The 2025 rankings update in Illinois are long overdue after a long summer season which featured the end of the IHSA season, a number of Prep Baseball Tournaments, showcases, as well as big invite-only events, most notably the Illinois State Games, which featured close to 400 of the best players in Illinois across all classes.

As the 2025 class enters their senior season a number of prospects continue to climb the board and elevate their games. The top-five on the list remain unchanged with plenty of movement throughout the expanded top-260 list.

AT THE TOP

LHP Cameron Appenzeller (Glenwood) and UTIL Jaden Fauske (Nazareth), the top two prospects in the state, have emerged as some of the top prospects in the entire country. Appenzeller is slated to be ranked in the Top-five of the overall rankings soon-to-be-released and is one of the top arms in the entire class, while Fauske also should sit somewhere towards the top of the national rankings.

Appenzeller continues to see his velocity climb, now sitting comfortably in the low-90s, to go along with an ultra-easy, free-flowing delivery and the potential for three plus pitches down the road.

USA 18U Writeup: 7/18/24
Shooter Hunt: The top left-handed arm in the class was just that in Cary, and while it was not the “loudest” performance, it is exactly for that reason why he is such a high-level prospect. Even without being in pristine form, the wiry-athletic and long-limbed, 6-foot-5, 180-pound southpaw provided stress free innings that almost could have gone unnoticed. Lulling hitters to sleep with a controlled, continuous arm stroke and delivery, the big southpaw worked 89-93 with a fastball that jumped on hitters out of a low slot with quickness to an arm that hovered on slinky action. Killing spin on an 84-85 changeup, the pitch is likely headed to being a plus-offering, and one that he exhibited innate confidence in. Finally, while his sweepy breaking ball (77-79) was less consistent in this short look, it ticked up throughout, and is likely headed for an above average pitch in itself. Appenzeller stands confidently on the mound with a poised demeanor and quiet expectation of success, and the effortless electricity that comes out of his hand holds massive upside and value as a future starter. It is inevitable that Appenzeller’s entire arsenal makes a jump, and seeing as he was able to dominate the class’ best hitters without being at his sharpest, the ceiling has been set extra high for the Illinois native.

Fauske, long known for his prowess with the bat, continued to prove himself throughout the summer on some of the biggest stages against elite arms.

USA 18U Writeup: 7/22/24
Shooter Hunt: Fauske’s loose wrists and flick were once again on display as he maintained his status of having one of the sweetest swings in the class. Built with defined lean strength on a 6-foot-2, 205-pound frame that stands out as one of the strongest in the class, the ball jumps off the bat to all fields as he covers the plate with ease. It was more of the same from what has been seen all summer as he slowed the game down in the box, tracking pitches with ease, and demonstrating elite swing decisions with stroke zone mastery. Moving well enough in his corner outfield positions, the arm flashed glimpses above average, but likely settles in right at average in the future. While the biggest value is always going to come from the bat, there will be even greater intrigue should he get behind the plate on a more regular basis.

LHP Jack Bauer (Lincoln-Way East; Virginia), LHP/OF Conor Essenburg (Lincoln-Way West; Kasas State) and C Quinn Schambow (Libertyville; Oklahoma State) round out the unchanged Top-five in the class. Essenburg had a big spring where he earned Prep Baseball First Team All-State Honors and continues to show legitimate two-way potential at the next level.

Illinois commit, LHP Aidan Flinn (Marist) made huge strides in 2024, making one of the biggest ranking jumps in recent memory, climbing up to No. 6 in the class after starting the year at No. 140. The 6-foot-6, 205-pound prospect has seen his stuff tick up all year, showing a quick arm, high-volume of strikes, with his fastball topping at 90 mph, paired with a mid-70s sweeping breaking ball. The current stuff, paired with the upside that the big southpaw possesses makes Flinn one of the top prospects in the now senior class.

Indiana commit, 1B Trey Meyers (New Trier) moves into the Top-10 for the first time, now sitting at No. 7. He owns a highly physical 6-foot-6, 214-pound frame with athleticism to pair. He has all kinds of tools; 6.58 60 time, 89 mph outfield velocity, 95 mph max exit velocity, 346 foot max batted distance, and an average bat speed of 73.2 mph.

RHP Joseph Chiarodo (Edwardsville; Alabama) and MIF Ethan Moore (Oak Park-River Forest; Louisville) sit at No. 8 and No. 9, respectively. Chiarodo, who was sidelined at the end of the 2024 spring season due to injury is a dynamic two-way prospect with all kinds of dynamic stuff and competitivenss on the mound, including a fastball up to 93 mph. Moore, showed well for our staff during looks this summer. He’s a quality defender with advanced actions up the middle - also showing bat speed from both sides of the plate that produced multiple deep barrels during our in-game looks of him at The Rock in late July.

RHP Brandon Menser (Sesser Valier) is another big arm on the rise in the class and after climbing 25 spots, now sitting at No. 10 in the class. Menser is a multi-sport athlete who has continued to rise up our boards since we first saw him at last fall’s Battle for the Arch at St. Louis University. Read below to hear what our staff had to say about him at this year’s Illinois State Games:

Illinois State Games: 2025 Takeaways
From 8/6/24: “...is a high-level uncommitted arm in Illinois' now senior class. He stands in a hard-to-miss 6-foot-3, 176-pound frame with long levers and all kinds of projection still to come. He earned Illinois State Games Most Valuable Pitcher honors after tossing two innings on the mound with four strikeouts and no hits, runs or walks allowed. His fastball played with heavy carry through the zone (avg. 19.4” IVB), sitting 87-89 mph and topping out at 91 mph with quality spin to pair (avg. 2486 rpm). He mixed in a curveball with 12/6 action, sitting 74-79 mph with an average of 2680 rpm as well as an average of -15.4 inches of induced vertical break. He rounded out his polished three-pitch mix with an 80 mph changeup with slight fading action to the arm-side. A must-know prospect that is trending up in Illinois.”

OUTSIDE THE TOP-10

Recent Cincinnati commit, OF/LHP Joe DuSell (St. Edward), is making the biggest rise in this update, climbing up over 75 spots to No. 16. He’s a strong left-handed bat with big tools while also running his fastball up to 90 mph on the mound. Below is a note from an in-game look this summer:

From 8/1/24: “Physical, 6-foot, 207-pound frame, showed plus stuff during AHQ-Schmidt’s Saturday night pool-play game. The left-hander struck out six, four looking and two swinging, and surrendered one walk over two and two-thirds innings of work. Utilized a three pitch mix, relying heavily on his fastball and slider combination, both of which produced swings and misses. Displayed a ¾ arm slot, uphill shoulder tilt, quick arm action, in-line stride, and a forceful back leg push off. Fastball was firm with armside run and sat from 88-90 mph; backed by a hard biting slider that was thrown for strikes at 75-77 mph, and the occasional hard changeup at 81-83 mph. A quality showing for the uncommitted DuSell, Illinois’ No. 92 overall ranked prospect. Also a left-handed hitter, DuSell swings a heavy barrel with easy bat-speed, showing the ability to control the zone and drive the ball to all parts of the field with authority.”

RHP Brandon Shannon (McHenry) and RHP Ike Young (Monticello) were two of the top uncommitted arms in Illinois late this spring and parlayed their impressive performances and prospect status into Power 5 commitment. Shannon, who continues to see his velocity and stuff tick up made a commitment to Louisville and is up 14 spots to No. 19 on the list. Young up 13 spots to No. 29 landed a commitment from Illinois.

RHP Ryan Schaffnit (Morton; Bradley) is rising yet again, now at No. 43 in the state’s senior class. The 6-foot-6, 213-pound right-handed has continued to show advanced feel for the strikes zone with three pitches and after yet another impressive performance he committed to Bradley. Below is a our recent write-up from the Illinois State Games:

From 8/6/24: “...opened some eyes in his two inning stint. He takes the mound at a physically imposing 6-foot-6, 213-pounds and moves well for his size, showing little perceived effort with the ability to repeat his operation. His arm works short in the back before firing through with a higher ¾ release. The fastball came out easy with life through the zone, 87-89 mph (T90), setting up a sharp slider with late lateral break at 78-79 mph with feel to land to his glove side. His final offering was a changeup around 75-79 mph, displaying gradual running action to his arm-side.”

LHP Sam Driscoll (Mt. Zion, Lindenwood) continues to rise up our board, now ranked No. 44 overall. He’s an intriguing two-way prospect that we recently saw at the Illinois State Games:

From 8/6/24: “...provided an upside look on both sides of the ball throughout the State Games. Starting with the bat, the left-left uncommitted prospect reached a max exit velocity of 97.2 mph during batting practice, while putting up numerous quality at-bats during gameplay. Driscoll is an athletic 5-foot-9, 166-pounds, with easy foot speed - evident by his 6.64 60 time, as well as numerous home to first times under 4.65. He also showed well on the bump, sitting 85-88 mph with a fastball that played with carry (avg. 15.3” IVB), challenging hitters in the zone with the pitch. Driscoll’s slider showed sharp spin (avg. 2426 rpm) at 74-77 mph to earn swing and miss. He would also turn over a changeup at 74-77 mph with downer fade to complete his pitch mix.”

RHP/INF Owen Roberts (Waubonsie Valley; Indiana State) earned himself Prep Baseball Second-Team All-State honors after a strong spring on both sides of the ball his high school squad. After minimal looks at Roberts, our staff was finally able to get an in-game look at him at this year’s Illinois State Games:

From 8/6/24: “...who is coming off a highly-impressive spring season where he earned Prep Baseball Second Team All-State honors, had a strong showing on both sides of the ball at this year’s event. Standing in an athletic 6-foot, 180-pound frame with lean strength throughout, Roberts showed well in his two-inning stint, striking out two, allowing one run and one hit. He’s a clean mover on the mound with a quick arm, showing a fastball that sat 89-90 mph, topping out at 90.9 mph with clear ride through the zone. He spun the curveball well, averaging 2448 rpm in the 78-81 mph range, and showed feel for a low-80s breaking ball as well. At the plate, the right-handed hitter had multiple quality barrels, including a double to deep center field, recording a 4.58 run time on the turn. A 6.96 runner, Roberts produced a max exit velocity of 95.5 mph (90 mph avg.), a 70.2 mph average bat speed, and an 89 mph infield velocity. A must-know uncommitted 2025.”

Stay tuned for more coverage of the 2025 rankings throughout the rest of the week.

CLICK HERE for the updated 2025 Illinois Rankings.

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