On Wednesday, June 5th, the Prep Baseball Illinois staff traveled to Triton College in River Grove, Illinois to host the Chicagoland Rising Stars ID. The event hosted four players from across the state and allowed our staff to get a closer look at these players to kick off the summer circuit.

We take a look at a couple of the standouts, a statistical analysis, and our scouting reports from all the players at the event.

TAKEAWAYS

Looking at the handful of prospects that were in attendance, INF/RHP Cole Clower (Minooka) emerged as a 2028 to know moving forward. Clower has an advanced left-handed swing, lived on the barrel during BP and then showed quality actions on the infield with an arm that topped at 78 mph. Clower then hopped on the mound and showed a polished three-pitch mix while sitting 81-83 mph with his fastball. 

STAT STORY

FASTBALL VELOCITY (MAX)

FASTBALL SPIN RATE (AVG.)

60-YARD DASH

EXIT VELOCITY (MAX)

TOP INFIELD VELOCITY

TOP OUTFIELD VELOCITY

TOP CATCHER VELOCITY

TOP POP TIMES

+ CLICK HERE for a look at the complete statistics from the event.

SCOUTING REPORTS (LISTED ALPHABETICALLY)

Cole Clower, Minooka (IL), 2028
Positional Profile: SS
Body: 6-2, 160-pounds.
Hit: LHH. Balanced setup, short stride, simple load, utilizes strong lower half. Loose, athletic swing, direct, creates leverage through contact, hard contact up the middle/pull-side, natural loft. 
Power: 89 max exit velocity, averaged 78.4 mph. 303’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 78 mph. Clean, compact arm action, high 3/4 slot.
Defense: Natural actions, feel for the position, clean double play turn, easy mover to both sides.
Run: 7.51 runner in the 60.

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Controlled, clean delivery, medium leg lift with slight tuck, tall/fall down the mound, works in-line.
Arm Action: RH. Long, loose clean arm action, 3/4 slot.
FB: T83, 81-83 mph. Plays clean out of the hand with mostly straight actions. T2215, 2146 average rpm.
CB: 62-65 mph. 11/5 gradual shape, showed feel at times. T1929, 1911 average rpm.
CH: 64-66 mph. T1831, 1756 average rpm.

Logan Holmes, Hoffman Estates (IL), 2029
Positional Profile: OF/2B
Body: 5-2, 95-pounds.
Hit: SH. Balanced upright setup, simple load, short stride, linear lower half. LH: Level path, compact swing, hands stay on top of the ball, pull-side approach. RH: Simple, loose hands, level path, looks to elevate the ball, line drive approach. 
Power: 66 max exit velocity, averaged 53 mph. 194’ max distance.
Arm: RH. INF - 59 mph. OF - 62 mph. OF: Long, loose arm action, 3/4 slot. INF: Long over the top action, plays from multiple slots.
Defense: OF: Athletic actions, moves well laterally, glove-pat transfer. INF: Clean actions, one-hand gather out front, glove-pat transfer.
Run: 8.45 runner in the 60.

Cody Rader, Geneva (IL), 2029
Positional Profile: SS
Body: 5-5, 120-pounds.
Hit: RHH. Balanced upright setup, short stride, quiet hands load, linear lower half. LH: Simple, athletic swing, loose hands, hands work driect to the ball, line drive approach. RH: Loose, athletic swing, direct, line drive approach to all fields. 
Power: 76 max exit velocity, averaged 67.2 mph. 235’ max distance.
Arm: LH. INF - 66 mph. Long, easy arm action, 3/4 slot.
Defense: Athletic footwork, two-hand gather into body, steady hands, clean double play turn.
Run: 8.45 runner in the 60.

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Uptempo delivery, high balance point, drop/drive lower-half down the mound with a high front side, works in-line.
Arm Action: LH. Long, loose arm swing into a high 3/4 release.
FB: T71, 68-70 mph. Plays with some running action through the zone. T1957, 1835 average rpm.
CB: 54-57 mph. Gradual 11/5 shape, some feel for the zone. T2370, 2342 average rpm.
SL: 55-56 mph. 10/4 shape with some depth and sweep. T2258, 2186 average rpm.
CH: 57-60 mph. Thrown with fastball intent, mostly straight action. T1502, 1314 average rpm.

Jaime Velasco, Elmwood Park (IL), 2028
Positional Profile: C/RHP
Body: 5-9, 145-pounds.
Hit: RHH. Balanced slightly crouched setup, minimal stride, linear lower half. Athletic, level path, hands stay on top of the ball, one-hand finish, line drive approach. 
Power: 76 max exit velocity, averaged 67.2 mph. 250’ max distance.
Arm: RH. C - 62.00 mph. INF - mph. OF - mph. Short, compact arm action, high 3/4 slot.
Defense: 2.71-2.9 pop times. Clean glove-to-hand transfer, accurate throws.
Run: 8.21 runner in the 60.

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