Q&A with Dartmouth commit Ethan Brown
January 12, 2023
One of the biggest winners of the calendar year was CIF Ethan Brown (Waukesha West, 2023; Dartmouth commit) who swings one of the loudest right handed bats in the state. After not seeing Brown for roughly a year, our staff got the chance to get an updated look at him during the Top Prospect Milwaukee event back in June of 2022, and there he reasserted himself as a true next-level prospect. During his round of BP, Brown tallied some of the best metrics of the talented event as he registered an event-high 102.7 mph max EV, a max batted ball distance of 377 feet, and an average EV of 95.5 mph. After this eye opening performance Brown moved up nearly forty spots in our class of 2023 rankings but he wasn’t done there. In the fall, Brown and his GRB STiKS squad came out to The Rock for our final tournament of the year. There he was responsible for one of the top offensive performances of the weekend and he moved up, yet again, in our ‘23 rankings to No. 35 as a result.
To cap off his productive 2022 campaign, Brown announced his commitment to Dartmouth back in September. We had the chance to talk with the Big Green commit about his recruitment process, favorite baseball memory and much more in this edition of our Q&A series.
LATEST SCOUTING REPORT
Ethan Brown
Class of 2023 / 3B
Player Information
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Graduating Class: 2023
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Primary Position: 3BSecondary Position: RHP
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High School: Waukesha WestState: WI
- Summer Team: Stiks Academy
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Height: 6-1Weight: 190lbs
- Bat/Throw: R/R
Videos
(9/25/22)
OUR Q&A
PBR: What were your expectations about the recruiting process? What were you looking for out of a college program to continue your baseball career at?What were your expectations about the recruiting process? What were you looking for out of a college program to continue your baseball career at?
Brown: I didn't really have that many expectations going into the high school recruiting process. I think a lot got messed up for everyone due to the dead period during my 15u season, but that was where I learned a lot about how important it is to reach out to coaches, since not all of them can ever actually come to see me in person. I was looking for a very high academic school to set me up extremely well after college if baseball didn't work out, along with a program I knew I could put the work in to better myself and win games with.
P: Did location or distance from home play a factor in your decision?
B: Honestly it didn't play a huge factor in my decision. It would've been nice to stay close to home, but I knew that with what I was looking for out of a school I would probably have to travel far.
P: When did the recruiting process really start to heat up for you? Where did the school you committed to first see you play?
B: Recruiting for me really started to pick up at the end of this summer. That was when I was able to put together video from the 6 tournaments I was able to DH in to send out to schools. I was able to get attention from a few schools I really liked that saw me play this summer, but also schools that didn't get that opportunity but still showed interest. I'm very proud of how I competed coming back despite getting Tommy John just in February of this year.
P: What do you like most about the program you chose, and what were the key factors in making your decision?
B: I fell in love quickly with pretty much everything Dartmouth had to offer. They are a very high academic school, took third in the Ivy League over the 2021 season, they have experience with players getting drafted, and the atmosphere there when I took my first visit was amazing. I didn't really set any rules or expectations for finding the school I wanted to go to other than it just being a good fit and being high academic, but just the overall experience I believe Dartmouth is going to offer me is truly special.
P: What other schools were on your short list before you made your final decision?
B: I had conversations over the phone or in person with UMass, Columbia, Illinois State, and Madison College before I made my commitment to Dartmouth.
P: Who is the best player you have faced in your state? What about them makes for a tough opponent?
B: My honest answer has to be RHP Adam Switalski (Westosha Central, 2023). I always remembered him giving me trouble from his whippy arm action and crazy movement on his offspeed, which is really tough to pick up. That was even before he made his huge velo jump, so I can't even imagine what it's like facing him now.
P: At what point in your career did you realize you were a college-caliber player and became serious about taking your game to the next level?
B: It wasn't until my 14u season that I started playing with guys my age vs a year older than me when I realized I needed to start putting in serious work if I wanted to be great at my age group and compete at any of my dream schools. That first high school offseason ended up being big for me, and although I didn't necessarily have the metrics to get recruited until later down the line, my breakout 15u summer proved to me the power I have to shape myself into whatever player I want to become as long as I go all in on myself in everything I do.
P: What advice would you give to young baseball players striving to get where you are?
B: My biggest advice for young guys is to always try to find new ways to better yourself. Once you develop that work ethic to not stop until you're the best player you can possibly be, it becomes trying to figure out what will and won't benefit you the most. For me, it was the weight room, which severely transformed me as a player, especially in my junior year offseason and during my Tommy John recovery that spring.
P: What is the most memorable moment in your baseball career to this point?
B: My most memorable moment has to have come during my sophomore season playing against our cross town rivals at Waukesha South. After losing our first game earlier that week at home, we broke out to an 8-0 lead early in game 2 where I hit a grand slam that made a huge splash into the Fox River at Frame Park.
P: Preview your high school team's season for us. How do you feel your team will be?
B: I have a lot of hope for our team at Waukesha West headed into the spring season. We don't have too many big names like some of these other teams, but our team is really well put together by guys that know how to play together. If we get hot at the right time, we have the potential to make a deep run into playoffs.
P: If you could steal any tool or quality from another player in the state, what would it be and who would it be from?
B: The speed tool from either one of my guys INF Ethan Hindle (Arrowhead, 2023; Kentucky commit) or OF Logan Schill (Pewaukee, 2023) would be a great addition to my game. Watching Schill make plays no one expected him to in center this summer or witnessing Ethan's base running instincts really get me hyped for what I could be able to do if I worked to get there speed wise as well.
P: Who is the next talented young player to keep an eye on out of your high school or travel program?
B: I believe Waukesha West has a really strong sophomore core on the come up. Between 1B/OF Max Mullane (Waukesha West, 2025) who knows how to catch barrels and both RHP/3B Evan Brown (Waukesha West, 2025) and RHP/INF Tanner Kalinowski (Waukesha West, 2025) and their abilities to mix, I'm really excited for the future of West after my senior season. All three are on the verge of breaking out very soon and becoming impact players for this upcoming season.
RELATED CONTENT
Scouting Report
Brown is nearly back to full health after an elbow injury, but that hasn’t prevented Brown from making gains offensively in the meantime. Brown authored one of the best BP rounds of the day, swinging an aggressive – yet controlled – right-handed barrel that repeatedly struck the ball with triple-digit EVs, including an event-high 102.7 mph max. Brown is a strong 6-foot-1, 190-pound prospect who’s previously showcased third base actions and arm strength, so if he’s back to 100 percent soon, he’ll have plenty of pop to profile at the hot corner at the next level. He generates big barrel speed (73.2 mph on average), and it produced an average exit speed of 95.5 mph and a max batted distance of 377 feet.