HUNTER
LONG

Verablly committed to Southwestern Illinois JC.

Uncommitted; currently ranked No. 136 in Illinois. Long levered 6-foot-8, 190-pound frame with plenty of athleticism throughout. Controlled levers really well down the mound and syncs up. Clean and repeatable with some perceived effort in the delivery from a drop and drive descent down the mound into a compact ¾ arm action. Fastball plays in the zone at 82-85 mph T86 w/ arm-side run. Slider is depthy at 71-75 mph with shorter break and bite to it for S/Ms. Mixed in a cutter at 77-79 mph for strikes with depth at times and a changeup at 73-74 mph with fade primarily to LHHs. Threw it well against a strong ProCase lineup. Navigated some traffic in two shutout innings while punching out three and walking none. Jumps are inevitable as he adds mass to the frame. Intriguing follow.

Positional Profile: RHP
Body: 6-7, 187-pounds. Proportional strength, long levered.
Delivery: Simple, controlled delivery, higher leg kick into balance point, tall/fall lower-half.
Arm Action: RH. Loose, clean arm action, high 3/4 slot.
FB: T84, 81-84 mph. SNK: Hard sinking action, plays consistently at the bottom of the zone. T2105, 1933 average rpm.
CB: 69-72 mph. Firm, 11/5 shape, strike feel. T2218, 2119 average rpm.
CH: 74-76 mph. Firm downer action, advanced feel for the pitch. T1417, 1304 average rpm.

RHP Hunter Long (Limestone, 2027) was perhaps the biggest winner on the mound from the event. An upside frame at 6-foot-6, 190-pounds he showed a dynamic three-pitch mix for strikes. His sinker sat 81-84 mph with hard action, consistently at the bottom of the zone (71% strikes). He then turned to an advanced changeup at 74-76 mph with firm downer action (avg. 0.9” IVB) for 60% strikes. Rounding out his arsenal was a 69-73 mph curveball that had firm 11/5 shape, also thrown for strikes 60% of the time. An uncommitted name to follow closely this spring.

An interesting arm out of the bullpen from the lanky, 5-foot-11, 140-pound frame. Long was working with a two-pitch mix with the fastball sitting 76-79 mph and the curveball 65-66 mph with 12-6 shape. Tossed five scoreless innings while striking out one and allowing only two hits and two walks. Long was filling up the zone and inducing weak contact from a clean, athletic delivery, followed by clean half-circle arm action, working on time. With lots of room to still fill out, Long will be an interesting arm to follow as he continues to grow.