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Tournaments  | Story  | 6/4/2018

PG East Cobb Days 3-5 Scout Notes

Photo: Logan Tanner (Perfect Game)

PG/East Cobb Invitational Days 1-2 Scout Notes



Max DeJong (2020, Powder Springs, Ga.) has progressed nicely as a pitcher over the course of the last year. DeJong, a rising junior from Hillgrove High School touched 92 mph with his fastball. He creates plenty of angle on his fastball from an over the top arm slot. He pitches exclusively from the stretch balancing nicely on his back leg before moving downhill to home plate. From the human eye, the ball really jumps out of DeJong’s hand. He throws with little effort getting repeated upper-80s velocity on his pitches. He also showed his full arsenal of pitches with a curveball and changeup as well. The curveball showed 12-to-6 break in the low-70s, but the changeup was the better of the two secondary offerings. The changeup showed short sinking action up to 79 mph. DeJong is still uncommitted, but with the velocity he showed on Saturday and the number of college coaches in attendance that uncommitted label may not last too much longer.

Hurston Waldrep (2020, Thomasville, Ga.) made a considerable leap in velocity on Saturday from his last time pitching in a Perfect Game event. 11 months ago Waldrep’s fastball topped out at 85 mph and on Saturday his fastball sat 89-90 mph early on. The fastball did lessen in velocity as the game went on, but the first inning was very eye-opening. Waldrep not only featured an upper-80s fastball, but his delivery is very clean for his age.

The uncommitted rising junior has plenty of tempo to his delivery with a clean arm action. He generates plenty of arm speed and gets good use of his lower half. The most noticeable and intriguing aspect of his delivery is the amount of extension he gets out in front. Getting up to eight feet of extension out in front of his 6-foot-1, 163-pound frame, Waldrep gets an effective velocity of up to 93 mph to hitters meaning it appears that hard to the batter in the box. He also mixed in a 12-to-6 curveball that flashed hard biting action as well. Waldrep has developed nicely in a year’s time and is a very interesting uncommitted arm in the 2020 class.

Austin St. Laurent (2020, Elon, N.C.) has been impressive all weekend long with his bat and foot speed. The commitment to East Carolina had a pair of doubles today to help lead his Team Elite Prime 16U team to a 9-1 victory. The early Saturday morning game was highlighted by an offensive showing by Team Elite. St. Laurent’s raw bat speed and loud pop was a big part of that. Sunday, St. Laurent showed his speed on the base paths as he sprinted down the first baseline recording a 4.26 second time from home to first base. Laurent is a legitimate two-way talent that has reached up to 90 mph on the mound in the past as well.

Andrew Burns (2022, Albertville, Ala.) is one of the more standout 14 year old players of the weekend. Burns showed at the Main Event Showcase in December that he has true bat speed and can handle the bat very well. For his young age, Burns’ bat speed is noticeable and truly raw. He matched that bat speed with strength to his swing on a 1-0 fastball that he connected on and drove out of the park. The rising freshman squared up the baseball as it left his bat at 91 mph and 340 feet over the left field fence. He also plays a solid third base with quick actions and good hands. The ceiling is high for Burns as he still has plenty of time to continue to improve on his all-around game.

Zachary Maxwell (2019, Acworth, Ga.) is an invitee to the Perfect Game National Showcase and he showed why on Saturday. Maxwell retired nine hitters via the strikeout in four innings of no-hit baseball. The Georgia Tech ran his fastball up to 93 mph while mixing in a slider with a high spin rate. The slider featured a spin rate up to 2600-rpms in the 76-79 mph range. Maxwell is a physical pitcher standing at 6-foot-6 235-pounds. He throws really easy as well with the baseball jumping out of his hand. Maxwell pitched really well and left the game in line for the win. There are lots of aspects of Maxwell’s repertoire to like as there is still velocity left in there just how much and when will it pop up is the real question.

Marquis Grissom Jr. (2020, Atlanta, Ga.) opened up Sunday morning’s playoff action really filling up the strike zone nicely to both side of the plate with an upper-80s fastball and a mid-70s straight changeup. The son of a former Major Leaguer has a really quick arm on the mound and it’s evident in the velocity he produces. Grissom’s fastball topped out at 89 mph and his changeup topped out at 76 mph early on in the contest. The uncommitted righthander pitched a very impressive 6 1/3 innings striking out seven batters and only allowing two hits. He was very efficient as well reaching 79 pitches during the outing. Grissom’s quick arm and the athleticism he has in his delivery would be a nice addition to a big-time program’s 2020 recruiting class.

The strong showing of 2020 graduate arms continued on through Sunday’s playoff action with Wyatt Crowell (2020, Cumming, Ga.) of Team Elite Prime 16u. Crowell, taking the unfortunate no decision, was really dominant in his start on the mound and showed good stuff in doing so. Topping out at 88 mph and showing an average velocity of 86 mph, the lefthander throws a hard fastball to square up as it shows life to armside throughout the trip to the plate. His fastball tails away from righthanders and he mixed in a slider that showed lots of depth up to 77 mph from his crossfire delivery. There’s plenty of tempo to his delivery as he coild at the balance point of his windup. The arm works nicely through the back with plenty of quickness and looseness to it. Crowell stands at 5-foot-11, 150-pounds but with some added strength and continued growth, there is reason to think that Crowell still has more in the tank.

Michael Fowler (2020, Trussville, Ala.) was hit some against a Georgia Jackets team that went on to finish runner up in the event, nonetheless the righthander featured a fastball up to 90 mph. His fastball also flashed sink at times as well. Fowler has a loose arm action that works nicely coming from an online delivery that has a big leg lift at the balance point. Fowler’s arm works and there is some effort as he releases the baseball, but he stands at a projectable 6-foot-1 155-pounds and can land both of his pitches for enough strikes. His curveball showed different break depending on the spin showing short break at times and depth at other times. His curveball was best when having 11-to-5 shape with depth in the mid-70s. Adding to the large amount of uncommitted and projectable pitchers, Fowler is another name to follow for the 2020 class.

Tyler Olenchuk (2020, Irmo, S.C.) came into close out the final two innings of the East Cobb Astros 8-0 run-rule victory to start the playoffs. Olenchuk added his name into the mix of multiple 2020 arms that showed big-time potential on the mound during this weekend’s event. Olenchuk, a commit to Clemson, struck out three of the seven batters he faced and filled up the strike zone with his fastball and his curveball. His fastball sat 88-90 mph and averaged 88 mph during his two-inning stint. His curveball was an above average secondary pitch with late 12-to-6 break up to 78 mph.

Nathan Hickey (2019, Jacksonville, Fla.), a teammate of Olenchuk unloaded on a baseball early on in the first round playoff game. The second hitter of the bottom half of the first inning connected on a fastball and did not miss it. The Florida commit struck it to his pull side at 99 mph off of his bat. The home run traveled 402 feet to right field into the parking lot next to Field 9 at LakePoint. Hickey features raw strength to his swing and bat speed that generates high exit velocities off of his bat.


 

Logan Tanner (2019, Lucedale, Miss.) showed the stuff of the tournament during his start on the mound Sunday. As the No. 14 seed Team GA/MBA 17u Gold began their playoff run, Tanner gave them no concerns that they were going to win game one. Tanner featured the top fastball velocity of the tournament as he peaked at 95 mph and sat in the 91-94 mph range. His fastball has plane and lived mostly down in the zone. His curveball was slightly inconsistent, but certainly showed potential with short break and very tight spin. His curveball velocity topped out at 79 mph. Tanner was virtually untouchable throughout his outing going four strong innings of no hit baseball with five strikeouts and being one walk away from a perfect start. Tanner will also be at Perfect Game National and is always a treat to watch pitch.




Jerrion Ealy (2019, Carthage, Miss.) has plus speed and showed it during a pair of instances Sunday. On a triple to right center field, Ealy burned around the bases and clocked a 4.19-second home to first base time with a turn. Ealy posted the same time later on a groundout to shortstop while being with a slight pull up at the end. The commitment to Mississippi has elite speed and a hit tool that plays as well. The #8 player in the 2019 class is a high level player whose physical presence and overall skillset are fun to watch play. 

Josh Shuler (2020, Suwanee, Ga.) flashed serious barrel control and raw bat speed in the semifinal of the 16u PG East Cobb Invitational. Shuler connected on a fastball out over the plate and did not miss it. The 22nd ranked player in the 2020 class squared up the pitch for a very loud triple deep to center field. The extremely athletic outfielder burned around the bases making it into third base easily. Earlier in the contest, he just missed a pitch that he flew to left field with a hang time of just under six seconds at 5.93-seconds exactly. Shuler is a fun player to watch as he is extremely athletic. He also is the top ranked uncommitted player from the state of Georgia for his 2020 class.

– Gregory Gerard



 Landon Russell (2022, Phenix City, Ala.) performed well on Saturday, stroking two hits, including an RBI triple. He has a quick bat through the zone and quick hands to the ball and is an advanced hitter and defender as he is only 14 years old. He tracks and stays with the ball in the box and is a solid baserunner. At third base, he has a strong arm and good hands, he is also patient and lines up his throws well. At the plate, he is not afraid to go to the opposite field, patiently wanting on the right pitch and taking it the other way.

Russell’s teammate on 14u Team Elite Premier, Will Cannon (2021, Smiths, Ala.), put together a solid start on the mound. Cannon threw 74-77 on his fastball and has smooth mechanics on the hill. Cannon also has a good feel for a tight curveball that he can drop in for a strike occasionally. He pushes off the mound well with his high leg kick and shows good command of the zone as well. He only allowed one run and two hits on his line score, generating consistent soft contact. The 5-foot-7, 130-pounder will continue to add velocity as he gets stronger to go along with his impressive pitchability.

Jonathan Vigoa (2022, Rome, Ga.) showed a couple of potential plus tools on a good day for his Georgia Scorpions 14u squad. He flashed a quick bat on an opposite field RBI single and demonstrates good speed and good instincts on the base paths. He is patient at the plate as well, drawing a walk. Although he is primarily a catcher, he showed his strong arm today at right field and showed good feel for the position.

Lawrence Hammonds (2020, Hoover, Ala.) showed an advanced approach at the plate for his Excel Blue Wave squad on Saturday. He displays solid bat speed and garners consistent hard contact, as evidenced by a hard hit double to left-center. He is also patient and waits for his pitch with a good approach. He really gets the bat head out in front of the baseball and gets on base, with four total bases on the day. Lawrence is the 19th-ranked player in the state of Alabama for the 2020 class.

Playing for 16u Triton Rays Prime, Trey Marshall (2019, Lawrenceville, Ga.) stood out mainly because of his plus arm and defense in right field. He is agile and athletic, simply making it look easy in the outfield. At the plate, he has an inside-out swing and makes hard contact, evidenced by a laser single to center. His plus speed also shows on the base paths, with two stolen bases on the day. The 5-foot-10, 165-pound rising senior should continue to add strength as well, and profile some more gap power in addition.

In an excellent display of power, Johnny Ceccoli (2020, Tyler, Texas.) showed his plus hitting ability with a homerun over the right field wall for his Knights Baseball 16u Premier team. His bat flies through the zone with ease and his swing is effortless. At first base, his defense is smooth and he picks the ball very cleanly. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Auburn commit is a very impressive prospect and will only continue to get better as he matures.

– Matthew Brothers
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