Uncommitted Spotlight: '20 Matt Olive, C/RHP, Blake School
March 11, 2019
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What schools have expressed interest in you?
Olive: Columbia, Air Force, and Ball State have expressed interest as well as other Division I and Division II schools.
Have you taken any visits, or have any visits scheduled in the near future?
Olive: The only visit I have gone on was at North Dakota State University but I will have a few scheduled coming up early this spring in 2019.
Are you looking for anything in particular in a school? (Example: high academics, certain academic program, local, etc.)
Olive: I am very interested in schools that have very good academics as a priority but also have a stellar baseball program. I do not have a location preference at all. As for the specifics, I look to become a pilot or go into the aviation/mechanical engineering departments of any sort.
What were some of your highlights during your sophomore year?
Olive: Last year, my sophomore year, I was extremely proud to be announced a captain of my high school team and lead us to a 10-5-1 record. Personally, I was proud to take a large step in developing as a baseball player. I was invited and played in the 2018 PBR Futures Games and ended up talking to a few coaches. Overall, I boosted my statistics and played very well in the field as well as at the plate.
What are your goals for this year?
Olive: The goals of my junior year are mainly to develop our up and coming high school program and as a captain, I want to mentor the younger kids to help build a strong program. As for myself, I want to continue to get stronger and develop my skills as a two-way baseball player and continue to catch the eye of college coaches and keep competing every single day.
Do you play any other sports?
Olive: Yes, I play varsity hockey for my high school team, the Blake Bears
What are your ACT and GPA?
Olive: Have not taken the ACT yet and as of the first semester of my junior year, I have a 3.7 GPA at Blake
Scouting Report
2018 PBR Future Games- 2/5 with 2 doubles, 4 walks, 1 HBP, and 2 RBI’s.
7/8/18- 6-foot, 185-pound, right-handed pitcher with an athletic frame. On the mound, in line direction with a closed landing. Loose, quick arm action from an over the top angle. Fastball, sat 80-82 mph, touching 84 once. Changeup, flashed fading action, 74 mph. Curveball, 11/5 shape, 70-71 mph.
6/17/18- 6-foot, 185-pound right-handed hitting 2-way player. 7.19 runner. Tall open stance, leg kick trigger, level head through contact, line drive swing plane with lift through contact, shows above avg. pop in bat, mid/pull approach, 92 mph exit velocity. Works through plate 77 mph arm strength with 1.95-2.05 pop times. Controlled athletic delivery, compact arm action, drives baseball downhill, lands inline to plate. Fastball was heavy at 83-85 mph with straight action to plate. Flashes ability to spin breaking ball with occasional late sharp break. Slight sink on changeup thrown with fastball arm speed.
3/17/18- 5-foot-11, 185-pound right-handed hitting 2-way player. Olive, a 6-foot, 185-pound, durably-built catcher/pitcher showcased quick hands at the plate and a strong arm throughout the workout. Using a leg kick to work his hands down and back, Oliver works uphill through the zone on a direct path. He demonstrated gap to gap power along with a 91 mph exit velocity off the tee. Still developing some as a receiver behind the plate, Olive’s arm strength allowed him to produce pop times between 2.05-2.10. As he continues to improve his transfer and footwork, that number should go down even lower. On the mound, the strong right-hander ran his fastball up to 85 mph as he remained compact throughout the delivery before giving way to a loose arm swing and quick hand speed out front. Smooth and polished delivery. Consistent command of strike zone with three pitches. Changeup showed fade at 73-75, and breaking ball had shape at 69-72. Interesting follow. I really liked the way Olive swung the bat, and he should continue to progress throughout the spring which will make him a player to follow this summer.
10/22/17- 5-foot-10, 180-pound right-handed hitting 2-way player. 7.62 runner. Square stance, body load with leg kick trigger, quiet head, solid rhythm, slight lift through swing plane, mid/pull approach with solid bat speed, 89 mph exit velocity. Shows good hands receiving, solid mobility, clean footwork behind plate, short exchange with appropriate arm action, avg. accuracy short of bag, 76 mph arm strength with 2.13-2.21 pop times. On mound; controlled delivery into athletic balance point, long clean arm action, lands inline with catcher, balls comes out well in front with extension and finish to plate. Fastball was 81-83 mph with heavy action in bottom of zone on downhill plane. Solid curveball, should continue to improve, with 11/5 spin and avg. depth. Split action on changeup with solid feel for pitch and heavy action at bottom of zone.
3/4/17- 5-foot-10, 180-pound right-handed hitting catcher. 4.83 home-to-first time. Narrow open stance, strides to square, uphill path through contact, occasional hard top spin contact, 81 mph exit velocity. Shows flexibility and solid athleticism behind plate, receives well for grad class, long exchange on throws, tends to stride open to second base, avg. accuracy to bag, 2.13-2.15 pop times with 73 mph arm strength.