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Kenosha Preseason ID: Quick Hits

February 6, 2024
By: Wisconsin Staff

On Saturday, February 3rd, the PBR Wisconsin team kicked off the 2024 winter showcase circuit with the annual Kenosha Preseason ID showcase at Puma Baseball Academy in Kenosha, Wis. More than 30 players made it out to this event, providing us with updated looks and a new list of players to follow in Wisconsin, as well as a few of players from just over the Illinois border and even one from Minnesota.

Today, we’ll be highlighting the players who stood out in Kenosha within this Quick Hits piece. Stay tuned throughout the week as we continue to break down the in-depth metrics measured at this event, with the help of our tech partners TrackMan, Blast Motion, and Vizual Edge.

POSITION PLAYERS

CLASS OF 2024

+ INF Reid Hietpas (Xavier, 2024) made his way in front of the Prep Baseball Wisconsin staff for the first time in his high school career and did not disappoint. Hietpas stands at a strong and sturdy 6-foot, 202 pounds with strength throughout his well-proportioned frame. Hietpas used a quiet and controlled swing to drive the ball all over the field, registering the highest max exit velocity of the day at an impressive 93 mph. He also hit the second farthest ball of the day at 333 feet. Hietpas has quick hands and a short swing that showed impressive barrel awareness to drive the baseball all over the diamond. During the defensive portion of the event, Hietpas showed smooth actions in the infield and an accurate arm, offering a well rounded profile with few holes in his game.

CLASS OF 2025

+ INF Macay Wagner (Slinger, 2025) continues to impress with the bat and with the glove in front of our staff. Wagner has a natural swing and a natural feel to hit. He showed what he can do with the bat by barrelling balls to both gaps and surpassing the 90 mph mark in terms of exit velocities. Additionally, he had the highest average distance for batted ball data, indicating he can consistently drive balls for power all over the diamond. With the glove, Wagner showed silky smooth actions on the dirt with soft hands and showcased a strong arm (85 mph) giving him the tools to stick at the hot corner in the future. After creating some late helium for himself in the fall of last year, Wagner started the winter circuit off on a right note, and seems poised for a big junior campaign.

Macay Wagner (2/3/24)

+ INF Charlie Dietz (Westosha Central, 2025) showcased his hitting ability on Saturday, showing above-average gap-to-gap power while consistently making solid contact out front. He maintained good control of the barrel, sitting into his back side before exploding forward. A line drive hitter, Dietz should tap into his power as he grows into his wiry 6-foot-1, 170 pounds, frame. The middle infielder showed clean, soft hands on the defensive side, showing quick and explosive first step movements to both sides. His arm showed accuracy and strength, recording among the highest throwing velocities among all infielders at the event. Dietz offers a well-rounded skill set, one with the ability to hit while playing an up-the-middle position.

+ INF Evan Leafblad (Westosha Central, 2025) is a middle infielder whose athleticism and upside were on display in Saturday’s showcase, showing good feel to hit and solid actions in the infield. The lanky junior with a projectable frame has the ability to drive the ball to both gaps due to his quality feel for the barrel. He consistently gets into a strong hitting position on time and likely will be able to tap into more power as he grows more into his 6-foot-1, 150-pound frame. Defensively, Leafblad showed smooth actions all-around, showcasing his ability as a sure-handed infielder with quality hands and feet. His arm should strengthen as his body matures, but his quick action and accurate throwing provide a good base for the infielder.

+ 1B Wyatt Hood (St. Joseph, 2025) put on a show in batting practice, hammering the ball to all fields with his strong right-handed bat. His flat and direct bat path allow for good in-game skill, both in terms of contact and power, the latter of which showed in his exit velocity, which ranked among the showcase’s leaders (91 mph max). Though Hood’s bat will likely carry him to the next level, he showed strong ability to play first base. His soft hands and strong footwork around the bag show a quality feel for the position.

+ OF Alexander Smith (Indian Trail, 2025) had a solid day at Saturday’s showcase. Smith hits with a centered move and very quiet head and uses his strong hands to barrel up baseballs to both gaps while measuring a max exit velocity of 89 mph. Smith is an athletic outfielder who moves in all directions very well and who showed some carry on his throws through the target.

CLASS OF 2026

+ C Gavin Coughlin (Academy of Holy Angels, MN, 2026) made his way down from the Twin Cities to participate in Saturday’s event and was a clear stand out with his performance both offensively and defensively. With the bat, Coughlin hits with smooth rhythm and balance, creating easy bat speed through the zone which allowed him to hammer line drives all over the field. While Coughlin took one of the day’s cleanest rounds of BP, he also offers an advanced skill set behind the plate. Coughlin had an event best pop time of 1.94 seconds and was consistently under 2.00 with accurate throws on the bag.

CLASS OF 2027

+ INF/OF Patrick Davidson (St. Joseph, 2027) is a young 2B/OF with lots of room to fill out. He showed good rhythm at the plate with an open set-up and balanced land. His short, compact swing and quality feel for the barrel led to solid gap-to-gap power. Above-average athleticism lends the freshman to both the middle infield and outfield, showing an aptitude for both. His quick feet enabled him to move well to both sides in the infield and outfield. His arm showed both quickness and accuracy. Davidson is a young prospect to follow closely for the rest of the winter leading up to the spring and summer seasons.

+ INF Benjamin Smet-Cooper (Undecided, 2028) checks in at 5-foot-10, 195 pounds with some strength throughout. With the bat, the left-handed hitter hammered balls all over the field using a balanced and compact swing with impressive finish and length through the baseball. Smet-Cooper has a strong offensive profile and will only get better as his body continues to mature. On defense, he showcased his soft hands and smooth actions with a accurate and strong throwing arm, up to 77 mph, giving him the profile that will be able to stick at the hot corner going forward.

PITCHERS/TWO-WAYS

CLASS OF 2025

+ RHP Brody Schulte (Westosha Central, 2025) continues to establish himself as a notable prospect with his right arm talent on the mound. Schulte stands a long 6-foot-4, 176 pounds with a frame that will likely add more mass and strength. He consistently drove his fastball through spots in the zone topping out at an event best 86.3 mph. He paired the fastball with a hard two-plane breaking slider that he was able to land in the zone and get below the zone for chase. Schulte’s change up is a definite weapon as he throws it downhill out of the same window as his fastball with a quality sell of the pitch. Schulte is poised for a big spring season, and we look forward to continuing to monitor his development.

+ RHP Riley Lussmyer (Badger, 2025) helped himself on Saturday with an impressive bullpen look from the stocky and athletic right hander. Lussmyer has a quick arm and delivers his repertoire from a high 3/4 arm slot that he is able to repeat due to his athletic delivery. He was able to get his fastball to areas consistently and topped out at 83.9 mph which was second best at the event. He also showed off his hard breaking curveball with depth. He throws his change of pace offering with fastball intent, showcasing the ability to land in the zone which gives him a useful three-pitch mix that he deploys to get both right handed and left handed hitters out. Lussmyer has placed himself on our staff’s radar for the forthcoming spring season.

+ RHP/INF Connor Shada (Indian Trail, 2025) impressed both as a position player and pitcher. Shada has a consistent repeatable swing and hit line drives through both gaps. His infield play showed quality actions with a quick first step. On the mound, Shada’s delivery is clean and repeatable and was able to not only throw strikes with all three of his offerings, but hit spots and manipulate the baseball with his curveball and change up. He really has a chance to pop once his body and frame mature as Shada has a quality feel for things on the baseball field both as a hitter, defender and right-handed pitcher.

CLASS OF 2026

+ INF/RHP London Stanley (Kenosha Tremper, 2026) stands a long and wiry 6-foot-2, 174 pounds with more strength and fill coming. He uses his long levers and attacks the baseball with leverage out in front of the plate with a chance for big power once he adds to his frame. In the infield, Stanley moves well with smooth actions fielding through the baseball and delivering accurate throws to first base. As a pitcher, Stanley has a clean and repeatable delivery with the ability to use fastball/curveball combo to keep hitters off balance. The ceiling that Stanley currently possesses is obviously high and as he continues to mature it wouldn’t be surprising to see his metrics rise with it.

+ INF/RHP Hunter Feldkamp (Antioch Community, IL, 2026) showed athleticism in all facets, impressing with his talents on both the hitting and pitching side. At the plate, Feldkamp utilizes his strong build with a quick and loose swing. He showed the ability to get into a strong hitting position on-time, resulting in a round that included consistent gap-to-gap barrels. On the bump, the sophomore showed an athletic drop-and-drive delivery, executing his fastball well with life through the zone. His loose, continuous arm path and whip out front show some promise.

+ INF/RHP Jacob Wineman (New Trier, IL, 2026) was another sophomore who showed two-way talent. Offensively, Wineman utilizes a compact swing and a leveraged contact point out front to drive the ball to all fields. He uses his lower half well and maintains a good sequence and quick hands through the hitting zone. On the mound, Wineman showcased a simple, repeatable delivery. His athleticism was evident as he showed a clean hand/glove separation, worked downhill with ease and finished loose out front. His fastball touched 80 mph, landed a short quick breaker and flashed a changeup with fade giving him a three-pitch mix repertoire.

CLASS OF 2027

+ RHP/OF Evan Northup (Union Grove, 2027) is an upside 5-foot-11, 137 pound two-way prospect to know from Saturday’s event. He began his day by showcasing his well sequenced swing and consistently barreled up baseballs all over the field. Northup created a considerable amount of leverage in his swing which allowed him to drive a ball nearly 300 feet. On the mound, Northup has considerable upside. Similar to his swing, his pitching delivery is clean and loose which allows him to repeat it and drive the baseball downhill. The velocity is certainly going to come in the future as he fills out, but his 75 mph fastball showed quality run to the arm side. Additionally, Northup’s slider with lateral sweep and feel for a change up round out a nice three-pitch mix.. Overall, after Saturday’s event, Northup definitely established himself as a name to follow as he progresses through his prep career.

+ OF/RHP Kevin Brau III (Union Grove, 2027) showed his upside both ways at Saturday’s event with a feel to hit and a clean delivery. The lanky Brau used a wider base and upright set-up to drive the ball to both gaps. He leverages the ground well and displays a short and direct path to the ball. On the mound, the freshman showed tremendous repeatability in his simple delivery with a slightly closed stride. His full arm action and quick arm could lead to more velocity as the rest of his frame fills out.

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