Prep Baseball Report

Become a Member

More +

PBR Future Games Midwest: Pitching Statistical Analysis

August 10, 2020
By Andy Sroka
Illinois and Wisconsin Assistant Director

HTML Source EditorWord wrap

From Aug. 2 to 4, Prep Baseball Report’s Midwest region gathered in Franklin, Wis., to host its own version of the PBR Future Games. Worldly circumstances prevented us from gathering at our usual site at LakePoint in Emerson, Ga., but our staffs were still able to host and support the top uncommitted prospects inside the 2022 and 2023 class at this illustrious event.

After breaking down the event’s top offensive performers by the numbers on Friday, we’re diving into all of the measured data today to assess the event’s top pitching performers. 

MAX FASTBALL VELOCITY

Four arms stick out inside this category, the top four on the board above: RHP Kyle Rossy (Glenbard West, IL, 2022), RHP Hunter Schmitt (Grafton, WI, 2022), RHP Ashton Izzi (Oswego East, IL, 2022), and RHP Tyler Deleskiewicz (Badger, WI, 2022).

Rossy averaged the firmest fastball of the Midwest’s Future Games, sitting 89-90 mph and was up to 91. Rossy also takes some off the fastball to generate a useful sinker, though it’s his power fastball that looks like his best offering. Rossy’s loose, clean and live arm action from a ¾ slot – and relative low effort – help him attack the zone with his big velo. Per TrackMan, Rossy is also able to spin an above-average breaking ball. His curveball averaged about 2,300 rpm with 16 inches of horizontal break at an average of 73 mph.

Schmitt possesses some tremendous upside on his own, as arguably Wisconsin’s top-ranked uncommitted arm. His 6-foot-1, 180-pound frame can still add plenty of weight and strength, meaning he’s already getting to his big velocity without it. It looked like Schmitt intentionally fluctuated his velocity in-game, ranging from 85-89 mph, reaching back for a 90 and 91 in favorable counts. He touched 91 in his warmups, too, showing that he’s more than capable of reaching that threshold. The spin on Schmitt’s fastball is above-average, living in the 2,200 to 2,300 rpm range.

Izzi and Deleskiewicz averaged the next hardest fastballs after Rossy, however. Izzi virtually sat 87-90 mph in his outing with a live fastball. He’s still gaining the feel for a more consistent breaking ball, but Izzi’s fastball is elite.

Deleskiewicz delivers the ball with funk, limbs flying at batters every which way. If there was a winner for most uncomfortable at-bat, Deleskiewicz might be the reigning champ. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound righty also owns some staggering TrackMan numbers, with a fastball with huge spin. Up to 2,447 rpm in the bullpen, that spin rate was the highest among all measured fastballs at the Future Games. His Induced Vertical Break (IVB) is above-average, too, in the 14 to 17 inch range. Deleskiewicz’s breaking ball is looking like an outpitch as well, a 12/6 offering that needs to be honed a little bit, but features the swing-and-miss action needed to miss bats at the next level.

RHP Nathan Hayes (St. Charles East, IL, 2022) made a loud PBR debut while repping Team Illinois. While sitting 85-88 mph, up to 89, no fastball featured greater IVB than Hayes’ – or, in other words, more ‘carry’ or ‘rise’ through the strike zone. The pitch averaged 19.7 IVB in warmups and topped 21.4, the highest average and best of the event. The fastball’s spin averaged 2,100 to 2,200 rpm released on an average of 6.2 feet off the ground and the pitch did well to maintain that height through the zone, tying up hitters consistently, especially when the fastball was properly elevated. Hayes’ slider is also a future go-to as he gains a greater consistency for it, but it already flashes that kind of ability. Its sharp bite at 74-77 mph helped him K five of the six outs he notched.

SPIN WINNERS

RHP Jaqson Tejada (Marion, IA, 2022) put together one of the more revelatory performances of the Midwest’s Future Games. He, too, touched 90 mph but sat 84-88 more frequently – though, he separated himself from his peers with a biting breaking ball that featured some of sharpest action of the entire event. Tejada’s fastball rivaled Deleskiewicz’s in the spin department, averaging 2,408 rpm with even more impressive IVB (17.5 inches on average in the ‘pen). And Tejada was able to get some of the ugliest swings and misses of the event with a tight slider that averaged 12.8 inches of vertical action and 16 inches of horizontal break, all at an average of 2,600 rpm. Each of those measurements fall into an elite category that helped him distinguish himself amongst a star-studded crop of uncommitted talent.

Few pitchers made it look as easy as RHP Mason Buss (Arrowhead, 2022) did in his two-inning stint. The durable 6-foot, 170-pound righty attacked the zone with a quick tempo, putting himself in the driver’s seat all outing. Buss sat 85-87 mph, up to 88, with hard run and sink action that played well off a slurve-y breaking ball, 75-76 mph, that he has advanced feel for that spins at 2,400 rpm on average. The changeup works well as a third pitch, too, at 76-78 mph that features similar arm-side action. Buss has earned a “bulldog” label as a competitive righty who goes right after hitters, and he emerged from Future Games as one of its winners.

Mason Buss' spin rates, per TrackMan.

RHP Tommy Boba (Wheaton Warrenville South, IL, 2022) committed to Cincinnati last week, becoming one of several early commits out of our Future Games event. He earned it, too, as one of the top performers of the event during his two innings pitched. Boba sat 82-85 mph, up to 86, with a 2,200 to 2,300 rpm fastball paired with a breaking ball that broke at nearly the same rate. He also utilized a 75-76 mph changeup that featured 16 inches of horizontal break on average, and it looked like his best offspeed on this day. The three-pitch arsenal and his sturdy 6-foot-1, 195-pound size have him looking like a dependable future rotation piece as Boba continues to mature and develop.

And while he looks like a future high-level shortstop, Rory Fox (Catholic Memorial, WI, 2022) clearly has one of Wisconsin’s top arms, too. Fox was up to 88 mph in his one-inning stint, and while his fastball features an average spin rate, it tends to jump on hitters at the top of the zone with its above-average carry. He plays his tight breaking ball of the four-seamer well, a pitch that can spin in the 2,400-plus rpm range. Fox’s changeup is also an intriguing offering, and only proves that the two-way talent could have a bright future on the mound, if he wanted one.

The ease in which LHP Taylor Kilps (Whitnall, WI, 2022) is able to sit 83-85 mph, topping 86, is extremely noteworthy, especially from the left side. Kilps’ fastball also features some prominent characteristics, including striking carry at 18.5 inches of IVB, topping 21.2 inches in warmups. Still searching for a viable offspeed to lean on, Kilps has the projection – 6-foot-2, 175 pounds – and raw stuff that has him looking like one of his state’s top southpaws.

RHP/OF Joey Malecha (Northfield, MN, 2022) clearly knows how to spin it. He sat 85-86 mph, up to 88, in-game and TrackMan noted his above-average feel for spin on the four-seamer, averaging 2,220-plus rpm in addition to a slider that averaged about 2,300 rpm. Also, Malecha’s fastball looks like it can miss bats on its own, with an average IVB of 18.1 inches with 13 inches of horizontal action. The changeup closely mimics the fastball, which should allow him to groom it into a swing-and-miss type as well. There’s a lot to like in Malecha’s arsenal.

Yet another two-way follow to note from Team MN-IA-NE: SS/RHP Liam Martin (Eagan, MN, 2022). Martin showed advanced feel for four pitches at the Future Games, sitting 85-87 mph with a changeup that effectively plays off it. He showed two different breaking balls that look and play similarly, and the slider looks to be his most effective, at an average of about 2,300 rpm with a short wrinkle to it.

RHP/C Isaac Morton (Spring Lake Park, MN, 2022) marks yet another two-way follow from Minnesota to shine in Franklin. At a wiry 6-foot-1, 156 pounds, Morton is a follow for his projection and athleticism alone, but TrackMan helps him stand out from the mound, especially. Morton averages a fastball at 82-86 mph, topping 87, with spin rates that typically fall under the 2,000 rpm range. The curveball had an argument to be named the event’s best, however, spinning at an average of 2,700 rpm that flummoxed Team Illinois bats. The fastball and changeup mirror each other closely, giving him an authentic three-pitch offering to further grow into as he adds weight.

RHP/C Grant Pohlman (Carrollton, IL, 2022) was very impressive in a one-inning stint as one of Team Illinois’ two-way players. Pohlman was dotting the corners with 84-87 mph fastballs that touched 88 while mixing in two distinctly different breaking balls with above-average spin rates.

From Team Wisconsin, RHP James Reese (University School of Milwaukee, 2022) pitches with an effort and ferocity, and he has the aggressive feel to spin that complements his demeanor. A strong athlete at 6-foot, 175 pounds, Reese sat 84-86 mph, up to 87, backed up by one of the event’s tightest sliders. The pitch sat 77-78 mph with late bite, at a spin rate of 2,600 rpm.

Hulking RHP Ysen Useni (Crystal Lake South, IL, 2022) was the first prospect to commit at our Future Games, announcing a verbal commitment to Illinois-Chicago after Day 1. At 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, Useni attacks the strike zone with an aggressive three-pitch mix that he demonstrated advanced feel for. He sat at an easy 85-86 mph with traits that effectively matched his swing-and-miss changeup. Useni’s change broke with 12-plus inches of horizontal action, similar to his fastball’s movement profile.

RELATED CONTENT

Premium Content Area

This article is only available to PBRPlus Subscribers. If you wish to continue reading this article:

Login to the Subscriptions Website.
To purchase a NEW SUBSCRIPTION, please click here to go to our subscription products page.