The top four in the class remain the same, highlighting three SEC commits and one ACC commit. Myles Upchurch (Alabama) and Clayton Armah (Auburn) both have arguably the best starter profiles and pitch arsenals of any of the top arms in the VA/DC class, while Noah Yoder (Duke) is the closest thing to a power arm and most electric stuff in this class. Evan Hankins (Tennessee) maintains his position at #3. For us, Hankins is the best combination of present bat to ball ability and has future power projection that he will have a chance to continue to tap into. In addition to the present and future offensive abilities, Hankins is a high end defender around the bag at first. 

There have been some small shifts inside the Top 25, mainly involving players that were already inside of the Top 25. The first move to highlight would be Ethan Ball (Virginia Tech) moving up two spots and landing at #5. Ball had a breakout spring at McLean and continued some of that during the summer and fall. While Ball has shown some of the most dynamic offense in this class, there are some areas to grow to allow him to continue his trend up. Figuring out where the future defensive profile lies is one of those highlighted areas, as well as cleaning up zone discipline and pitch recognition, which we feel can lean into some swing and miss at times. All in all, it is a dynamic bat that flashes at times and if he has another spring like 2024, he will definitely continue to be a helium guy.

A little while later, another barrel from the #Hokies commit. This time a 💣.

‘25 Ethan Ball has been on a tear since the beginning of spring and shows no signs of letting up. Definite helium guy w/ the offense he has been providing.@ShooterHunt @PrepBaseballVA#DCSummerChamp https://t.co/7FJUzRBAir pic.twitter.com/PidUhkOXms

— Jason Burton (@ksallday19) July 13, 2024

Another highlighted player making a small move up is fellow 2025 left-handed hitter, Sy Crider (West Virginia). Crider had some eye opening games this fall in front of our staff where he showed his offensive upside. Balance, timing, and delivers the barrel on-time consistently. In addition to the aformentioned abilities, the Broadway product has displayed adjustability in the swing and the ability to hit in various counts, using the whole field in approach. Crider is arguably the best offensive catcher in this class. 

‘25 Sy Crider (Broadway) launches this one over RF to put @RichmondBraves up 10. @PrepBaseballVA #RVAFallUpper pic.twitter.com/Ts74ZSt0Tb

— Prep Baseball VA/DC Scouting (@PrepBaseVAS) September 14, 2024