Top-10 Profiles of 2020: No. 8 Christian Holmes
December 18, 2020
As the year starts to unwind, our staff will start to highlight the top-10 most viewed profiles from 2020 –starting at 10 and counting down.
Today, we’ll look at De La Salle shortstop Christian Holmes (2022; Kansas State commit), whose profile recorded the eighth most views in 2020 among Illinois players. Ranked No. 12 overall in the Illinois’ 2022 class and No. 348 nationally, Holmes is one of the top middle infield prospects that the Prairie State has to offer, regardless of class.
Holmes attended the PBR Future Games this year and shined, taking an electric round of batting practice during the event’s workout portion. Here is Holmes' scouting report in the days that followed the Future Games, in which Holmes broke out as one of the event's top pound-for-pound prospects:
“One of the week’s biggest winners is Holmes, who looks like a true shortstop with a loud right-handed bat. His batting practice was among the more fun ones to watch, as he crushed at least a couple home runs out of the big ballpark. In fact, the majority of his BP featured line-drive or well-hit fly balls, demonstrating an innate feel to connect on lofted contact. He hit two baseballs over 98 mph in BP, the furthest of which travelled 382 feet.”
Holmes committed to Kansas State shortly after the Future Games and he could ultimately be an immediate impact while carving out a role for himself in the Wildcats’ lineup.
TOP-10 PROFILES OF 2020, NO. 8: CHRISTIAN HOLMES
Scouting Report
Verbally commits to Kansas State.
Positional Profile: SS
Body: 6-foot, 180-pounds. Strong, athletic build, proportional frame.
Hit: RHH. Balanced, relaxed setup, smooth load, short stride, strong balance through contact. Confident at the plate, clear bat speed, bat stays short and level to the ball, consistent hard contact, line drive type hitter.
Power: 92 mph exit velocity from the tee.
Arm: RH. INF - 82 mph. Short, loose draw, high 3/4 slot.
Defense: Advanced actions, attacks the baseball, athletic feet work in rhythm, maintains body control up the middle, fields out in front. Soft hands, clean exchange, quick release, plays through the baseball, capable of sticking up the middle.
Run: 6.85 runner in the 60.
Positional Profile: SS/2B One of the top 2022 infield prospects in Illinois.
Body: 5-foot-11, 170-pounds. Athletic frame, carries strength throughout.
Hit: RHH. Athletic, balanced setup, confident look, smooth load and short leg-kick trigger. Quick hands, advanced bat speed, highly repeatable swing. Stays short to the ball, extension through contact, consistent, hard, gap-to-gap contact.
Power: 86 mph exit velocity from the tee. Ball jumps off the barrel.
Arm: RH. INF - 82 mph. Short, athletic arm action, high 3/4 slot. Throws carried and were accurate across the infield.
Defense: Advanced infield actions, confident, sure-hands, fluid footwork, plays well on the move and works through the baseball. Quick, clean release and plays with rhythm.
Run: 4.25 runner home to first.
Strong, athletic build. 5-foot-10,160 pound right-handed hitting middle infielder. Hit out of the leadoff spot for Prairie Gravel. Balanced setup, smooth load, short stride, slight leg kick. Quick hands, level path to the baseball, hands stay in a strong hitting position throughout, fluid rhythm in swing. Defensively, active feet, steady hands, quick and clean transfer, strong arm. Played athletically in the field, showcasing a strong body control play and the ability to range to both sides of his glove. Hustle player, turned should-be singles into doubles multiple times throughout the tournament.