The Senior Games returned to Triton JC in River Grove, IL on Tuesday, August 6. Over 55 of the top remaining uncommitted prospects in Illinois' Class of 2020 participated in a pro-style workout and a simulated game.

The following is an early look at the top performers of the day.

QUICK HITS

ARMS

+ Bradley Bourbonnais will have a senior-laden, one-two punch, at the top of their rotation, in RHP Alex Rodriguez and LHP Trent Spoon. Rodriguez has a strong 6-foot-3, 190-pound, quick, easy arm action, fastball up to 86 mph and two offspeed offerings with swing-and-miss potential. Rodriguez elevated his stock as one of the more intriguing uncommitted arms in the class. Spoon has a durable 6-foot, 175-pound build, works slightly across his body and hides the ball helping his low-80’s fastball play up. 

+ Nolan Vlcek (Lockport), Connor Best (Coal City), Thomas Giese (Huntley), Michael Ellingsen (Loyola Academy) and Drew Detmers (Glenwood) have large frames and all sat comfortably in the mid-80’s. Vlcek ran his fastball up to 87 mph and Ellingsen, who topped at 85 mph, struck out two in his one inning of work.

+ One of the strongest performances of the day was turned in by RHP Collin Salter (Edwardsville). Salter, who closed out the 4A State Championship win for Edwardsville this spring showed his swing-and-miss stuff in his one-inning outing on Tuesday. The 5-foot-11, 165-pound, right-hander is known for his hard-biting, swing-and-miss breaking ball but it was his changeup that was putting hitters away on this day. Salter struck out the side and they all came via his 72-74 mph, late-running changeup. Salter topped at 83 mph with his fastball.

PHYSICAL BATS

+ 1B Carter Dawson (Pontiac) and Brennan Fisher (IC Catholic Prep) had two of the more imposing bodies in attendance and took loud rounds of BP. Dawson is a 6-foot-6, 210-pound, right-handed hitter with an aggressive approach, advanced bat strength and power potential. Fisher is a 6-foot-4, 200-pound, left-handed hitter with an easy, flat swing and made a lot of hard, gap-to-gap contact. 

+ Infielder’s Max Jones (Pekin) and Joshua Kirnbauer (Andrew) have strong frames and upside right-handed bats. Jones is listed at 6-foot-1, 195-pounds, has strong hands, looks to lift the baseball to the pull-side and was 93 mph off a tee. Kirnbauer is 6-foot, 180-pounds, runs a sub-7.00 60, has loose, strong hands at the plate and creates easy bat speed. Kirnbauer should be a high-follow corner infielder moving forward.

INFIELDERS

+ The first game of the day featured three of the more interesting middle-infield prospects in attendance in Breck Nowik (Lake Forest), Mikey Kocen (Warren) and Will Jaynes (Waubonsie). Nowik has long been known for his impressive, two-way ability but after his performance at the Senior Games it is clear he is one of the top infielders still on the market. Nowik has a long, athletic 6-foot-2, 185-pound, frame with developing strength and his right-handed swing continues to take huge strides everytime we see him. Nowik shined during game play, hitting a home run to straight-away center field, making a diving play ranging over his shoulder in shallow left field and making hard contact in every at-bat. Nowik was also 85 mph across the infield and should be able to stick on the left-side of the diamond. 

+ Kocen ran a 6.99 60 and is a right-handed bat that profiles at the top of the order. Kocen has a simple, repeatable, compact swing with loose, quick hands and a middle-of-the-field approach. Kocen made nothing but hard contact in BP and carried that over to game play where he hit every ball on the barrel.

+ Jaynes has a long-limbed, 6-foot-2, 180-pound frame, similar to the aforementioned Nowik. Jaynes has a loose, quick right-handed bat with upside. Defensively, he has easy actions, soft hands and a loose arm that played at 88 mph across the diamond. Jaynes has a high-ceiling and should one to follow closely moving forward.

ATHLETIC OUTFIELDERS

+ Adam Pottinger (Deerfield) and Robert Walker (Kenwood) are two athletic outfielders to follow. Pottinger’s speed plays way better on the field and in the outfield than his 7.06 60 time would indicate. The left/left center fielder made a number of impressive plays in game, covering ground with ease and showcasing the proper routes with a quick first step. At the plate, the left-handed hitter has a spray approach and feel for the barrel. Walker ran the top-60 time of the day, a 6.62, has a loose right-handed swing and plays fast in the outfield.

Stay tuned for a look at the statistical breakdown of the event coming soon.

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