Class of 2015 Prospect Games: Pitching Analysis
October 1, 2014
By Rob Allison
Iowa Scouting Director
The Class of 2015 Prospect Games brought almost 50 uncommitted prospects to showcase themselves to colleges in attendance in the one day event held at the University of Iowa. Over the next week we will unveil our analysis of the top players at their respective positions.
Our next group is the pitching from this event. It's shocking that some of these players are still uncommitted for the class of 2015. Left handed pitching with 2-3 pitches for strikes, projectable right hander's in mid to upper 80's, a wide variety of players that will help various college's win a ton of games.
Zach Daniels took the top stop in this category. Daniels showed loose and athletic delivery, the ability to pound the zone with 3 pitches, and overall had the best "stuff" of the event. His fastball with life and diving changeup were both plus pitches.
TOP pitching PROSPECTS
1. Zachary Daniels, RHP/SS, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, 2015
5-foot-11, 150-pound 2 way player. Long wiry build. On the mound, simple athletic delivery, lands across body, crossfire delivery. Explodes out of balance point. Pounds strike zone with 3 pitches. Fastball has life and plus ASR, breaking ball has avg/ok depth, change is plus pitch with hard late sink at end. Change is good enough to beat right and left handed hitters. Outstanding pitch. Fastball topped at 89. Pitched mostly 87-88. Curveball was 72-74. Changeup was 78-79. Big surprise with ability as position player. One of top 2-3 arms PBR Iowa saw this summer.
2. Sam Lizarraga, RHP/C, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, 2015
6-foot-4, 195-pound 2 way player. On the mound, stagnant hands, simple balanced delivery with athleticism, compact arm with looseness out front. Fastball shows late life. Athletic enough to be competitive with secondary pitches; lack polish right now. Overall highly projectable pitcher who should see velocity jumps with physical development. Fastball 84-87. Curveball 72-74. Changeup 76-77.
3. Will Whiton, OF/LHP, Perry, 2015
5-foot-11, 175-pound 2 way player. 4.37 home to first time. On the mound, good rhythm on mound, arm is loose, inconsistent front side. Fastball showed life, wrapped breaking ball early at times. Showed fastball command to both sides of plate. Changeup was above average pitch for strikes. Overall showed good athleticism, arm works on mound. Has ability to progress and be sought after left handed pitcher who can get outs and has some projectability.
4. Matt Mullenbach, RHP, Waukee, 2015
6-foot-3, 175-pound right handed pitcher. On the mound, simple balanced delivery, ball comes out clean with some life, ability to pound the strike zone with fastball. Good direction to home. Tends to over throw breaking ball at times and leave up in zone. Fastball was straight with command to both sides. Showed inconsistent command with breaking ball with sharp break. Changeup was average pitch down in zone. Overall nice pitcher with projection, arms works with looseness, competitive on mound, and has ability to throw strikes. With physical progression has chance to really develop at the college level. Fastball 81-84. Curveball 74-75. Changeup was 74-76.
5. Payton Raso, LHP/OF, Iowa City Regina, 2015
6-foot-2, 180-pound 2 way player. Athletic lean body. 4.43 home to first time. On the mound, arm slot varies, some effort in fastball, decent ASR. Sweeping action on breaking ball. Above average pitch left on left. Has some projection with body. Arm works ok at times. Enough athleticism to think better days are ahead of him. Fastball 78-81 mph. Curveball 65-66.
6. Zack Hamilton, C/RHP, Southeast Polk, 2015
6-foot, 220-pound catcher/ right handed pitcher. On the mound, simple delivery, good balance and direction to home. Arm works well out front and has some athleticism on mound. Breaking ball had hard late action and was an above average pitch. Fastball 82-85 mph. Curveball 67-72. Changeup 68-70. Showed best on the mound.
7. Nolan Reinhardt, 1B/RHP, Dowling Catholic, 2015
6-foot-2, 185-pound 2 way player. Projectable body with some athleticism. On the mound, good rhythm, upper and lower half work well together, arm has looseness, some arm speed out front. Fastball has downhill plane with late life. Wraps breaking ball early, loses arm speed on pitch. Soft gradual break. Fastball 81-85 mph. Curveball 68-69. Clean simple mechanics with projectable body and ability to throw strikes. Interesting prospect a 2 way player. A lot of things to work with.
BEST OF THE REST (LISTED ALPHABETICALLY)
Jeremy Bentley, LHP/1B, Des Moines East, 2015
6-foot, 175-pound 2 way player. On the mound, high leg kick delivery, upper and lower half have rhythm and sequence, cross fire delivery, low 3/4 – sidearm slot. Turns everything over on release. Hides ball extremely well. Plus potential as Left on Left type arm. Fastball ranged 75-77 mph with hard changeup type action, curveball was loose at 61-65 mph.
Bryce Bisenius, 1B/RHP, Dowling Catholic, 2015
6-foot, 210-pound 2 way player. Strong barrel chested. On the mound, high hand set in wind-up. Stagnant hands, not much rhythm, over the top arm slot, falls down the mound. Arm has some fluidity out front but body lacks flexibility. Fastball ranged 76-79. Curveball had soft gradual break at 63-68 mph.
Jake Brumbaugh, RHP/1B, Tri County, 2015
6-foot, 210-pound 2 way player. On the mound, simple rock and turn delivery. Some stiffness. Fastball was 72-77 mph. Curveball was flat at 6-61 mph. Changeup showed some late action at 69-70 mph.
Joey Cardamon, RHP, Ankeny Centennial, 2015
6-foot-2, 195-pound right handed pitcher. On the mound, projectable body with some life to fastball. High hand set with stagnant hands. Good balance point and works downhill with fastball. Clean mechanics. Good shape to Curveball at 68-72 mph. Changeup was heavy at 70-75. Fastball range was 75-81 mph. Overall a player to follow throughout the year. Projectable body, clean mechanics, and arm works well out front.
Brady Cotton, LHP, Iowa City, 2015
6-foot-1, 150-pound left handed pitcher. On the mound, simple medium paced delivery. Throws strikes, arm works ok. Starts long but then shortens up on release. Over the top to high ¾ arm slot. Potential velocity gains with added mass and strength. Straight fastball ranged 73-77 mph. Curveball was 59-63 mph. Changeup was 64-65 with average action.
Zachary Galindo, 3B/RHP, Iowa City Regina, 2015
5-foot-7, 170 pound 2 way player. On the mound, short arm action from over the top slot. Ok balance, some stiffness on follow through. Fastball 74-76 mph. Curveball 63-64. Changeup 70-71.
Mason Gibson, LHP/OF, Madrid, 2015
5-foot-8, 185-pound 2 way player. On the mound, very active windup. On the mound, very active windup with a lot of moving parts. Fastball 75-77. Curveball 55-59. Changeup 60-62.
Stephen Jensen, C/RHP, Clear Creek Amana, 2015
5-foot-10, 190-pound catcher/ right handed pitcher. On the mound, works primarily out of stretch, simple delivery, land across body, falls off 1B side. Fastball is straight. Over the top slot. Arm works ok. Fastball 80-84. Curveball inconsistent at 64-68.
Ben Kruse, RHP, Pleasant Valley, 2015
6-foot-5, 200-pound right handed pitcher. On the mound, big bodied pitcher, fast tempo delivery, tends to rush to plate. Arm works average. Tons of strikes with 3 pitches. Fastball is straight with command to both sides of plate, curveball has average break but throws for strikes and consistently down in the zone. Changeup has good action down in zone and comes out of hand well. Above average pitch. Upside with body, good project arm who needs development mechanically. Fastball 78-82. Curveball 61-63. Changeup 66-67.
Nathan Leisenring, RHP/3B, Keokuk, 2015
6-foot-2, 235-pound 2 way player. 5.1 home to first time. On the mound, high hand set, works downhill with straight fastball, secondary pitches were erratic around zone. Stiffness on finish. Fastball 76-80. Curveball 62-63.
Hunter Peebler, 1B/RHP, Danville, 2015
6-foot-4, 195-pound 2 way player. 5.19 home to first time. On the mound, simple delivery, collapses at balance point, tends to fall down the mound. Long arm action. Ball comes out well out front. Inconsistent breaking ball. Has some projection with long levers and arm action. Fastball 77-82 mph. Curveball 68-69.
Christian Whitehill, RHP/C, Manson Northwest Webster, 2015
5-foot-8, 215-pound 2 way player. 4.93 home to first time. On the mound, big rocker step into balance point. Stagnant hands. Stays tall through delivery. Throws mostly upper body. Straight fastball. Loose breaking ball from same fastball slot. Fastball 74-78. Curveball 66-69.
Denton York, RHP, Grinnell, 2015
6-foot-5, 200-pound right handed pitcher. On the mound, big bodied pitcher. Rotational delivery, inconsistent balance point, swings open on delivery, lands open, arm lags behind. High ¾ arm slot. Fastball ranged 80-83 mph and changeup was 77-79. Flashes of arm speed. Projectable arm due to size and some present ability. Work in progress.
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