Prep Baseball Report

Florida Insider: 2018 & 2019 Pitchers On The Rise



By Rob Sidwell
Florida Scouting Director

The tryout for the South Florida Elite travel ball squad this past weekend brought out a lot of young talent in the South Florida area and from other areas in the state as well. It also brought out a few players from out of state. The event not only brought out young talent, but also plenty of college coaches to evaluate this talent.

I was able to see most of the young pitchers in this tryout and here are some of the highlights:

2018

+ RHP Ben Pelman (Cypress Bay HS) is a 6-foot-3, 150-pound righty with a tall loose lanky projectable body. He works from a low 3/4 slot with a loose and easy arm action and a tough angle versus right handed hitters. Fastball sat at 77-78 with a lot of run. Curveball is a sweeping slurvey pitch with a lot of width at 63 mph, like his upside.

+ RHP Ryan Moore  (St Thomas Aquinas HS) is a 6-foot-7, 212-pound righty who has a very tall loose lean projectable body. Loose easy working arm with a high 3/4 slot. Fastball sat at 80-81 with good tilt. Velocity will improve with strength. Ran a 7.1, 60 yard dash. Will be interesting to watch his development on the mound, and how he grows into that big body.

+ LHP Bailey Mantilla ( American Heritage HS) is a 6-foot-1, 200-pound lefty with a thick body and a high 3/4 slot. Loose arm with a fluid delivery. Fastball is 80-81 mph with tail. Curveball was slurvey at 63-64 mph. Throws a lot of strikes.

+ RHP Patrick Crawley (Ponte Vedra HS) is a 6-foot-1, 200-pound right-hander with a thick strong mature body. High 3/4 slot with some arm speed. Fastball 77-80 mph.

+ RHP John Archer (Ransom Everglades HS) is a 6-foot-,150 pound righty with a skinny lean projectable body. Loose arm with 3/4 to low 3/4 slot. Tough angle against right handed hitters. Fastball was 75-76 mph with a lot of run. Slider was 70-71. Changeup was 70 mph. Short in back with some deception. Had some arm speed. Velocity will improve with physical maturity.

+ RHP Wesley White (St Thomas Aquinas HS) is a 6-foot-1, 200 pound right hander with a big thick strong body. High 3/4 slot. Short arm arc in the back. Fastball 76-77 mph with some heaviness and deception to it.

2019

+ RHP Triston Casas (Walter C. Young MS) is a 6-foot-4, 238-pound right-hander who is a very young kid with a big body. Good two-way guy. On the mound he has a high 3/4 slot with a loose easy working arm. The ball jumps out of his hand. His fastball has some tilt and is 83-84 mph. His curve ball is a downer with very good rotation and already has some depth, 70-71 mph. Threw plenty of strikes. Will be interesting to watch him grow into his body. Has a lot of upside.

Keep checking back over the next several days for continued notes on this event and more.

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