On Monday, September 30th, the Prep Baseball Illinois staff traveled to Cicero, IL for the Morton College Scout Day. The Panthers are looking strong once again, coming off a 2024 campaign in which they collected 37 wins. Today, we will be highlighting some of the top performers from the day with scouting reports and videos, below. 

Position Players 

So. OF Denham Kozy (Munster, 2023) 
6-foot, 180-pound frame, strong and athletic build with rounded shoulders. The right-handed hitter was all over the barrel throughout his round of BP, working up to 100 mph for his max EV with an average of 94 mph. Strong hands that work long through the zone, mostly flat path, intent to stay middle/pull-side throughout the round. Athletic, fluid defender, sure-handed actions, moves well into a crow hop, some bounce in his step. Strong arm from the outfield, topping out at 88 mph with a whippy arm action and high ¾ release. 6.94 runner in the 60. 

Fr. INF/OF Omar Alday Jr. (St. Rita, 2023) 
5-foot-10, 195-pound frame, strength throughout, durable and evenly proportioned. Strong right-handed hitter, longer swing that stays flat through the zone with extension through impact, topped out at 99.2 mph for his max EV with an average of 91.6 mph, showed some feel to use the whole field. Controlled mover with soft hands in both the infield and outfield. Medium draw with a ¾ release, topped out at 88 mph from both positions. 

Fr. C Dasaan Lee (De La Salle, 2024) 
6-foot, 200-pound frame, physical with evenly distributed strength, durable catcher’s build. Swings a heavy barrel from the right side, averaging 89 mph for his EV with a max of 96 mph (T361’). Easy power in his operation, controls his body well into footstrike, hangs his foot for timing, works uphill with intent to elevate to his pull-side. Strong hands behind the plate, works to present pitches around the zone for strikes. Works in-line out of the crouch, clean transfer, arm works short to the ear with an over-the-top release (T77 mph; 2.14 pop-time). 

So. INF Joey Smith (St. Rita, 2023) 
6-foot-1, 150-pound frame, lean and wiry, plenty of room to add strength. Above-average runner with a 6.71 in the 60. The right-handed hitter has a fluid, athletic swing with feel for the barrel, topping out at 90 mph for his max EV. A top returner for the Panthers with the bat, Smith recorded a .369 average in 176 at-bats last spring with 15 doubles. Fluid defender with athletic footwork and soft hands, clean transfer with rhythm and timing. Short and quick release, arm can play from multiple angles, mostly delivers from a ¾ slot (T80 mph). 

So. C Joey Russo (Mount Carmel, 2023) 
6-foot, 225-pounds, physical build, broad shoulders and a developed lower-half. Simple and strong right-handed stroke, compact swing that stays flat through the zone, averaged 91.4 mph for his EV while topping out at 98 mph - returns a .327 batting average in 147 at-bats with 12 doubles and six home runs. Strong hands work under the baseball when receiving, intent to present pitches around the zone for strikes, works low and in-line out of the chute, clean transfer, over the top release with some carry (T76 mph; 2.06 pop-time). 

Fr. CIF Hayden Mosley (Harvest Christian, 2024) 
6-foot-4, 205-pounds. Took one of the louder rounds of BP on the day, averaging 93.4 mph for his EV with a max of 98.7 mph (T360’). Fluid load into his back hip with a slight coil, swings with controlled intent, not afraid to use the middle of the field. Put up some impressive BLAST metrics with an average bat-speed of 75.3 mph. Steady defender, confident in his hands. Arm plays with some intent from a ¾ release, topping out at 85 mph. 

So. OF/2B Ethan Lopez (Richards, 2023)
5-foot-11, 165-pounds, trim and athletic build. Started his day by cruising to a 6.74 in the 60. At the plate, the right-handed hitter has an athletic, balanced swing that works to stay on top of the baseball, displaying easy power with a max EV of 98.2 mph, averaging 92.9 mph. He recorded some of the top BLAST metrics from the day, averaging 24 mph for his hand-speed and 75.2 mph for his bat-speed. 

Fr. INF Aidan Brokaw (Rock Island, 2024) 
5-foot-11, 130-pounds. Brokaw looks to be an upside prospect to keep tabs on moving forward. He has a fluid right-handed swing that works with controlled intent and a flat path, pull-side/middle approach, reaching up to 90 mph for his max EV, power should continue to trend up with added strength. Fluid defender on the infield, clear feel for the position, soft hands, controls his body and feet well. Loose and clean arm, ¾ release (T84 mph). 6.83 runner in the 60. 

RFr. 1B David Garza (Elk Grove, 2023) and So. C Aiden Knipper (Lincoln-Way East, 2023) are a couple physical right-handed bats to know. 

Garza is listed at a strong-bodied 5-foot-11, 185-pounds with a developed lower-half. He creates easy power in his swing with above-average rotational acceleration (21.4 Gs avg.), topping out at nearly 97 mph for his EV. 

Knipper, listed at 6-foot-1, 185-pounds, has a compact and strong frame with rounded shoulders and a developed lower-half. The right-handed hitter has a simple operation, staying flat through the zone with a balanced finish, reaching up to 97 mph for his max EV. He also showed steady actions behind the plate to pair with clean catch/throw. (T75 mph; 2.01 pop-time). 

Pitchers 

So. RHP Jack McGlynn (Oak Lawn, 2023) 
6-foot, 185-pounds, developed lower-half with some strength throughout. Controlled mover on the mound with a long draw into a high ¾ release. Fastball played right at 86 mph throughout his ‘pen with gradual arm-side run. Showed quality feel to spin his slider, playing routinely over 2,500 rpm (T2623) with sharp 10/4 shape and depth. Changeup played at 78-80 mph with feel for the zone, kills spin with some run to his arm-side. 

So. RHP Austin Zernia (Oak Lawn, 2023)
6-foot, 195-pounds, durable frame with a developed lower-half. Controlled mover into a medium leg-lift and balance point, coils into his back hip before driving down the mound in-line. Arm works long out of the glove into a high ¾ release. Fastball sat 86-88 mph with some finish through the zone. Went to both a curveball and a slider, with the curve sitting at 74-75 mph with short 11/5 shape, and the slider sitting 77-78 mph with more bullet, 10/4 shape. 

Fr. RHP Merrick Hill (South Elgin, 2024) 
6-foot, 195-pounds, high waist with some strength throughout. Easy mover with a clean arm, playing from a high ¾ window. Fastball plays clean out of the hand at 84-88 mph, topping at 89 mph with arm-side action. Showed feel for his curveball with quality spin, sitting in the low-70s (T2426 rpm). Changeup plays with some dive to the arm-side and under the zone at times, 79-80 mph. 

Fr. RHP Joey Zietara (Lincoln-Way Central, 2024)
6-foot, 175-pounds, lean and projectable build. Simple tall/fall delivery with an over-the-top slot, creates some tilt and angle to his fastball that plays in the 86-88 mph range. Curveball plays with some top-to-bottom shape, landing it under the zone at 66-69 mph. Slider showed some depth with more 10/4 shape at 69-73 mph. Changeup sat 72-74 mph with straight actions through the zone, similar profile to the fastball. 

Fr. RHP Lukas Brniak (Morton West, 2024) 
5-foot-11, 155-pounds. Brniak gave an impressive look throughout his ‘pen with a high-spin arsenal. Loose, athletic movement patterns down the mound, pairs with a loose and uninterrupted arm action from a slightly high ¾ window. Fastball sat 83-84 mph, topping out at 85 mph with carry and feel for the zone. His curveball spun over 2,500 rpm consistently (T2690), showing sharp downward action, potential out-pitch for him when tunneled with the fastball. Slider played with some slurvy action and more 10/4 shape, spun around 2,400 rpm on average (T2537). His final offering was a changeup that reached over 2,300 rpm at times, playing with heavy action to his arm-side (T27.6” HM), 78-79 mph. 

So. RHP Joshua Quezada (Proviso Math and Science, 2023)
5-foot-9, 165-pounds. The right-hander displayed a five-pitch mix throughout his ‘pen, starting with his fastball that cruised around 83-86 mph with slight run to his arm-side. Pairing off the fastball, he showed a sinker in the low-80s, T85 mph with heavy run. He went to both a curveball and a slider, with the curveball showing depth off a 10/4 plane at 73-74 mph (T2389 rpm), and the slider showing tighter action off a similar plane, 74-76 mph (T2419 rpm). His final offering was a changeup that sat 78-79 mph with fade and some feel for the zone at times. 

Parker Brown (Franklin, 2024) and Aidan Aguilera (Oswego East, 2024) are a couple freshman right-handers to know for the Panthers. 

Brown, a long-levered and projectable 6-foot-4, 195-pounds, worked his fastball up to 90 mph in his ‘pen and could be an arm to watch as he continues to harness his control. 

Aguilera, listed at an imposing 6-foot-6, 195-pounds, is another Panther with a high ceiling. He has present arm-strength, topping out at 89 mph in his ‘pen, while also showing quality spin on a slider at 2300 rpm. 

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