Crack of the Bat

by Patrick Ebert

Winter Baseball
Temperatures in the single digits and a recent snow fall in the double digits led to some interesting discussions at the Perfect Game Indoor Showcase last weekend in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. For the scouts, coaches, players and family members that were unfamiliar with the area, the weather was a rude awakening.

But the performances that took place at Perfect Game’s indoor facilities were a breath of fresh air to those of us that are more than used to the weather.

Last year’s collection of talent has been well documented, and the results were shown in last June’s draft when Jon Gilmore (first-round supplemental), Josh Smolinski (second), and Casey Crosby (fifth) were all early round picks, while 11^th rounder Cody Scarpetta was paid like an early round selection.

In total those four players made nearly two-and-a-quarter million dollars, while Justin Grimm, Michael Kaczmarek, Nick Rice, Ian Tomkins and Leslie Williams are now at prominent D1 programs and are all expected to make early contributions at the college level.

Meaning the bar has been set high, and the players from this year’s event were poised to step up and prove there are plenty of more names from the upper Midwest that are worth getting excited about.

Arms Heat Up
Louisville recruit Jake Odorizzi was the best of the best from this year’s group, showing an incredibly live arm that easily produced radar readings in the low-90s. His fastball topped out at 93, and it never dipped below 90. He showed the ability to drop his nasty low-80s slider into the strike zone or use it to get batters fishing in the dirt. In addition to his slider, Odorizzi also showed a true 12 to six curve that was a good five miles per hour slower than his slider while showing a more dramatic, downward break.

It’s easy to envision him throwing harder this spring as the weather warms up (it has nowhere to go but up) given how easy his arm works, and it’s also easy envisioning him creeping into the first round come June. After seeing him last Saturday, I would be surprised to see Odorizzi end up at Louisville.

Another Louisville recruit, Tony Zych, returned for his second year at the PG Indoor, and flashed similar stuff, touching 92 while sitting in the 86-91 range. During his first inning of work, he sat at 90-91, but after a short rest Zych had more difficult touching the 90 mark. Still, he’s a very talented athlete with a good curveball and a good bat to match. At Louisville he would be a legitimate two-way threat, while at the pro level his ceiling as a pitcher is higher.

The most pleasant addition to the event and a name that has already been reported to be on the rise is Minnesota prep righty Chase Hentges. Hentges has a tall and lanky frame and a projectable delivery with plenty of room to improve on what he has already shown, which includes a 88-92 fastball with some nifty movement and a sharp mid-70s curveball.

Speaking of curveballs, a pair of pitchers from Wisconsin flashed the sharpest and most consistent breaking balls outside of Odorizzi. Righty Phil Schreiber pitched on Saturday and joined the 90 mph club sitting in the 87-90 range. He probably threw the most curveballs of anyone that pitched, and like Odorizzi he did a nice job both dropping the pitch in the zone while also burying it in the turf. Schreiber’s angular delivery somewhat reminded me of Justin Grimm from a year prior.

Lefty Jake Hermsen may not have come close to 90, with his fastball sitting in the 83-85 range, but he showed incredible command of the pitch to go along with a sharp-breaking mid-70s curve and a natural sense of how to pitch. Hermsen is also a talented hitter, and his two-way talents will likely allow him to make an immediate impact at Northern Illlinois, as he has the know-how to succeed on his pitching guile alone.

Jacob Turner rounds out the players that touched 90 on the first day of the event, reaching 91 while dipping no lower than 88. His curveball sat in the mid-70s and he also showed a promising slider. His arm action worked so well it drew several remarks from those watching, with several pointing out that they had not had a good look at Turner in the past. Given his arm and his size and the fact that he’s only a high school junior, he’s definitely a name to watch both this year and next before he becomes draft eligible in 2009.

Another big-bodied righty, Madison Boer, just missed the 90 mph mark. His fastball sat in the 87-89 range and he had one of the most consistent deliveries as well as radar gun readings. He showed a nice three-pitch mix with a mid-70s curveball and upper-70s slider. Fellow Crack of the Bat scribe Jim Zellmann informed me that Boer is also a pretty slick infielder, which is even more impressive given his thick and sturdy yet athletic build, and he also swings a pretty big stick. I was even more surprised to learn that Boer has yet to have a college commitment.

B.J. Hermsen (no relation to Jake Hermsen) offered the biggest name at the event, if not the biggest, most imposing presence, but he didn’t throw anywhere near as hard as he’s capable, but that was expected by everyone in attendance as he hasn’t been pitching this winter after sustaining a collarbone injury in football while also playing hoops as one of the state of Iowa’s more effective post players. He did throw 84-86 on Sunday, and for the most part he threw his fastballs exactly where the target was set up. He did skip a few pitches off of the indoor surface, ad his outing was interrupted when one of those pitches took an unfortunate bounce and got the best of his battery mate.

Outside of the B.J. and Jake Hermsen, I wasn’t able to stick around on Sunday to catch some of the more notable players that were scheduled to pitch such as Michael Heesch, Corey Kimes, Brian Krolikowski and Kyle Stroup. Two of the bigger bats that were supposed to hit the cage on Saturday, Sam Munson and John Ruettiger, were unable to make the trip.

The Bats
A pair of catchers stood out on Saturday, both behind the dish at at it.

Geoffrey Rowan stood out for a lot more than just his baseball prowess. He arrived early on Saturday, and was quick to get in the cage to find some action. He approached all of the other players in attendance with a smile and a handshake, and was gracious to everyone that was in attendance. His quickness behind the plate and his arm strength are particularly impressive, as it’s hard not seeing him enjoying success defensively for years to come. While it took him a little while to find his swing, when he did the ball made a special sound jumping off the bat. It’s hard not to root for this young man.

Kale Gaden made his Perfect Game debut and the long trek from Stillwater, Oklahoma based on the recommendation from Oklahoma State Head Coach Frank Anderson, whose son Brett, a former Aflac All-American and second round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2006, was Gaden’s battery mate at Stillwater High School.

Gaden’s arm strength wasn’t as strong as Rowan’s, but few display that kind of cannon. Gaden did show a nice, quick stroke from the left side of the plate, and definitely made an impression on those in attendance. He’s another name to look forward to in 2009.

On Sunday, catcher Chase Graskewicz showcased an arm that raised quite a few eyebrows, as his throws were consistently as good as Rowan’s were on Saturday, but unfortunately I didn’t get to see if his bat played as well as his throwing arm.

There was one more big bat that jumped out. Brance Rivera an infielder from Muscatine, Iowa showed one of the better, pure swings and the most natural bat speed of any player in attendance. He has a big, strong athletic build and looked every part of a ballplayer capable of making an impression at the next level. He’s a TCU recruit, and has impressed at each and every Perfect Game event he has ever attended.

I need to mention again that I didn’t see all of the players that participated on Sunday. In addition to the pitchers I mentioned above, I also missed out on hitters such as William Piwnica-Worms, C.J. Rose and Dallas Burke.

Jucos in Full Swing
College baseball may still be a week away from starting, but many juco programs have bene playing for nearly a month now.

Chipola College hosted the Rahal-Miller JUCO National Classic, with the College of Southern Nevada, St. Petersburg and Walters State all taking part. This tournament represented four of the top five juco programs in the nation, and there was more than enough talent to be seen.

The removal of the draft-and-follow process means scouts are going to have to pay even more attention on the juco talent, as everyone is up for grabs moving forward. This event gave scouts a great opportunity to see some of the nation’s best juco talent all in one place while not having to worry about missing out on D1 action in Florida. 15 of the top 50 juco players took the field, and proved that the teams were evenly matched, with everyone going home with a 2-2 record.

The offense was on display, with each contest averaging over 11 runs per game, which may not seem like a lot but most of the games were seven inning contests. This is even more shocking considering that pitching makes up a big part of the top juco talent, with names like Nick Fuller, Jeff Walters, Aaron Tullo and Ryan Chaffee getting knocked around.

One named did stand out in this event, St. Petersburg’s Tommy Meagher, who isn’t known for his raw, pure stuff but carves up hitters by changing speeds and hitting his spots. He served as St. Petersburg’s closer a year ago, and has the pitching savvy to succeed in whatever role he is placed. He shut down the lethal College of Southern Nevada lineup by allowing only five hits and one walk over eight innings of work while fanning 11 batters.

The lack of stuff may limit Meagher’s pro potential, but he has an extremely interesting story to tell.

The native of Slidell, Louisiana, Meagher is the son of a New Orleans fireman who was part of a unit that was responsible for saving over 1,100 people after Hurricane Katrina tore apart the city of New Orleans. Due to the lack of communications in the area, the younger Meagher didn’t even know if his father had survived the brutal storm until more than a week after the fact when phone lines were re-established.

While the younger Meagher may not be saving lives, he definitely shows a similar dedication and passion for his craft.

Special SoCal Southpaw
The first prominent riser so far this season has emerged from Southern California. John Lally, a lefty from Rancho Santa Margarita has been drawing some big crowds from the scouting community so far this year.

At this time last year Lally was throwing in the low-80s despite showing impressive command of a well-rounded three-pitch repertoire.

Now he’s pitching in the 89-92 range, and has continued to show the ability to cut and sink his fastball with a curveball that breaks just as you would like to see and a changeup that fades about as well as it can. He has an easy, no-nonsense delivery and he throws strikes. That’s a combination that is bound to make a huge difference on draft day.

Be sure to keep an eye on Lally’s name during the months leading up to the draft, as he’s sure to make some more noise on a national level.

The thoughts and opinions listed here do not necessarily reflect those of Perfect Game USA. Patrick Ebert is affiliated with both Perfect Game USA and Brewerfan.net, and can be contacted via email at pebert@brewerfan.net.