Welcome to the second edition of live looks from Cape Cod this summer. You can check out the first one here. For this review, I’ll look at top draft prospect 3B Cam Collier and three starting pitchers: Grayson Hitt, Jared Lyons, and Cade Kuehler.
Cam Collier, 3B, Chipola, Cotuit Kettleers
Game Lines (6/13 and 6/14): 2 hits in 5 ABs, 3 walks, 2 strikeouts
At 17, Cam Collier checks in as one of the youngest players in the Cape’s history; however, with an approach at the plate well beyond his years, he leaves no question that he belongs. While at the plate, Collier’s patience has been on display, constantly working deep counts and rarely chasing. When he swings, he features an incredibly quiet and smooth swing that’s quick to the ball. Collier generates power from his strong lower half and has easy pop to left-center, where he hit a double two weeks ago in a scrimmage against the Lexington Blue Sox. In the batter’s box, the projected top 10 pick offers a well-rounded approach, making him an extremely tough out for pitchers.
In the field, he projects to stick at third base. His strong arm and soft hands make him a plus defender at the position. On the bases, Collier has shown improvements in his speed and has adopted an aggressiveness on the basepaths, getting good jumps on his attempts to steal. Though he has looked better as a runner, there is no doubt that his bat and his defense will carry him and are what has caused him to skyrocket up draft boards.
Grayson Hitt, LHP, Alabama, Falmouth Commodores
Game Line (6/16): 3 IP, 1 H, 5 BB, 2 ER, 4 K
Early in his outing, Hitt looked sharp hitting 94 with his fastball in the first and showing crisp breaking balls. The 6-foot-3-inch lefty with a three-quarter release has a four-pitch mix consisting of a fastball (89/92/t94), slider (82/83), curve (75/77), and change-up (84/85). When he located, hitters struggled to make solid contact and swung through his offerings.
As the game progressed, however, he fell behind hitters, leading him to get pulled after only three innings. At the end of his pitches, Hitt fell off to the third-base side, leading to erratic command and 5 walks. His firm fastball serves as his best pitch, and he leaned on it when he was clawing his way back in at-bats. Out of his offspeeds, he seemed most comfortable with his slider and curve. Both pitches had good movement and flashed swing and miss but lost consistency deeper in his outing. He needs to locate the fastball better early in the count so that his offspeeds will play better off of it.
To be considered in the early rounds of next year’s draft, Hitt will need to improve the command and be able to maintain the consistency of his offerings deep into games. His tall frame shows the ability for some projection, which can result in him adding a couple of miles per hour to his fastball, making it a plus pitch. In the future, if Hitt can develop his change-up further, that will give him a look that varies from the movement of the slider and curve, which can strengthen those pitches.
Jared Lyons, RHP, George Mason, Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox
Game Line (6/18): 6 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 6 K
Each summer in the Cape, unheralded players break out and put themselves on major league clubs’ radars. After throwing nine scoreless innings in his first two starts, Jared Lyons, coming off a down year at George Mason (5.69 ERA), has caught the attention of evaluators. The 6-foot right-hander mowed down the impressive Harwich lineup with his fastball (91/94), curve (78/80), and the occasional change-up (85-87).
Throughout his outing, Lyons attacked the strike zone, rarely falling behind in the count. He worked mostly with his fastball and his curveball, both of which elicited many swings and misses and weak ground balls. When high in the zone, his fastball that works on a flat plane deceived hitters. Early in the game, he was sitting 93/94, but as his outing stretched on, he mostly worked in the lower 90s; however, when he worked into trouble late in the game, he reached back for extra velocity. Lyons’ curve showed good downward movement and continually caught hitters off balance– in the video below, Kyle Teel swings through a curve for strike three. At times, he worked in his change, which was inconsistent but flashed potential.
To work his way into late-round conversation or to get signed after the draft, Lyons needs to continue to build on his success in the Cape. Going forward, he could be moved to the bullpen where his fastball may play up and where his primarily two-pitch mix would work better.
Cade Kuehler, RHP, Campbell, Brewster White Caps
Game Line (6/19): 4.2 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 0 ER, 6 K
Intriguing 2023 draft prospect, Cade Kuehler pitched 4.2 strong innings against Cotuit Sunday evening. The 6-foot righty with short arm action showed a variety of pitches: fastball (89/92/t94), change (81/83), curve (78/81), and a slider/cutter (81/84). For the most part, hitters struggled against him either swinging and missing or hitting lazy ground balls.
During the season, Kuehler’s fastball touched the high nineties, but in this outing, his velocity was damped either due to the cold weather or the strain of a significant workload this season. Though the velocity was down, his fastball still showed good ride and got many swings and misses in the top of the zone. By my count, all six of his strikeouts came on the fastball. His offspeeds were somewhat inconsistent in this outing and his command of them wavered at times. Throughout the outing, he flashed a good change-up and curveball, but his slider was not getting a lot of bite.
For Kuehler to be successful, he will need to develop a more consistent secondary offering that can be used as a strikeout pitch and needs to refine his command. Sunday’s outing showed the life of his fastball but for more sustained success, he will need to throw in the higher nineties. Next year, if Kuehler continues to succeed at Campbell, he will be an early-round pick.