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Lewis & Clark CC Scout Day: Takeaways

October 3, 2023
By: Diego Solares
Area Scout, Illinois & Missouri

On Sept. 27th, PBR Illinois traveled to Lewis & Clark Community College in Godfrey, Ill., for the Lewis & Clark CC Scout Day. The event featured 20 players that allowed our staff to get an inside look ahead of their 2024 season.

Shortly after the event’s conclusion, our event rolled out a full statistical data dive, highlighting several of the day’s standout performers from a numerical perspective. Learn more about those names, HERE.

We’re diving deeper into the event today with these takeaways, where you’ll learn more about a handful of the day’s standouts, below. 

TAKEAWAYS

+ RHP Jackson Parrill (Collinsville, 2022; IL) is a top returning arm for the Blazers, punching out 51 over 31 innings on the bump last spring while pitching to a 3.48 ERA. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound sophomore pumped the hardest bullet of this event, touching 91.4 mph with his fastball, while pitching at 89-91 mph throughout his ‘pen. He spun two different breaking balls, landing them each for strikes; a gradual, more high-arching 75-76 mph curveball and a tightly spun slider with two-plane break at 77-78 mph. Parrill also showed some feel for a low-80s changeup, throwing it at arm speed with natural arm-side run, particularly out of the stretch.


+ RHP Calan Kujawa (Mt. Vernon, 2022; IL) offers an intriguing look on the mound to pair with a physical 6-foot-4, 215-pound frame. Kujawa throws a firm upper-80s sinker, touching 88 mph in this ‘pen, with natural arm-side run that comes out of a ¾ window (4.7 ft.) on average. His primary secondary in this look appeared to be a 74-76 mph slider that tunnels well off the aforementioned sinker, showing late lateral break at times. He also showed capable of landing a more gradual 73-76 mph curveball for strikes and he rounded out his arsenal with a low spin (T1507 RPM) changeup in the low-80s. Kujawa returns a bulk of innings to this Lewis & Clark pitching staff (42 ⅓ IP) and should be an arm to know for the Blazers this spring.


A pair of southpaws to follow from this event are LHP Zach Mevert (Steelville, 2022; IL) and LHP Chase Newby (Steelville, 2022; IL):

+ Mevert, who’s an athletic 6-foot, 182-pound athlete with lean strength throughout his frame, owns intriguing underlying pitch metrics within his arsenal. His fastball played in the mid-80s, touching 86 mph, from a high arm window on average (5.9 ft.), averaging 19+ inches of vertical break, while peaking at 23.4”. The eye test matches the data, as Mevert’s fastball played with natural carry, especially at the top of the zone. Mevert’s go-to secondary pitch was a true swing-and-miss splitter that dropped off the table, showing little-to-no spin (T796 RPM) and horizontal movement. It’s a pitch that’ll play even more effectively when he spots his fastball up in the zone. Mevert showed some aptitude to spin, throwing a 73-77 mph slider that flashed hard downer spin.


+ Newby put together the day’s most polished ‘pen, consistently throwing all three of his pitches for strikes. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound sophomore worked with pace and tempo throughout, spotting his fastball in all quadrants of the zone at 84-86 mph. He showed a slider with depth at 74-76 mph (T2492 RPM), all of which were thrown for strikes, and he killed spin on a 77-78 mph changeup (T1582 RPM) that he threw with fastball intent from a similar arm window. 

A pair of backstops to know for this Lewis & Clark CC squad: C Jake Radosevich (Triad, 2022; IL) and C Drew Potthast (Greenville, 2023; IL).

+ Radosevich returns as this team’s top offensive threat, slashing .351/.431/.579 in 171 at-bats last season with 24 total extra-base hits, including six home runs. He’s a strong, physical 6-foot, 195-pound athlete that showed natural pull-side juice, averaging 91.9 mph per batted ball, including an event-best 100.4 mph high, and he swatted his furthest ball 367 feet, too. Radosevich showed well defensively too with natural arm strength (T84 mph) and accuracy, popping at 1.84-to-1.97 while routinely working on the bag.


+ Potthast, a freshman, stands at a strong 5-foot-11, 185-pounds and, like his counterpart, showed well on both sides of the ball. He tied Radosevich for the furthest batted distance of the day (367 ft.) and also showed advanced catch-and-throw skills, staying in line and on the bag with 1.94-to-2.03 pops, topping at 80 mph from the chute.

+ Arguably the day’s biggest workout winner, OF Nick Williams (Civic Memorial, 2022; IL) was an everyday regular for the Blazers last season, reaching base at a .421 clip and walking (32) more than he struck out (26). Williams holds plenty of athleticism within a 6-foot, 187-pound frame, running the day’s fastest 60 time (6.52) with a 1.57 10-yard split and 21.4 mph of run speed at peak. Williams favored the pull-side in BP, flashing bat strength that way (349 ft.) from a flat, rotational right-handed swing. He was also one of the event’s leaders in outfield velocity, topping at 88 mph on his hardest bullet.


+ OF Alex McNiven (Stayner Collegiate Institute, 2022; ON) is another top returner from last year’s Lewis & Clark squad to show well at this event. The strong-bodied 5-foot-10, 180-pound sophomore ran a 6.67 60 and hit his hardest ball at 98.6 mph, the event’s second-highest mark, staying on top of the baseball from a flat and direct right-handed swing.


+ 1B Jaxson Grubbs (Maroa-Forsyth, 2022; IL) and OF Parker Davis (Fort Zumwalt East, 2022; MO) are two right-handed hitters that flashed bat strength in this look. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Grubbs peaked at 98 mph on his hardest ball, averaging 89.5 mph per batted ball. Davis, who holds physicality on a 6-foot-1, 200-pound frame, posted a 91.8 mph average exit velocity, with a 97.7 mph peak, and he sent his furthest ball 355 feet, which was one of the day’s highest marks. Davis also led all outfielders in throwing velocity, topping at 89 mph.

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