On Sunday, August 26th, Triton JC played host to the annual Chicagoland Open. The Chicagoland Open was the final summer Showcase of 2018 and has a rich history of unveiling top prospects from around the state.

This year’s event was no different, as a number of players emerged as high-follows in their respective classes. Today we take an early look at some of the names who stood out on Sunday, including two high-follow underclass left-handed arms, a left-handed hitter unsigned senior infielder and a number of others.

QUICK HITS

+ Cory Ronan (Routt Catholic) emerged as one of the top left-handed arms that we have seen to date in the 2021 class. The highly-athletic, 6-foot, 147-pound left-hander has a loose, fast arm and pounded the bottom of the zone with a fastball that sat 82-84 mph, touching 85. Ronan also mixed in a tight breaking ball at 69-71 mph. The high-ceiling left-hander should be followed closely moving forward.

SENIORS STILL ON THE MARKET

+ One of the top position players at the event was INF Tony Fleischauer (Joliet Catholic). The unsigned senior plays athletically on the infield, confident in his abilities. Arm works short and loose from multiple angles, 86 mph with accuracy. Offensively, Fleischauer showed a smooth quick-twitch swing from the left-side with power to the gaps, 88 mph exit velocity.

+ Athletically-built at 6-foot-1, 165-pounds, left-handed hitting two-way prospect Casey Pickering (Neuqua Valley, 2019) has upside on the mound. With a short, quick arm action, Pickering touched 83 mph with his fastball and delivered two developed off-speed pitches.

+ 6-foot, 170-pound, RHP Matt Boyajian (Barrington) is an unsigned senior who sat 82-84 mph and flashed a sharp curveball at 69-70 mph.

+ MIF Jake Adams (Carmel Catholic, 2019) had one of the more complete days. The 6-foot-1, 175-pound, athletic, lanky middle infielder features a soft glove hand, playing through the ball with quick feet. Adams’ arm plays loose and quick across the infield, 84 mph. At the plate, he utilizes a pull approach, flashing gap-to-gap abilities, 85 mph exit velocity. To top it off, Adams ran a 7.16 laser-timed 60.  

+ Evan Orzech (Homeschool) recorded the low pop time of the event at 2.01. Orzech, who gets up early out of the crouch, ran a 7.28, was accurate and clocked at 75 from behind the plate.

+ RHP Ben Croci (Geneva) is a 6-foot-1, 180-pound, right-handed pitcher has a loose arm and easy effort in his delivery. Croci sat in the low-80’s, flashed a four-pitch repertoire with two distinct breaking balls.

+ MIF Finn McLaughlin (Loyola, 2019) consistently generated line drive contact back through the middle, using strong hands and a level barrel path that gains extension through the zone. On the infield, plays through the baseball with smooth, soft hands.

+ Outfielder Peyton Agan (Ankeny, IA, 2019) showed off his foot speed running one of the top 60-yard dashes at 6.91. The Iowa native showed smooth actions in the outfield athletically attacking the baseball and produced hard contact to the opposite field at the plate.

+ Outfielder Grant Baker (South Elgin, 2019) had one of the strongest arms from the outfield touching 86 mph with a long, full arm swing.

+ 6-foot-1, 165-pound long, lean outfielder Ben Hetelle (South Elgin, 2019) generated bat speed from the left side of the plate, repeatedly making hard contact and lifting balls to the pull side.

TWO-WAY POTENTIAL

+ 2020 OF/RHP Braden Highley (Mt. Zion) showed potential to be a legit two-way player. Highley is strong in stature standing 6-foot-1, 185-pounds with a gap-to-gap approach from the left side of the plate and hit 84 mph in the exit velocity testing. After showing off true arm strength in the outfield hitting 85 mph to home, the righty took to the mound with a three pitch repertoire utilizing an over the top slot with present arm speed. His fastball sat 82-83 mph, while showing signs of a swing and miss breaker with late, sharp break down in the zone, 72-74 mph.

+ RHP/OF Tom Egan (Mount Carmel, 2021) is yet another high-interest prospect who the Caravan will have at their disposal for the next few years. Egan featured one of the best breaking balls at the event, a sharp, late-biting slider at 72-73 mph. Egan’s fastball sat 81-82 mph and he also held his own as a position player.

INCOMING FRESHMAN

+ LHP/OF Shane Curtin (Mount Carmel, 2022) is a high-follow incoming freshman for the Caravan. Curtin, who worked out in the outfield and on the mound, is highly-intriguing on the mound. Curtin has an athletic, repeatable delivery and a clean, quick arm action that you can project on. Curtin throws three-pitches for a strike and ran his fastball up to 82 mph.

+ RHP/C David Andolina (Oak Park-River Forest) is a 2022 follow on the mound. Andolina has a clean arm from a ¾ slot, featured three pitches for a strike and topped at 80 mph.

+ 2022 RHP Julius Sanchez (LaSalle Peru) pitched with easy effort, coming from over-the-top with a long arm action. With feel for his entire arsenal, Sanchez ran his fastball up to 82 with run, while dropping in a sweeping curveball and commanding his changeup..

JUNIOR FOLLOWS

+ 5-foot-10, 160-pound outfielder Adam Huekels (Marian Catholic, 2020) ran the event best 60-yard dash at 6.85, laser-timed. Huekels also topped at 83 mph from the outfield from a short, high ¾ slot.

+ Smooth-handed middle infielder Ryan Nevins (Loyola, 2020) was 78 across the infield with a short arm action out of a high ¾ slot. Offensively, from the right-side, made gap-to-gap contact, 84 mph exit velocity.

+ 2020 RHP Mitchel Sampson is yet another interesting arm that Galesburg will have at their disposal. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound, strong, athletically-built right-hander ran his fastball up to 84 mph multiple times and flashed a sharp curveball at times.

+  2020 RHP/OF Jimmy Moylan (St. Rita) flashed a three pitch repertoire on the bump. At 5-foot-10, 155-pounds, Moylan used an over the top slot with a quick, short arm action, pushing his fastball up to 84 mph with his best secondary being a sharp, swing and miss breaking ball.

CLICK HERE for a look at the entire roster.

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