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Missouri Fall Underclass Games: Takeaways

September 12, 2022
By: Diego Solares
Area Scout, Illinois & Missouri

On Sunday, September 11th, the PBR Missouri staff traveled to Atkins Field in Columbia, Missouri, to host the biggest event on our fall calendar - the Missouri Fall Underclass and Upperclass Games. These two events ran in conjunction with each other, starting with the former and finishing with the latter, and featured 2023-to-2026 prospects invited by the PBR Missouri staff to participate in a workout, followed up by gameplay.

To see which prospects attended the Underclass event, click HERE. For a complete look at the statistics gathered from that same event, click HERE.

Now, at the event’s conclusion, our staff will roll-out several content related pieces from the event, starting with today’s takeaways. We’ll highlight some of the statistical leaders and data darlings as the week rolls around, so make sure to be on the lookout for those particular pieces.

For now, however, read below to see which 2025 and 2026 prospects popped to our scouts from the Underclass Games.

POSITION PLAYERS

+ One of Missouri’s top prospects in the sophomore class, OF Jackson Vaughn (Francis Howell, 2025) impressed our staff yet again on Sunday. Vaughn’s feel to spray line drives to all fields is advanced for his age, and the ease in which he repeats a loose, rhythmic left-handed stroke is evident. He’ll impact the ball with more authority once he fills out a long-limbed 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame, making for a complete all-around offensive profile that you can pencil in towards the top of a lineup. Vaughn’s capable of sticking in centerfield down the road defensively, and the confidence in which he roams the outfield grass is clear.


+ 1B Jackson Tankesley (Liberty, 2025) continuously worked line drives to the pull-side in BP, repeating a level, athletic right-handed stroke with loose hands to pair. Built at a strong 6-foot, 175-pounds, Tankesley recorded one of the day’s hardest-hit balls at 91.5 mph and emerged a follow offensive prospect from this event.

+ 1B/RHP Ashton Nance (Blue Springs South, 2025) brings a physically imposing 6-foot-3, 210-pound frame with strength throughout to the diamond each time he takes the field. Nance worked gap-to-gap in BP, repeating elevated contact throughout his BP round from the right side. There’s clear power upside attached to his physical stature, something he should tap into more consistently as he continues to mature. Nance hopped on the mound later on during the event’s gameplay portion and sunk his fastball around the lower-half of the zone for strikes, topping at 82 mph.

+ INF Jackson Akin (Lee’s Summit West, 2025) displayed an upside offensive profile at this event, both in BP and during the gameplay portion. Akin looks the part in a uniform, standing at 6-foot-1, 185-pounds with strength in the lower half and plenty of room to tack on more muscle. He backspun line drives in BP, working gap-to-gap and keeping his barrel in the zone through contact. He’ll likely impact the ball with more authority down the road should he fill out his frame more, upping his all-around ceiling at the plate. Akin showed well defensively, making a handful of plays on the left side of the infield with clean footwork and steady hands.


+ Another top prospect in Missouri’s 2025 group, OF Brandon Hill (Lee’s Summit North) looked the part during Sunday’s workout. A strong 5-foot-9, 185-pound athlete with a sturdy lower half, Hill generates easy bat speed at the plate with a loose right-handed swing engineered to lift the baseball. He elevated pull-side contact throughout BP with ease, flicking balls to left field with a 326 ft. peak batted distance - the furthest batted ball of any prospect from this event. Hill floats around the outfield like a natural, and his crisp first step off contact stood out as well.


+ 1B/RHP Matthew States (Father Tolton Catholic, 2025) is a proportionally strong 6-foot-1, 190-pound athlete to follow from this event. States found the barrel with consistency in BP and backspun line drives from the right side as a result.

+ From Illinois, INF Drew Kleinheider (Father McGivney, 2025) may have been the biggest winner from this entire event. He first caught our attention at Creekside this summer where he picked up hit after hit during the Midwest Premier Super 15 - all while playing clean defense on the infield turf. Kleinheider took one of the most polished rounds of batting practice we saw all day, staying through the baseball and on plane while peppering line drives to all fields with confidence. His knack for contact certainly showed on Sunday, as he led the gameplay portion of this event in hits, comfortably using the whole field. Kleinheider’s actions defensively are advanced for his age, which he showed during the workout portion, and he made a few plays defensively in-game, too. A top-of-the-order type bat with clean defense, Kleinheider absolutely emerged as a name-to-know prospect from this event.


+ C Easton Phillippe (Staley, 2025) looked the part in multiple aspects of his game at this event. Phillippe’s glove may be his biggest asset and he showed that during his workout, peppering accurate throws on the bag from a loose, clean arm while popping in the 1.94-to-2.01 range. He’s a quality receiver too, working down-to-up with strong wrists and soft hands to pair. At the plate, Phillippe swings a compact left-handed bat and is comfortable working the other way with line drive feel.

+ We got yet another impressive look at INF Lucas Wietholder (Father Tolton Catholic, 2025) at this event. Wietholder’s physical upside is evident, and there’s plenty of projection left to come attached to a 6-foot-2, 165-pound frame. He continued to elevate pull-side contact in BP, staying in the zone from the right side and providing a glimpse of a potential middle-of-the-order bat at the next level. Wietholder’s sure-handed actions defensively are clear and he should stick on the left side of the infield moving forward. He’s a high ceiling prospect in Missouri’s sophomore class 


+ INF Tyler Putnam (Battle, 2026) is an upside 6-foot-2, 160-pound long-limbed athlete and was another freshman that showed well at this event. Putnam controlled his lanky levers well for his age at the plate, and he generated whip off the barrel with plenty of future intrigue as he continues to physically fill out.

+ One of the few 2026 prospects in attendance, INF/C Brennan McLaughlin (Platte County) provided our staff with a quality look at this event. The 6-foot, 161-pound freshman recorded the day’s hardest hit ball at 93 mph, and he consistently generated quality contact to left field from a short, athletic right-handed swing.

PITCHERS

+ LHP/OF Brody Irlbeck (Staley, 2025; Iowa commit) continued to solidify his status as one of the top two-way follows in Missouri. At 6-foot, 160-pounds, Irlbeck started the event off by repeating quality contact in BP, peppering line drives throughout from a loose left-handed stroke. Later, Irlbeck hopped on the mound and provided the day’s most impressive look, tossing two quality innings during the gameplay portion of the event. He produced easy velocity from a loose ¾ slot, pitching at 83-86 mph with his fastball - and there’s more velocity to come. Irlbeck’s primary secondary offering is a true swing-and-miss changeup with late fading action off a fastball plane, and he spun a slider with some sweep around the zone, too. A top-25 prospect in this class, Irlbeck’s progression from now until the spring season is something we’ll be eager to see.


+ RHP/INF Evan Butler (Cassville, 2025) was another prospect with two-way talents to note from this event. At 6-foot, 155-pounds, Butler started his day by taking a clean round of BP, working with intent to the pull-side and peppering line drives that way. He’s athletic at the plate with a simple, loose right-handed stroke. Butler hopped on the mound later and pitched in the low-80s with his fastball, generating heavy arm-side action with late life on occasion. He spun a 2,500+ RPM slider in the high-60s and threw his changeup at arm speed in the mid-70s.

+ LHP Ty Earwood (St. Pius X, 2025) continued to show our staff advanced polish and pitchability for his age. A projectable southpaw that should grow and physically mature over the next few years, Earwood consistently pumped his fastball for strikes, working east-to-west. He pitched backwards with both of his breaking balls, spinning them from a similar velocity band at 2,500+ RPM for strikes. His ability to compete and pitch right now is obvious, and he’ll tap into a much higher ceiling down the road should he tick up in velocity.

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