Crack of the Bat
More Jupiter Part 12
By Blaine Clemmens
Upon further review (and after getting some emails asking about certain players and others telling me I was creating a class system but not seeing all the players there), I realized there were some players in Jupiter that I failed to mention. Some of them I specifically remember having the intention of reporting about, but in the process of compiling my notes from the entire tournament, a few slipped through the cracks. That certainly was not my intention. Hopefully this report will provide a few more opportunities for some of the players I am about to write about.
One team I enjoyed watching play was the Dallas Tigers 18U. I remember watching them and planning in my mind to write about some of their players, in particular senior RHP James Parsons (6'0" 180, Wylie HS, Wylie, TX). Parsons was uncommitted as of the WWBA Championships and as I was watching him I wondered why. His stuff is quality D1 baseball type stuff.
First of all, Parsons is a competitor and has a "moxy" about him, which is clear when he is on the mound. He pitched with good tempo and aggressiveness, suggesting that early in his college career he could see action right away as a middle or short reliever, if he wasn't a starter. He pitches from a high 3/4 slot with a long arm action, creating good arm speed and lively action on his pitches. Parsons' fastball was 85-87 and at times very lively on the arm side. His fastball is good, but his offspeed stuff will make a difference at the college level.
Parsons slider (71-76 mph) was at times a plus college pitch. He went to it a lot (maybe a little too often at times), showing tremendous confidence with it and good feel. At times he locked up hitters with its late action and the aggressiveness with which he threw it. That pitch had a sharp change of direction and when used properly in his repertoire is certainly capable of being a strikeout pitch. Parsons also used his change-up (75-77) very effectively, particularly against left hand hitters. He showed good feel for the change and got some nice run on it.
Other Tigers players that stood out in the game I saw them play against the Braves Scout Team were junior outfielder Trey Johnson (5'11" 165, L/L, Tyler Lee HS, Flint, TX), sophomore catcher Joey Hainsfurther (5'10" 165, S/R, Highland Park HS, Highland Park, TX), and senior third baseman Justin Walker (6'4" 195, R/R, Highland Park HS, Dallas, TX). Johnson is a good hitter. Facing the hard throwing Braves staff (Shawn Tolleson and Joe Hatasaki), Johnson got two knocks by using a short/quick swing and staying in the middle of the field.
Hainsfurther has not caught a lot (info I got from one of the Tigers' fans) but I think he has a chance to be a good one. He showed a very good knack for blocking and recovery on balls in the dirt and was for the most part a good receiver. His feel for the position looked natural and his wiry body was agile behind the plate. Offensively Hainsfurther showed off a nice opposite field stroke from the left side. Follow him... he had the look of a player. As for Walker, he is one of the first players you notice because of his frame. Then you notice him when he shows off a strong arm across the diamond. He had the look of a prototypical 3rd baseman.
Also on this team were two outstanding (national level) junior right hand pitchers, Blake Beavan (6'7" 205, Irving HS, Irving, TX) and Cole Green (6'1" 180, Coppell HS, Coppell, TX). I saw both of them earlier in the year, but not in this game nor in Jupiter. Beavan and Green both competed for the USA Youth National Team this past fall. I have seen each of them on the mound twice. Beavan has a fastball that I have seen up to 92 mph and a good breaking ball that at times is above average. Green has a mid-upper 80s fastball and at times usability of two "plus" breaking balls. Both are aggressive pitchers and both are major D1 talents, with Beavan also ranking as a top draft prospect in the 2007 class.
The Columbia Angels White team from Texas also had some players that caught my eye. '06 catcher Tyler Klein (6'0", S/R, Oak Ridge HS, Conroe, TX) tossed a 1.93 in-game laser on the bag. '06 RHP/OF Norman Wittkamp (6'0" 200, R/R, Clear Creek HS, Friendswood, TX) was in the outfield and showed off a good OF arm, with a long arc and low trajectory. I suspect that arm stroke and release is what makes him a prospect on the mound (ranked in the Top 100 in the '06 class). Though I did not see him, I had reports that '06 RHP John Touchton (6'2" 225, Kingwood HS, Kingwood, TX) was up to 93 with a 79-83 mph curveball.
The Crusader Baseball 18U team out of Florida had an '08 RHP named Zack Levitt (5'10" 155, Barron Collier HS, Naples, FL) who showed a fastball up to 86 mph and a 76 mph slider. A young guy with that type of arm strength must be followed. '06 OF/1B Taylor Hashman (6'1" 185, R/R, Naples HS, committed to U of South Florida) showed off a quick bat and nice looking swing and '06 OF Trevor Hearl (6'0" 175, R/R, N. Ft. Myers HS, Cape Coral, FL) showed a good outfield arm with a quick release. I only saw this team for a brief moment, and those were the players I had notes on.
The Florida Hitmen had some nice looking '06 players. U of South Florida bound OF/P Jesse Suarez (6'1" 170, L/L, Tampa Catholic HS) showed good speed (4.25 home to first), a short swing, and a quick bat. He looked to be a quality lead-off type hitter capable of causing some havoc at the top of the order. Orlando Bacon (5'9" 140, L/L, Hillsborough HS, Tampa, FL, committed to Bethune-Cookman) is a wiry bodied lefty who showed a fastball up to 87 with a lot of arm side movement and complimented it with a big rolling 70 mph curveball. The ball had life out of his hand his arm action was loose, easy, long and quick. Not your typical projection type pitcher, but a couple of inches and pounds on his frame would be very interesting.
The Knoxville Yard advanced deep into the tournament, I believe to the quarterfinals. Unfortunately I only came across them one time, and clearly I missed out on some good players. Of note in the one game (vs. ABD in the playoff round) was '07 1B/P Paul Hoilman (6'4" 220, R/R, Science Hill HS, Johnson City, TN). He is a big, physical presence with a some bat speed. His hands work and when as he learns to stay on the ball longer with his lead hip, he could rapidly develop into an '07 to watch.
Mattingly Baseball/Major League Beginnings had a couple of intriguing young players. '07 RHP Gary Bulman (6'3" 230, Greenbriar Christian Academy, Virginia Beach, VA) is a power bodied righty with a loose and strong arm (3/4 slot). I saw him 87-89 with the fastball and two breaking balls, both of them at times with two-plane action. The curveball was 67-69 mph and the slider was 74 mph.
Bulman has some mechanical things to work out, in particular his tendency to drift down the slope (which made his arm drag and flattened out his pitches), but there is nothing wrong with his arm. He is a strong follow for major D1s and will also draw draft interest. '07 OF/2B Daryl Leonard (5'10" 165, R/R, Palm Beach Gardens HS, Wellington, FL) is an athletic bodied player with a quick bat and he ran pretty well.
The '06 from that team that I liked was LHP Justin Marks (6'4" 175, Owensboro Catholic HS, Owensboro, KY, committed to Louisville). The long bodied lefty had a long arm action and pitched from an over the top slot. I saw his fastball up to 86 mph but felt his best pitch was a big rolling curveball (69 mph) that had some depth. His effort was pretty easy and at this point he has not reached physical maturity yet.
A couple of players on the Mid Atlantic All Stars made their way into my notes, but one in particular stood out. '07 Austin Gallagher (6'5" 225, L/R, Manheim Township HS, Lancaster, PA) was playing 3B and was quite noticeable standing there with that body. At the plate he showed some strength and looks like he will hit. Like a lot of young players he also needs to learn to stay on the ball with his lower half better. Suffice to say that a 6'5" L/R corner player will get more than one look from major D1 programs and from MLB scouts next summer.
'06 RHP Matt Layman (6'3" 175, South Mecklenburg HS, Charlotte, NC) from the On Deck O's showed off an 85-88 mph fastball and was still up to 87 in the 7th inning. He has a long arm action and over the top slot. Layman showed two decent offspeed pitches; a 69-73 mph curveball with at times late action and a 76 mph change-up he threw with good arm speed and kept down in the zone. I am unaware of his college situation.
Ok, that gives a more complete look at the WWBA Championships, from my eyes to your imagination. I have said it before and will say it again, I could not possibly see all the players in Jupiter, nor was that my intent. Some people emailed me and told me that because I only wrote about those players that stood out to me that I was creating a class system... well, here is the actual email...you are welcome to your own opinions about my efforts in Jupiter...
"The fact that you did not see all of the players is exactly why you create a class system that is fundamentally unfair. Before you evaluate who is best and predict draft positions or label players as among the best out there, you should have either seen them all or consulted with your co-workers and gone community with your column. And in my opinion, you missed badly on some of the players you wrote about that I saw in Jupiter."
You win some, you lose some. All I did was to try to give you perspective from one person's point of view. Unfortunately, no one sees every player (though at least two PG staffers saw every game and took notes that are now logged in our player database), unless of course you get on board and get a subscription to BaseballWebTV. (www.baseballwebtv.com).