James
Sobkowiak

Uncommitted. 6-foot-2, 160-pound frame, lean and wiry with all sorts of room to fill out. Got the start on the mound for the Mustangs as only a freshman and looks to be another promising young arm coming through the doors of South. He’s an athletic mover with a clean operation down the mound, creates layback at footstrike and has a quick/clean arm, will continue to add velocity. His fastball sat right around 84-85 mph early on with life through the zone. The curveball showed sharp action and 11/5 shape, could land it in the zone, 71-73 mph, maintains arm-speed. Was able to throw his changeup in the zone in the mid-70s, similar profile to the fastball. High-level arm with three distinct pitches to follow closely.

SS/RHP James Sobkowiak (Downers Grove South) is an upside left-handed hitter that also showed well on the mound. At the plate, Sobkowiak has loose levers with whippy hands, staying through the zone well with the ability to keep the ball on a line to all parts of the field. He’s a steady defender with sure-handed actions, and his arm is plenty strong (T81 mph INF). His arm-strength easily translates to the mound, where he ran his fastball up to 82 mph, though we’ve had him up to 84 mph in the past. With the way the arm and body works, there is definitely more velocity to come.

SS/RHP James Sobkowiak (Downers Grove South, 2028) showed well as a two-way in his Prep Baseball event debut. On the mound, Sobkowiak was a clean and easy mover with a long, loose arm action, producing a fastball up to 84 mph, sitting mostly 81-84 mph. He also showed feel to throw both his curveball and change-up for strikes. At the plate, Sobkowiak has a loose left-handed swing with athletic hands, consistently barreling the ball for line drives to all fields. He showed clean actions defensively, too, with a loose and accurate arm on throws across the diamond.

Positional Profile: SS
Body: 6-2, 155-pounds. Long, athletic, projectable build.
Hit: LHH. Tall, narrow setup, slightly open stance, small leg lift, works back to center. Loose, athletic hands, slightly uphill path, all fields approach.
Power: 83 max exit velocity, averaged 77.3 mph. 269’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 81 mph. Clean, compact arm action, 3/4 slot.
Defense: Clean, athletic actions, moves well to both sides, clean transfer.
Run: 7.89 runner in the 60.

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Simple, athletic delivery, high leg lift with tuck, tall/fall down the mound.
Arm Action: RH. Short, compact arm action, 3/4 slot.
FB: T84, 82-84 mph. Mostly straight actions, plays clean out of the hand. T1988, 1905 average rpm.
CB: 67-70 mph. Feel for pitch, 11/5 shape, lands. T1905, 1698 average rpm.
CH: 72-73 mph. Feel for the pitch, slight fade, throws with fastball intent. T1613, 1453 average rpm.