Prep Baseball Report

The Year In Review - 2021


Dylan Hefflinger
PBR Ohio Editor in Chief/NW Scout

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To view Class Rankings, click below:

To view the Prospect Reports, click below:

To view the Showcase Statistical Breakdowns, click below:

The Year In Review - 2021

Each of us here at PBR Ohio want to thank you for making 2021 the best year yet. We look forward to continuing to bring the best baseball coverage to the Buckeye State. Happy Holidays to all!

"2021 has been such an awesome year for PBR Ohio. Not only have we been able to keep our core together but we’ve added guys like Alex Stefanelli, Genesis Hilliard and Phil O’Shea that have had an immediate, major impact. I believe we are set up better than ever to continue to provide exposure to athletes and help them accomplish their dream of playing at the next level." - Jordan Chiero, PBR Ohio Director of Scouting

"I feel with the relationships we've made and the experiences I had personally throughout these past 12 months, that 2021 was a banner year for PBR Ohio. Being able to help high school athletes reach their dreams of playing at the next level while building personal relationships is something I enjoy daily. The showcase season is great and I love everything about it, but as most who know me understand, I love the high school and summer seasons and I'd like to thank all who made those two seasons the best we could make them. Thanks to the interns that helped a bunch during the year. I also want to give a big shout out to our new guys in Alex Stefanelli, Genesis Hilliard and Phil O'Shea, each have brought something to PBR Ohio that has been needed. I also want to thank the outstanding hospitality provided by the OHSAA and the Akron Rubberducks MiLB organization at the state tournament (See below). Thank you very much to the athletes, parents, coaches and all in the great Buckeye State and have a great holiday season."- Dylan Hefflinger, PBR Ohio Editor in Chief/NW Ohio Scout

"The opportunity to talk to so many quality players from different parts of North America is a joy to me. Listening to them tell about their baseball journey, their dreams to continue playing the game as long as they can and the hard work that goes with it brings an appreciation of the commitment it takes to play on the college level and beyond. So many times when I have conversations with these players for PBR articles, the topic includes family, the values taught at home and how that helped them in their quest to play baseball at the highest level possible. I look forward to hearing more players tell their story and what it takes to succeed as they get ready to take the next step in their lives." - Bruce Hefflinger, PBR Ohio Senior Writer

"2021 was a wild year with the implementation of the new technology we introduced and the pandemic. With all of the uncertainty, we managed to put together a safe environment for prospects to shine for college coaches. I'm proud of the work our staff has done this year and look forward to another successful year in 2022." - Luke Wolford, PBR Ohio Vice President of Operations and Multimedia

"The addition of tournaments in Ohio was worthwhile in 2019 and we have improved in every way in 2021. We tried to add another level of scouting to differentiate ourselves and I think we capitalized on that. In 2022 we look forward to developing current relationships as well as establishing new relationships with summer coaches." - Alex Schillig, Vice President of Operations and Multimedia

"It's been extremely fulfilling and humbling to contribute to the countless of unprecedented ways Prep Baseball Report is continually improving the experience of high school baseball players and high school baseball as a whole. It's an exciting time in Ohio for prep baseball as our staff continues to grow and we continue to set the standard. I look forward to building off all of the successes that 2021 brought and can't wait to see what 2022 has in store for this All-Star staff that we are building in Ohio." - Alex Stefanelli, Director of Social Media

"The past year was a great success for PBR Ohio. There was present growth as a company, as well as personal growth for myself. It is always a pleasure to connect and form relationships with players, coaches and parents from a variety of backgrounds. I find satisfaction in passing down knowledge I have gained through my playing career to others, as well as learning from some of the great baseball minds we have here in Ohio. I look forward to what the future holds and want to thank all involved for their contribution, of making this another successful year." - Genesis Hilliard, Director of Operations

"2020 was my first year with PBR after coming over from another organization in the industry and I can't say enough great things about PBR. The team that Chris Valentine has assembled is second to none. The attention to detail and the collaboration between the group really separates the PBR Ohio and Michigan teams from others in the industry. They care about every level of player out there and help as much as possible. I'm very excited to be a part of this team in 2021 and continue to build the summer tournaments. On Tournaments, 2020 was a very unique situation for me. As a tournament director, I used to only manage one small area and I handled the majority of day to day operations. Taking over Ohio and Michigan for PBR had a bit of a learning curve to it. The transition went a lot smoother than I ever thought possible. The PBR team was great to work with and they made the transition very easy. The summer went great and outside of a very wet July. Having Alex as someone to bounce ideas off all summer and help manage the events was a huge help and I can`t thank enough. The interns were relentless with getting video and information out. Gen, Stef and the rest of the guys behind the scenes made the tournaments a very unique environment for kids with asperations of playing at the next level. 2022 is going to be a great year as we look to grow upon our the relationships and provide a great tournament atmosphere." - Phil O'Shea, Director of Operations

2021 Showcase Recap

Prep Baseball Report events are designed to give players the maximum exposure needed to advance to the next level. In 2021, not only did they receive high-level exposure from college coaches at each event, but all players at these events were videotaped, with the edited performance being posted onto the website with the opportunity to be seen by more than 800 colleges and pro teams who subscribe to the Prep Baseball Report services.

In 2021, PBR Ohio hosted 69 showcases/workouts throughout the year. This included 39 Scout Days, which provided the top summer organizations in the state the ability to show what their program has to offer College/MLB organizations. In this article, you will find the "best of the best" for the year in numerous categories, with the top 10 being highlighted.

Looking ahead to 2022, we at PBR Ohio look forward to bringing you comprehensive year-round coverage throughout the state and continue to be the No. 1 resource for amateur baseball in the state thanks to our variety of events, boots-on-the-ground scouting staff, daily coverage, multimedia platforms and more. With more than 800 colleges and pro teams subscribed to Prep Baseball Report services, we look to continue to help the prospect reach their dreams of playing at the next level.

Ohio High School Spring Season Recap

PBR Ohio covers the High School spring season unlike any other. Each year we have brought more and more coverage throughout the state, with 2021 being our biggest year yet. We brought you in-depth Team Previews, Spring Scout Blogs, Preseason/Postseason All-State Teams, Preseason/In-season Team Rankings, High School Classics, as well as complete coverage of the OHSAA State Tournament.

January through the start of the season saw many team previews placed online, click here to view each of the previews from 2021.

To view the 2021 Scout Blog, please click here.

To view the 2021 All-State Teams, click below.

To view the final 2021 Team Rankings, click below

To view the OHSAA Baseball Tournament Roundup, click below.

Division I State Championship Recap - No. 11 New Albany vs No. 21 Elder

Division II State Championship Recap - No. 22 Hoban vs No. 9 Bloom-Carroll

Division III State Championship Recap - No. 12 CHCA vs No. 22 Archbold

Division IV State Championship Recap - No. 14 Warren JFK vs No. 4 Lincolnview

PBR Ohio 2021 Co-Players Of The Year

In 2021, there were numerous players who were in contention for the PBR Ohio Player of the Year, including:

  • 2022 RHP Jacob Miller (60 IP, 9-1, 1 SV, 0.70 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, 143 K, 13 BB).
  • 2022 LHP Landon Price (80.2 IP, 11-0, 1 SV, 0.17 ERA, 0.47 WHIP, 162 K, 9 BB).
  • 2021 SS/P Garret Pike (47-88, .534 AVG, .612 OBP, 13 2B, 3 3B, 9 HR, 46 R, 53 RBI, 19 BB, 10 SB).
  • 2022 SS Henry Kaczmar 54-95, .568 AVG, .620 OBP, 18 2B, 2 3B, 4 HR, 46 R, 42 RBI, 12 BB, 9 SB).
  • 2021 LHP Gavin Bruni (37 IP, 3-1, 0.18 ERA, 0.59 WHIP, 79 K, 17 BB).
  • 2021 RHP Erik Stern (40.2 IP, 6-0, 0.00 ERA, 62 K, .054 BAA).
  • 2021 RHP Lane Rhodes (62.1 IP, 8-0, 0.78 ERA, 71 K).
  • 2022 LHP Landon Beidelschies (51 IP, 9-1, 0.41 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 90 K, 13 BB).
  • 2021 LHP/OF Jaden Varner (61 IP, 10-0, 1 SV, 0.34 ERA, 0.44 WHIP, 146 K, 13 BB | 51-98, .520 AVG, .561 OBP, 13 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 39 R, 30 RBI, 9 BB, 4 HBP, 22 SB).
  • 2021 C Trey Pancake (56-100, .560 AVG, .641 OBP, 14 2B, 8 3B, 4 HR, 44 R, 54 RBI, 22 BB, 4 HBP, 29 SB).
  • 2022 SS/P DJ Newman (57-112, .509 AVG, .563 OBP, 15 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 34 R, 30 RBI, 13 BB, 9 SB | 61.2 IP, 1.95 ERA, 97 K, 15 BB).
  • 2021 RHP Brandon Mikos (66 IP, 10-0, 0.21 ERA, 0.54 WHIP, 121 K, 9 BB).
  • 2022 Lucas Day 1B/LHP (48-88, .545 AVG, .611 OBP, 19 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR, 34 R, 51 RBI, 21 BB, 10 SB | 60 IP, 9-1, 1.40 ERA, 101 K).

Along with these 13 prospects, who put on outstanding seasons statistically in 2021, there were numerous other outstanding seasons in 2021, but we had to choose and that honor went to two individuals who put together outstanding seasons. 2021 two-way Josh Laisure (60.2 IP, 10-0, 0.92 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 89 K, 23 BB | 40-93, .430 AVG, .482 OBP, 6 2B, 2 2B, 27 R, 24 RBI, 10 BB, 16 SB) and Logan Maxwell (51-85, .600 AVG, .692 OBP, 1.963 OPS, 9 2B, 9 3B, 10 HR, 49 R, 39 RBI, 27 BB, 24 SB | 28.2 IP, 5-0, 1 SV, 0.00 ERA, 31 K). Laisure helped his Olentangy Orange Pioneers to the regionals while putting together an outstanding year on the mound and at the plate while playing some top notch competition all year. Maxwell also had an incredible two-way campaign in 2021 for his Lima Shawnee Indians. The now TCU Hornfrog helped lead his team to the regionals, while putting together the top hitting season in the state while also dominating on the bump.

Future Games - Team Ohio

The tenth annual Future Games, held previously at Grand Park north of Indianapolis, was held for the third time at LakePoint in Emerson, Georgia on July 28-31. Top uncommitted prospects in the classes of 2024, 2025 and 2026 participated in one of the most popular events of the year.

Prospects from our 40-plus state coverage area and Canada went through a showcase workout on the first day of the Future Games, before playing three games the final three days of the event.

To read about each of the prospects experience at the Future Games, please click on this article. Every single prospect talked about their experience, the highlights, the competition and much more. A must read to say the least. Click here for article. To view the first annual "Heff's Hits", please click here.

 

Uncommitted/Committed Spotlights

In 2021, we were blessed to have OPSWA Hall of Fame writer Bruce Hefflinger back for his fourth full year. With Bruce on board, we were able to provide numerous commitment articles and uncommitted spotlights throughout the year. As of this date, in combination with Dylan Hefflinger's top uncommitted by position articles, we have written 15 uncommitted articles in 2019 and almost 200 since late 2017. Along with uncommitted articles, we provided numerous uncommitted spotlights on twitter throughout the year. To view the uncommitted spotlights throughout the year, please click here. When it comes to commitment articles, in 2019 we provided 92 articles and over 300 since 2017. To view each of the commitment tracker articles, please click here.

In 2022, we look forward to another year of spotlights heading your way.

2021 MLB Draft

The 2021 MLB Draft took place July 11-13. We at PBR took time to do a preview for the draft in the 2021 Simul-Draft Preview. To view the preview, click here.

Our guys at the national level, David Seifert (Director of College Scouting), Shooter Hunt (Vice President, Scouting) and Nathan Rode (Director, Multimedia & Scouting) took liberties in putting together notes on each day of the draft, you can find each days notes below.

Early Signing Period

The NCAA early signing period took place November 10th-17th. We at PBR Ohio broke down each individual Division 1, Division 2, and Division 3 commitment from in-state prospects, where they are headed and what tools they will bring with them.

Look Ahead At 2022

With 2021 behind us, we look ahead at what 2022 has to offer.

Throughout the year we will offer numerous showcases across the state, click here to view our 2022 showcase schedule.

When it comes to the OHSAA spring season, soon we will be starting to be working on our in-depth Team Previews. We will also provide the 2022 Spring Scout Blog, Preseason/Postseason All-State Teams, Preseason/In-season Team Rankings, as well as complete coverage of the OHSAA State Tournament. We look forward to being your number one spot for HS baseball coverage in the spring. Another big thing coming this spring is our second annual PBR Ohio High School Spring Classics, which you can find all of our outstanding matchups by clicking here.

Come summer time, we look to scour the entire state, covering Travel Ball/ACME/Legion tournaments. We will be hosting our fourth year of Summer Limited Series Tournaments. We will also have full coverage of the Worthington Wood Bat Tournament. We also have numerous showcases including the Top Prospect Games, Future Games, Preseason All-State Showcase and many more.

Also throughout the year, we will be updating the individual Player Rankings. To view the current rankings, please click below:

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