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Unsigned Senior Showcase: Takeaways

October 11, 2024
By: Drew Locascio
Illinois/Wisconsin Scouting Supervisor

On Oct. 6th, Prep Baseball Illinois hosted the fall’s Unsigned Senior Showcase, as it does each and every fall, at The MAX complex in McCook, Ill., where over 30 prospects participated. These Class of 2025 athletes remain uncommitted headed into the final offseason of their prep careers, and this group that performed at The MAX last weekend underscored the unsigned talent still remaining in Illinois.

Today, we’ll begin breaking down the event’s highlights inside of this Takeaways post. Stay tuned as we continue to spotlight these ‘25s with additional analysis that on-site technology like TrackMan, Blast Motion, and Swift helped produce.

For now, here’s some of the day’s top performers:

Takeaways

OF Quaylen Petty (St. Laurence) showcased the loudest tools of the event, highlighted by a 6.45 laser-timed 60 to start off the day, which puts him in the category of one of the top runners in the state. Petty then recorded a 36 inch vertical jump which is one of the top marks we have seen this year, despite being the second-best at the event. He also topped at 90 mph from the outfield with a loose, live arm and showed upside in his right-handed swing. Its a loose, twitchy swing that works on top of the baseball and uses the whole field. Listed at 5-foot-11, 155-pounds, Petty has more physical development to go and put himself on the map as one of the toolsiest prospects still available in the state.

INF Tyler Trapp (Lane Tech) took one of the louder, more consistent rounds of BP on the day. Trapp swung with controlled aggression, was consistently on time and elevated hard contact to all fields throughout. Trapp averaged 93.9 mph off the bat throughout his round which easily led the event. His furthest batted ball traveled 339 feet and his 74.8 mph average bat speed was second best of the event. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound, infielder also ran a 6.92 60, was 84 mph across the infield and had a max vertical of 31.8 inches. Athletic uncommitted prospect to know in the state.

INF Nolan Galla (St. Francis) is another prospect still on the market that showed advanced athleticism. Galla, a 5-foot-10, 155-pound, right-handed hitter set the mark with his 37.1 inch vertical, which is one of the top numbers we have seen throughout the calendar year. Galla also ran a 6.87 60, was 88 mph across the infield with a peak exit velocity of 95 mph. Offensively, it's a handsy, simple right-handed swing with easy jump off the barrel when it syncs up. Name to know in the 2025 class.

C Elias Diaz (Hope Academy) put together a strong, well-rounded performance at the event. The 5-foot-9, 159-pound right-handed hitter has athletic hands, stays through the zone with a level path and was consistently on time and on balance. His furthest batted ball traveled 322 feet and his average exit velocity of 85.3 mph was only four mph off his peak of 89 mph, speaking to him living on the barrel throughout his round. Defensively, he is an active defender behind the plate with quick feet and release. He had a low pop time of 2.01 and topped at 78 mph from the crouch.

1B/RHP Danny Mackey (Lincoln-Way East) featured one of the highest upsides of the event. The long-levered, 6-foot-5, 173-pound right-handed hitter has a loose, easy swing and controls his body and movement patterns well for his size. He stays balanced at the plate and works with minimal effort while peaking at 88.4 mph and launching his furthest batted ball 334 feet. The 7.49 runner in the 60 also has easy, fluid movements around the bag at first base and topped out at 82.4 mph on the mound.

C Collin Roche (Nazareth) is another catcher to keep close tabs on from the event. A varsity starter since his sophomore season, Roche stands out behind the plate with clean, easy actions and a big arm that topped at 82 mph. His arm plays easy, accurate and with all kinds of carry to second base. Solid overall day; though the arm played really well from behind home. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound catcher showed easy bat strength in his right-handed swing launching his furthest batted ball 354 feet which easily led the event. Roche also recorded the third best average bat speed on the day at 69.9 mph.

Angel Castro (De La Salle) was another catcher that stood out at the event. Castro stands in the box with a calm and confident approach. The 5-foot-8, 233-pound, right-handed hitter let the ball travel, stays balanced and easy and uses his heavy barrel to drive balls right back up the middle with authority. Castro averaged 89 mph off the bat, T96.9 with a max distance of 306 feet.

OF Monroe Evans (Morgan Park) continues to show an aggressive, high-intent right-handed swing with all kinds of bat speed and raw power. Evans takes long, strong swings throughout, trying to do damage on every swing. His furthest batted ball traveled 337 fall (has been 377’ in the past), he peaked at 101 mph off the bat and he led the event with an average bat speed of 79.9 mph. He also ran a 7.22 and topped at 84 mph from the outfield.

RHP Tadgh Callaghan (Brother Rice) is a name to know in the class and he has thrown a number of quality, important innings for Brother Rice, especially as an underclassman. In this bullpen, he showed much of what we have seen in the past, a competitive presence on the mound, a high-volume of strikes and a four-pitch mix. His fastball sat 84-86 mph while his slider and cutter both have action to the glove side while killing spin and showing feel for an above-average changeup.

LHP Luke Hickey (Fenwick) stands in an upside frame at 6-foot-2, 160-pounds with plenty of room for strength to come. He worked out of a stretch-only delivery on the mound with a compact, quick arm action out of a ¾ slot. His fastball sat 82-84 mph with some life and carry through the zone. His change-up played with depth low in the zone, and his curveball showed 12/6 shape with an average of -8.7 inches of induced vertical break. Hickey also tossed in a cutter with horizontal actions, sitting in the low-70s.

RHP Spencer Drummond (Jacobs) made his Prep Baseball event debut at Sunday’s Unsigned Senior event. He’s an athletic mover on the mound, with simple and repeatable actions, showing a compact arm action out of a high ¾ slot and clear acceleration out front. His fastball sat 84-85 mph with mostly straight actions. He also threw a developing curveball with fastball intent, playing with 11/5 shape, and a change-up with slight fade and depth, sitting 76-79 mph.

There are plenty of other names that deserve noting that were not mentioned above. Many of these will be highlighted in our upcoming tech and data stories, as well as our event rollout that will be released in the coming weeks.

CLICK HERE for a look at the Unsigned Senior Showcase event page.

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