I had planned on traveling to see UConn two weekends ago and then catch the Boston teams this past weekend, but life happens, and my schedule changed to see Northeastern the first weekend followed by a Harvard game and BC’s series against Clemson this weekend.
First off I want to touch on two young standouts for the Northeastern Huskies:
OF Mike Sirota, Northeastern, 186 Bags+
2-2 HR, 1B, 2 BB
I have seen plenty of Sirota over the last year starting with his standout summer on Cape. He had one of the best batting practices to experience both visually and audibly as he showed stellar feel for the barrel. Early on this season, he was still putting up numbers but showed some approach issues where he appeared to be bailing out his backside to lift the ball in the air. He has now put everything together and is seventh in the entire country in BaGS+ surrounded by some big time names. He excelled when I saw him on April 22nd where he had a home run, a single, and drew two walks.
Sirota is a plus athlete and stands out in every facet of the game. At the plate, he sets up with a wide base and leans forward over the plate. He uses a tiny stride and lets his quick hands do the work to generate plus bat speed. He is already driving the ball well but his lean frame leaves some room to add more power. He has shown great plate discipline this year as he is walking and striking out at the same rate. This summer, Sirota primarily played corner outfield but has really stood out in center field for the Huskies. He reads the ball well off the bat and his athleticism shines just as it does when he is on the bases. Every time he is on base, Sirota is a stolen base threat combining plus speed with plus base running. Overall the sophomore will be a big name to watch next year and I think he has top twenty upside.
OF Cam Maldonado, Northeastern, 178 Bags+
2-4 2 HR
Maldonado has stood out as one of the best hitters for the Huskies ever since I saw him play in their home opener. He hit two homers in my live look and is now into double digits on the season as well as rocking a 1.200 OPS. He’s also a plus runner as he posts home to first times consistently in the 4.2-second range as a right-handed hitter. On the bases, he is 21-22 on stolen bases this year, and in a midweek game against BC, he impressively beat a 1.9 pop time for a stolen base off of BC catcher Peter Burns, which is no easy feat. He sets up with an even base and his hands close to the body, he has a simple load step and really taps into his backside well in his swing. As well as the offensive production, he shows great plate discipline and gets the most out of every at-bat. Maldonado was recruited as a shortstop but has been mainly playing right field. It’s most likely to get his bat in the lineup but he has been strong in the outfield and plays the Boston wind well while also showing off a strong arm. As a true freshman, Maldonado is eligible in 2025 and he has very high upside.
I had planned on catching Harvard’s two premier arms in a doubleheader but Jay Driver’s start got moved so I was unable to see him but I was in attendance as Chris Clark pitched game one against Columbia:
rhp Chris Clark, harvard, 121 digs+
6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K
Clark set up the Crimson nicely with a quality start as they went on to earn a big Ivy League sweep over Columbia. He’s a three pitch guy with a new cutter replacing a changeup that he did not show on Friday. He has a medium, lean frame with long limbs. He sets up first base side and side steps into a high leg left that he wraps around his body and points his toe towards the ground. He has a forward lean through his motion and throws from a ¾ slot before he finishes high and falls off to the first base side of the mound. His fastball was 92-94 MPH with a bit of arm-side run and touched 95 MPH a couple of times and 96 MPH once. He was able to induce 12 whiffs off of the fastball alone. The slider is 79-82 MPH and has sweeping shape but what looked like an inconsistent release point turned into the news that he has added a cutter. The cutter has a sharper downward shape and is more 85-87 MPH and induced more whiffs than the slider. It gives him a better weapon to face left-handed bats and he seems comfortable with the pitch already. He was light out through four innings before allowing some hard contact in the fifth and sixth but he was able to work around it for an overall clean and impressive outing.
You can check out my notes on BC from my previous articles here and here. I want to mainly focus on some of the Clemson players I saw but here are some notes on the notable BC players:
Travis Honeyman has a very timing-orientated approach that has started to be attacked with both quick pitches and a heavy dose of offspeed pitches. Almost every at-bat he gets at least one pitch thrown before he is fully ready in the box.
Joe Vetrano also was attacked with offspeed but it didn’t completely stop him from putting his plus power on display.
Cameron Leary unfortunately took a foul ball off the hand that made him sit out the last half of the first game and the rest of the series.
BC catcher Peter Burns has always been great defensively with a plus arm behind the plate. This year he has settled in at the top of the lineup and has been more productive as well as being an on-base machine. His value was arguably most on notice when the past balls started to rack up with him out of the game.
1b/lhp Caden Grice, Clemson, #295 | 149 Bags+
4-12, 2 2B, HR | 8.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 9 K
Grice has an imposing presence both at the plate and now on the mound. He is 6’6 with long levers and shows athleticism as a big guy. He was a standout as a freshman before a bit of a sophomore slump. He pitched sparingly his first two seasons but now has fully embraced a two-way role and joined the Clemson rotation. All while his offensive numbers have positively regressed towards his freshman All-American production.
At the plate, he sets up with a wide base and the bat wrapped around his shoulder, then loads with a small stride and uses his long levers to drive the barrel through the zone. He has traditionally struggled against change-ups and gets thrown plenty during his at-bats but he has done well to improve the chase numbers slightly this year, although there will always be swing-and-miss to his game. He now has his third straight season with double-digit home runs and has serious pop to all fields. He plays first when not on the mound but he got a lot of playing time in the outfield this summer. He moves well with his long strides allowing him to cover plenty of ground and he is able to show off his plus arm unlike at first base.
When pitching, Grice sets up on the first base side of the mound, he side steps into a leg lift and lands early, and throws a bit cross-body from a ¾ slot. He has a three pitch mix with a sinker, curveball, and change-up, with the change being the real standout pitch. I saw him throw a couple of innings with Chatham last summer and was able to generate double-digit whiffs on the changeup in only a couple of innings of relief. The sinker is 90-93 MPH and the velocity held up well across eight innings. His go-to secondary in the first half of the game was his two-plane curveball. It lives in the high-70’s and he used it as an out-pitch when he couldn’t overpower someone with his sinker. The change-up is 82-86 MPH and generated nine whiffs on the day even though he did not throw it until the second time through the order. It is a plus pitch that gets great tumble arm-side generating chase as it falls out of the zone. Grice’s biggest weakness on the mound is his control. He worked 6 hitless innings but allowed an early run from a walk and a hit batter. The intriguing question for Grice is where he plays in pro ball and if he keeps mowing down lineups the answer may be the mound.
Of Cam Cannarella, Clemson, 150 bags+
Cannarella is another true freshman that has burst onto the scene and has been atop the Tigers’ lineup the whole season. He has a small wiry frame and is a plus athlete. He sets the table well despite having a quiet weekend at the plate in Brighton. He has a very rhythmic operation at the plate and sets up with a slightly open stance with an even base before loading by bringing his front knee back. He keeps his hands close and has a pretty flat swing that is geared for opposite field line drives. He keeps the ball on a line and doesn’t hit for much power, mostly looking to punch the ball through the infield. He plays centerfield but is another guy who came up as an infielder and is still listed at infield/outfield. He plays the outfield well despite not having a very strong arm. He will be draft eligible in 2025.
c/of Cooper Ingle, clemson, #177 | 141 BAgs+
Despite watching him all summer, this weekend was the first time I saw Ingle behind the plate as he mainly DHed do Chatham due to nagging injuries. He has a small, stocky catcher build and his knowledge of the zone really stands out on the offensive side. He has tremendous plate discipline and works deep counts and is a tough hitter to put away, as evidenced by his twenty-six walks to only nineteen strikeouts. He sets up with a slightly open stance and even base and wraps the bat around his back shoulder before loading with a small leg kick and bringing his hands back. He is more of a line drive hitter and does not have much power to his game. He plays corner outfield when not behind the plate and I think his approach at the plate and his ability to play some different positions adds to his draft stock.