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In late June and early August, over eighty-five uncommitted players from the 2023 class were in attendance for one, or both of our summer upperclass events. Our two upperclass summer events, the Upperclass State Games in late June and our annual Unsigned Senior Games in early August, were our most heavily recruited events in the state. Between the two events we hosted over forty coaches from the MId-Atlantic region. From those two events there have been a total of forty-two commitments in the weeks following our final summer upperclass event, with twenty-two of those commitments going to schools that were in attendance on those days. 

Today we are going to take a look at six uncommitted players from those events. 

Summer State Games Spotlights:

2023 Infielders

Clint Burke 3B / 1B / Briar Woods, VA / 2023 Strong 6-foot, 185-pound frame. Wider square stance, stays on line, and has an uphill path through the zone. Above average hand speed, high end bat speed, and rotates well. The path has an uphill finish and kind of cuts off the extension with some recoil. Despite cutting off the extension, Burke is able to produce power to the middle and pull side. Corner defender with probably more first base at the next level and has the power and run production capabilities to impact the middle of an order.  Strengths: Power, bat speed, sneaky athlete Areas for Improvement: Bat path, adjustability, arm strength

Ryan Gimbel 3B / RHP / Highland, VA / 2023 The Highland School State Champion had a strong year in 2022. I feel like every time I watched Gimbel, he was coming through with a clutch hit for the Hawks. Square and slightly upright, hands set back, and drop slightly on load. Level path through the zone that gains extension and shows the ability to use the whole field. Doubles power to both gaps and ability to hit for average. Corner defender and is a sneaky good runner, turning out a laser timed 6.86 60 on the day.  Strengths: Hit tool, consistency, versatile defender Areas for Improvement: Arm strength, translate foot speed into consistent game speed

Slade Keyser SS / 2B / Rappahannock, VA / 2023 Athletic 5-foot-9 frame. Narrow and upright at the plate. Hands show some rhythm and the swing plays. Swing has some length when gets hands extended, but stays shorter on middle-in and keeps his hands inside. Doubles power to middle and pull side. Keyser is a consistent defender, but will need the arm path to shorten and foot speed to increase to stay up the middle. Has the arm strength to play short, but the exchange to release has some length at times.  Strengths: Rhythm in the swing, feel for barrel, consistency Areas for Improvement: Arm path, run tool

Elijah Reid 1B / OF / James River (Midlothian), VA / 2023 5-foot-11, 195-pound solid frame. Reid has a big year for the Rapids at James River HS. He was one of the more consistent uncommitted bats in the Richmond area this past season. Closed off stance, kind of dives in on the pitch, and has an uphill path through the zone. You could term the stance as being sort of awkward at times, but he produces. Power to all fields, having seen him take baseballs out to the pull side and opposite field. Some slight balance issues at times, but does a nice job keeping his hands back and firing with an accurate barrel. Strengths: Power to all fields, uses the whole field in approach Areas for Improvement: Run tool, balance

Terrence Rhodes SS / 2B / Benedictine, VA / 2023 Cannot say enough about this Benedictine infielder. More so than his ability, his character and makeup are the first things that jump out about Rhodes. Always smiling, appears to really love playing the game, and looks like he is a great teammate. Skill wise, Rhodes has always possessed a solid hit tool, but the main questions for me were 1) Would he bring enough juice to the plate? 2) Where does he fit in positionally? The first question has been answered. Do not get me wrong, he is not necessarily a "power threat", but there is sneaky pop in the bat and he can flat out hit. High average ability with consistent doubles power from left center to the right field line. As for the defense, I still waver on where he will fit in, but the arm strength is definitely there. My opinion is he will play a very solid second base and has a chance to be in the top half of the order. Rhodes made a nice jump in our recent 2023 rankings and settled comfortably inside the Top 100.  Strengths: Offensive production, makeup, arm strength Areas for Improvement: Run tool, solidifying position at next level

Grayson Snead 2B / OF / Battlefield, VA / 2023 Snead has a wiry 6-foot, 155-pound frame. The Battlefield senior is a versatile defender with an above average run tool and it plays quicker in game. At the plate there is some length on the backside of the swing and works more middle to oppo gap. Has shown the ability to hit for average with some doubles power. Snead works really well around the bag with more of a second base/centerfield profile. He is a rangy defender and a solid athlete that can affect the game in a variety of ways. Strengths: Competes in at bats, in game speed, versatile defender Areas of Improvement: Arm strength, more power production in game