Santa Margarita Scout Day Quick Hits

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA. - The Santa Margarita Eagles hosted their inaugural scout day last week and had PBR California staff members on hand to take it all in. The Eagles return a roster that is upperclass heavy with plenty of varsity experience along with some very talented underclassmen that figure to work their way into the lineup as they begin their quest towards a Trinity League championship.

Players were run through a typical Eagles practice that included batting practice (3 rounds each), defensive work, and baserunning before concluding with an intrasquad scrimmage.

We will continue to break down our notes, video, and data which will lead to more content on individual players, but before we get to that we wanted to provide some quick hits on players that caught our attention.

STATS LEADERS

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QUICK HITS

‘19 OF Riley Walters caught our attention with his loud round of batting practice where he consistently drove the ball into the gaps on a line. Walters shows the ability to keep his hands close to his body allowing him to get the barrel through the zone on a consistent plane. It’s a balanced setup and finish with a middle-middle approach. Walters was also clocked 4.37 home to first from the left side.

‘19 OF Jake Carroll had one of the best overall rounds of batting practice on the day. He’s a big, physically strong outfielder which helps him drive balls to all fields. He drove balls on a line on every swing during his three rounds showing the ability to go the other way along with his pullside power. There’s incredible balance in his setup, swing, and finish where he uses his pronounced upper body strength and quick hands to get into the ball. Carroll ran a 4.75 from home to first.

‘20 SS Milan Tolentino was his usual impressive self during the entire event. It started with another consistently impressive round of batting practice where he drove balls to the gaps with power. One hopped the right center field wall on one occasion. He then took the mound to close out the scrimmage and showed why he’ll fill the closer role for the Eagles in 2019. Touching 91 several times, his fastball shows life entering the zone before he snaps off a hard, biting curveball at 75-76. He threw what looked like a two-seamer at 85 that flashed hard downer running action.

‘21 C Jack Collins is a name college coaches are going to want to familiarize themselves with over the next year. The five-foot-11, 175-pounder showed some power at the plate where he peppered the gaps with line drives both during batting practice and in-game. Shows quick-to-fast hands that allow him to get the barrel to the ball on a direct path and on a consistent angle. Behind the plate he provides a large target that is quiet while demonstrating excellent movements as it pertains to blocking-and-recovering. The arm is accurate albeit not entirely powerful just yet.

‘20 3B Jonny Giannola is a guy we’ve seen now a few times but the first thing that stood out to us was just how good of shape he’s in physically. After losing close to 20 pounds, the junior infielder looks to elevate his overall game that already included some power at the plate. As a result of the weight loss his footwork around the bag has improved allowing him to use his big arm to make more plays. He’s also improved his speed on the bases clocking a 4.28 home to first time.

‘19 RHP Alex Schrier appears to be ready for a monster senior season both at the plate and on the mound. The UC Santa Barbara commit showed why he’ll be counted on to produce both offensively and while pitching. At the plate he has a simple yet aggressive approach that resulted in plenty of hard hit balls to all fields while on the mound he was up to 89 with some run to his fastball that was hard for hitters to pick up because of the deception caused by his dip-and-drive delivery along with a slight shoulder turn that allows him to hide the ball in the back.

‘21 OF/LPH Colby Wallace is simply put a freak athlete that is beginning to put things together on the baseball field. At 6-foot-4, 195-pounds there are a lot things he can do that others can’t. After a loud round of batting practice where he pounded balls to all fields from the left side, he clocked a 4.25 home to first time that looked like he was barely trying. He then hopped on the mound and it was clear to us that is where he may have his most long term impact for the Eagles. With a fastball that touched 85 and lived 83-84, the pitch shows some running life as it enters the zone. But it was his sharp, biting, downer shaped curveball that really projects at 73-74. The pitch started on the same plane as the fastball before dropping out of the zone making it virtually impossible for hitters to square up.

‘21 C Zach Crandall proved a glimpse of his potential on the day where his batting practice round along with his in-game at-bats demonstrated his skill at the plate. Shows a balanced setup with a middle-middle approach and quick-to-fast hands that allow him to get the barrel on the ball consistently and without much effort. Has some lift-and-separate tendencies causing him to elevate balls which could result in over-the-fence power in the future. Behind the plate he has a quiet setup while providing a large target with his 5-foot-11, 180-pound frame. The arm is accurate to the bag with pop times in the 2.03 - 2.11 range.

‘20 RHP Roger Thomas is a left-handed pitcher that is getting better by the day. At 6-foot-1, 174-pounds there’s physical projection. Working 84-85 with the fastball, the pitch shows some run to the arm side from a high 3/4 slot. HIs best pitch may be a his curveball that he worked down in the zone at 73-74. The pitch starts just mid-thigh before dropping further in the zone. Shows feel for a changeup at 80-81 that has some run and fading action.