By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

Earlier this week, we released the PBR Draft 100, which ranks the top high school prospects eligible for the upcoming draft, including players outside of Prep Baseball Report’s coverage area of 34 states. This list is compiled after months of seeing games across the country and conversations with scouts and college recruiters. In this week’s Hotlist, we look at 10 prospects that proved themselves at the events we attended, which included the Tournament of Stars, Metropolitan Baseball Classic, Under Armour All-America Game, East Coast Professional Showcase and Area Code Games. Many of these prospects were fairly well known going into the summer, but with each passing event, they showed why they’re among the top in their class.

Nick Allen, SS, Francis Parker HS, CA
Allen stands at 5-foot-8, 152 pounds, but he proved over and over again this summer that he’s one of the best players in the country. He plays with energy and is more than just a grinder. He has tools. The Southern California recruit runs a 6.7-second 60 and has some of the best actions at shortstop in the class. His exchange is quick and clean, adding to his already strong arm. He also has good body control and can make throws from different angles and on the move. At the plate, his swing is short and direct and he uses the entire field. He’ll take a pitch the other way, but can also turn on premium velocity. He’s strong enough to drive the ball over outfielders’ heads, but he’s at his best when he takes a line drive approach and finds the gaps. Between TOS and the Area Code Games, he was 9-for-29 and struck out just once. The No. 21 prospect in the PBR Draft 100, Allen made the USA 18U National Team and has been the starting shortstop and leadoff hitter in the first four games of the COPABE Pan Am Championships.