By Adam Akin
Director of Scouting

The 2016 PBR Tennessee Top Prospect Games took place on Tuesday, June 14 and Wednesday, June 15 and included a position player workout, followed by three 9 inning games each day. Players were afforded the opportunity to showcase their abilities to the PBR Tennessee staff and many college coaches in attendance. The following is our evaluation of every position player that was assigned to the Gray Team in Wednesday’s action.

OUTFIELDERS

Rob Patterson, OF, East Robertson, 2017
60 Time: 7.44, Position Velocity:  OF-91, Exit Velocity: 85
5'9, 180-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance and a very early stride to get himself set, stride is short and uses some rhythmic hand movement to get himself going.  Lower half fires to give him some really good separation and provides some extra bat speed throughout his swing, hands are relatively high and don’t drop down to get on the plane of the pitch, a little steep but does a good job of flattening out and driving pitches up in the zone, strong kid struggles to stay totally balanced throughout his finish, tallied 2 singles in game action.  Defensively, showed good footwork, although he rushed himself at times, average hands fielded the ball a little too deep but worked through it well, used a clean exchange to lead into a long and loose arm action from a high ¾ slot to produce some very strong throws with some accuracy and a lot of carry.

Tyler Thompson, OF, Station Camp, 2017
60 Time: 6.93, Position Velocity:  IF-78, Exit Velocity: 76
6'2, 185-pound, RHH hits from a wide and balanced stance and begins with his hands in a relatively high position, uses a short stride and a subtle push back of his hands to get himself in a strong position to hit from.  Lower half really explodes and helped get his backside through and drop his barrel into a good slot, swing plane got in the zone early and stayed on plane throughout, was able to really drive through the ball with some gap-to-gap pop and hit the ball much harder than his 76 mph exit velocity would suggest, recorded a hit and lined out hard to center field in game action.  Defensively, showed average hands and footwork was a little rushed and could’ve worked through the ball better, average hands led to a long exchange and long arm action through a high ¾ slot, throws had some accuracy with average arm strength and carry.

Jackson Walker, OF/RHP, Brentwood, 2018
60 Time: 6.95, Position Velocity:  OF-79, Exit Velocity: 82
6'1, 151-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance and uses a toe-tap and stride to get his lower body going, hands get loaded by using some quick movement and a slight barrel tilt.  Lower half fires but can get lazy at times, stays balanced unless jumping at the ball, usually able to stay behind the ball and create good stability through the swing.  Bat path stays flat on balls up in the zone but can get steep on balls down, line drive hitter can get through the high ones, elbows flare out a little bit and keep his swing from getting that extra whip.  Defensively, showed average footwork in his approach of the ball, plays through the ball but could do it more smoothly if he loosened up, average hands lead to a clean exchange and a shorter arm action through a high ¾ release point with some accuracy.   

Connor Smith, RHP/OF, Brentwood, 2019
60 Time: 7.45, Position Velocity:  OF-77, Exit Velocity: 79
6'1, 155-pound, RHH hits from a relatively tall and even stance and uses a long stride and a minimal amount of hand movement to get himself loaded and ready to go.  Lower half tries to do the right things but often stays too tall and leans a little forward to keep him from really being able to gain leverage through his backside.  Swing is armsy and comes through the zone on a steep path, keeps body over the ball and prevents himself from getting behind it and driving through it, should gain some bat speed and pop with the addition of a little body strength.  Defensively, showed decent hands with some average footwork through his approach to and fielding of the ball, picks it up a bit differently and much less efficiently on the left side of his body and uses a clean exchange and a long arm action through a high ¾ slot to get the ball in from the outfield.

Chase Cook, OF/LHP, Silverdale Bapist Academy, 2018
60 Time: 7.51, Position Velocity:  OF-70, Exit Velocity: 65
5'8, 135-pound, RHH hits from a wide and slightly open stance and begins with his left heel in the air, uses a pretty conventional stride and a hand load in which he raises his hands to get himself ready to go.  Lower half works well and adds some strength to his swing, sometimes over-rotates and loses balance at the end of the swing, high hands are able to come down into a good slot at the beginning of the swing and enable him to use a flat path through the zone, steps in and rolls over around the ball at times, hit a lot of ground balls. Defensively, attacks the ball quickly and without much fluidity, can seem to be rushing through it, uses average hands and a stiff arm action through a high ¾ angle to produce below average arm strength without much carry, exchange was usually clean with a pat.

FIRST BASEMEN

Jackson Sherrill, 1B/OF, Station Camp, 2019
60 Time: 7.54, Position Velocity:  IF-75, OF-80, Exit Velocity: 88
6'2, 190-pound, RHH hits from a tall and slightly open stance and uses some rhythmic bat movement throughout his pre-swing routine, leg kick and a big hand load down and back are used to get himself going.  Lower half is ignited with that leg kick and gets really engaged early in the swing, doesn’t always get all the way through but provides him a good base, barrel takes a good route through the zone and helped him to show some warning track power by driving balls deep into the gaps, was a little late getting set in BP but hit 2 triples off the wall in RCF in game play. Defensively, showed sure hands but average and sometimes flat footwork at the 1B position, knows his way around the bag and used a long arm action through a high ¾ angle to show some average arm strength across the infield.

Andrew Winningham, 1B, Franklin, 2017
60 Time: 7.65, Position Velocity:  IF-68, Exit Velocity: 82
5'10, 190-pound, LHH hits from a balanced and even stance and begins with some fairly high hand positioning, uses a bigger and quicker leg kick and a lowering and push back of his hands to get himself loaded.  Lower half is engaged by the leg kick and spins a little bit to get through the zone, could help his balance and strength in lower half to stride out a little further than he does currently, bat path is flat through the zone and showed the ability to hit the ball to all fields, handsy swing doesn’t create much power at this time. Defensively, showed good footwork around the bag and some athletic ability, good hands led to a long but clean exchange and a long arm action from an over-the-top angle to produce accurate throws with average carry.

MIDDLE INFIELDERS

Luke Chilcutt, SS/RHP, Clarksville, 2017
60 Time: 6.93, Position Velocity:  IF-83, Exit Velocity: 85
6'1, 180-pound, RHH hits from a wider, balanced, and even stance and maintains a very stable base throughout his swing, uses a short stride through an abbreviated leg kick and a controlled load of his hands with a little rap to get himself into a good position.  Lower half stays strong and under control even when firing to create separation, stays behind the ball well and consistently gets his bat on plane and stays through the zone for a long time, not a lot of wasted movement keeps things simple, uses his strength to his advantage and tallied 4 hits in game play with a double.  Defensively, showed good hands and played through the ball well but used a longer exchange, footwork could improve but always put him in position to make the play, high ¾ to over-the-top release point produced very accurate throws with a good amount of carry across the infield. 

Skylar Stalcup, SS/RHP, Powell, 2018
60 Time: 8.02, Position Velocity:  IF-76, Exit Velocity: 82
6'1, 170-pound, RHH hits from a more balanced stance and uses a fluid weight shift, slight leg kick, and a longer stride to get moving, hands go back with his body and stay there when his body goes forward to begin the swing. Lower half allowed for his backside to work but led to a pretty steep bat path through the zone, really steep on balls lower in the zone, hips didn’t always get all the way through, fly balls to RF, line drives up the middle, and ground balls to LF, tallied 3 hits and a stolen base in game play.  Defensively, sits back on the ball and doesn’t play through it very smoothly, did show solid hands and footwork put him in position to make the plays, showed a little quicker exchange than at past events and a long arm action that resulted in a release from a high ¾ arm angle, accuracy and arm strength can continue improving.

Travis Reaves, 2B, Donelson Christian Academy, 2017
60 Time: 7.21, Position Velocity:  IF-78, Exit Velocity: 79
5'8, 150-pound, RHH hits from a tall and open stance and uses a small leg kick and a long stride along with a little bat tilt and push back of his hands to get himself loaded.  Lower half works but pulls him a little too far forward at times, hands come from a high position at a steeper angle through the zone, hits on top of the ball quite frequently, was able to drive balls up in the zone, adding some strength could go a long way for Reaves, tallied 2 hits and a stolen base in game play.  Defensively, showed above average hands and some good footwork, sometimes sat and waited for the ball instead of continuing to work through it, clean exchanged varied in timing but always led to a short arm action through a high ¾ angle, arm strength was okay but additional carry would be very beneficial.

Tucker McCreary, 2B, MLK magnet, 2019
60 Time: 7.45, Position Velocity:  IF-75, Exit Velocity: 70
5'6, 120-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and open stance and some high hand positioning, uses a quick leg kick and short stride along with a slight wrap of his bat to initiate his load.  Lower half glides forward quite a bit and causes him to drag his bat through the zone, finishes with almost all of his weight on his left leg, hands come from that higher position on a downward path through the zone and produce a lot of ground balls, struggles to drive through the ball and could really benefit from some added strength. Defensively, showed average hands and struggled to continue working through the ball, flat feed led to fielding the ball very deep with a lowered body position and a long exchange with a glove pat, long arm action from a high ¾ angle produced some accuracy with average arm strength.

THIRD BASEMEN

Bryce Hodge, 3B, Halls, 2017
60 Time: 7.26, Position Velocity:  IF-85, Exit Velocity: 93
6'2, 190-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance and uses a leg kick and some simple and rhythmic hand movement to get himself going.  Lower half is explosive and fires quickly to give him some good separation and contribute to his impressive bat speed, back elbow gets tucked in to bring his barrel down into the zone early in the swing, swing path remains on the plane of the pitch and allows him to really get through balls and drive them deep into the gaps, stays behind the ball well and maintains balance throughout, showed the most consistent power of anyone at the TP Games, had 2 hits in game play and a home run in BP. Defensively, showed good hands and although his footwork could’ve been more fluid, he was always in position to make the play, longer exchange included a glove pat and led to a long arm action from an over-the-top slot to produce some strong throws with accuracy to be improved upon.

J Ross, 3B/RHP, Franklin Road Academy, 2019
60 Time: 7.63, Position Velocity:  IF-75, Exit Velocity: 83
5'11, 185-pound, RHH hits from a relatively tall and open stance with his hands out in front of his body, uses a leg kick and a long stride along with some rhythmic hand movement backwards to get himself in a loaded position.  Lower half fires through the zone and creates some very good separation from his hands, stays strong and balanced throughout his swing and creates some good bat speed, hands dropped into a good slot and created a swing plane that was flat through the zone with a little bit of lift at the end, looked a little stiff at times but showed a predominantly oppo approach and was able to hit plenty of line drives that way. Defensively,  showed good hands and average footwork at the hot corner and has the ability to make all the plays, didn’t play through the ball much and footwork put him in some awkward fielding positions, slow exchange led to a shorter arm action through an over-the-top release that showed good accuracy and average arm strength.

CATCHERS

Max Riemer, C, McCallie, 2018
60 Time: 7.51, Pop Time: 1.92-1.99, Position Velocity:  C-75, Exit Velocity: 81
5'11, 180-pound, LHH hits from an athletic and open stance and uses an initial stride in to get closed off and a longer stride toward the pitcher, along with some controlled hand movement backwards to initiate his load.  Lower half is strong and clears out to create some stable separation, backside gets cleared and leads the way for him to get his barrel on plane for a bat path that stays flat and through the zone for a long time up until some lift at the end, strong kid drove the ball well to all fields with 2 singles to LF and a double to RCF during game play.  Defensively, showed above average hands and some decent footwork behind the plate, wasn’t afraid to take control during game play and sold out to make some tough blocks, exchange and release were quick but seemed a little rushed at times, short arm action from an over-the-top slot produced some accuracy in throws with okay carry. Did get up a little quickly on some throws to 2B.

Sabin Shofner, C, Riverdale, 2018
60 Time: 7.46, Pop Time: 1.92-2.09, Position Velocity:  C-75, Exit Velocity: 79
6’0, 155-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance and uses a short and early stride to get himself set, hands don’t show much movement before the swing begins.  Lower half works but somewhat spins and brings his body up and onto his front leg, drops his hands as a little bit of a load but gets handsy because of that early stride, comes at lower pitches steeply and hit a few ground balls to the left side of the infield, line drives hit were up the middle, should continue developing as he gets stronger.  Defensively, showed quickness and athleticism behind the plate and an ability to get rid of the ball quickly through a short arm action over-the-top, moves well and uses his mobility to his advantage during game play, stayed fairly low when receiving balls for pop times and did a good job of staying aligned, produced accurate throws to 2B.