Prep Baseball Report

Scout Blog: 18U Nebraska Prospects Fall Classic


Brian Feekin
Nebraska Scouting Director

The 18U Nebraska Prospects Fall Classic is finished from September 22nd and 23rd. Held in Omaha, Nebraska at 7 different locations around the metro area.. 27 teams from across the Midwest are competing in the 18U divisions. There will be continuous scout blogs each day covering the tournament. You can find the complete schedule and results HERE.

 

Nebraska Prospects Doggett

'20, LHP, Luke Ballard

5-foot-10, 160 pound left handed pitcher sat in the 77-79 mph range, and touched 80 in his three innings of work. Mid 3/4 arm slot with some funk, controlled the strike zone and worked with an uptempo demeanor on the mound. Also showed flashes of a 66-67 mph breaking ball with 11/7 shape. 

'20, 1B/C, Hunter Scruggs (Ranked #21 in Nebraska 2020 rankings) and 1B/OF Nico Sall (Ranked #20 in Nebraska 2020 rankings) both connected on home runs to their pull side. Both have mature physical frames and ability to barrel baseball at a high level. 

PrimeTime Baseball 

'19, RHP, Cade Johnson from Plattview sat in the 79-82 mph range from a high 3/4 arm slot. Slight downhill action with strikes to both sides on the plate. Arm has average speed and is loose on the back side and long out-front. Smooth easy tempo in delivery with an athletic finish. 

 

Nebraska Prospects Alitz 

Uncommitted '19, LHP/OF, Caleb Riedel (Ranked #38 in Nebraska 2019 rankings) was 78-82 mph with his cutting fastball. Lanky athletic frame continues to project at the next level. Showed the ability to spin a 66-68 mph breaking ball with gradual 2/8 shaped breaking ball with gradual depth. Also mixed in a few 70-71 mph change ups with arm side run. Also had a couple of hits at the plate from the left side. 

'19, 1B/DH, Trey Roberson from Lincoln Southwest had three singles from the right side of the plate. Quite square approach with fluidity in the box. 

'19, RHP, Jackson Bertsch was up to 83 mph from his high 3/4 arm slot. Drop and drive mechanics, spun some above average  67-68 mph breaking balls with 11/5 shape and late depth. 

Nebraska Barnstormers 

Concordia commit Ben Coldiron started for the Barnstormers. Ranked #60 in the Nebraska 2019 rankings, Coldiron sat in the 77-80 mph ranges and flashed the ability to spin the breaking ball at anytime of the count in the 70-72 mph range. 

Ryan Doble LHP

Tall lanky build with room for growth. High 3/4 arm slot with quick arm action and a complete finish over front side. Fastball sat 77-79 and topped at 81. Slight arm side run for strikes. Breaking ball had 1/7 shape with gradual movement in the 65-68 range. Changeup has some slight arm-side run in the 66-70 range.

Henry Zipay SS 2019 

Athletic build with room to grow, loose athletic actions in the field. Ranked #18 in Nebraska 2019 class. Accurate throws with carry from shortstop. Soft hands and fluid footwork. Open stance at the plate with line drive swing plane. Showed good contact in game action with line drives to all fields approach

 

Omaha Burke 

'19 RHP, Cade Flaherty  struck out four in his four innings of work. Ranked #37 in Nebraska 2019 rankings, fastball sat in the 77-82 mph range from a high 3/4 arm slot Occasional cut action. Showed average feel on the day with his 12/6 shaped  67-69 breaking ball. 

5-foot-11, 155 pound middle infielder Tyler Cate had a two RBI single. 

Nebraska Prospect Ahart 

2021 LHP Jackson Brockett, one of the top arms in his class for the state. Threw four innings with five strike outs. Average size frame with a thin athletic frame. Smooth rhythm in delivery with athletic finish. Fastball was in the 77-78 mph range, breaking ball was 66-68 mph range. Mostly worked away from hitters throughout. 

2021, C Hogan Helligso threw to 2nd in the 2.14-2.17 range throughout game action. Athletic natural actions behind the plate, athletic foot work  and a clean easy exchange. 

'21 RHP Drew Cristo was up to 82 mph from a high 3/4 slot, sat in the 78-81 mph range. Athletic frame. Arm is short and quick on the backside, long out-front. Controlled closed balanced point. Slight cut action on fastball. Sporadic command of the fastball early, settle in second inning of work. 

'21, SS/RHP Max Petersen should be high follow the next couple of years as he continues to develop physically. 6-foot, 150 pound lean frame show smooth loose actions in the infield and with a funky high 3/4 across. Has some swagger in the batters box from the left side with looseness in his hands. 

'21, OF, Luke Jessen has position himself to be one of the top outfield prospects in the 2021 class for Nebraska. Compact athletic build with some present strength in his lower half. Constantly produces hard contact to his pull side and has the athletic ability to be an above average defender in the outfield at the high school level. 

Iowa Sticks Scout 2020 

'20, 6-foot-4, 165 RHP Jackson Payne sat in the 81-85 mph range throughout his 7 innings of work. Gave up 1 run and struck out 1 throughout the outing. Simple easy repeatable delivery, pounded the strike zone consistently. Flashed a developing 65-66 mph breaking ball with gradual 11/5 break through the zone. 

'20, 6-foot, 170 pound short-stoop Adam Brauch from Dowling Catholic went 1-3 with two stolen bases for the Sticks against the Prodigy. Square balanced approach with a easy load and short stride. Above average looseness in his hands get the barrel through the zone with fluidity. 

'20, 6-foot-2, 180 pound catcher Kade Reinerston had three hits in his plate appearances against Central Nebraska Baseball Academy. Athletic build with present strength in lower half. Looks the part. Open stance with smooth easy load. Short compact downward barrel path through the zone. Hard line drive contact. Advance receiver with ability to steal strikes behind the plate. Throw to 2nd in between innings in the 2.01-2.08 range consistently. 

Nebraska Prospects Southworth 

'20 outfielder Ethan Urban continue to produce hard contact at the plate from the right side. Ranked #32 in the Nebraska 2020 rankings. The 5-foot-10, 175 pound solid frame produces a fast compact barrel path through the zone. Balance stance, short load and stride. 7.0 runner at past event, Urban tracked down a hard in ball in the gap with ease.

'20, LHP, Cole Whitehill continue his strong outing from the PBR Fall Championship against the Iowa Sticks 2020 Scout. Whitehill fastball was up to 83 mph from long one-piece arm action from a low 3/4 slot. Sweeping 66-68 mph breaking ball kept hitter guessing throughout. 

Treyton Kozal 2020 LHP

Athletic build throws from over the top arm angle, stays tall at balance with easy effort. Finishes online and in an athletic position to field. FB has late arm side run and sat in the 77-80 range for consistent strikes. Breaking ball showed 1/7 sharp break. Wasn’t afraid to throw pitch in any count. Changeup showed some armside run at 70-71.

Ryan Mendez 2020 RHP
Athletic frame with some present strength, high 3/4 arm slot with quick arm and some effort in delivery. FB sat 80-83 with some armside run. Breaking ball had 10/4 shape with sharp movements in the 72-73 range. Changeup has inconsistent shape and location at 73-75.

 Truit Luth 2020 RHP

Tall lanky projective body with a quick high 3/4 arm action. FB sat in the 80-82 range with occasional arm side run. Breaking ball had 11/5 shape and was thrown often. At times had sharp breaking action, others it backed up. Breaking ball was in the 68-70 range

Jaxson Simmerman 2020 C

Strong build with present strength. Balanced setup with load and slight uphill swing path. Strong explosive lower half. Showed power hitting a HR to left center in game action and a deep fly out to right center. Reliable behind the plate. Above average receiver and blocker. In game pop times were in the 2.0-2.1 range.

Max Renn 2020 INF

Tall build, room to add strength. Athletic actions in the field with reliable hands and above average arm with carry. Solid footwork. At the plate, balanced base with line drive swing plane. Showed some pop in game action with a 3B into the Right Center gap

CENTRAL NEBRASKA BASEBALL ACADEMY 

'20 RHP Jordan Williams fastball was up to 85 mph from his mid 3/4 slot. Rhythm in delivery with a quick arm, compact action. Stays online with an athletic finish. Sat in the 80-82 mph range. 

'20 RHP/ULT, Seth Stroh looks to have the top upside physically in the 2020 class for Nebraska. 6-foot-4, 200 pound three sport athlete in Kearney. Easy actions all around the field and a easy square approach at the plate. Showed signs of hard line drive contact in multiple at bats throughout the weekend. 

 

PEAK PERFORMANCE


Cade Van Ness 2019 RHP
Solid average build with strong lower half. FB has some armside run, and was 78-86. Settled in to 83-85 in 2nd and 3rd innings of work. Threw 3 innings with 5 Ks in game action. Slider was 72-75 with 10/4 sharp shape and thrown for strikes. Knuckleball was 66-68 and inconsistent. High 3/4 arm slot with near max effort delivery. Would occasionally fall towards 1B when throwing slider

Carter Bornemeier 2019 SS
Tall athletic build, broad shoulders and can add weight. Athletic, loose actions in the field, throws were accurate with easy carry. Turned a smooth unassisted double play on a ground ball up the middle. At the plate, athletic crouch setup with a short line drive swing plane. Showed some pop on a hard line drive to right field in game action.

South Dakota Bulls

Max Burchill RHP

Tall lanky build, frame could add strength. FB had some armside run and was usually thrown for strikes at 73-77. Breaking ball had 11/5 early shape thrown for strikes at 66-68. Changeup fluctuated from 63-69 with inconsistent movement. Throws from high 3/4 without much effort. Simple and repeatable mechanics. Tended to finish upright

Nebraska Prospects McGuire

Nick Oden RHP 2019 

Tall athletic build with high 3/4 release. Quick and easy arm action with an athletic finish. Fastball sat 79-82 with armside run. Breaking ball had 10/4 shape and was in the low 70s. Inconsistent shape and location, but effective when thrown for strikes.

Ryan David RHP/1B 2019 

Physical build with present strength. Ranked #42 in Nebraska 2019 rankings.Balance setup with slight load. Average bat speed and movements with a slight uphill swing path. Showed power in game action with a huge home run to left field.

Cohen Weakland RHP/ULT 2019 

6-foot-2, 185 pound right handed pitcher topped out at 85 mph in his start against C2C. Sat in the 80-83 mph range. Lean athletic build. Mid 3/4 quick arm action with some effort in delivery. Sink action on fastball. Showed feel for 72-74 mph change up with fastball arm speed. Change up fades to his arm side with slight sink. 

KC Prodigy 

'20 RHP Ayden Mertz topped out at 88 mph on the mound from his 3/4 slot. Ranked #24 in Missouri 2020 rankings, 2018 PBR Futures Game Participant. Medium sized frame. Arm is loose and free on the back side, slight run action on fastball. Sat in the 82-86 mph range. Showed feel for 72-76 mph 10/4 shape breaking ball with gradual depth. Smooth rhythm in delivery, athletic finish.