SoCal Underclass Games: Team 3 Analysis

Garrett Riley LHP / 1B / Mater Dei , CA / 2020

Six-foot, 205-pound, large frame with strength through the lower half and developing in the upper half. Broad shoulders with some strength through arms. Riley is a projectable hitter that profiles for future power gains once physically mature. He's short to the ball with present bat speed flashing a quick barrel through the hitting zone. Shows a middle approach and gets barrel on the ball more often than not. Strength and power really project at the plate. Had a hard hit RBI single to center field in-game showing his ability to stay inside and drive balls. Setup is balanced with a smooth load and a short stride. Shows athleticism when playing first base. Footwork is fluid and glove work is above average. Plays through short hops with the glove. Made several "picks" both during the workout and game. As a pitcher Riley shows a compact arm from a ¾ slot. Arm is easy and loose. Falls off to third base side. Works ball downhill.

Will O'Neil LHP / OF / Newport Harbor, CA / 2021

Five-foot-10, 155-pounds, medium frame that is long, lean, wiry strong throughout. Present strength in lower half. Large feet. O'Neil oozes athleticism; looks fluid and comfortable in everything he does in the outfield and at the plate. Defensively he gracefully moves around with excellent body control and footwork; attacks balls on a straight line. Average carry on throws that were accurate. Gets good jumps on balls hit in the air. Understands angles in the outfield. At the plate O'Neil shows a smooth, short stroke with present bat speed. Shows the ability to pick up spin and pitch recognition is above average. Went down to drive a fastball to center field on a loud flyout in-game. On the mound O'Neil shows easy arm action from a deliberate delivery. Arm speed is average presently. Curveball has early downer sinking action.

Ethan Van Scoy LHP / 1B / Temecula Valley , CA / 2021

6-foot-3, 200-pound, large frame with squared shoulders, long limbs, high waist. Van Scoy is a big-bodied projectable lefty with an easy, low effort arm from a repeatable delivery. Shows a compact arm in the back before releasing from a ¾ slot. Starts and stays tall on the backside. Consistently lands square to target with a slight arm recoil. Landing is in-line and athletic. Van Scoy's fastball shows some late run to the armside. Works both sides of the plate as well elevating it for strikes - usually swing-and-miss. Curveball shows gradual action and 1/7 shape. Arms slows a tick on pitch. Threw the pitch for strikes. Van Scoy shows feel for a changeup that flashes late sinking action. Very projectable pitch.

Isaac Hebert LHP / OF / Hamilton, CA / 2020

Six-foot, 165-pound, medium/large frame, long and lean, wiry strong, high waist with larger feet. Hebert showed well at many facets of his game throughout the day and got it started with a loud BP round where he showed a knack for squaring balls up that he carried into game play. Hits from a good contact point out front consistently and has enough barrel control to drive balls. Projects very well with added strength/mass which the frame appears it can handle relatively easily. Has some present bat speed that also should improve with continued physical maturity. Shows a pull-middle approach. Defensively he attacks ball well and gets himself under control. Arm has average strength presently with consistent accuracy. Flashes a good first step and takes direct routes to balls. Quicker than fast in the outfield. Clocked a 4.41 home-to-first time. On the mound he shows the ability to throw strikes. Induced weak contact with two pitches. Fly ball pitcher.

Michael Flores LHP / Corona, CA / 2020

Five-foot-9, 150-pounds, medium frame with proportional strength throughout the body. Squared shoulders. The 68th ranked player in the Class of 2020 Top 100, Flores is a player we are very familiar with and he backed up ranking. Flores shows a compact delivery with a fast arm that he releases through a ¾ slot. Delivery is athletic with a high pointed-toe leg lift through to an athletic landing that is in-line and square to target. Flores pounds the zone with a running fastball that flashes late life that he's able to spot wherever he wants. Uses entire strike zone to throw strikes with the pitch. Curveball has been really good since we first saw Flores in the spring and that stayed true. The pitch is tight and has gone from slurvy to sharp, with biting action late. Showed much better command with the pitch this outing. Velocity has ticked up on the pitch since spring (69-71 in spring, 71-73 now). Shows the ability to spot curveball as well working both in-and-out with it to hitters. Changeup shows late riding action and induces weak contact from righties.

Victor Deleon LHP / 1B / Alhambra, CA / 2020

Six-foot, 170-pounds, medium/large frame, present strength in lower half while upper half is developing. High waist with long torso, long limbs with strength down through the arm. Shows a compact arm in the back before whipping arm through high ¾ slot. Gets good extension down the mound generating downhill plane on his pitches. Lands inline and in good balance. Drop and drive delivery. Fastball shows some late downer movement as it enters the hitting zone. DeLeon shows command of the pitch while throwing to all quadrants of the strike zone. Curveball shows early and is gradual with 2/8 shape. DeLeon shows feel for a changeup that he threw a couple times. Pitch shows slight run from same slot and arm speed.

Maxwell Shor C / 2B / Palm Desert , CA / 2021

Five-foot-10, 170-pounds, large frame with strength throughout particularly in the lower half. Squared shoulders with strength down through the arms. Shor, the 9th ranked player in the Class of 2021 Top 25, was as impressive in the little things - jumping in to fill in for a runner, effort on the field, hustle and attitude - as he was with the big things. Started the day with a loud BP session where he showed off his present and projectable strength by banging balls into the gaps on a line. Uses his entire body in his swing. Starts with a controlled high leg kick before exploding through the zone by driving through with fast hips and hands. Power comes easy for Shor who consistently barreled balls up both during BP and in game. Ball jumps off bat. Had a triple to right center field in the game showing his baserunning instincts. Defensively he has a strong base and flashes above average catch-and-throw skills. Arm is quick as is his footwork and shows soft hands. Throws have carry and accuracy popping in the 1.92-2.1 range all day.

Daniel Briones C / 3B / Bishop Amat , CA / 2021

Five-foot-11, 165-pounds, medium/large frame that is lean, wiry strong, and athletic. Present strength in lower half. Room for growth in upper half with some present strength and squared shoulders. Briones shows to be an athletic, nimble catcher that projects based on his present skill set. Shows excellent catch-and-throw skills with arguably the best combination of fast/clean exchanges we've seen. Consistently popped in the range of 1.89-2.03 both in defensive workout and in-game. Has soft hands with a quick release from the ear. Maintains that slot on all throws. Misses were on the bag which would have given the shortstop a chance at the tag if in-game. At the plate Briones shows a simple, balanced setup with a quiet leg lift load. Has quick-to-fast hands through the zone and shows excellent barrel control. Shows good patience and plate coverage with a middle approach. Put ball in play twice in game reaching on an error once.

Aaron Reyes C / OF / St John Bosco , CA / 2021

Five-foot-10, 160-pound, medium/large frame, long limbs, high waist, large feet, squared shoulders with strength down through the arms. At the plate Reyes gets the barrel through the hitting zone with some present bat speed and use of the lower half. Stays back on his load with a short stride into his swing. Finish is balanced to front landing. When his timing is on he flashes gap power presently. Behind the plate Reyes shows a quiet setup with soft hands and quick/clean transfers. Arm is accurate and popped consistently in the 2.03-2.11 range on throws that were on the bag. Is quick out of his crouch and gets in-line with the target in a hurry. Very fundamentally sound behind the plate, but he's not robotic, there's good rhythm to his game behind the plate.

Clay Liolios C / 1B / Newport Harbor, CA / 2020

Six-foot-3, 215-pound, extra-large frame with broad shoulders, barrel chest and proportional strength throughout the body. Liolios is a big, strong player whose power is present and very projectable. He gets the barrel into the zone early through excellent coordination of top and bottom half. Finish is balanced with weight centered albeit a bit abbreviated. Shows excellent barrel control keeping the bat on a level path and consistently squaring balls up. Shows present bat speed. Defensively he shows a loose arm with pop times in the 2.09-2.19 range. Has the arm strength to throw from knees. Throws have some carry to them and most throws are on the bag.

Noah Karliner 3B / 1B / Fountain Valley, CA / 2020

Six-foot-3, 225-pounds, extra-large frame with present strength throughout. Squared shoulders with strength down through the arms and the lower half. Karliner showed very well with his power in the bat during one of the loudest rounds of BP on the day. Hit a mammoth shot high up the netting beyond left-center field on his third swing and squared everything else up to the gaps. The bat is fast through the zone and he hammers balls out front. Made noticeable two-strike adjustments in-game. Found a way to put a two-strike curveball that had him fooled in play to the right side moving a runner. Defensively he projects as a first baseman although his arm is strong enough for third. Karliner is raw but toolsy with his loudest tool being his present raw power.

Eugene Jeon 3B / RHP / La Mirada, CA / 2020

Luca Martinez 2B / SS / San Marcos, CA / 2020

Five-foot-6, 150-pounds, medium/small frame, squared shoulders, defined strength in lower half. Martinez, the 83rd ranked player in the Class of 2020 Top 100, was a twitchy, athletic middle-infielder that shows the ability to make throws from all angles while playing under complete control. Shows good range to both sides with fluid footwork playing through balls. Arm is easy and accurate; Ball comes out of his hand well and on a line. Hands are soft and transfers clean. At the plate he shows better than average bat speed with a middle approach that is quick to-and-through the zone. Catches the ball deep well and has enough strength in the wrists/forearms to hit it the other way with something on it. Shows excellent feel for the barrel and the ability to keep it on plane through the zone. Hustles everywhere on the diamond.

Andrew Nykoluk SS / C / Simi Valley, CA / 2022

Five-foot-7, 130-pounds, medium frame that is lithe yet wiry strong. Long limbs, high waist, with larger feet, the frame projects well to add strength and mass. Will get stronger and has present all-around skills that are easily projectable. Defensively Nykoluk shows a compact, loose arm that is strong and accurate. Made throws from backhand deep in 5.5 hole with no problem. Has a quick release after seperation of hands. Flashes excellent body control and balance. Shows slightly above average range to the backhand and average to forehand. Charges balls aggressively arriving gathered and controlled. Registered an 81 MPH position velocity. At the plate he had a keen ability to catch the ball deep in the zone and drive it to right-center field where he doubled in-game. He's short through the zone with hands tight through the chest before extending through the ball. Keeps barrel on a direct path to the ball.

Robert Mansour SS / 2B / San Dimas , CA / 2021

Five-foot-9, 145-pounds, medium/large frame that will add strength/mass with continued maturation. Present strength in lower half. Wiry strong upper half. Large feet. Mansour shows excellent control/feel with the barrel. Keeps it on a consistent path throughout a balanced swing with a rock back load. Leaks forward at times, but makes up for it with his present bat-to-ball skills. Recognizes pitches well. Stayed back on curveball that he drove through the right side for a single. Power really projects and is easy to dream on with physical maturity. Defensively the arm is dynamic from multiple angles presently. Throws have life and are accurate from multiple angles. Footwork is fluid and confident. Excellent body control with easy range to both sides. Hands are soft and exchanges clean.

Nolan Ornelas OF / SS / Wilson, CA / 2020

Five-foot-11, 165-pounds, medium/large frame with present strength from the shoulders down. Ornelas is an athletic outfielder that showed well both at the plate and in the outfield. Shows excellent body control as he charges balls; understands angles and reads hops well. Hands are fairly soft. Exchanges are clean. Full throwing motion that is quick through the release. At the plate Ornelas shows a direct-to-the-ball approach from the left side. Setup is quiet with subtle leg lift trigger. Hands are quick-to-fast with excellent feel for the barrel. Gets them in good launch position at contact. Shows the knack to hit the ball where it's pitched. Stayed on a ball down/away for base hit up the middle in the game showing some strength on the line drive. Quicker than fast, Ornelas ran the bases hard and registered a 4.57 home-to-first time.

Isaiah Greene OF / Corona, CA / 2020

Oregon commit. Six-foot-1, 170-pounds, medium/large frame with proportional strength throughout and room for growth. Greene, the 31st ranked player in the 2020 class, is recovering nicely from a wrist injury that cost him time down the stretch in the spring. Lucky for him his skills didn't rust. Defensively he shows quick instincts with the athleticism to support it. Has an easy arm with carry. Receives balls under control; is athletic and comfortable in the outfield. At the plate he has a short, smooth stroke with easy bat speed from the left side. Very balanced setup with quick hips that he fires at the ball. Gets extension while showing excellent feel for the barrel. Adjusts well to different pitches. Quick out of the box with above average speed. Clocked a 4.27 home-to-first time.

Johnathan Romo OF / Santiago , CA / 2020

Five-foot-11, 160-pounds, long, lean, wiry strong frame with proportional build and room for further growth with continued physical maturation. Defensively he shows above average athleticism in his attack of balls in the outfield. Understands angles and has the in-game speed to make most of them. Good read on balls off the bat. Understands and plays long hops well. Throws have average strength with accuracy. At the plate Romo shows an upright setup with a wide base. Does a fair job of incorporating the lower half into his swing. Has some present bat speed which projects with added strength as do his line drives to medium/shallow gaps. Stays short inside the ball very well. Barrel path is consistent. Hands are quick to the ball.