TrackMan units. Below we'll look at which players had noteworthy batted ball and pitch data.

Max FASTBALL VELOCITY & Spin rate

Rank Name State School Class Pos Velocity (max)
1 Jaryd Vence IL Hampshire 2024 RHP 84.4 mph
2 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 83.3 mph
3 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 81.8 mph
4 Michael O'Connor IL Bishop McNamara 2023 RHP 78.6 mph
5 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 76.2 mph
6 Robert Zaborowski IL Barrington 2024 LHP 74.1 mph

Rank Name State School Class Pos Spin Rate (max)
1 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 2129 rpm
2 Jaryd Vence IL Hampshire 2024 RHP 2127 rpm
3 Michael O'Connor IL Bishop McNamara 2023 RHP 2010 rpm
4 Robert Zaborowski IL Barrington 2024 LHP 1977 rpm
5 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 1893 rpm
6 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 1831 rpm

Max Fastball Velocity: This metric calculates the speed of the pitch as it’s released from the pitcher’s hand.

Spin Rate: This metric calculates the rate of spin on the baseball as it leaves the pitcher’s hand, measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). Historical data shows that high-spin fastballs lessen the impact of gravity, allowing for more ‘rise’ (or less fall, in other words) as it carries through the zone. Low-spin fastballs typically indicate the pitch has greater horizontal action, often making it tougher to square up, but generally easier to make contact with, leading to more ground balls, while high-spin fastballs show a correlation with swings and misses.

AVERAGE FASTBALL HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT

Rank Name State School Class Pos HM (avg)
1 Michael O'Connor IL Bishop McNamara 2023 RHP 19.0
2 Robert Zaborowski IL Barrington 2024 LHP -18.2
3 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 13.4
4 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 12.4
5 Jaryd Vence IL Hampshire 2024 RHP 10.1
6 Sean Doyle IL Andrew 2025 RHP 9.5
7 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 8.7
8 Aidan McGovern IL Mount Carmel 2025 1B -6.8

Horizontal Break: Outlined on TrackMan’s own website: “... horizontal movement is measured in inches between where the pitch actually crosses the front of home plate side-wise, and where it would have crossed home plate side-wise if had it traveled in a perfectly straight line from release. A positive number means the break was to the right from the pitcher’s perspective, while a negative number means the break was to the left from the pitcher’s perspective.”

AVERAGE CURVEBALL & SLIDER SPIN RATE

Rank Name State School Class Pos Spin Rate (avg)
1 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 2125 rpm
2 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 2059 rpm
3 Michael O'Connor IL Bishop McNamara 2023 RHP 1965 rpm
4 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 1820 rpm
5 Sean Doyle IL Andrew 2025 RHP 1579 rpm

Rank Name State School Class Pos Spin Rate (avg)
1 Robert Zaborowski IL Barrington 2024 LHP 2028
2 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 1886
3 Jaryd Vence IL Hampshire 2024 RHP 1791
4 Sean Doyle IL Andrew 2025 RHP 1637

AVERAGE CHANGEUP HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT

Rank Name State School Class Pos HM (avg)
1 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 24.0
2 Michael O'Connor IL Bishop McNamara 2023 RHP 21.9
3 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 15.5
4 Aidan McGovern IL Mount Carmel 2025 1B -11.3
5 Robert Zaborowski IL Barrington 2024 LHP -11.0
6 William Glenn IL Barrington 2023 RHP 8.3
7 Sean Doyle IL Andrew 2025 RHP 0.9

BLAST MOTION

With the help of our Blast Motion sensors, we're analyzing the swing metrics measured at this open showcase.

HAND SPEED (PEAK & AVERAGE)

Rank Name State School Class Pos Hand Speed (max)
1 AJ (Anthony) Marchetti IL Wheeling 2023 C 25.0 mph
2 Jake Trezise IL Lincoln-Way East 2025 OF 24.6 mph
3 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 23.7 mph
4 Vinnie Marvucic IL Niles North 2023 OF 23.4 mph
^ Nick Randell IL Hampshire 2024 OF 23.4 mph
5 Jaden Franckowiak IL Andrew 2024 1B 23.1 mph
6 Sean Doyle IL Andrew 2025 RHP 22.3 mph

Rank Name State School Class Pos Hand Speed (avg)
1 AJ (Anthony) Marchetti IL Wheeling 2023 C 23.5 mph
2 Nick Randell IL Hampshire 2024 OF 22.5 mph
3 Vinnie Marvucic IL Niles North 2023 OF 22.5 mph
4 Jake Trezise IL Lincoln-Way East 2025 OF 22.2 mph
5 Jaden Franckowiak IL Andrew 2024 1B 21.9 mph

Peak Hand Speed: The observed maximum speed as measured on the handle of the bat (measured six inches from the knob of the bat). Peak Hand Speed will occur prior to the moment of impact, very close to the commit time in the swing when the wrists unhinge.

BAT SPEED (AVERAGE)

Rank Name State School Class Pos Bat Speed (avg)
1 Nick Randell IL Hampshire 2024 OF 72.6 mph
2 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 72.1 mph
3 Vinnie Marvucic IL Niles North 2023 OF 70.9 mph
4 AJ (Anthony) Marchetti IL Wheeling 2023 C 69.4 mph
5 Jaden Franckowiak IL Andrew 2024 1B 66.6 mph
6 William Merz IL Hinsdale Central 2024 RHP 65.4 mph

Bat Speed: The observed speed of the sweet spot of the bat at impact. The sweet spot of the bat is measured six inches from the tip of the bat.

ROTATIONAL ACCELERATION (PEAK & AVERAGE)

Rank Name State School Class Pos Rot. Acc (avg)
1 AJ (Anthony) Marchetti IL Wheeling 2023 C 21.4 g
2 Vinnie Marvucic IL Niles North 2023 OF 20.8 g
3 Jake Trezise IL Lincoln-Way East 2025 OF 19.7 g
4 Nick Randell IL Hampshire 2024 OF 16.8 g
5 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 16.6 g

Rank Name State School Class Pos Bat Speed (max)
1 Nick Randell IL Hampshire 2024 OF 76.4 mph
2 Morgan Kosmos IL Tinley Park 2024 SS 75.5 mph
3 Vinnie Marvucic IL Niles North 2023 OF 74.6 mph
4 AJ (Anthony) Marchetti IL Wheeling 2023 C 73.3 mph

Body Rotation: A swing that has the appropriate relative contributions of body and bat rotations is an efficient and Powerful swing that maintains proper sequencing. An efficient baseball swing is one in which the body creates the initial movements, which is then transferred to the arms and out to the bat, thereby maximizing Bat Speed through this proximal-to-distal kinematic sequencing movement pattern.

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