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Year in Review: Wisconsin's Top Stories of 2013

December 30, 2013

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director - Wisconsin/Illinois

As 2013 comes to end we take a look back at the year in review with a list of ten of the top stories of the year. Some stories were the most well read on our website, others are a big picture look at Wisconsin’s finest. All in all it’s a wrap up of ten of the top moments in PBR’s coverage of Wisconsin high school baseball.

10. Connor Wollersheim undergoes Tommy John surgery and makes deadline transfer to Appleton North.

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director

Connor Wollersheim was the No.1 prospect in the Class of 2015 when the initial rankings were released in December, 2012. After a successful sophomore campaign at Neenah HS, in which he carried the team to a sectional championship, Wollersheim noticed something wasn’t right after the last pitch he threw to beat Kimberly in the sectional final.

“I just knew my elbow had given out,”said Wollersheim.

The lanky 6-foot-2, 160-pound left-hander had battled through some shoulder issues earlier in the spring, but his elbow pain he wasn’t going to be able to overcome. After several doctor visits and MRIs, Wollersheim had to get Tommy John (UCL reconstruction) surgery on July 17.

Wollersheim went 6-1 on the year, working 58 innings pitched over a seven-week weather-shortened season, handling over 29 percent of the team’s workload on the mound, according to the team’s official GameChanger statistics. He was asked to shoulder even more responsibility in the playoffs, making an appearance in each of the Rockets’ four playoff games. Wollersheim pitched 15 2/3 innings in a 12-day span, recording three victories and a berth in the state tournament.

Wollersheim’s year-long recovery process won’t allow him to pitch any innings next spring. And when he does come back, it won’t be at Neenah HS.

Wollersheim has officially transferred to perennially strong Appleton North HS, where he will be a huge addition to the Lightning come his senior year. He will join Alex Henwood, who is the No. 4 prospect in the state and recent Nebraska commit, giving the Lightning two formidable Division 1 recruits in their 2015 class.

 “After knowing I was going to have to sit out the year with my surgery, it seemed like the perfect time to make a change,” said Wollersheim.

WIAA rules prohibit players from transferring schools without sitting out a year from sports. Wollersheim will be allowed to practice with the team but cannot participate in any game until his senior year.

The process wasn’t easy for Wollersheim and his family, as they had to make written appeals to both schools in order for the transfer to go through. The process was made even longer when Appleton North initially denied the Wollersheims’ request, but after the 16-year-old wrote his own letter to plead his case, it finally went through just in time of the start of the school year.

Wollersheim got his brace off a week ago and is back to a full range of motion in his left arm. He said he is excited about the opportunities ahead of him at Appleton North.

Despite the surgery, Wollersheim should still be one of the more coveted left-handed prospects in the 2015 class.

“I am still talking to all of the schools that were recruiting me before the surgery,” he said. “In fact, I’ve even heard from some new ones as well.”

Wollersheim said he hopes to make his first competitive pitches sometime in late summer of 2014, and should be primed and ready to make a big impact for Appleton North in their 2015 campaign.

9. Prep Baseball Report’s first Wisconsin Showcase

Still one of the most read group of stories in 2013 was the recap of the Wisconsin Prospect Identification Showcase in January. PBR’s first showcase in Wisconsin this event unveiled many of today’s top ranked prospects in every class.

8. Dan Jansen drafted in 16th round

The June MLB amateur draft came and went with only one Wisconsin high schooler selected in the draft. Dan Jansen (Appleton West) was selected in the 16th round by the Toronto Blue Jays and later signed, foregoing his scholarship to Jacksonville University. Jansen finished his first year in professional baseball in the Gulf Coast League with a .246 batting average with 18 RBI and four doubles in 36 games.

7. Hudson edges Eau Claire with a walk of win in Sectionals

One of the more exciting games I attended all year, Hudson outlasted Eau Claire in a pitchers’ duel 3-2 in 12 innings.

Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director – Wisconsin

Hudson 3, Eau Claire Memorial 2

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – In a game filled with drama, Hudson came out on top of a 12 inning affair on Thursday in the Wisconsin Rapids Sectional Semifinals, 3-2.

With Wisconsin’s No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2013 going for Eau Claire Memorial, the Old Abes and Louisville commit Jake Sparger knew they had the upper hand going into their Semifinal match up with Hudson.

This season Sparger had only allowed two earned runs in 44 innings pitched, totaling a miniscule 0.32 ERA. The 6-foot-5 right-hander also had not lost a game all year with a 7-0 record, and he wasn’t planning on losing today.

What Memorial hadn’t planned on was Hudson senior lefty Mike Hommes being equally impressive. Hommes matched Sparger pitch for pitch as the two seniors traded goose eggs for eight innings.

Both teams had their chances to score early. Memorial’s best chance came in the second inning when they left the bases loaded with one out and failed to score.

Sparger looked sharp early touching 89 mph in his first two innings with a two plane slider that proved to be untouchable for the Raiders. Hommes took a different approach to recording his outs with a crafty repertoire of changing speeds from the left side pitching off of his 74-75 mph fastball.

With score knotted at zero both teams went to their bullpen in the ninth. The Old Abes called on junior right-hander Dalton Roach to replace Sparger as he worked a perfect ninth.

In the tenth Hudson relief pitcher Stef Smith would allow a pair of Memorial runs. With runners at second and third, sophomore Sam Prissel stepped to the plate and came through with a clutch RBI single. Jake Sparger followed Prissel up with an RBI single of his own to give Memorial a 2-0 lead.

With runs coming at such a premium it looked as though Hudson faced an insurmountable deficit. However, the Raiders led off the last half of the tenth with a single by Hommes and a walk. With the tying run at first base, Roach looked as if he got Austin Evenson to fly out to center, but a misread in the outfield saw Evenson’s fly ball roll all the way way to the wall scoring both Raider base runners and tying the game at two.

After another scoreless inning in the 11th we headed to the 12th. Memorial came up empty in their half of the 12th and in the bottom half Hudson threaten with the bases loaded and two outs. Blake Amborn stepped to the plate and became the Raider hero ripping the game winning walk off single into left center.

With the win Hudson earned a spot in the Sectional Final to take on Stevens Point.

6. Bryant Jordan from Home Schooled to Missouri

By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

The question for Bryant Jordan is inevitable and frequent: Why are you home-schooled?

“I think education is a choice, like everything in life,” he said. “I think being home-schooled gives me the opportunity to experience life and develop as a whole person. It also helps me to learn deeper in my areas of interest.”

Jordan certainly isn’t unique in that he gets his education at home, but his potential as a Class of 2015 right-handed pitcher in Wisconsin puts him a rare class of athletes. Few, if any, top prospects don’t attend a formal institution, but it hasn’t affected Jordan’s development so far.

At the 2013 Midwest Future Games, Jordan was one of a handful of players to crack the 90 mph mark with his fastball. He gave up four runs, two on a triple, in his first appearance, but managed to settle in and show the college recruiters his stuff.

He sat in the high 80s while mixing in a mid-70s curveball.

“It was crazy, I loved it," said Jordan, who's ranked No. 2 in Wisconsin's 2015 class. “I haven't seen that many coaches ever. That was my first time experiencing over 50 coaches in the stands.”

A rising junior, Jordan is receiving plenty of attention on the recruiting front and has a list of 10 schools he is considering—Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Indiana and Missouri are his top choices while Ohio, Air Force, Indiana State, Liberty, Boston College and South Alabama are also in the mix.

Jordan comes from a family of athletes, as his father pitched at UC Riverside and his mom was a cross-country runner there. Jordan is the oldest of four boys with two of his younger brothers—ages 14 and 12—focusing on tennis while the youngest, at 7 years old, wants to play baseball.

It wasn’t always baseball, or even sports, for Jordan. He played baseball and football until his freshman year before taking some time off from both. While running a fly pattern on the first play of a football game, Jordan went up to catch a pass and had his left knee taken out by a defender. He sat out the rest of the game and returned to practice thinking nothing was wrong. But a couple weeks later it was clear something was.

Jordan learned that his knee had fractures on both sides. It took him about eight weeks to recover, but he temporarily walked away from baseball.

“I took the whole year off, not playing sports at all,” Jordan said. “I wanted to just take a break and develop as a person. So we did a lot of traveling. We learned how to hunt and fish. We did a lot of fun things. We went camping. I think that developed me as a human being.”

After the time off, Jordan rediscovered his passion for baseball and starting to get back in shape. He made the travel team for the Greg Reinhard Baseball Academy (GRB Rays), which also has boasts OF Jeren Kendall. As a home-schooled student, Jordan doesn’t play a spring season. Instead, he works out with Reinhard twice a week and throws bullpens, working on his mechanics and command. In the summers and fall he travels with the GRB Rays, having already been to Cincinnati a couple times this summer, as well as Notre Dame, Michigan and Dayton. During the summers he is only home about two days a week.

Being home-schooled, Jordan and his brothers learn a curriculum from their mother that emphasizes history, literature and writing. History is where Jordan’s interests lie and he likes the freedom that home schooling allows when it comes to subjects in which he has interest.

“I love it, personally,” he said. “I wasn't home schooled my whole life. I started freshman year at Arrowhead. I was there for three months and decided I didn't like it anymore. I wanted to expand my brain. Instead of spending a week on World War II, maybe focus on it for like a month and a half. With home school, it gives me the ability to do things like that.”

Jordan exudes advanced maturity for a junior in high school, talking extensively about how his curriculum breaks down while rattling off a list of what he is looking for in colleges, including campus comfort, coaching staff, academics and athletic prowess. He also doesn’t find it difficult having a social life, despite not spending time at an institution during the week.

“I still have a good amount of friends from Arrowhead and where I went to grade school,” he said. “I hang out with them a lot. I still have my baseball friends. It's not too hard to find a social life. I have three brothers so that's always entertaining.”

Their father worked for Enterprise for more than 20 years, but left last fall to spend time with the family and find a change of pace. He now works for Morris Midwest as the director of business sales, while Jordan’s mother handles the schooling of the four boys.

“My mom has her hands full,” Jordan said.

Jordan also has a strict curriculum when it comes to his diet. He eats organic foods, making sure he gets plenty of protein and eats chicken or steak every couple days. And he does his best to avoid junk food.

He has already visited Vanderbilt, Kentucky and Indiana with trips planned to Missouri, Boston College, Indiana State and Ohio this fall. Moving forward, Jordan wants to improve his command.

“I want to be able to look at a target and just hit it,” he said. “I don't really care about velo as much as I do command. I believe if you have command you can be throwing 84 and strike people out.”

5. Prep Baseball Report's Labor Day Challenge: GRB Rays vs. Racine Hitters

The PBR's Labor Day Challenge was streamed live through the High School Cube and the match up between the GRB Rays and Racine Hitters was the most watched game of the tournament with over 1,600 views, almost tripling the second most watched game of the tournament.

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director – Illinois/Wisconsin

The Prep Baseball Report Labor Day Challenge was a three day tournament at Illinois State University that featured six of the top travel programs from PBR covered states around the Midwest. Five states were represented with the Giants Scout Team (Indiana), GRB Rays (Wisconsin), Hitters Baseball (Wisconsin), Ohio Elite (Ohio), St. Louis Gamers (Missouri) and Top Tier (Illinois). These teams’ rosters were littered with top ranked players in the Midwest.

The only state with two teams represented was Wisconsin with Hitters Baseball and GRB Rays. The match up between the two teams was highly anticipated and was featured as the last game of the tournament on Monday afternoon. Although both teams hail from the same state, they have rarely faced off against one another on the baseball field. Both programs are busy traveling the Midwest at some of the more high profile tournaments of the summer.

Both teams were geared up for this match up as they both sent their strongest arms to the mound. The Rays sent the No. 2 ranked prospect in the state, RHP Bryant Jordan (Home School, 2015), to the mound looking to shut down the Hitters’ lineup. The Hitters’ response was sending Doran Turchin (Oak Creek, 2015) to the bump. Turchin is not primarily a pitcher but competes hard and has a strong arm from the outfield (89 mph).

Both arms looked strong early as Bryant Jordan topped out at 89 mph working a scoreless first with the help of Pete Schuler (Kenosha St. Joseph, 2015) gunning down Owen Miller (Ozaukee, 2015) attempting to steal second after leading off the game with a base hit. Turchin was equally efficient going three up, three down in his first inning of work topping out at 88 mph.  Although both arms looked strong early, neither would last long in this game.

The Hitters scored first in the second inning as Drake Daniels (Cedarburg, 2015) led things off with a walk. Jonathan Keane (Brookfield Central, 2015) then sacrificed Daniels up to second with one out. Catcher Mike Bauer (Arrowhead, 2015) then followed up Keane’s sacrifice with a screaming line drive base hit down the line to put the Hitters up 1-0.

The Rays answered the attack in their half of the second when Pete Schuler started things off with a base hit. Schuler then stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Standing at third with nobody out, Travis Berg (Eau Claire Memorial, 2016) lifted a fly ball to left field deep enough for Schuler to tag and score. Doran Turchin then got a big bases loaded strikeout to end the inning and leaving the score tied at 1-1.

The hit parade started in the third when the Hitters broke things open scoring seven runs on seven hits as they sent 11 batters to the plate. The inning was highlighted by an Owen Miller triple to the right field wall that scored a run which was then quickly followed by a Doran Turchin RBI double two pitches later. Drake Daniels would single to score Turchin, followed by a John Keane single and a two RBI single by Mike Bauer. Two batters later Henry Davies (Whitefish Bay, 2015) would single home Mike Bauer for the seventh and final run of the inning making the score 8-1.

The Rays tried to scratch and claw their way back into it as Illinois commit, RHP Brendan Meissner (West De Pere, 2015) worked four perfect innings in relief. Meissner was highly efficient, facing the minimum 12 batters using less than 40 pitches.

GRB would score their final run in the fifth inning after Rudy Rott (La Crosse Aquinas, 2015) tripled off the right field wall. He scored later on a Pete Schuler groundout.

RHP Alex Marro (Janesville Craig, 2015) would take care of the rest for the Hitters as he held the Rays off the rest of the game. The final score had the Hitters on top 8-4 over the GRB Rays.

Top Performers:

+ Owen Miller was 2-for-4 with a triple, a run scored and an RBI.

+ Mike Bauer went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored.

+ Rudy Rott went 2-for-4 with a triple, a run scored and an RBI.

+ Brendan Meissner pitched four perfect innings in relief recording three strikeouts.

4. Wisconsin goes unbeaten in first appearance at Midwest Future Games

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director

In Wisconsin’s first showing at the Midwest Future Games, the Badger State went unbeaten with a final record of 1-0-2. The lone win came at the hands of Kentucky while Wisconsin tied both Indiana and Michigan, in which they had a lead late in both contests.

In game one of the weekend Wisconsin took on Indiana, in which you can read the full game recap HERE.

Game two was a matchup of northern states as Wisconsin took on Michigan and played to a 2-2 tie. Wisconsin came out hot with two runs in the first. Nick Lackney got it started with a base hit. After a strike out Wisconsin did all their damage with two outs, Cade Bunnell (Stoughton), Alex Henwood (Appleton North) and Rudy Rott (La Crosse Aquinas) all got consecutive base hits, scoring Lackney and Bunnell.

The Wisconsin pitching was sharp allowing just two runs over seven innings of play. The combination of Dakota Klein (Bay Port), Julian Alverio (Case), Simon Rosenblum-Larson (Madison West) and Kyle Schulz (Bradford) kept Michigan at bay recording a combined 13 strikeouts.

An errant pickoff attempt late in the game allowed the tying run to third base with nobody out, Rosenblum-Larson came up with a clutch strikeout for the first out but couldn’t keep the run off the board as he would score on a groundout to second.

The Wisconsin pitching picked up where it left off in their third matchup of the weekend taking on Kentucky. Wisconsin held Kentucky hitless into the sixth inning, allowing just one baserunner via an error who was later erased on a double play. Brendan Meissner (West De Pere), Nick Lackney (Whitefish Bay), Bryant Jordan (Home School), Dustin Landers (Kaukauna) and Joseph Kaszubowski (Whitefish Bay) all worked 1-2-3 innings with little effort.

Jack Bredeson (Arrowhead) closed it out for Wisconsin to pick up the save. Bredeson again looked sharp featuring his heavy fastball at 84-86 mph and a harder curveball (68-71 mph) than he showed on day one.

Centerfielder Kyle Schulz (Bradford) scored the only run of the game for Wisconsin after reaching base on an error, later coming around to score on a groundout by Alex Henwood (Appleton North). Wisconsin pitching allowed that one run to stand up and record the 1-0 victory, their first of the Midwest Future Games.

Over the next few weeks we will be bringing you spotlights of individual players and their performances from the Midwest Future Games, make sure to check back for more.

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Director

BLOOMINGTON, IN – The third annual Midwest Future Games was the first for Wisconsin, with much anticipation to see what the Badger state would produce. Wisconsin did not disappoint in their debut finishing in a tie against a high powered Indiana team with a plethora of highly touted talent.

The Wisconsin offense got off to a slow start not scoring until the fifth inning but luckily the pitching held down the fort as five of the seven Wisconsin pitchers worked scoreless frames. Brendan Meissner (West De Pere) started things off on the mound inducing a slick 4-6-3 double play turned by Cade Bunnell (Stoughton) and Alex Henwood (Appleton North) after giving up back to back singles.

In the second Nickolas Lackney (Whitefish Bay) was sharp, working down in the zone at 82-83 mph from the left side. He too induced a double play featuring the same combo of Henwood and Bunnell only of the 6-4-3 variety.

Bryant Jordan (Home School) was one of the highlights of the day for Wisconsin. Although the 6-foot-1, 170-pound righty allowed four runs, Jordan touched 90 mph twice in his inning of work, sitting at 87-89. He also featured a sharp 75-77 mph slider with a quick and athletic arm action.

Dustin Landers (Kaukauna) took to the mound in the fourth touching 87 mph in his scoreless inning of work. He also showed a 75 mph curveball with signs of above average feel. Landers struck out one and allowed just one hit.

Wisconsin finally got on the board with two in the fifth when Rudy Rott (La Crosse Aquinas) led things off with a single. Joey Baier (Bay Port) then followed with a single of his own which pushed the first Wisconsin base runner into scoring position. Owen Miller (Ozaukee) then put Wisconsin on the board with an RBI single to left bringing home Rott. Doran Turchin (Oak Creek) duplicated Miller’s single with one of his own after working a tough at bat which included a hard foul ball off of his own foot sending Turchin to the turf. Turchin stole third later in the inning.

Joseph Kaszubowski (Whitefish Bay) hung an crucial zero in the fifth after Wisconsin scored. The 6-foot, 170-pound lefty topped out at 84 mph while sitting 82-83. Kaszubowski struck out two in his inning of work while scattering a walk and a single.

Wisconsin seemed to get the bats in order after their first trip through the lineup as they would score again in the sixth to make it a 4-3 ball game. Nickolas Lackney got it started with a single. With Lackney at third and two outs, Kyle Schulz hit a ground ball back to the pitcher in which he impressively beat out for a single, scoring Lackney.

Mitchel Makarewicz (Oak Creek) shut the door on Indiana again in the sixth working a 1-2-3 inning which included Rudy Rott gunning down a would be base stealer. Makarewicz was up to 86 mph sitting at 84-85 and struck out a batter.

Chasing a run in the seventh Wisconsin turned it on to score three runs and take a 6-4 lead. Rudy Rott singled again making a perfect 3-for-3 day at the plate. Baier contributed with a sacrifice fly scoring Henwood to tie the game. With the game tied and two outs, Doran Turchin would come up big again for Wisconsin getting an RBI single up the middle to make it a 5-4 game. Brendan Meissner then followed with another RBI single to give Wisconsin an insurance run and a two run lead.

Heading into the bottom of the seventh Jack Bredeson (Arrowhead) took the mound and made one of the more impressive showings of the day. At 6-foot-5, 215-pounds Bredeson used a short over the top arm action to deliver a heavy 86-87 mph fastball with deception. Indiana mustered back to back seeing on singles on the ground and wound up scoring two runs to tie the game at six. Bredeson would leave the winning run on third after spotting up an 87 mph fastball to record the strike out looking.

Rudy Rott and Doran Turchin paced the offense for Wisconsin as Rott went a perfect 3-for-3 with three singles and two runs scored. Turchin went 2-for-3 with two singles, two RBI and two stolen bases.

Team Wisconsin will play two more games on Sunday. They will kick off action at 9 AM facing off with Michigan, followed directly by a matchup with Kentucky. Remember to follow us on twitter as well as our LIVE Midwest Future Games Blog for all of the up to the minute action.

3. Sun Prairie wins back-to-back state championships

Sun Prairie won its second straight Division 1 title over Stevens Point in an eight inning thriller. Conner Funnell drove in the game winner with a two out double that scored Brett Yoder in the top of the eighth. 

This after SPASH scored two runs with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game at four.

2. Three 2016's make commitments

The recruiting trend has sped up exponentially and Justin Lavey (Tremper), Gavin Lux (Indian Trail) and Cyrillo Watson (South Milwaukee) proved that in the state of Wisconsin as well. All three made college commitments in 2013 before playing their sophomore year of high school baseball, nearly unheard of in Wisconsin.

Justin Lavey was the first to make his commitment when he chose Louisville in mid-October. Lavey was shortly followed by Cyrillo Watson who committed to Illinois and Gavin Lux wrapped up the flurry of 2016 commitments with his verbal to Virginia Tech.

This trio of commitments at such an early age is a rare feat in Wisconsin but surely speaks to the level of talent in Wisconsin's 2016 class.

1. Jeren Kendall's Summer uprising

Jeren Kendall took full advantage of his summer schedule opening the eyes of many scouts across the country and putting himself firmly in the middle of many national high school draft boards. Kendall signed at the Area Code Games in California which started his rise to the top of the 2014 ranks.

By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

With the latest update of the 2014 player rankings, several prospects made significant improvements. OF Jeren Kendall (Holmen HS, WI) didn’t make the biggest jump from a pure number standpoint, but he did land at the highest point possible. RHP Cameron Varga (Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) remains at the top of the class, but Kendall slid in at No. 2 after a strong start to his summer.

“I've been doing a lot of showcases,” Kendall said of his improvement. “I think it's just getting out and seeing more competition. It's also, when I get back home, I'm always in the cages with my dad and his new place. I'm always hitting in there and outside taking fly balls, just doing extra work to maintain my progress, maintain what I've been working for.”

Kendall’s father, Jeremey, owns MVP Sports, a baseball facility in Holmen. The elder Kendall experienced his own share of success in baseball, playing at Winona State before getting drafted in 26th round in 1992 and spending five seasons in the minors for the Phillies, topping out at Double-A. He was a speedster, swiping 149 bags in his pro career, but also prided himself on reading pitchers’ moves—something he has Jeren working on as well.

“We talk about reading the pitcher, what are some of his tells that can help him get a good jump,” Jeremey Kendall said. “We work on jumps. It's part of when he works out. That was one of the things that helped me become the base stealer I was. I actually worked on my jumps over and over. One of my heroes was Ricky Henderson. I watched him a lot. He got to his top speed within three steps. He probably wasn't the fastest guy out there, but he got to top speed within those first three steps and I talk about that a lot with my kids.”

Jeren Kendall, a Vanderbilt recruit, is a little undersized at 5-foot-10, 175 pounds, but ahead of where his father was physically at the same age. Their tool sets remain the same with their plus speed and arm strength.

Despite the lack of physicality, Jeremey Kendall always knew his son had what it would take to play at the next level.

“At a young age, I could tell Jeren had those motor skills, those advanced motor skills, and just needed to get a little bit stronger to see a difference,” he said. “I saw it early. You see the things you don't teach. You see Jeren do those things. He was always the smallest kid on the team, but he would always lead the team in home runs. That just told me his bat speed was at an advanced level.”

The younger Kednall ran one of the fastest times at USA Baseball’s Tournament of Stars with a 6.40-second 60-yard dash and unleashed strong throws from the outfield. He went 4-for-16 with five stolen bases and was ultimately selected as an alternate for the 40-man trials roster—a disappointing development, but good experience.

“I was a little upset when I was an alternate because I think really did my thing down there,” Kendall said. “I didn't hit really well, but I got hits, I got on and stole bases. But just being down there was great. I couldn't ask for it to be any better than it was.”

Moving forward, Kendall wants to improve his hitting ability. He struck out seven times in four games at the Tournament of Stars and admits that his swing his inconsistent right now. Speed and defense are his strongest attributes so he’ll need to make sure he can get on base consistently.

“If I'm on, I'm on third,” he said. “I walk and I'll take two bases. My greatest attribute is speed. I can use it a bunch of different ways, baserunning, in the field. If I get on, I'm a bunch of different stuff, getting the pitcher and catcher wound up.”

The 2014 draft is 11 months away so there’s far too much time left to remotely forecast what could happen with Kendall, but he would be working toward bucking a trend. Several high school players have been drafted from Wisconsin in recent years, but the last two products of the state to have a significant impact in the major leagues were quite different than Kendall. Jordan Zimmerman and Jarrod Washburn are both pitchers and were drafted out of college.

No matter the outcome, Jeren Kendall has proven he can hold his own with higher competition, but most importantly, he’s made his father proud.

“Every day I smile,” Jeremey Kendall said.

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