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By Chris Fuller
Kentucky Scouting Director

Pitching wins at every level of baseball.  More specifically, the deeper a team is with quality arms, the more it typically translates to wins on the baseball field.  With that being said, three players will be sporting a new uniform this spring which could have a significant impact in how their respective regions shake out.

RHP/OF Ricky West has transferred from Ballard to Jeffersontown and will make an immediate impact on the mound  for the Chargers.  West, currently ranked No. 24 in the 2015 class, used his 85-87 mph fastball mainly as a closer for Ballard last spring.  Regardless of whether Jeffersontown continues to use him in the back end of games or puts him in the starting rotation as a legitimate No. 1, West provides instant depth to what was a relatively young pitching staff last year.  His impact will not only be felt on the mound but also at the plate as well.  West should find himself as the everyday center fielder when not on the mound and will provide some power in the middle of the Chargers lineup.  Jeffersontown will look to improve upon their 16-16 campaign last year that included seven losses by two runs or less.

LHP/OF Luke Brown has transferred from Murray to Hopkinsville and makes the Tigers a force to be reckoned with in the 2^nd Region as they return their entire roster from a squad that went 26-11 and advanced to the region semifinals last spring.  Brown, ranked No. 20 in the 2016 class, gives Hopkinsville the best pitching staff in the region along with Easton McGee (ranked No. 2 in the 2016 class) and Keaton Scruggs (ranked No. 70 in the 2015 class).  The Tigers’ staff has the potential to carry them a long way this spring, and Brown will be a big part of that, but his impact will also be felt as a position player, too, as he will likely patrol the center field position while providing some offensive spark near the top of the lineup.

RHP/3B Blake Frost has moved from Ballard to North Oldham and joins a 14-15 squad from last season that returns nearly its entire roster.  And a loaded roster it is that includes three Division I commits in 2015 RHP/OF Ethan Cleary (Western Kentucky), 2015 SS/OF Roman Millem (Butler), and 2017 SS/3B Cameron Masterman (Louisville).  Frost, currently ranked No. 28 in the 2016 class, features a mid 80’s fastball that will instantly provide more depth to the Mustang staff, but his impact won’t end there.  The 6-foot-2, 185-pound prospect generates very good bat speed and should provide some pop in the North Oldham lineup as well.  The Mustangs will be a tough out in the 8^th Region and should have no problem advancing farther than their first round loss last season.