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Updated Illinois Class of 2023 Rankings

November 2, 2022
By: Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

The state's 2023 class is as deep, if not deeper, than the 2022 class which featured two first round picks in RHP/INF Owen Murphy (Riverside-Brookfield; Braves, No. 20 overall) and LHP Noah Schultz (Oswego East; White Sox, No. 26).

AT THE TOP OF THE CLASS


+ The top-five prospects in Illinois' 2023 class are set to reside inside the country's top-75, led by OF new No. 1 prospect Dillon Head (Homewood-Flossmoor; Clemson commit) and RHP Zander Mueth (Belleville East; Ole Miss), who slides to No. 2. Head is a high-level left/left athlete who plays an elite center field, impacts the entire game with his top-end speed and has a fluid, upside swing with sneaky pull-side power. Mueth is a 6-foot-5, 190-pound, loose-bodied, high-upside right-hander who has been up to an easy 96 mph to go along with a frisbee slider at 79-80 mph, and yet there's still more velocity to come.

Dillon Head (8/8/22)

TOP-75 RISERS

+ Overall there was not a lot of movement throughout the list in this modest update. With that being said, a couple of top-50 prospects who warranted some movement up the list were INF Ean Czech (Downers Grove North; Texas), OF Frederick Ragsdale III (Lyons Township; Kent State), OF Tommy Atkinson (St. Rita; Heartland CC), OF/LHP AJ Garcia (DePaul College Prep; Michigan) and OF Gianni Royer (Lake Forest; uncommitted). Royer, a high-academic prospect, is one of the top position players still available in the state. Royer projects at the top of the lineup with a knack for the barrel from the right-side of the plate and his 6.56 60-speed causes havoc on the bases and in center field. He also has a strong arm that has topped at 90 mph in the past.

Gianni Royer (9/24/22)

+ A couple of arms who continued to throw the ball well this fall and jumped up the list were RHP Drew Koenen (Maine South; Dartmouth) and RHP Jimmy Amptmann (Sycamore; Heartland CC). Koenen impressed multiple times in 2022 with his most recent coming at the PBR Cup in September where he filled up the strike zone while sitting 88-92 mph and getting a number of swing-and-misses with lively, riding fastball up in the zone. He also lands his low-80’s slider for strikes and holds his velocity throughout starts. 

+ Amptmann did his best work in front of us at the PBR Fall Championship and committed to Heartland CC shortly thereafter. Amptmann has a 6-foot-2, 210-pound, wide-shouldered, strong build and arm strength to match. Amptmann challenged with a lively fastball that sat 88-91 mph, T92 while flashing feel for a changeup. 

MORE ON-THE-RISE SENIORS

+ C Jayden Diaz (Alton) was another riser who impressed this fall and shot up the rankings as a result. Diaz, a Wabash Valley JC commit, was a standout at the Battle For The Arch, showing an extremely polished and easy left-handed swing that stays in the zone a long time with easy juice to all fields. Defensively, he has soft, advanced hands and clean actions. Diaz climbs nearly 100 spots, up to No. 79 in the state.

+ OF/RHP Spencer Geake (Glenbrook North), still uncommitted, had a strong performance at the Unsigned Senior Showcase and climbed 65 spots, up to No. 85 in the class. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound, athletic, broad-shouldered, left-handed hitting two-way prospect has one of the higher ceilings in the state when looking at the prospects still on the board. Geake has high-end hand speed and bat speed at the plate and the ball jumps off the barrel, especially to the pull-side when it syncs up. He is also a sub-7.0 runner with a 99 mph exit velocity, 378’ max distance, 88 mph from the outfield and up to 88 mph on the mound as well. 

+ A few other notable prospects on the rise in this update were C/1B Andy Roman (Wheaton Academy; Bossier Parish CC), LHP/1B Patrick Gardner (Lemont; Heartland CC), SS Jesse Contreras (St. Laurence; Heartland CC), among others.

+ Only four new prospects entered the rankings for the first time in this update and there are still a number of quality seniors who landed just outside the top-300. Three of the newcomers, SS/RHP Jeremy Yanow (Deerfield), RHP Chase Rubenacker (Hamilton County) and RHP Drew Koenig (Oak Park-River Forest) remain uncommitted and showed well at fall events. Yanow has a well-rounded game with the ability to stick at shortstop moving forward, especially as he continues to chisel down his 7.19 60 time (ran a 7.88 in 2021). 


**view THE updated 2023 ILLINOIS RANKINGS here**

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