Steven
Skolarz

Transferred to Montevallo from Loyola Marymount. 

Originally committed to Indiana, Skolarz waited till July after his senior season to commit to Loyola Marymount.

2nd Team All State: After an up-and-down junior campaign, the physically imposing righthander came out with something to prove in 2015, and did just that, going 8-1 with a 0.28 ERA, striking out 87 batters in 49 innings pitched, while only allowing 11 walks. Opponents hit .105 off Skolarz in 2015, and he allowed only three runs (two earned) on the entire year). His 87-90 mph fastball returned to form in 2015, and at times he threw as many as five pitches over the plate for strikes, an arsenal that also featured a slider, curveball, changeup, and splitter. Ranked No. 26 in Illinois, Skolarz remains the top uncommitted 2015 in Illinois, and perhaps the entire country.

4.24.15 - 6-foot-6, 220-pound wide shouldered, strong right-handed pitcher impressed with 86-88 mph fastball, reaching as high as 89 mph in this outing. Works from short, over-the-top arm slot, level shoulders throughout delivery, aggressive with lower half, gets hips going towards his target down the mound. Stride direction was improved, more in line with home plate, not opening up early towards first base. Repeated delivery all game, five strikeouts, four hits, two walks, held velocity into the sixth, still touching 88 mph. Impressed pitching down in the zone consistently with fastball and slider. Slider showed short, late break, 10/4 shape, thrown hard from 75-77 mph early. Also flashed feel for strikes with 71 mph curveball, bigger break than slider, starts at righthander’s hip. Skolarz is a proven strike thrower and winner who is the top uncommitted prospect in Illinois at No. 51.

5/17/14 - Ranked No. 13 in the state. Hulking 6-foot-5, 215-pound frame. Struggled in this outing, pitching into the third, failing to record an out. Walked four in two plus innings, throwing 60 pitches, 33 for strikes. Skolarz has missed time during the season and may be building arm strength back up as recent outings have been cut short. Early in the season touched 90 mph, and sat consistently in mid 80’s. Today fastball sat 78-80, touching 82-83 three times. Mechanics don’t look that different, but is arching back and opening lower half early in delivery. His land foot is a good 6-8 inches falling off towards the first base side. He did this in the past as well, but today lacked the same arm speed shown previously. Breaking ball was in the 70-73 mph range. Has shown the ability to command multiple pitches in the past, including an above average splitter, which didn’t seem to be used on this day. Interesting to follow and see if Skolarz’s stuff bounces back for the playoffs and summer time.

4/1/14 - Indiana commit, ranked No. 13 in the state. Hulking 6-foot-5, 215-pound frame.  Touched 90 mph in the first inning, but sat 86-88.  Velocity dropped to 84-85 in the second, and as low as 81-83 in the fourth by the time his day was done. Showed the ability to reach back for a few extra mph in pressure situations. An up-tempo and choppy delivery with lots of effort leads to deception and uncomfortable at bats for hitters. Does a good job of loading over the rubber, while getting his big lower half going downhill towards home plate. Skolarz mechanics seemed to pull off-line away from home plate towards the first base line as he tired, opening up his front side early and dragging his arm through the zone. Pounded the zone mostly with the FB, but flashed a deep repertoire of off off-speed stuff, highlighted by a promising 79-81 mph slider with good bite. Curveball came in slower and loopy at 68-71, the changeup showed promise at 79-82, getting hitters out front for a couple easy fly ball outs.

2/16/14 Indiana recruit. Hulking 6-foot-5, 215-pound frame, massive hands and feet. Throws full arsenal of pitches: fastball, curveball, changeup, splitter and cutter – and threw all five pitches for strikes. Works from high-3/4 slot, hides ball well, works downhill, choppy delivery. Fastball topped at 89 mph, sitting 87-88 with slight arm-side life. All offspeed offerings have definitive action. Curveball looks to be go-to pitch; throws with conviction, tight spin, commands for strikes down in zone in 74-76 range. Changeup ranged between 71-75 mph; when thrown harder pitch had late arm-side run. Splitter (71-73 mph) had late, hard downer action while cutter checked in at 83 mph.

5/8/13 - Currently ranked No. 15 in Illinois’ 2015 class; 57 overall. Physical 6-foot-4, 215-pound frame with a strong lower half. On Tuesday, Skolarz threw a complete-game victory against state-ranked Sandburg. Worked from an over the top arm slot with some effort. Mechanically sound but showed a tendency to open lower half early, which caused him to miss glove side. Possesses great extension at finish of delivery which allows him to work down in the zone consistently and provides late jump on his fastball. Skolarz sat 84-86, touching 87 in innings 1 and 2, and was 82-84 in innings 4-6. His slurve sat 68-72 with two plane life, has swing and miss potential, but sometimes lacks firmness to be a consistent out-pitch.  Had excellent command of the glove side down fastball which resulted in multiple strikeouts looking. Executed pitches in tight situations. Tempo was excellent throughout the game. Did not show a changeup. Overall, a major prospect to follow in the class of 2015.

1/20/13 - Wide-shouldered 6-foot-4, 185-pound right-hander with advanced feel for three pitches. Around the plate with everything, all with movement. Athletic, repeatable delivery with long, loose arm action from high 3/4 slot. Fastball sat at 84 mph with late arm-side life. Both curveball and changeup have potential to be go-to out-pitches. 68-69 mph changeup showed late arm-side run thrown with excellent arm action. Curveball showed consistent sharp 11/5 break, in the 64-68 range, and throws it with confidence and conviction. Skolarz looks to be a high-level pitching prospect in Illinois’ loaded 2015 class.

6/13/12 Skolarz is a wide-shouldered 6-foot-4, 185-pound right-handed pitcher who looks to be one of the premier pitching prospects in the Class of 2015. On the mound, he showed command of three pitches.  His curveball was sharp and his fastball showed late arm-side life, topping at 81 mph.  Skolarz also showed off a 72-75 mph changeup that had arm-side sink.  At the plate, he showed some raw power potential.