SoCal Upperclass Games Scouting Reports: Infielders

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LA MIRADA, CALIF. - The annual SoCal Upperclass Games blew into Biola University and brought with it some top uncommitted talent from around the region. The event featured a showcase followed by a 12 inning simulated game in which pitchers threw to five batters per inning. With several ranked players in the 2022 and 2023 classes, the SoCal Upperclass Games featured quality fall baseball with plenty of talent to be seen. 

As customary to most PBR California events, scouting reports complete the post-event content rollout. TrackMan and Blast Motion provide necessary data needed to analyze and understand player capabilities but the written eye test remains undefeated and an integral part in scouting. Today we take a look at infielders. 

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SCOUTING REPORTS

Cesar Chavez, Walnut  (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: SS/2B
Body: 5-11, 185-pounds. Medium build with a more compact upper half. Present physicality.
Hit: RHH. Even set feet that are straight up in stance. Simple forward stride as barrel works into a higher elbow early connection and with shoulders downhill. Swing was compact that works short-long through extension. Head is down through contact. Path was steep-level (70.1 % on-plane efficiency) and worked middle of the field consistently throughout his round of BP. 
Power: 89.00 max exit velocity. Gap to gap power with potential for more with bat speed and rotational acceleration increases.
Arm: RH. INF - 79.00 mph. OF - 80.00 mph. Worked out defensively from both the INF/OF. Arm action was similar from both spots as it was a shorter arm action that was able to get to release relatively quick. 4/5 accurate from both spots with outfield throws coming on 1 hop. Average arm strength from both spots for level.
Defense: Showed fundamental actions from both spots. Took good angles, fielded out in front in and got to his crowhop in good time in the OF. Infield footwork/glovework was solid in terms of his lateral movements and showed confidence with glove. Clean funnel up the body to get to release. Projects better at 3B.
Run: 7.78 runner in the 60. 

Jordan Cole, Orange Lutheran  (CA), 2023
Positional Profile: SS/RHP
Body: 6-2, 190-pounds. Projectable lean build that can add some strength. Longer limbs that don't hinder his present athleticism.
Hit: RHH. Slightly open stance with slightly bent knees. Hands stay neutral throughout the load while using a simple forward stride. Maintains a higher chested posture through swing as hands work direct to the ball for a more compact swing. Balanced throughout. Bat path is on-plane/level. Hit it where it was pitched using the whole field throughout the round but with approach through the middle. Had two singles in game action which were hard hit balls up the middle. 
Power: 96.00 max exit velocity. Some power projection is there. Bat speed max of 76.2 mph and rotational acceleration max of 17.1 gs show a decent power potential.
Arm: RH. INF - 78.00 mph.  Throws from a slightly low 3/4 slot. Short arm action. Comes out easy. Average quickness to release. 4/5 accurate throws with some present carry.
Defense: Solid feet for size. Played through the ball with good pre-field movements to set up his body well. Soft hands and presents early. With size and quickness probably projects to 3B.
Run: 7.20 runner in the 60. 

Samuel DeCarlo, Millikan (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: 2B/SS
Body: 5-8, 175-pounds. Frame is starting to fill in, stronger lower half, slight speed improvement.
Hit: RHH. Balanced and athletic setup, step and go load, feel in the box, bat speed, one-hand finish.  Blast Motion scores of 36-50-37. Continues to show that he gets in a good position to hit but needs to improve his bats ability to stay in the zone to cut down on swings and misses. Quality batting practice showing with a 46.4% line drive %.
Power: 97.00 max exit velocity
Arm: RH. INF - 83.00 mph.  One mile per hour gain in throwing velocity, clean and quick action, throws from multiple angles, showing his arm has ability throughout the infield.
Defense: Looked comfortable at short, quality first step, aimed the ball at times, covered ground, poised for a good senior year defensively.
Run: 6.83 runner in the 60. 

Dennis Fitzpatrick, Corona del Mar (CA), 2023
Positional Profile: SS/2B
Body: 6-2, 160-pounds. Height with some present strength, room to add more, showed more speed.
Hit: RHH. Upright stance with athletic knee bend, leg lift load, two-hand finish.  Blast Motion scores 53-53-42. Average across the board with no glaring holes in the swing. Results show good swing fundamentals and ability to put in quality at-bats while continuing to improve his swing.
Power: 93.00 max exit velocity
Arm: RH. INF - 81.00 mph.  Average high school arm; shorter arm swing, power coming from the arm, lower half engagement could increase arm speed. Utilize lower half more in throws in efforts to stay on left-side at the next level.
Defense: Showed infield feel and positioning in game, fielded soundly but not cleanly, able to get it done but utilizing more athleticism key to future success.
Run: 7.44 runner in the 60. 

Jake Fuentes, Orange Lutheran  (CA), 2023
Positional Profile: 3B/1B
Body: 6-2, 205-pounds. Has added some mass since last viewing last summer. Stronger more filled out upper-half. Projectable body that can add some athleticism.
Hit: RHH. Slightly open stance with a turned in front foot. Starts load early. Slow gather that uses a mild leg kick trigger. Let's the ball get deep with a bat path that is on the steeper side. Hands/barrel worked inside out and tight to body in BP. Showed ability to change posture according to pitch height/location. Middle-oppo approach throughout the round.
Power: 88.00 max exit velocity. Some present gap to gap power when he catches the ball out in front.
Arm: RH. INF - 75.00 mph.  Shorter arm action in the back. Lower elbow at release. Took time to get to release. 5/6 accurate throws. Average arm strength.
Defense: Solid fundamentals. Displayed glove early and caught out in front with a funnel up to belt. Correct footwork that lacked overall quickness. Projects to a corner INF spot.

Jarrett Segura, Bishop Alemany (CA), 2023
Positional Profile: 1B/3B
Body: 6-3, 190-pounds. Continuing to fill out his 6-foot-3 frame, raw power is there, getting faster with time lowering his 60 by .2 in 4 months.
Hit: RHH. Athletic in the box; wide stance with slightly open front foot, step lift and load, timing is key, two-hand finish. Displayed raw power across multiple events and did so again, along with pole-to-pole ability.  Blast Motion scores of 42-54-59. Average to slightly above-average across the board; tech results come as no surprise after his success at the West Coast Games. Showing a swing with no glaring flaws with plane, connection and rotation ability projecting his swing at the next level.
Power: 95.00 max exit velocity
Arm: RH. INF - 74.00 mph. OF - 75.00 mph. Short arm swing with quick actions. Above-average for first base, 5/5 accuracy on throws to target.
Defense: Active first baseman both physically and vocally, looks the part, solid fielding fundamentals, can pick it.
Run: 7.34 runner in the 60. 

Ryan Skjonsby, Long Beach Poly (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: 3B/RHP
Body: 6-3, 195-pounds. Larger build, length in the limbs. Strong lower half with room to add strength to the upper half.
Hit: LHH. Balanced and athletic in stance. Starts load early. Rhymic gather into a 60-40 distribution with a smaller leg lift trigger. Maintains good separation into footstrike where hands explode into the ball. Level-uphill path with consistent contact point out in front. Double to RC gap in-game action.
Power: 95.00 max exit velocity. Current wall ball power with flashes of over the fence power to the pullside. Above-average bat speed of 74.23 mph on average gives him a decent power floor. The ball consistently comes off with good carry and backspin.
Arm: RH. INF - 78.00 mph. OF - 74.00 mph. All accurate throws in the defensive workout. Shorter arm action with average arm strength. Arm utility is there with a shorter time to release and the ability to throw from different angles.
Defense: Moved well at SS during the defensive workout. Stayed low and maintained a good chest down posture with glove out when fielding. Skills transitioned well to 1B as well. Good feet around the bag and showed good feet on DPs.
Run: 7.61 runner in the 60. 

Dominic Smaldino, JSerra (CA), 2023
Positional Profile: RHP/1B
Body: 6-5, 210-pounds. Big frame with long limbs, starting to fill in some, room to grow.
Hit: RHH. Even and athletic stance, simple step to load, elbows tucked, two-hand finish. Used the whole field in BP session displaying his pole-to-pole ability.  Blast Motion scores of 41-56-41. Average across the board with the best Blast score coming from connection where swing alignment highlights the swing. Lower half rotation increase is available immediately and could create better launch angle and in turn home run production.
Power: 95.00 max exit velocity
Arm: RH. INF - 81.00 mph.  Infield arm velocity increased 5 mph since the last showing, continued low infield arm angle, short arm swing and release. Able to make any throw from first base with life across the diamond.
Defense: Looked the part and played with confidence at first base, showed necessary skills to play first at the next level, picked well in game.
Run: 7.63 runner in the 60. 

Collin Taylor, Birmingham (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: RHP/3B
Body: 6-2, 210-pounds. Sturdy build, strong lower half, two-way and switch-hitting athleticism.
Hit: SH. Switch-hitter; even stance with athletic knee bend from both sides, short compact swing, two-hand finish. Left-side swing produced better in this showing but right-side has had success.  Blast Motion scores of 35-53-38. Scores can be misleading when calculating both right and left side, most importantly though the connection score grades well showing that his swing has good alignment from both sides of the plate.
Power: 95.00 max exit velocity
Arm: RH. INF - 82.00 mph.  Arm produces 80+ mph velocity both on the field and on the mound, lots of effort in the arm path, consistent overall. Arm has multi-position ability and could really increase his value jumping behind the plate and in the outfield.
Defense: Gets it done defensively, limited laterally, fielded out in front, tunnels well, follows through on throws.
Run: 7.87 runner in the 60. 

James Whitman, Helix  (CA), 2022
Positional Profile: 1B/OF
Body: 6-5, 230-pounds. Extra-large frame/build. Has made significant strength gains since last viewing.
Hit: RHH. Sets up in an athletic stance. Loads early using a mild leg kick trigger. Hands pull back into scalp and barrel works into a good early connection position. Barrel works in the zone on a slightly uphill path. Compact efficient swing that gets in the zone early and stays in the zone. Gets good lower half leverage with his firm and balanced front leg at footstrike. 
Power: 100.00 max exit velocity Advanced bat speed and hand speed for his level. The ball consistently comes off with good backspin and carry. HR power to the pull side was demonstrated in-game with a HR over the LF wall.
Arm: RH. INF - 79.00 mph. OF - 79.00 mph. Worked out in both the OF/INF. Short arm action from both spots but more snappy arm action from the INF. Quick in getting to release. 4/5 accurate from OF. 3/5 accurate from INF.
Defense: Average approach to the ball from the OF. Took the right angles, stayed low to the ball, and came through with average momentum. Showed solid fundamentals at 1B. Correct footwork with confident glove actions. Quick exchanges as well in getting to release. 
Run: 7.25 runner in the 60. 

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