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PBR IL: Lincoln Trail Scout Day: Takeaways

October 7, 2022
By: Peter Hamot
Area Scout, Staff Writer

On Tuesday, October 4, PBR Illinois hosted the Lincoln Trail Scout Day at Lincoln Trail College in Robinson, Illinois. The event proved to be a success, with a number of the Statesmen showing incredibly well for themselves.  

You can read up on the players that stood out to our scouting staff, found below. 

Position Players 

Grant Palmer, OF, Neuqua Valley (IL), 2021
True sophomore. Athletically built at 6-foot, 190-pounds. Palmer started his day off with a 6.69 60-yard dash, the second best in the event. The right-handed hitter uses a simple/repeatable swing that finds the barrel consistently, favoring his pull-side throughout his round while also going up the middle with line-drives and a 94.5 mph max exit velocity. Last season, Palmer hit his way to a .314 batting average in 105 at-bats with 20 RBIs and 27 runs scored. Former infielder, his athleticism easily allowed him to transfer over to the outfield, where he boasts athletic actions and fluid footwork up to and through the ball, reaching up to 82 mph from a crow-hop. Scrappy top of the order profile with above-average speed and versatility around the diamond. 

Krayton Morse, C, Harrisburg (IL), 2021
True sophomore. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound backstop had an impressive showing on both sides of the ball throughout his workout. At the plate, the right-handed hitter uses a simple and loose stroke with a quiet load; using the whole field and averaging 91.8 mph for his exit velocity (94.8 max EV). He turned in a .286 batting average last season in 49 at-bats. Behind the plate, Morse is a confident defender with a quick/clean transfer, reaching as low as 1.95 for his pop-time with a max velocity of 81 mph down to second.  

Curtus Moak Jr., C, Hamilton (OH), 2022
True freshman. 5-foot-10, 185-pounds with a strong build. Moak was highly impressive at the plate as well as from behind the dish. The switch-hitter uses a similar swing from both sides of the plate, moving with a fluid rhythm and flat path to create consistent line-drives (92.3 max EV). Defensively, he produced a pop-time as low as 1.97; working in-line to second with a clean transfer and max velocity of 77 mph.  

Jack Beverly, INF, Framingham (MA), 2020
Redshirt-sophomore. Standing 6-foot-1, 190-pounds, athletic/strong build. The right-handed hitter was routinely on the barrel throughout his round of BP; reaching up to 96.4 mph for his max exit velocity with an average of 93.8 mph (350’ max distance). His swing is simple and uses the whole field, displaying extra power to his pull-side. In 138 at-bats last season, Beverly hit .304 with four home runs, 10 doubles, 35 RBIs and 31 runs scored. On the infield, his actions are steady and should allow him to remain on the infield moving forward. His arm plays with some carry across the diamond, reaching up to 82 mph.  

Brady Vaughn, OF, Madison Central (KY), 2021
True sophomore. 6-foot-3, 190-pounds, athletically built with evenly proportioned strength. The right-handed hitter put together one of the more impressive rounds of BP on the day, working his max exit velocity up to 100 mph with an average of 92.9 mph. He creates easy whip in his barrel through the zone with a max bat-speed of 78.3 and max rotational acceleration of 26.9; he also uses a flat path that averaged 84.6 on-plane efficiency. He hit his way to a .327 average last season in 52 at-bats. Defensively, his actions are reliable and pair with a strong arm, reaching up to 88 mph from a crow-hop.  

Gunner Lakins, 1B, Franklin (OH), 2021
Freshman. Ultra-physical 6-foot-3, 235-pound build. There is definitely some rawness to the right-handed hitters swing, but the pure power is undeniable and incredibly fun to watch. Throughout his round, Lakins blasted baseballs with an average exit velocity of 91.5 mph, reaching up to 105 mph (355’ max distance). He also put up some high-level BLAST metrics; reaching up to 24.9 for his max hand-speed, 83.3 for his max bat-speed and 26.9 for his max rotational acceleration. His arm is nothing to scoff at either, reaching up to 85 mph across the diamond from first-base.  

Ben Brombaugh, OF, Harrisburg (IL), 2021
True sophomore. 5-foot-11, 170-pounds, lean build. Brombaugh impressed particularly throughout his defensive round; cruising the outfield with athletic actions and steady hands, also reaching up to 92 mph from a crow-hop. His right-handed swing is simple at the plate, repeating a flat path through the zone with a line-drive approach. 6.95 runner in the 60-yard dash.  

Colby Morse, INF, Harrisburg (IL), 2021
True sophomore. 6-foot, 160-pounds with room for added strength. Morse led the event in all throwing velocity with 93 mph across the diamond. His actions are steady and reliable enough to remain on the infield moving forward. At the plate, his right-handed swing remains flat through the zone, looking to put the ball on a line.  

An upside redshirt-freshman to make note of is OF Carter Jewell (Beavercreek (OH), 2021). The right-handed hitter stays on plane through the zone, averaging 80.6 on-plane efficiency with loose levers, also reaching up to 95.2 mph for his max exit velocity. He has athletic actions in the outfield, playing through the ball aggressively with fluid footwork and reaching up to 90 mph from a crow-hop. Also ran an event-best 6.67 in the 60-yard dash. 

Two hitters for the Statesmen that stood out were OF Tyler Larguinho (St. Joan of Arc (ON), 2021) and INF Jon Popp (Maple City Glen Lake (MI), 2021). Larguinho, a sophomore, has a strong left-handed swing that uses the middle and opposite fields; reaching up to 99.7 mph for his max exit velocity. Popp, a sophomore as well, produced an exit velocity up to 98.3 mph from the right side with half of his batted balls coming off the bat at 90 mph or more.  

There was no shortage of quality catchers on Tuesday, with the aforementioned Morse and Moak Jr. leading the way as sophomores. Two freshman backstops that the Statesmen also have at their disposal are Brayden Fraasman (Ross (OH), 2022) and Colin Horneman (Mount Carmel (IL), 2022). Fraasman put up some eye-opening BLAST metrics; producing a max hand-speed of 27, max bat-speed of 80.6 and max rotational acceleration of 38.1 - also reaching up to 100.8 mph for his max exit velocity with an average of 94.5 mph. He has some tools defensively as well; 6.80 runner in the 60 - also reaching as low as 2.00 for his pop-time, 79 mph from the chute and 90 mph from the outfield. Horneman put together a quality showing in multiple aspects. One of the more impressive stats was his 1.90 pop-time paired with a top velocity of 80 mph down to second. He’s athletic behind the plate, moving directionally to second on throws with quick feet - backed up by his 7.03 60-yard dash that has been down to 6.97 in the past. He also uses a simple line-drive approach at the plate, creating a max exit velocity of 92.3 mph.  

Pitchers  

Jake Lynch, LHP, Wheaton North (IL), 2020
Redshirt-sophomore. 6-foot-1, 210-pounds, strong-bodied frame with a workhorse build. Came away a big winner from the event with his electric ‘pen and high-spinning arsenal. The southpaw worked his fastball up to 91.8 mph, cruising at 89-91 with an average spin rate of 2,500 (T2630 RPM). He went to two different breaking balls to pair off the fastball; the first being a sharp 1/7 breaking ball at 77-81 mph, playing with late depth and reaching over 2,700 RPM while controlling it around the bottom of the zone. His second breaking ball was a slider that sat 78-82 mph, playing with more 2/8 shape and late dive, spinning between 2,400-2,600 RPM and kept mostly down in the zone. His final offering was a changeup at 82-84 mph, killing spin and reaching up to 15” of horizontal run.  

Drew Fieger, RHP, Beechwood (KY), 2021
True sophomore. Projectable, 6-foot-3, 180-pound build. Fieger is an impressive right-hander with a legitimate fastball/cutter combination. His fastball sat right in the 89-91 mph range with a max IVB of 20.2 (18.2 avg); setting up his 84-87 mph cutter that plays with short lateral action (T2168 RPM), achieving extra lateral movement on cutters to his glove-side. His slider is a quality change-of-pace offering, coming in at 81-82 mph with short 10/4 action, thrown mostly for strikes. The last pitch Fieger went to was a heavy running changeup at 83-84 mph, reaching up to 18” of horizontal movement with similar fastball extension.  

Eric Rawlings, RHP, Badin (OH), 2022
True freshman. 6-foot-2, 185-pounds with upside in his frame. The right-hander worked his fastball up to 90.1 mph, sitting right at 89-90 throughout his ‘pen and boasting a max IVB of 21.9 with up to 21.1” of horizontal run. He struggled to control his slider at times, missing down and to his glove-side, but it flashed sharp 10/4 action at 76-78 mph. His changeup flashed above-average action, reaching up to 19.6” of run, thrown mostly for strikes at 79-80 mph. 

Ben McGue, RHP, Lloyd Memorial (KY), 2021
Redshirt-freshman. 6-foot-1, 215-pounds. The right-hander cruised with his sinking fastball in the 85-87 mph range, running up to 18” to his arm-side with a max IVB of 19.5 (T2388). He struggled to command his slider, missing down and to his glove-side, but it flashed sharp 10/4 action with above-average spin (T2646 RPM), 73-78 mph. His final offering was a heavy fading changeup at 80-83 mph, reaching up to 20” of horizontal movement.  

Foster McDonald, LHP, Huntington North (IN), 2022
True freshman. 6-foot-3, 185-pounds with a projectable frame. The southpaw impressed with his four-pitch arsenal, starting with his 85-86 mph fastball that reached up to 20” of horizontal run and a max IVB of 17.1. His slider looked to be his best off-speed offering, playing with 2/8 shape (T2468 RPM) at 70-72 mph and controlling it around the zone. His curveball sat 63-68 mph, playing with 1/7 shape and reaching just under 2,400 RPM, struggling to locate and missing up in the zone. His final offering was a changeup at 79-80 mph that faded heavily to his arm-side (20” max HM). 

Owen Payne, RHP, Daviess County (KY), 2022
True freshman. 6-foot-2, 185-pounds with room for added strength. The right-hander is an athletic mover with a quick arm, reaching up to 89.3 mph with his fastball and sitting 87-88 mph with up to 21.9 of IVB. He went to a downer 11/5 breaking ball at 73-76 mph, kept down below the zone. His final offering was a split changeup at 72-74 mph, flashing downward action.  

Jackson Pittman, LHP, Harrisburg (IL), 2022
True freshman. 5-foot-10, 173-pounds. The southpaw impressed with a high-spinning breaking ball, averaging over 2,600 RPM and reaching up to 2,744 RPM, playing with sharp action and feel for the zone. His fastball sat comfortably at 82-83 mph, topping out at 84 mph a max IVB of 23.5. His final offering was a changeup at 73-75 mph, killing spin and reaching up to 17” of horizontal movement. 

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