Dylan
O'Connell

"Played a pivotal role in the Old Abes’ state playoff run and a strong showing at the Top Prospect - Milwaukee event helped shoot him up our board, now sitting at 40th overall. O’Connell is built at a proportionally strong 5-foot-10, 175-pounds with athleticism to pair, as he ran a 6.76 in the 60-yard dash this July. He owns a fairly loud skill-set on the diamond, barreling his best ball up at 101 mph in BP and throwing an event-high 89 mph across the infield. Those skills translate well in game, where O’Connell regularly produced loud contact off the barrel when we saw him throughout the WIAA Playoffs and at this year’s Badger State Battle. He offers some two-way potential as well, bumping his fastball up to 88 mph and featuring a sharp breaking ball with swing-and-miss spin off an 11/5 plane."

O'Connell may have walked away from our Top Prospect-Milwaukee event as one of the bigger risers in the 2022 class. Just inside the top 100, O’Connell is an athletic 5-foot-10, 175-pounds and ran a 6.76 in the 60, showed an 89 mph arm across the diamond and put up one of the top exit velos, finishing his round with a 101 mph shot to left field. O’Connell carried it over to game play as well showing strong bat to ball skills and ability to get to the same hard hit contact he showed in BP.

Positional Profile: INF/RHP
Body: 5-9, 150-pounds. Athletic frame.
Delivery: Tall start from the middle of the rubber, simple side step rock to athletic balance point; works on line, level shoulders, short stride, lands square, controlled finish.
Arm Action: RH. Long arm action and swing to high 3/4 slot. Loose, quick; aggressive.
FB: T80, 79-80 mph. Flashed hard run.
CB: 65-69 mph. Flashed feel. Works off 11/5 plane with tight/sharp action.
SPLT: 67-69 mph. Thrown at arm speed; feel pitch. Good split action; low spin, late drop/fade.

Hit: RHH. Balanced setup, elevated hands pre-pitch, smooth load, high leg kick trigger.  Short and uphill bat path, lifts through contact, gap-to-gap approach with intentful hacks. Consistently makes hard contact on the barrel; average exit speed of 88.7 mph in BP, per TrackMan. Intriguing offensive profile with a top-of-the-order ceiling.
Power: 88 mph exit velocity from the tee.
Arm: RH. INF - 77 mph. Long and loose arm action, 3/4 slot.
Defense: Wide fielding base, athletic defender that plays low to the ground, comfortable on the move. Steady hands, clean funnels at times, some quickness to release. 
Run: 7.59 runner in the 60. 

5-foot-5, 120-pound leadoff hitter. Has an open and tall stance with little to no load and a smooth stride. O’Connell is patient at the plate and is able to make solid contact on the baseball. Went 2 for 3 with 2 doubles on Thursday morning in his team’s contest against Sluggers Baseball. O’Connell also showcased a quick arm and smooth actions at shortstop.