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7.15 Ozark Prospect ID Analysis: Catchers

September 3, 2014

Shon Plack and Jeff Viles
Prep Baseball Report-Missouri


On Tuesday, July 15, Prep Baseball Report-Missouri held the Ozark Open ID Prospect Showcase at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri.  Today, we will analyze the catchers.  In the days to come, we will start the Class of 2015 Prospect Games Analysis. 

CLICK HERE, to look at stats for Ozark ID.

Top Prospects

Cole Bornhop (Lutheran South, 2015)
Bornhop is an athletic 5-foot-10, 180-pound switch hitting catcher/utility player. He ran a 60 at 7.10 and home-to-first 4.40. Cole throws from a high ¾ arm slot and has short arm action. His throws were accurate and had great life. His position velo was 80 MPH from the infield and outfield and 73 from catcher. Bornhop had a POP range of 1.95-2.10. At the plate, Bornhop has a balanced setup with a smooth load and a toe tap. He explodes with his lower half and keeps a level bat path. Cole produces gap-to-gap line drives and has pop from both sides. He had an exit velo of 87 MPH.

Nick Gavin (Lee's Summit North, 2015)
Gavin is a strong, athletic 5-foot-9, 170-pound right-hand hitting catcher and is showing improvement at the plate and behind the dish.  He ran a 60 at 6.70 and 4.58 home-to-first. He throws from an over-the-top arm slot with short arm action. Nick had a POP range of 1.90-2.01. He was 76 MPH from behind the plate. At the plate, Gavin has an athletic set-up with a smooth back load and long stride. He has excellent balance and a short bat path, that stays inside the ball. Nick has gap-to-gap power. His exit velocity was 85 MPH.

The Best of the Rest (Listed Alphabetically) 

Grant Burns (Rockhurst, 2016)
Burns is a 5-foot-11 155-pound catcher.  Burns posted pop times between 2.15 and 2.25.  He has a clean, fluid exchange, making mostly accurate throws to second.  At the plate, Burns has an exit velo of 81 MPH and runs a 4.75 home-to-first.  He starts from an open, athletic position and uses a gap-to-gap approach with line drives during batting practice.

Garrett Stephens (Shawnee Mission Northwest, 2016)
Stephens is a 5-foot-11, 155-pound right-hand hitting catcher/outfielder, and on an upward trend since his last showcase event. Garrett had a POP range of 2.07-2.18. At the plate he has a balanced set-up, forward weight shift followed by backward weight shift timed up with a smooth backward load then a short inline stride.  He has a fairly level swing with a high finish and works mostly in the middle of the field.  He improved his exit velocity from 80 MPH to 83 mph over the last 6 months.

Alex Wheeler (Stockton, 2016)
Wheeler is an athletic 6-foot-0, 175-pound right-hand hitting catcher/first baseman. He ran a 60 at 7.28 and home-to-first 4.72. He throws from a high 3/4 arm slot with quick arm action. Alex’s throws were mostly accurate and had good carry. He showed a quick clean exchange on his throws. At catcher, Alex posted a POP range of 2.10-2.15. His position velo was 68 MPH at catcher and 65 MPH on the infield. At the plate, Wheeler has a closed setup. He starts with a smooth load and a long stride. He has a level bat path and looks to take the ball the other way. Alex's swing produces line drives. He had an exit velo of 85 MPH.

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