Adam Akin
Director of Scouting


 The 2016 Tennessee/Kentucky Border Battle Games took place on Saturday, October 15 and Sunday, October 16.  The scouting directors from each state put together a team of some of the best uncommitted players available to compete against each other.  Players were afforded the opportunity to participate in a pro style evaluation, followed by two 9-inning games.  Saturday’s event consisted of mostly 2018 graduates, while Sunday’s event featured primarily 2019 graduates.  Below is an evaluation of each position player that participated in Saturday’s games for Team Tennessee.

 

Outfielders

Matt McCurry, OF, Siegel, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.65, Position Velocity:  OF - 82, Exit Velocity: 87
5-foot-10, 165-pound, hits from a wider and even stance with the same look we saw at the Knights PBR Day, where he impressed enough to earn a spot on the Border Battle team, hands come down and back to get loaded with an abbreviated leg kick that gets his lower half going, bat path is flat to slightly uphill and produces some very solid line drives, sprayed it all around the field in BP, took a good approach to the plate.  Defensively, showed the ability to make all of the routine plays, arm action and play through the ball should improve over time, throws had some decent carry with some accuracy into the infield.   McCurry showed a great approach by recording a walk and a hit-by-pitch to go along with his single to cap off a 1-3 performance. 

Benjamin Pickman, OF, Fred J Page, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.55, Position Velocity:  OF - 74, Exit Velocity: 77
5-foot-8, 140-pound, LHH hits from a taller and open stance with some fairly high hand positioning to begin, uses the same leg kick and rhythmic movement we’ve seen from him in the past to get loaded, lower half is active, swing plane is mostly flat but can get a little steep at times, can hit the ball to all fields, brought a great approach to the plate in game play, athletic prospect is smaller in stature but makes up for it.  Defensively, plays aggressively and confidently through the ball, covers a good bit of ground and uses a long arm action through a high ¾ release point, arm strength and exit velo have both been much better at past events.  Went hitless in game play but was able to draw 3 walks in his 6 plate appearances, valuable leadoff-type hitter.

Luke Bradshaw, OF, Lebanon, 2020
Home-1^st: 4.4, Position Velocity:  OF - 77, Exit Velocity: 92
6-foot-1, 170-pound, LHH hits from a wider and slightly open stance with some wide elbows, uses a short stride and a lowering of his hands that stands up the barrel to get loaded, lower half fires through very well and provides good separation and a strong base, bat path is mostly flat through the zone and can provide some lift, swing looks a little awkward at times because of his grip and flaring elbows, ability to spray the ball around the field with some gap-to-gap pop.  Defensively, showed some aggressiveness and played through the ball with good footwork and above average hands, longer arm action comes through an over-the-top slot, arm strength will improve with age.  Strong athlete gets a little muscly in his actions but is certainly a top prospect in the 2020 class, held his own and recorded a single in game play.

Hunter Lautzenheiser, OF, Davidson Academy, 2020
Home-1^st: 4.66, Position Velocity:  OF - 77, Exit Velocity: 88
6-foot-0, 185-pound, LHH hits from a wider and even stance with some pretty high initial hand positioning, uses some good rhythm with a short stride and slight movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half explodes with some purpose and provides a lot to his swing, stays balanced, swing plane bat path is typically flat to slightly upward with very good drive and some real power potential, drives the ball high and deep, gets steep on lower pitches from time to time.  Defensively, played aggressively through the ball but let himself get a little out of control at times, longer arm action comes through a high ¾ slot.  Like Bradshaw, held his own as a 2020 at this event and recorded a single and stole a base in game action.

Ben Coulthard, RHP/OF, Montgomery Bell Academy, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.65, Position Velocity:  OF - 84, Exit Velocity: 85
6-foot-1, 175-pound, RHH hits from the same narrow and even stance we saw from him at the Knights PBR Day a few weeks prior, longer stride with a movement back of his hands got him loaded, lower half didn’t work quite as well as it has previously, struggled to clear his hips and came around the ball a lot, bat path is mostly flat and helps promote his line drive approach, best when he stayed to right center.  Defensively, plays through the ball pretty aggressively with good hands and footwork, long arm action through an over-the-top slot produces pretty firm throws with accuracy. Recorded a single and an RBI in game play.

First Basemen

Jack Sisk, 1B, Ravenwood, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.85, Position Velocity:  IF - 78, Exit Velocity: 87
6-foot-3, 215-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance, uses a toe-tap and stride with some rhythmic hand movement back to get loaded, athletic actions for a big-bodied 1B, lower half fires very well and creates separation and a strong base to operate on, swing plane can begin a little steep but flattens out and shows a little bit of lift at the end, current line drive and gap approach has the potential to develop into some power.  Defensively, showed good hands and footwork around the bag and has the ability to make all of the plays, could play through the ball more aggressively but stays pretty clean, longer arm action through a high ¾ slot delivered accurate throws across the infield.  Sisk finished game play 2-5 with 2 singles.

Roland Ryan, 1B, Knoxville West, 2018
Home-1^st: 5.12, Position Velocity:  IF - 79, Exit Velocity: 92
6-foot-4, 215-pound, RHH hits from a wider and slightly open stance, uses the same abbreviated leg kick and stride with a smoother movement back with his hands to get loaded as we saw from him at the Top Prospect Games,  hands do come up a little before beginning the swing, lower half gets moving and is initiated by that stride but doesn’t always get all the way through to clear his hips, bat path can begin a little steep but flattens out to get through the ball solidly, hit a lot of hard ground balls in BP, but has the ability to drive the ball into the left center gap.  Defensively, showed improved hands and footwork around the bag and uses a long arm action through a high ¾ slot, throws were pretty accurate with some carry.  Ryan had some good at bats in game play while drawing a walk and a HBP.

Middle Infielders

Zac Lemerand, SS, Oakland, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.61, Position Velocity:  IF - 82, Exit Velocity: 84
5-foot-11, 160-pound, RHH continued to reaffirm everything we’ve seen from him over the past 5 months or so, a smooth athlete brings a lot to the table on both sides of the ball, balanced swing with good involvement from his lower half and a flat to slightly upward bat path produces consistent line drives with a gap-to-gap approach.  Defensively, he shows soft hands and fluid footwork when playing through the ball and uses a loose arm action through a high ¾ slot, has the ability to play both spots in the middle infield at a high level.  Lemerand had some good at bats in game action but was only able to tally a 3B. 

Casey Haire, SS, Heritage, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.49, Position Velocity:  IF - 76, Exit Velocity: 89
6-foot-1, 150-pound, LHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance, uses the same longer stride and slight movement back with his hands that we saw at the East Tennessee Prospect Games to get loaded, lower half gets through and helps him to attack the ball but can pull his body forward some, bat path comes into the zone steeply but shows a little lift at the end, at his best when he stays up the middle and from gap-to-gap.  Defensively, showed soft hands and pretty good footwork in the infield, played through the ball smoothly and used a short arm action through a high ¾ slot, throws had good accuracy with firm carry.  Haire finished game play going 2-6 with 2 doubles and another very hard hit line drive to center field.

Justin St. Amour, SS, Riverdale, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.52, Position Velocity: - , Exit Velocity: 81
5-foot-11, 170-pound, RHH hits from a very balanced and slightly open stance with relaxed hands, uses a short stride and a slight barrel tilt to get loaded, lower half keeps him balanced and gets through the zone, sometimes over rotates a tad, uses his backside well and gets his barrel on plane for a flat bat path through the zone with some lift, showed a line drive approach with some gap-to-gap pop potential. Defensively, couldn’t compete in the defensive evaluation due to his recovery from an arm injury but was able to play 2B in game action, showed good hands and made every play that came his way.  Recorded a single and scored a run while also reaching base by HBP in game play.

Third Basemen

Jerry Hammons, 3B/SS, Knoxville Christian, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.75, Position Velocity:  IF - 85, Exit Velocity: 101
6-foot-0, 215-pound, RHH continued to impress, as he has repeatedly done over the past 5 months or so with some of the best bat speed in the country shown in his 101 mph exit velocity, uses that same leg kick and stride with a lower half that explodes to promote a lot of action in his swing, bat path still works slightly up and produces a ton of pop through his ability to drive through the plane of the pitch, drove balls deep into the gaps in BP with the wind blowing in.  Defensively, has the hands of a middle infielder and plays through the ball well, arm strength is firm across the infield.  Plays shortstop at the high school level, but projects much higher as a 3B.  Smoked a double off the wall in left field during game play and squared up another one right at the shortstop. Approach and patience at the plate can improve.

Jordan Idell, 3B, Greeneville, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.68, Position Velocity:  IF - 76, Exit Velocity: 88
5-foot-11, 180-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance while still beginning with his bat rested on his shoulder, uses a short stride with a little bit of a barrel wrap/tilt to get loaded, very much the same as we saw from him at the Underclass Games, lower half could still be more involved, bat path starts into the zone slightly steep but levels out to provide some lift at the end, Idell is at his best when staying up the middle with a line drive approach and occasional pop.  Defensively, has the ability to make all the plays at the corner, could play through it smoother but does show good hands and gets rid of the ball quickly with a short arm action. 

Catchers

Kaden Dreier, C, Brentwood, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.87, Pop Time: 2.01-2.07, Position Velocity:  C - 78, Exit Velocity: 84
6-foot-1, 210-pound, RHH was the same Kaden Dreier we have seen all along, consistent and solid with a gamer’s mentality, slightly open stance with a smooth leg kick and stride to get loaded puts him in a good position to hit, uses a barrel tilt to get his hands loaded, lower half gets through the zone and creates a strong base for him, bat path is pretty steep but he is able to square the ball up a lot, line drive approach at the plate is best with staying gap-to-gap.  Defensively, shows soft hands and pretty good footwork, gets rid of the ball well and with firm and straight throws to 2B, works hard for his pitchers. Dreier did some good things at the plate but was only able to draw 1 walk and steal a base.

Max Riemer, C, McCallie, 2018
Home-1^st: 4.59, Pop Time: 1.96-2.10, Position Velocity:  C - 74, Exit Velocity: 87
5-foot-11, 195-pound, LHH showed some vast improvements to his game since his appearance at the Top Prospect Games, slightly wider stance than before leads to a more consistent short stride, hands move back smoothly to get loaded, lower half fires well and clears his hips to create good separation, swings plane is mostly flat through the zone with some lift at the end, hit some solid line drives up the middle and showed gap-to-gap pop toward the end of his round.  Defensively, showed above average hands behind the plate and used quick feet and hands to get rid of the ball quickly, throws to 2B were firm and accurate. Riemer recorded a single, a walk, and a run in game action.