PBR Future Games: Pitcher Recap

August 12, 2015

By Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

The Future Games took place once again at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana from July 30^th - August 1^st. Team Illinois had an impressive showing once again and proved to be a must-see team over the three days. Team Illinois pitchers consisted of 2017 prospects from all over the state of Illinois.

Listed below is a breakdown of the pitchers who threw for Team Illinois at the PBR Future Games.

Listed Alphabetically

Konnor Ash, RHP, Plainfield South, 2017
5-foot-11, 160-pound does not have your prototypical long and lean pitchers frame. The right-handed pitcher makes up for it with his athletic delivery, quick arm and swing and miss slider. Ash operates from a high ¾ arm slot, with quality rhythm throughout his delivery. Clean arm action with some effort. Fastball has a tendency to flatten out when up in the zone but flashed some late life and sat 83-85 mph. Also, threw one of the better, firmer sliders for Team Illinois that ranged anywhere from 72-76 mph. Slider flashed tight, hard spin that was swing and miss at times. Showed a change-up that was 79 mph. Ash struck out three batters in his two innings of work at the Future Games.

Brady Corrigan, RHP, Plainfield North, 2017
Athletically built, prototypical pitchers frame 6-foot-3, 180-pound right-handed pitcher was one of the biggest risers at the Future Games. Looks to be the total package on the mound. He featured one of if not the best breaking balls at the event. Corrigan’s curveball is a flat out hammer, at 77-79 mph it can work 12/6 and has swing and miss action that he throws with conviction. On top of that he is athletic, has an electric arm and exudes a ton of confidence on the mound. Fastball was a lively 88-90 mph in his two outings and wasn’t afraid to challenge hitters. Operates from a high ¾ arm slot, repeats his delivery and pounds the zone with all of his pitches. Has feel for a change-up, thrown with fastball arm-speed, fade action at 82 mph. In his two innings of work over the weekend he only allowed one hit and struck out three. One of the top uncommitted 2017’s in the entire Midwest.

Reid Detmers, LHP, Nokomis, 2017
Wide shouldered, strong 6-foot-2, 185-pound was the most impressive left-handed pitcher on the Illinois staff at the PBR Future Games. Detmers went 86-88 mph with his fastball and showed an, at times sharp, 70-72 mph curveball. Detmers is still a little raw in his delivery which makes him even more intriguing as a prospect. Flat out pounded the zone with all of his pitches. His fastball features late life, resulting in tardy swings time and time again. To make matters worse for hitters he flashed plus feel for his curveball, throwing it for strikes any time he wanted too. Put on an absolute show at the Future Games, striking out six of the seven batters he faced. The one batter lucky enough to put a ball in play, hit a weak comebacker to the mound. Also features a change-up at 74 mph.

Mark Diluia, RHP, Marian Catholic, 2017
Long, lean, extremely projectable 6-foot-3, 175-pound right-handed pitcher has just as much upside on the mound as anyone on Team Illinois at the Future Games. The right hander possesses a plus pitchers frame to go along with a long, loose, whippy arm action from a ¾ arm slot. Diluia throws three pitches for a strike with his slider being a plus offering with tight sweeping action, sitting 76-77 mph. Consistently showed advanced feel for the slider and got a number of swings and misses in game play. Slight hesitation in his delivery which seems to cause a bit of deception for hitters. Fastball sat an easy 86-88 with some arm-side-run, challenged hitters and seemed to get on them in a hurry. Change-up was 81 mph with slight fade and arm-side-run. Diluia only allowed one hit and struck out one in his two innings of work at the Future Games.

Tyler Esplin, RHP, IMG Academy, 2017
Solid lower half 6-foot-1, 185-pound right-handed pitcher has a high paced, up-tempo delivery. Induced hitters at the Future Games to pound the ball into the ground. Operates from a short-arm action, high ¾ delivery and online finish. Fastball worked fairly straight with occasional arm-side-run, sat 83-84 mph and touched 85. Features two different breaking balls. His curveball works more 12/6, with feel, abilty to throw it for and strikes in game and some depth at 65-68 mph. Slider has 10/4 action, tighter than the curveball. Two distinct shapes to his breaking balls which is rare to find at that age. Also, featured a change-up at 74 mph.

Cameron Hupe, RHP, Mount Carmel, 2017
Solidly built 6-foot-1, 190-pound right-handed pitcher was another pitcher on Team Illinois who showed the ability to run his fastball into the mid 80’s at the Future games. His fastball sat 82-85 mph and touched 87 mph during his two outings at the event. Hupe also throws two different breaking balls, a curveball at 64-68 mph and a slider that sat 73-74 mph. Routinely showed feel and the ability to throw his 12/6 curveball for a strike. Operated from a long, over-the-top arm slot, controlled, deliberate wind-up. Struck out three hitters in his two innings of work at the Future Games.

Dylan Jones, OF/RHP, Oswego East, 2017
Jones was impressive enough at the Future Games to be the first official verbal commit from Team Illinois. Shortly after the event Jones chose to stay in his home state, committing to Illinois. Jones is a two-way threat who possesses an impressive skill set both on the mound and as a position player. On the mound Jones has a strong arm, reaching 88 mph with his fastball sitting 84-86 mph and it showed life through the hitting zone. Along with the big fastball he showed feel for a curveball at 66-69 mph and flashed a changeup at 81 mph. Offensively Jones swings a left-handed bat that flashes pop, it’s a longer, slightly uphill path that is tailored for lifting balls into the outfield gaps. In game play Jones added a pair of singles with an RBI and a run scored over the weekend. Defensively Jones is an outfield prospect who has the tools to stick in centerfield. He ran a 6.88 on the laser timed 60 and his arm carries well at 89 mph from the outfield.

Erik Kaiser, RHP, Waterloo, 2017
Big bodied 6-foot-4, 190-pound right-handed pitcher matched Corrigan for best fastball velocity on Team Illinois, also touching 90 mph over the weekend at the Future Games. The power-armed right hander seems to just be scratching the surface of his potential. His easy fastball sat 87-89 mph. His arm works long and over the top but when out in front creates some downhill tilt to his fastball. When Kaiser gets on top and out front, the ball jumps out of his hand. Showed feel for a 12/6 curveball with good depth at 73-77 mph. Routinely dropped it in for strikes during his stints on the mound. Throws a change-up at 76-77 mph. His three pitch repertoire leads me to believe he could be a legitimate weekend starter at the next level. Proved to have swing and miss offerings in his two innings of work at the Future Games Kaiser by recording all his outs via the strikeout, a total of six.

Brendan Murphy, LHP, Mundelein, 2017
Prototypical, athletic body 6-foot-3, 180-pound is one of the top uncommitted left-handed pitchers in the 2017 class in Illinois. The left-hander with pitch ability also showed that he has swing and miss stuff evidenced by his outings at the Future Games. In his two innings of work Murphy struck out five batters. Also, flashed one of the best change-ups for Team Illinois at the Future games. Fastball arm speed, plus action, a swing and miss offering, at 75 mph. Smooth, easy, clean arm action. Operates from a high ¾ slot, slow-paced delivery, athletic finish. Also, mixed in a 1/7 curveball, with feel at 75 mph. Fastball had arm-side-run, sitting 81-84 mph and touching 85. Projectable lefty should be a high follow moving forward.

Connor Peplow, RHP, Plainfield North, 2017
Wiry 6-foot-1, 155-pound right-handed pitcher features a strong arm that has a lot of potential. His fastball had been 86-88 mph at a previous PBR event, at the Future Games he was more 83-86 mph and touched 87. Even though his velocity was a tick down he flashed some tilt and arm-side-run on his fastball. Features a breaking ball that ranged between 70-74 mph. The breaking ball should tighten up if it is consistently thrown with fastball arm speed. Peplow also mixed in a change-up at 73-75 mph. Struck out one and induced a 4-6-3 double play in his two innings of work.

Brandon Romero, LHP, Elmwood Park, 2017
Strong lower half 5-foot-10, 187-pound left-handed pitcher has a lot to like in his arsenal. Uses a three-pitch mix and has some arm strength to go with it. Romero went 83-85 mph with his fastball and touched 86 a couple of times in his outing at the Future Games. Clean, quick, athletic arm action with the ability to spin the baseball. Slider was inconsistent in his outing but flashed a few that had sharp, biting action and showed potential to be a strikeout pitch at 70-72 mph. Also, showcased a change-up at 75-78 mph. One of the more impressive things seen all weekend at the Future Games was the pickoff move to first base shown by Romero. Two separate times, Romero allowed a base-runner to reach first and proceeded to pick off each runner, using a deceptive leg-lift pick that the runners seemed too have no chance on.

PBR Future Games: Pitcher Recap

Listed Alphabetically

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