World Wood Bat (WWBA) is my favorite tournament of the prep season. Any time we can swap out the ping for some good, old-fashioned wood, I’m on board. It’s a chance to see which hitters can really find the barrel and who’s got real present power -- metal bats are much more forgiving outside of the sweet spot whereas wood bats really make you earn your knocks. On the pitching side, it’s an opportunity for guys who induce more weak contact than whiffs to strut their stuff for the reasons mentioned above. And to top it all off, WWBA attracts the best and brightest in the country, so it’s a full tournament packed to the brim with talent.
I was able to catch the Underclass version of WWBA this fall which is made up of mostly 2023 and 2024 grads. This is a great opportunity for players to compete against top-tier competition before heading into one of the most pivotal spring and summer seasons of their careers. Players who stand out here vault themselves up the draft rankings and those who are uncommitted have a terrific opportunity to endear themselves to schools that are in attendance. Without further adieu, here are the top prospects and standouts from WWBA Underclass.
2023 OF Walker Jenkins
For my money, Jenkins was the best player in attendance at Underclass. It was the second time I had the chance to see him this summer and he didn’t disappoint. He put together a very productive week that included a mammoth pull-side dinger. Jenkins is long, lean, athletic, and projectable at 6’3”, 205 lbs and shows some of the best bat speed and power in the class. Did I mention he’s an easy above-average runner, too, with a cannon arm? Jenkins checks just about every box and is a no-doubt top 5 prospect in the 2023 class for me. He was one of the better performers at UC, racking up seven hits including the aforementioned home run while working four walks and chipping in a steal.
2023 SS Kevin McGonigle
McGonigle has one of the most advanced swings in the class; he shows strength and bat control balancing quickness with explosiveness. It’s one of those swings that simply looks different when you see it. It stands out. There's a clear feel to hit and to hit for power and it shows up in the box scores, too. There’s present strength in the body, but still room for projection. McGonigle shows plenty of quickness in the field and soft hands that give him a good shot at sticking at short for the long term. He was *the* standout performer at WWBA UC with 11 knocks, 4 for extra bases and 5 steals.
2023 SS Dylan Cupp
Cupp is seen by some as not only the top shortstop, but the top player in the 2023 class. He has a near ideal frame at 6-2, 180 pounds with long levers, a high waist, and broad shoulders that ooze projection. He’s a natural shortstop with good instincts, smooth actions, and a strong arm. Cupp shows quick hands, present power and an ability to drive the ball to all fields at the plate. He racked up 6 hits over the course of the weekend with 4 stolen bases and a pair of scoreless innings on the mound.
2023 SS Antonio Anderson
Anderson is yet another premier shortstop who made his way to WWBA. Sensing a trend yet? He’s one of the most physical and athletic players in the class at 6-3, 200 with sub-7.00 run times and a strong arm. And, as you’d suspect, there’s easy power in the bat from both sides of the plate. Despite his size, Anderson is quick and shows a good glove at short, giving him a chance to stick there at maturity. While it wasn’t Anderson’s best weekend at the plate, he was superb on the mound, racking up 6 strikeouts over 3 perfect innings. On the mound, he worked mostly upper-80s with carry and run and showed a tight breaking ball. Very athletic with a simple operation and easy velocity.
2023 SS Arjun Nimmala
You may know Nimmala from his walk-off hit that secured the WWBA World Championship for his Ostingers squad. Prior to that, he was making his presence felt at WWBA Underclass with 6 hits over 4 games with a double and a triple. Nimmala is a standout defender with quick, smooth actions and soft hands. He ranges well to his left and right and has a good first step. This summer, the bat has caught up to the glove and he’s hit early and often and for impressive, top of the class power. (Video below from a previous event this summer)
2023 OF Justin Best
Best is an athletic outfielder with feel to hit and easy pop from the left side. He’s big and physical already at 6-3, 195lbs, but has a projectable, athletic build and ran a 6.78 60. On top of his impressive tools, Best has performed all summer and Underclass was no exception. He only tallied 3 hits, but 2 were doubles and he walked 6 times over 5 games -- he showed good knowledge of the strike zone and a patient approach while opposing pitchers did their best to work around him.
2023 RHP Dylan Questad
Questad is a very physical right-hander at 6-0, 190lbs with a fastball, slider, changeup arsenal. The fastball sits low-90s with life and touched as high as 94; he was able to hold the velo through 5+ innings of work. His slider is the secondary of choice, sitting 80-83 and flashing sharp vertical movement while the changeup lived around 85 with some fade and tumble. Questad was very effective in his lone start, striking out 3 over 5.2 innings and allowing 3 hits and 3 walks. He generated quite a bit of swing and miss and gave up very little hard contact.
2023 OF AJ Gracia
Gracia’s strong frame immediately stands out on the field. He’s got broad, squared shoulders and long levers and projects to add more strength. Gracia has a smooth, powerful stroke from the left side with natural loft. On the mound he features some of the best left-handed velo in the class, but didn’t throw in this tournament. When the dust settled at UC, Gracia had notched 4 hits with a double and a triple and a pair of walks.
2023 3B Ryan Jaros
Jaros was easily one of the top performers at WWBA Underclass. The 6-3, 210 pound third baseman peppered the field with 8 hits in 9 games for 16 total bases including a home run. He also walked 5 times while showing a patient approach and sitting on something he could drive. Jaros’ swing is simple and easy, but powerful and he shows a knack for finding the barrel while hitting the ball where it’s pitched. He has the arm and athleticism to stick at third as he matures.
2023 RHP Dennis McCarron
McCarron may have been the top performing pitcher the entire weekend. He simply dominated with 11 strikeouts over 6.1 while allowing just 3 baserunners. McCarron did so with a fastball/slider combo that kept hitters off balance and generated a lot of swing and miss and weak contact. The fastball sat 88-90, touching 92 while the slider was upper-70s flashing tight break. The delivery is loose and easy and his long, lean frame has plenty of room to project.
2023 OF Easton Breyfogle
Breyfogle was one of the twitchiest hitters I saw over the course of the weekend. He’s athletic and explosive with a long, projectable body. At the plate he gets a ton of separation and whips the bat through the zone. Breyfogle picked up 3 hits and 2 walks over 5 games and added a steal. He’s a name to watch who could really pop this spring.
2023 LHP Jack Brussard
I happened to catch Brussard by accident, but I was very happy I did. The big lefty (6’5”, 205) sat 84-85 with good carry over 3 innings at touched 87. He also features a 12-6 curveball that shows good bite. Brussard has a simple, low-effort operation that produces easy velocity. The total package of the projectable frame, present stuff, and performance give him a good shot to start long term.
2023 RHP Jeffrey Heuer
Heuer is another, big physical pitcher who made an impact at UC. He matches the listed 6’4” and 215 pounds and has a big fastball to match his big frame. Heuer’s heater is one of the best in the class, regularly sitting 90-92 with life and touching as high as 94. He features a mid-70s vertical breaking ball and an upper-80s changeup to round out the arsenal. In his lone appearance, Heuer struck out 9 (yes, 9) over 3 innings while surrendering 1 hit and 2 walks for one of the best pitching performances of the tournament.
2024 LHP Kevari Thunderbird
Thunderbird, which is an 80 name, by the way, was dominant in his only appearance during WWBA UC. Over 4 innings, he struck out 7 and allowed just 3 baserunners. The fastball showed life while sitting 81-84 and the curve had good movement to it, showing both sweep and depth in the upper-60s and low-70s. He’s a projectable kid with long limbs that should grow into strength and velocity.