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By Alexis Brudnicki
PBR Ontario Lead Writer

Toronto, ON – Adam Hall believes his family made the right decision.

Just a few short years ago, the 15-year-old shortstop was living in Bermuda with his mom Helen and his dad Tyler, playing local sports like cricket and soccer, with not much baseball in sight. As a 12-year-old he returned to his parent’s home and native land for a summer and got his start on the diamond with the London Badgers.

With incredible power, speed and an aptitude for the game, Hall has since transformed into one of the country’s top 2017 prospects. He’s also moved to London, ON full-time, his father joining him earlier this year and his mom’s move scheduled for the end of this year.

“She’s going to go back for a little bit in September and then move up here around Christmastime,” Hall said. “It’s been good but it does add pressure. It definitely does, but I feel like I perform better when I have that pressure, rather than just going out there. I do a better job when I have something to play for.”

Playing at the second-annual Toronto Blue Jays-hosted Tournament 12 at Rogers Centre this year, after making a big name for himself at the inaugural event, the 5-foot-10, 160-pound infielder was looking to make even more of an impression during his team’s five games over the course of the week.

“There wasn’t really any pressure [last year] because I’m younger than them,” he said. “The real pressure is on them because they’re older and they have to be able to play above me…

“This year I’d like to show more because it’s another year and I feel more comfortable playing in [the tournament]. Instead of trying to show who I am and establish myself, I want to show that I’m getting better and I’m ready to do more.”

After getting off to a less-than-ideal start in Futures Navy’s first game of the tournament, Hall got to work, spending extra time in the batting cages with one of his Great Lake Canadians coaches in Adam Stern, and taking advantage of the presence of Dunedin Blue Jays hitting coach Stubby Clapp.

“I felt better,” Hall said after his team’s later games.

The young player’s biggest strength and weakness on the diamond both ultimately boil down to his competitive edge, giving him an advantage in some instances and becoming his nemesis in others.

“My competitiveness and that I’m not going to give up,” Hall said of his biggest asset. “If I go down swinging the first few times, I’m going to do my best to come back and get a hit the next time…but I still need to work on how I react right after that.

“I’m getting better at it but I still need to focus on not getting too [upset] about my at-bats and going back out there and playing good defence. I’ve gotten better at it but there’s still some room for improvement.”

On the first day of the event, Tournament 12’s scheduled workout day, Hall had the second-fastest 60-yard dash time, running a 6.57 and coming in right behind fellow 15-year-old Cooper Davis with a time of 6.45. The two are often paired together because of their age and speed.

“It’s good to be against him,” Hall said. “It’s good competition.”

One American League scout said: “Both looked great. It’s hard for kids who already have such high expectations to continue to impress, but Cooper was the best runner of the day and his swing looks great. Adam ran almost as well and shows such a feel for hitting. They both have the edge we all love and I get excited watching them play.”

Getting out on the big-league field for a second time was also exciting for Hall, along with being able to showcase his skills with all of Canada’s top draft-eligible players.

“The biggest thing was just stepping onto a field in the major leagues and looking around and seeing what it’s like from the field,” he said. “Then actually being able to compete with all the guys who are older, that was great.”

Hall has had great instruction over short time in baseball but gained even more valuable knowledge from Blue Jays alumni and guest coaches at the tournament.

“Stubby is great,” Hall said. “And I liked talking to Sandy Alomar Sr. He’s a good guy to talk to and he’s got really good things to say. Basically he told me to just keep playing hard and that I have a good future to look forward to, and to keep beating the older guys.”

The immediate future for Hall will see him continue with the Great Lake Canadians and hopefully on his way to earning a spot with Team Canada. Then as he gets a little older, he can start to think further down the road.

“I want to be on the Junior National Team,” Hall said. “That would be everything right now. Basically that would be as far as I can go right now so that’s what I want to do…I’ve had a couple schools [interested] but they can’t really say too much right now, and I’m not thinking about the draft much because it’s too far off. My goal is to make the junior team and then start worrying about the draft.”