During the first week of August, I headed west on I-20 to cover the East Coast Pro Showcase in Hoover, Alabama. The following is the second of three sets of notes from that event, with this one covering the Mariners (Mid-South + Gulf Coast) and Giants (Central and South Florida) squads that competed all week at the Hoover Met. Let’s get into it!
Mariners
LHP Matthew Dallas, Briarcrest Christian School (TN), 2023
Committed to Tennessee
Performance: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 K, 65% Strikes
Matthew Dallas put together three strong innings of work on Day 1 for the Mariners, with starting traits emerging left and right…but mostly left. He sat 91-92 with his fastball, switching up his arm slots to either generate high carry (high 3Q) or running life (3Q). He spins it decently and was able to command both variations of the heater, demonstrating advanced pitchability and getting whiffs at the top of the zone. Off the fastball, Dallas mixed in a changeup at 84-87 with above average fading life and a slider at 75-79 with tight gyro shape and average depth. The Tennessee commit got whiffs on all his offerings, and has a clean arm with plenty of projection left on his 6’5” frame. Scouts are likely counting on a stuff uptick in the Spring, but the body, pitchability and command from the left side already make Dallas a name to watch for the 2023 draft.
LHP Adam Hachman, Timberland HS (MO), 2023
Committed to Arkansas
Performance: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 K, 64% Strikes
Cheddar, gas, heat. Whatever your pet term for fastball velocity is, Adam Hachman has it. The lefty from Missouri pitched three scoreless frames for the Mariners at East Coast Pro, with his four seam fastball as a constant and looming presence with each batter faced. The heater sat 93-96 MPH and touched 97, with plus carry that jumped out of the hand and got over the top of barrels throughout his outing. Mixed in was a 82-83 MPH withdowner gyro shape and an 89 MPH changeup with decent fading life--solid secondaries that play up due to how well they tunnel off the plus fastball. Hachman’s high 3Q delivery and short stroke hides the ball well on his back hip and head, but repeatability has been an issue and command will wax and wane as a result. But the premium stuff from the left side and pro body make this Arkansas commit a must follow for Midwest scouts this Spring.
C Blake Mitchell, Sinton HS (TX), 2023
Committed to LSU
Performance: 1-9, 5 K, 2-2 in CS
At the plate, this was a week to forget for Blake Mitchell, the top prep catcher on our board. Mitchell showed a capacity to put together long at bats with his strong eye, but was late on a few fastballs that racked up the K totals in his three games at Hoover. With that said, his hands work quick with loads of bat speed behind them. This allowed glimpses of the Texas born backstop’s raw power to show in batting practice--where he parked a few baseballs over the right field fence--and on a 100 MPH line drive single through the middle in game. Additionally, the saying defense never slumps can certainly apply in this look; Mitchell was two for two in caught stealing attempts and put up 1.8 second pop times with consistency in his drills on Day 1. Consider his contact issues this week a bump in an overwise smoothly paved road, with a formidable track record and toolset portending first round consideration for the LSU commit.
Giants
RHP Liam Peterson, Calvary Christian HS (FL), 2023
Committed to Florida
Performance: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 K, 56% Strikes
Liam Peterson put together a strong three innings of work for his South Florida compadres on Day 1 in Hoover, showcasing premium bat missing stuff throughout. He sat 89-93 MPH and touched 94 with a very lively four seam fastball, flashing plus carry when he got on top of the ball. Primary secondaries included a changeup at 79-81 with above average armside run, as well as a high spin 79-81 MPH slider that flashed plus vertical and horizontal break. Rounding out the arsenal was a loopy curveball at 72 MPH with good feel for spin. Peterson’s arm action is short and explosive, though the present effort is high and did cause some issues with maintaining velocity and strike throwing. That being said, the lean, high-waisted frame of the Florida commit is very well suited to gain muscle and reduce that effort very soon.
LHP Wes Mendes, Tampa Jesuit HS (FL), 2023
Committed to Vanderbilt
Performance: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 K, 72% Strikes
Wes Mendes filled up the zone early and often in a clean two inning outing at East Coast Pro. He sat 90-91 with his four seam fastball, generating plenty of carry despite a lot of natural cut. His best secondary was a two plane curveball at 77-78 that flashed plus vertical depth and showed solid horizontal break, with a 82 MPH slider with short cuttery shape as a complimentary offering. Mendes is slightly undersized, but has room to add muscle to his upper body and evident strength in his lower half. He also has one of the more fluid and clean operations of this event, with repeatability and low effort from his high 3Q armslot as constants throughout his outing.
RHP Landon Maroudis, Calvary Christian HS (FL), 2023
Committed to North Carolina State
Performance: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 K, 68% Strikes
Landon Maroudis brought a potent blend of strike throwing and stuff to his three innings of work on Day 2. The Wolfpack commit sat 92-94 MPH with his four seamer that featured plenty of life, with a sweepy mid 70s curveball and drop off the table low 80s changeup rounding out his arsenal. Maroudis has a great body to project on--he’s tall and lean with evident athleticism in his delivery, which isn’t surprising given his high-level two way background on the summer circuit. There is a solid expenditure of effort at present, and ideally you’d like to see more feel for spin on the breaking ball. However, the pieces are there to develop a robust three pitch arsenal with starting traits, which should have scouts following Maroudis and Calvary Christian teammate Liam Peterson all spring long.
RHP Charlee Soto, Reborn Christian Academy (FL), 2023
Committed to UCF
Performance: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 4 K, 68% Strikes
Charlee Soto was arguably the talk of the entire week on the pitching side of things, as he efficiently mowed down the Padres lineup in three innings of work on Day 3. The big righty sat 95-98 with hard armside run and sink on his fastball, which in and of itself was a pitch that no one was touching. Off the two seamer, he mixed in a mid 80s changeup with plus depth and a mid 80s slider with sharp vertical break. Soto possesses one of the quickest arms--if not the quickest--amongst the 2023 prep pitching class, with the ball jumping out of his hand from a tough, low 3Q arm slot. There’s a good bit of effort in the UCF commit’s delivery, but there’s also good reason to believe he will get stronger and be able to tamp down that effort while possessing the special level of stuff that he shows as a 17 year old. Soto is not only a first round arm, but he’s positioned alongside Thomas White and Oregon right hander Noble Meyer as the potential first prep arm off the board in 2023.
3B Aidan Miller, JW Mitchell HS (FL), 2023
Committed to Florida
Performance: 3-8, 2 2B, 0 K
Aidan Miller was one of the more productive hitters at East Coast Pro, demonstrating great vision and barrel feel all week long. Of particular note was his ability to hit some of the more advanced breaking balls seen by hitters at Hoover--and hit them hard. Miller possesses a hand hitch that causes some concern that he’ll be able to handle high velocity fastballs, but as he continues to use his quick hands to catch up to those heaters, the concerns become lighter and lighter. The Florida commit spent the majority of his time at third base, which is a likely landing spot given his present physicality and maturing build. At the hot corner, Miller showed a good first step with soft hands and athletic actions--indicators that the prep shortstop will acclimate well to duties further left on the infield dirt.
MIF George Lombard, Gulliver Schools (FL), 2023
Committed to Vanderbilt
Performance: 2-9, 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 K
George Lombard had a bit of an uneven week at the plate for the Giants, although he did show an ability to battle and drive the ball gap to gap in game with a wood bat. Additionally, the South Florida native showed a good two strike approach, with an ability to shorten up and put the ball in play. He does like to get his arms extended and drive the ball, which made him vulnerable on the inner half with velocity. With that said, Lombard is a highly athletic player with the big bat speed to drive balls he can get a hold of, and should be able to progress with inside pitching as he sees more of it down the road. Defensively, the Vanderbilt commit is light footed with good range at a variety of positions on the infield dirt, although arm strength questions could move him to 2B long term.
SS Arjun Nimmala, Strawberry Crest HS (FL), 2023
Committed to Florida State
Performance: 1-9, 1 HR, 2 K
Arjun Nimmala saved his best for last--hitting a 103 MPH home run to left center field in his final at bat of the week at East Coast Pro. Inconsistencies in batted ball quality may be attributable to an aggressive approach, where Nimmala was looking for fastballs up that he could drive. This led to a lot of bad counts and weak contact during the week. There’s going to be an adjustment process in refining that approach, but he demonstrates the twitch and bat speed to handle velocity that--in conjunction with his athleticism--bodes well for such adjustments to click. As Nimmala continues to fill out his frame, his lower half will gain more stability and already impressive raw power will increase. At shortstop, the Florida State commit shows good range in both lateral directions and a strong arm--ensuring that he will stick there as his development continues.
Photo Credit: Adidas