Illinois 2018 Rankings Updated

December 1, 2015

By Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

The last couple of weeks we updated and analyzed the 2016 and 2017 rankings in the state of Illinois and our overall PBR coverage area. This week we shift our focus onto the Class of 2018 in Illinois. There were a handful of events that took place late this summer and into the fall that played a role in the new rankings and led to us expanding from 20 to 35. The Top 10 did not see any major changes but the Underclass Showcase held in October brought a lot of new names to the forefront with two of them jumping into the Top 10.

Rank	Name	State	School	Class	Pos	Commitment
1	Alek Thomas	IL	Mount Carmel	2018	OF
2	Jake Rosing	IL	Richmond Burton	2018	RHP	Louisville
3	Branden Comia	IL	Sandburg	2018	SS
4	Brooks Coetzee	IL	Mahomet-Seymour	2018	OF
5	Jordon Rogers	IL	Simeon	2018	C
6	Zaid Walker	IL	Homewood-Flossmoor	2018	3B
7	Chase Stanke	IL	Marmion Academy	2018	C
8	Anthony Calarco	IL	New Trier	2018	RHP
9	Steven Sanchez	IL	Mundelein	2018	LHP
10	Scott Youngbrandt	IL	Andrew	2018	SS

Mount Carmel OF Alek Thomas once again leads the way for the Class of 2018. Thomas is an elite athlete who stays busy year round as a three-sport standout for the Caravan. Thomas, a starter on the varsity baseball team his freshman year, saw plenty of action on the gridiron this fall for one of the top high school football teams in the state. He also plays basketball for the Caravan in the winter.

6-foot-7 LHP/OF Steven Sanchez (Mundelein HS) was one of the many impressive 2018’s that participated in the Underclass Showcase and worked his way into the updated Top 10. Projectable Sanchez sat in the low 80’s on the mound and showed the ability to spin a breaking ball with depth. The left-handed hitter also impressed at the plate with a compact swing and a gap-to-gap approach.

Versatile INF/RHP/OF Scott Youngbrandt (Andrew HS) shined all over the field at the Underclass Showcase and along with Sanchez now finds himself in the Top 10. Physical right-handed hitter flashed an advanced bat path for his age and present strength in his swing evidenced by an 88 mph exit velocity. Defensively, was clocked at 86 mph from the outfield and 84 mph across the infield. On the mound, quick, loose arm and sat 83-84 mph with his fastball. Youngbrandt is a legitimate two-way prospect who should be a high follow moving forward.

Stay tuned the next few days as we will take a more in-depth look at some of the new additions to the rankings.

CLICK HERE for complete 2018 Illinois Rankings.

Illinois 2018 Rankings Updated

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