Jackson
Natanek

Fellow Brother Rice product, INF/RHP Jackson Natanek (Brother Rice, 2025), was a part of Team Illinois at the 2022 PBR Future Games and continues to separate himself as one of the top middle infield defenders still on the market in the class. He’s an ultra smooth and athletic mover, boasting soft hands while playing low through the ball and gaining ground easily with a shuffle into his throws. His arm has made some jumps since our last look at him, now reaching up to 91 mph across the diamond. The right-handed bat has always been compact with a line-drive approach, whole field approach and it gained some bat strength over the winter, now registering a T90.4 mph exit velocity, up from 83.6 mph in 2022. He has continued to improve his 60-time and his arm is an asset on the mound too. He topped at 86 mph with a hard-biting mid-70s curveball that plays with an average of 2482 rpm.

Positional Profile: SS
Body: 5-10, 155-pounds. Athletic build. Plenty of room for continued physical development.
Hit: RHH. Balanced setup, quiet load, short stride. Athletic hands, bat stays on-plane, natural lift, works gap-to-gap.
Power: 83.6 max exit velocity, averaged 76.4 mph. 290’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 87 mph. Short arm circle into a 3/4 slot. Life out of the hand. Accurate throws on the move. Carry to the base.
Defense: Fundamentally sound. Athletic actions. Under control on the move.
Run: 7.70 runner in the 60. 

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Twitchy, up-tempo delivery, pre-loads back knee before moving into a strong drop and drive lower-half, works in line with the plate, closed front foot at landing.
Arm Action: RH. Long, loose arm swing out of the glove. Quick arm action, high 3/4 slot.
FB: T83.2, 82.2-83.0 mph. High spin fastball--Life and carry through the zone. T2573, 2459 average rpm.
SL: 71.3-73.6 mph. Hard slider. Tight spin. Out pitch potential. T2679, 2592 average rpm.

Here are two of the top two-way talents at The MAX on Saturday: SS/RHP Xavier Crowder (Montini Catholic, 2025) and SS/RHP Jackson Natanek (Brother Rice, 2025). Both stood out on the mound with their high spin rate breaking balls that topped the entire event. Crowder led the showcase with a curveball that averaged a spin rate of nearly 2,700 rpm, while Natanek’s slider averaged nearly 2,600 rpm, which led that pitch’s category. Both clearly have dynamic, athletic arms and Crowder paired his breaking ball with one of the top fastballs of that day, topping at 90.7 mph. Crowder’s dynamic athleticism was on display as a position player as well. He ran the top 60 time for 2025s (6.94) and showed off elite bat speed for his age (75.5 mph max). Crowder swings with intent off an uphill path with pull-side tendencies and his furthest batted ball traveled 346 feet. Natanek is a high-level shortstop with fundamentally sound, athletic actions, and a strong arm, naturally, and has shown a feel to hit from the right-handed box.

5-foot-8, 135-pounds, right handed hitter. Small, quick frame projectable to fill out. Profiles as a lead-off type hitter, even/balanced stance, short stride, quick and short swing. Has a 2-strike approach with discipline. Clean transfers at shortstop with quick hands and above average accurate arm, is agile and able to cover a lot of ground. Has the ability to make the big plays in the hole, up the middle and in front of him. At the plate against Chicago Elite went 2-for-2 with a pair of RBI. Offensively, he totaled 16 hits on the weekend in his team’s seven games, en route to the championship. On the mound, he showcased a clean arm with long and loose action. His arm speed is quick from a high ¾ window. Fastball sat 76-78 mph, topped at 80, and plays with life in the zone. He mixed in a breaking ball with 11/5 shape at 67-68 mph. Final line: CG, 0 R, 1 H, 4 K.