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Underclass Invitational: Quick Look

January 18, 2016

By Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

The Underclass Invitational took place yesterday January 17th at The MAX in McCook, IL. The invite only event ended up with over 110 2018 and 2019 prospects in attendance.

Over the years the Underclass Invite has unveiled many of the top freshman and sophomores in their respective classes. This year was no different. 25 of the top 35 prospects in the 2018 class showed up to showcase their skills. A number of others impressed, some for the first time, making a strong case that the rankings need to be looked at and expanded in the near future.

Many of the mainstays in the Top 10 of the 2018 class cemented themselves as the top players in the state. RHP Jake Rosing (Richmond Burton HS) a Louisville commit, MIF Branden Comia (Sandburg HS), OF Brooks Coetzee (Mahomet Seymour HS) and OF/3B Zaid Walker (Homewood-FlossmoorHS) showed once again why they have been so highly touted.

There were quite a few 2018 newcomers to PBR events who are sure to cause some shakeups in the next rankings update. RHP/SS Jacob Maton (Chatham Glenwood HS) flashed an electric arm on the mound and very well may be the best arm in the 2018 class. He pounded the strike zone and features a legitimate three pitch mix. Although Maton may feature the most upside on the mound he can certainly hold his own at the plate. Another 2018 who opened some eyes was LHP Nathan Lavender (El Paso HS). Lavender flashed a big time breaking ball and has one of the quickest arms I have seen in the 2018 class.

The 2019’s that were in attendance deserve some attention as well. RHP/C Grant Leader (Lyons Township) is no secret to PBR but he continues to show one of the strongest arms in the class. Switch hitting C Julio Cajigas (Romeoville) impressed with a strong arm from the crouch and doesn’t get cheated at the plate. Left-handed hitting SS Jared Cushing (Joliet Catholic) has a ton of upside at the plate and on the infield.

2019 RHP’s Connor Dressler (Hinsdale Central) and Nathan Rintz (Schaumburg) impressed with strong arms and should be following closely moving forward.

There were a number of other prospects worth noting but stay tuned tomorrow for the overall stat story from the event. Also, in the next few weeks we will begin to roll out our position analysis from the event.

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