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Upperclass All-State Games: Quick Hits

February 10, 2022
Paul Panaccione
Arizona Scouting Director

On Saturday, January 30th, Prep Baseball Report Arizona hosted the annual Preseason Upperclass All-State Games. The Upperclass All-State Games is a yearly, invite-only event, targeting the top prospects in the 2022 and 2023 classes. This event allows participants to compete against high level competition as they head into their spring seasons, as well as update their PBR profiles with verified video/stats collected by state-of-the-art technology on-site. 

PBR Arizona staff values this event, and hopes to keep it going into a preseason staple among the events in The Valley. With a rankings update around the corner, this showcase allows our staff to get eyes on some of the top players in the area in not only a showcase setting, but game play as well. Being able to be on the field with these prospects during a gameplay event lets PBR staff interact with players, see them compete against high level competition, and get a better understanding of each players approach to the game. 

Today, we continue our post event coverage with this rendition of Quick Hits. In no order, we mention who we thought were some of the top performers from January 30th event. 

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Top Performers

David Galindo RHP / C / Saint Mary's, AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 42 / POS: 10

5-foot-10 225 pounds, multi-sport athlete, plays QB for Saint Mary's. Galindo was just flat out competing on the 30th. Pitching with confidence, tempo, and efficiency. With an easy delivery from the 3B side of the rubber and high 3/4 slot, Galindo was pounding the zone with strikes. Hitters were down in the count before they could blink an eye. He set down 10 of 10 hitters, while striking out 8 of them. He threw all pitches with intent. The FB sat 85-86 mph, with deception and ride at the top of the zone. CB has some depth to it with a slightly slurvy break. While Galindo may not have the best stuff, this was the most impressive outing on the day. His strike throwing ability was elite on this day, and he did a great job keeping hitters off balance. Very excited to keep following Galindo through the spring season. 

 

Zach Wadas OF / 1B / Hamilton, AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 9 / POS: 2 OverallRank: 259 / POS: 42

6-foot-4 215 pounds, TCU commit with size and strength. Wadas has a clear presence in the left handed batters box. Sets up with a wider base and a slightly open stance, hands are held tight to the ear jus above shoulder height with some rhythm to the hands. Uses a knee to knee stride that brings him back to a square position, and the swing is direct with some serious bat speed through the zone. All 215 pounds of his are used in each swing. The swing path is simple, he showed the ability to get to an elevated FB, which he took over the right field wall for a deep HR in game action. Wadas' batting practice was very loud as well, posting event highs for EV (107), distance(405), and hard hit % (88%). Hamilton was an already loaded roster, adding Wadas this year takes them to a level that's going to be tough to beat. If Wadas can consistently create the type of contact we saw this day, we may be seeing him on many draft boards in summer 2023.

 

Owen Kramkowski RHP / 3B / Walden Grove, AZ / 2023

6-foot-2 150 pounds, Kramkowski joined us as a pitcher only at the Upperclass Games and showed well. Tall wiry frame with room to fill out. Slow rocker step with an up tempo leg lift and quick move down the mound. Long levers and a shorter/ quick arm. Low leg lift with a slight cross fire direction to home plate. Rotates well into foot plant and ball jumps out of his hand. Throws from a lower release height and FB has some carry when he stays behind the ball. Slider has a chance to be a plus swing and miss offering with above average sweep. Facing 10 hitters, he allowed 2H, 1R, while striking out 3 and walking 1. Great follow through the spring as we expect Kramkowski to get some good work for Walden Grove. 

 

Connor Mattison RHP / 1B / Canyon View, AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 10 / POS: 4 OverallRank: 293 / POS: 78

6-foot-1 190 pounds, Long Beach commit, was arguably the top arm out with us on the 30th. Potential power right handed arm, was up to 91 on this day, 92-93 in recent outings. Hybrid windup from the 3B side of the rubber. Quick pace and high tempo delivery. Quick arm with some length in the back on his take away but gets into a good position at foot strike. Plus athleticism. Good direction to home plate. High effort delivery. 4 pitch mix with good shapes and arm speed on all 4 offerings. Attacks hitters. Advanced feel for a change up and slider has good glove side movement. High follow through the spring with big expectations for Canyon View and the rest of their pitching staff. 

10 hitters/1H/2R/5K/1BB

 

Cj Snowden OF / 2B / Perry , AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 35 / POS: 6

5-foot-11 170 pounds, two-sport athlete, just now getting back into baseball shape, as he spent the fall on the football field. Plus athleticism and strength/speed. Plays the game with some explosiveness and brings some of his football mentality to the baseball field. Recorded a 6.56 60 yard time and the speed showed around the bases as he was able to stretch a line drive single into a double. Snowden has a flat swing and showed the ability to drive low liners into both gaps with some back spin carry. Solid defender with average arm strength, 81 mph OF velo, best position would be CF. Great uncomitted 2023 follow through the spring.

2-4 w 2 doubles on the day. 

 

Victor Londono C / OF / Salpointe Catholic , AZ / 2022

Rankings  StateRank: 121 / POS: 17

5-foot-10 185 pounds, uncommitted 2022 out of Salpointe showed well on the 30th. True catcher with high energy and leadership skills, worked very well with his pitchers and showed great blocking ability and caught a runner stealing in game action. Took a solid BP, stays to the middle of the field with a balanced swing and bat speed. Best pop time during his defensive work out was 1.82 with average arm strength at 74 mph. We will continue following Londono this spring closely, will be a good pickup as a defensive catcher for some programs. 

 

Michael Caruso RHP / RHP / Desert Vista, AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 73 / POS: 20

6-foot-2 170 pounds, uncommitted 2023 that has been constantly improving over the last couple years. Will get some significant innings at Desert Vista this year and could end up being one of their top arms, will be key to their success. Shown that he is a true strike thrower of 3 pitches, best pitch being his CH. Does a great job keeping hitters off balance with very few misses over the plate, frustrating to hitters. Arm action has some whip to it. Faced 10 hitters, allowing 0 hits, while striking out 5 and walking 2. 

FB 85-87

CB 72-75 (event high spin, 2544)

CH 77-78 (event high avg HM, 20")

 

Logan Krei OF / RHP / Hamilton , AZ / 2023

Rankings  StateRank: 38 / POS: 8

5-foot-10 175 pounds, another uncommitted multi-sport athlete joining us on the 30th, starting RB at Hamilton, top football program in the state. Plus athleticism and body functionality. Showed a simple bat path with speed in the outfield and around the base paths. Tripled to right center to lead the game off against top arm at the event. Under the radar prospect who we plan to follow closely through this spring/summer. Recorded a 95 mph exit velo with consistent contact to the top half of the baseball. 

 

Jonah Hergert RHP / 1B / Shadow Ridge, AZ / 2022

Rankings  StateRank: 116 / POS: 28

6-foot-2 160 pounds, recently moved to Arizona from the Northwest, first joined us at the Tucson Summer Review back in 2021, now with us on Jan. 30. Have seen progression in a short amount of time. FB has some life and great IVB numbers (max IVB 23). This means his FB can work great at the top of the zone, will be very tough on hitters to get on plane with his FB at the top half of the strike zone, as velo continues to increase this will be extremely effective. FB got up to 88mph with 2368 max spin rate. CB was at 76 mph and showed a good shape. Hergert is a good addition to Shadow Ridge's pitching staff as he will add some depth to their rotation. Excited to continue following Hergert through this spring and expect a solid season out of him. 

 

Honorable Mentions

+ LHP Bradyn Barnes (Basha, 2023)

ASU commit was in the top 5 for FB velocity at the event. Great build with a clean arm from the left side. Had the CH working and created a lot of weak contact. Also, showed ability to control the running game, picking off a base runner @1B. 

+ RHP Dillon Orr (Shadow Ridge, 2022)

Big body right hander, FB got up to 90 mph. Got better as he went, punching out his last four batters faced. Struck out 6 of 10 hitters. Throws a heavy ball, FB has some ride to it. SL was effective, 2641 max spin rate, #2 at event. 

+ OF/LHP Milo Rushford (Walden Grove, 2022)

Good showing all around on the day. Athlete, two-way prospect, most upside is as a hitter. Above average runner, turned in a 6.53 60 yard. Tripled against LHP Bradyn Barnes, left on left, turned on a ball to left center. 

+ RHP/OF Matthew Hart (Canyon View, 2023)

Hart seems to be moving in the right direction. Trending up offensively, took two solid rounds of BP, EV of 98 mph, max distance of 355 feet. Balls were driven to the gaps with true flight. Velo slightly down on the mound, but had a very efficient outing. FB topped at 82 mph with 21.3" of horizontal movement. Faced 6 hitters and showed a good mix, allowing no hard contact. 

+ SS/2B Guillermo Metzler (Walden Grove, 2023)

Metzler turned in a 2-3 day offensively, one of the few multi-hit performances through the weekend. Metzler is 5-10 170 pounds, has some strength, for now profiles as a line drive/gap-to-gap hitter. Better approach during BP than last time out with us. More consistent line drives and hard contact. 

+ OF Eddie Montoya (Valley Vista, 2022)

Expect a quality at bat out of Montoya. Sets up balanced in the box, small and simple movements in the box, puts himself in a good spot for success. Sees pitches well, ability to spit on balls down and shoot balls the other way. 1-2 with 2BB on the day. Overall very good showing on the day. 

+ C Gio Melchione (Desert Ridge, 2023)

Continues to show he'll be a big contributor this spring with the bat. Drove in 2 runs against quality arm Dillon Orr. Threw a 1.83 pop to 2B in between innings. Arm is one of his best tools, 74 mph C velo, expect that number to get up near 77-78 mph by the time he reaches Gonzaga. 

+ SS/2B Jaydan Israel (Desert Ridge, 2022)

Smooth and finesse style of play for Israel. Switch hitter, simple movements in the box, has an inside path to the baseball and uses the middle of the field. Line drive base hit up the middle in game play. Skill set and glove work plays best up the middle, ability to play on the left side. Active feet with soft hands and a clean transfer. 

+ RHP Austin Balmes (Corona Del Sol, 2022)

Faced 5 hitters, allowed 1 hit, 0 runs, 1 strike out. Showed some good feel for the SL with decent spin numbers. CH plays 10-12 mph off the FB with 16" of HM. Great athlete on the mound, seems to understand the game and how to attack hitters, will defend his position on the mound. 

+ OF Jake Willerup (Higley, 2022)

Strong and compact build with bat speed. Took one of the more impressive rounds of BP on the day. Top 5 in EV and #2 in max distance on the day. Phoenix College commit, will be following through the year, expect solid offensive numbers at Higley. 

+ 1B/3B Elias Avila (Bradshaw Mountain, 2023)

Size and strength at a corner infield spot. Handsy hitter with bat speed. Only our second time seeing Avila compete, and we've been impressed both times. Doubled down the left field line in game action. 94 mph EV in batting practice with a max distance of 346 feet. High rate of line drive/fly ball contact, plays to his profile. Excited to keep following through the spring. 

+ RHP Alex Urias-Calvillo (Walden Grove, 2022)

Very solid outing for Urias-Calvillo, faced 10 hitters, allowing 3 H, 1 R, while striking out 4. Urias-Calvillo's tempo on the mound was suffocating. He pounded the zone with strike with some pace. Throwing from 2 different arm slots, Urias-Calvillo does a lot to throw off hitters timing and create deception. As a strike thrower with tempo and deception, we expect Urias-Calvillo to have a very solid year for Walden Grove. Not an overpowering arm, but no doubt is he going to get outs. 

+ 3B/RHP Kyle Justice (Horizon, 2022)

Kyle Justice is an interesting piece for Horizon that could take them to the next level if he's having success. Justice joined us as a two-way player, and stood out most with the bat. Hitting from the left handed batters box, Justice has a simple set up and showed on this day that he has the ability to let the ball travel. Justice caught a FB away deep and drove it over the left fielders head for a double. Justice has some upside on the mound as well, but the bat showed some real promise here with us on the 30th. 

+ OF/SS Christian Roncal (Ironwood, 2023)

Christian Roncal put together an impressive day at the Upperclass All-State Games. 5-foot-11 165 pounds, with some strength and athleticism, Roncal turned in a 6.80 60 yard dash and put up some impressive numbers during BP. Posted a 98 mph EV and 350 feet max distance. That solid round of BP carried over into the game, where Roncal recorded two hits and showed he can use the whole field. Drove a line drive through the 6-hole and tripled to right center. 

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