With the conclusion of the fall circuit and the off-season underway, our staff has updated the state's 2024 rankings one final time in 2022. Though there's not much shakeup on this new board, we have expanded the rankings by a handful of names, rising and adding a few names as a result.

Below you’ll learn more about these updated rankings for the state’s current junior class, starting with a few prospects who climbed up towards the upper part of our board after impressive performances this fall - whether at tournaments or other events.

We’ll touch on a few names that debuted for the first time later on, but for now here are some prospects trending upward as we head into the offseason.  

THE TOP 20

One prospect who moved out of the top-10 in Illinois was RHP Luke Oblen, a Louisville commit. The former DePaul College Prep standout is now considered a South Carolina prospect after transferring to P27 Academy, now slotted at No. 5 in the South Carolina 2024 class.

Though there’s not much movement towards the top of this board, two prospects jump into the top-15 after standout performances at the PBR at The Rock this past fall: LHP Brayden Mazzacano (Schaumburg, 2024; Illinois) and CIF Cash Campbell (Montini Catholic, 2024; Iowa):

+ Mazzacano’s competitiveness and mound presence standout, and that paired with a highly projectable frame equate to one of the state’s highest ceilings on the hill. He’s pitching in the mid-80s with his fastball right now, peaking at 87 mph, and pounds the strike zone from a rhythmic, effortless motion downhill. Mazzacano also spun a tight 74-76 mph slider off his fastball’s plane, landing it around the zone with consistency. He’s certainly capable of rising up this list moving forward, slotting at No. 12 in this update.

Bradyen Mazzacano

+ Campbell’s physical presence at the plate stands out and he, when it’s all said and done, could finish as the loudest left-handed bat in this class. He was all over the barrel at The Rock this past fall, thumping balls gap-to-gap en route to a tournament championship for his team. We’ve seen him produce max exit velocities in the high-90s, peaking at 101 mph, and it’s apparent that his ability to impact that baseball with that authority translates into gameplay. Campbell went on a power surge with Montini Catholic last spring, something we’d expect to see him repeat in 2023, and he’s up to 13th on our updated board.

Cash Campbell

+ C Sir Jamison Jones (St. Rita) finds himself in the No. 17 position after numerous strong performances over this past summer and fall. There is no shortage of power in the right-handed hitters' bat, regularly putting up exit velocities over 100 mph with power to all fields. His defense is sufficient enough to stick behind the plate at the next level, having recorded a pop-time of 1.95 in-event with an 81 mph top velocity down to second; however he would easily be able to make the move over to first base if needed. The Illinois State commit is one of the more physically imposing prospects in the class and his bat should impact the middle of an order for a long time to come.

Sir Jamison Jones

MORE RISERS

+ RHP/3B Michael Umbright (Naperville Central) is an arrow-up two-way prospect who has made some noise on the mound as of late. Standing at a physical 6-foot-5, 215-pounds, Umbright has a clean, polished delivery and loose, easy arm on the mound. Umbright gets hard run and sink at times to a fastball that was reportedly touching 90 mph this fall. He also plays an above-average third base when not on the mound and has a potent right-handed bat that played in the middle of the order for Naperville Central as a sophomore. Upside uncommitted two-way prospect to follow closely moving forward. 

+ RHP Brady Chambers (Lyons Township, 2024; Michigan State) maintained an uptick in stuff at The Rock this fall, committing to Michigan State shortly afterwards. At 6-foot-6, 200-pounds, Chambers moves down the mound in a more controlled manner than we’d seen in the past, working the zone with his fastball at 84-86 mph for strikes. He featured a 75-76 mph changeup that he spotted low-and-in to right-handed hitters and flashed sharp spin on a low-70s curveball, too. Chambers’ ability to work the zone and likely start at the next level has him rising up our board.

Brady Chambers

+ OF Trevor Geis (Mascoutah, 2024) climbs a handful of spots inside the top-100. Geis’ athleticism and projectability attached to a 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame are enticing, and he was amongst the top performers for Team Illinois at the Battle for The Arch this past September. There, Geis ran a 7.02 60-yard dash with clear acceleration at peak speed and repeated quality contact off a loose fluid right-handed barrel. He showed arm strength from the outfield in his workout (90 mph) and in the gameplay portion of the event, hurling a throw home to cut down a would-be run at the plate. Geis’ tools and upside have him trending upward heading into the off-season.

UPDATED TOP-10 BOARD

RANK	NAME	STATE	SCHOOL	CLASS	POS	COMMITMENT
1	Ryan Sloan	IL	York	2024	RHP	Wake Forest
2	Cole Crafton	IL	Lincoln-Way West	2024	SS	Louisville
3	Collin Mowry	IL	Lincoln Way Central	2024	C	Louisville
4	Tyler Bell	IL	Lincoln-Way East	2024	SS	Pittsburgh
5	Ryan Anderson	IL	Minooka	2024	RHP	Arizona
6	Dennis Butler III	IL	Simeon	2024	OF	Louisville
7	Aidan Hayse	IL	Joliet Catholic Academy	2024	RHP	Tennessee
8	John Hughes	IL	Nazareth	2024	LHP	North Carolina
9	Kenny Perez	IL	De LaSalle	2024	SS	Cincinnati
10	Brendan Tunink	IL	Newman Central Catholic	2024	OF	Notre Dame

 

**CLICK HERE FOR THE ILLINOIS 2024 RANKINGS**

 

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