PBR Illinois Player of the Week: UTL/RHP Luke Brabham

Nazareth Academy (10-2) began the season as the No. 22-ranked team in the state, rostering some of the most talented underclassmen in Illinois. A busy and undefeated start through the first two weeks of the season was highly encouraging to see, as a number of the starters on the Roadrunners are sophomores and even freshmen – though that group has been clearly unfazed by the varsity scene.

With that being said, junior UTL/RHP Luke Brabham (2022; uncommitted) has been one of the stand-out upperclassmen this spring, motoring the Roadrunners offensively to 10 straight wins to open the season. Last week, Brabham propelled Nazareth to a 6-0 record by going a staggering 15-for-20 at the plate, scoring 11 runs with the help of six doubles, and he drove in seven and walked a few times to add to his impressive slashline. Of those 15 hits, arguably the most important came on April 21 amidst Naz’s come-from-behind rally against Romeoville. With two outs, Brabham lined a ball to his opposite field to drive in the walk-off run to secure the 8-7 victory.

Additionally, Brabham earned the win on the mound last week against Stagg, when he limited the team to just three hits in his five innings of work, striking out seven along the way.

He earned our attention over the winter as well, at the O’Hare I.D., where we reported this note on his performance at that event: “Another strong right-handed hitter came in the form of 6-foot-2, 160-pound Brabham… showed one of the best peak hand speeds (25.9 mph) of the day, according to Blast, to go along with a top exit velocity over 93.2 mph. Defensively, he plays with active feet and a quick release from a short high ¾ slot.”

Luke Brabham (3/20/21)

For his efforts, Brabham has been named the PBR Illinois Player of the Week, for the week of April 19-25. We're thankful for the POTW submissions we received from the coaches across the state. The players who garnered POTW consideration will earn a place within Friday's Diamond Notes story, so be on the lookout for that by the end of this week.

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