Prep Baseball Report

2017 Rankings Update: Top Newcomers



By Greg Williams
Pennsylvania / West Virginia Director of Scouting

Today's article on the top newcomers to our soon-to-be updated 2017 rankings is the first installment of a preview for the entire list being released at the end of the week. Other articles will feature big risers as well as a sneak preview of the first ten prospects on the list. Where these four newcomers fall among the 225 prospects in the updated Class of 2017 rankings will be released on Saturday.

A quartet of pitchers head the list of new entries to the rankings with right-hander Billy Welsh (North Hills) being the lone prospect uncommitted among the group. Welsh has an athletic 6-foot-1, 190-pound frame and shows a clean delivery with a loose arm action into a high 3/4 arm slot. His fastball sat 84-86 mph at the Buckeye Elite Showcase in July to go along with a sharp breaking ball at 67-70 mph on an 11/5 plane.


A trio of committed left-handed pitchers also highlight our look at the top newcomers to the rankings. Montour's Devin Dunn (VCU), Stroudsburg's Nate Kitchell (West Chester) and Millersburg Area's Christian Wingard (Millersville) all make their first appearance in the rankings in this update.

Dunn is a a 6-foot-2, 190-pounder that went 5-0 with a 2.93 ERA as a junior. Kitchell is a 5-foot-11, 175-pounder with a low-to-mid 80's fastball that can also spin a tight 73 mph curveball. Wingard is a 6-foot-2, 175-pounder that had a breakout junior season leading his team to a District 3 Class A championship including 12 strikeouts in the title game.

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