On Tuesday, June 15, the PBR Illinois and Missouri staffs will meet up at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, MO, to host the Top Prospect - St. Louis event. This invite only event will feature the best identified Class of 2022 prospects and select 2023 players from Illinois and Missouri all in one place for our staff to get an up-close look.

For a closer look at the showcase details and the technologies we'll have on-site to assist our in-person evaluation for all in attendance, click here. For a complete look at those registered to attend this event, view the most up-to-date version of the roster by clicking here.

We hosted this same event around this time last year and 28 of the 30 players that attended, all from the 2021 class, are committed to play baseball at the next level. Last year’s roster was fairly loaded, featuring OF Cole Luckey (Glenbrook South; Bradley), OF Gavin Baldwin (Nashville; John A Logan JC), C Josh Heyder (Washington; Illinois Central JC), and RHP Bradin Baucum (Altamont; Lake Land JC) all of whom stood out at this showcase last summer.

We’re expecting to see an abundance of talent on Wednesday as well, headlined by a handful of uncommitted juniors from both states. On the Illinois side, RHP Christopher Bieniek (Notre Dame College Prep) and RHP Joseph Swanson (Pekin) are two power-armed righties to know:

+ Bienek, ranked 50th overall in the state for his class, is an upside 6-foot-2, 200-pound follow on the mound with a live, loose arm that bumped a 90 mph high at our Preseason All State event, sitting at 86-89 mph.

Christopher Bienek (3/20/21)

 + Swanson is a lanky, high-waisted 6-foot-2, 175-pound arm with upside levers that project. Though he’s still fully harnessing his arsenal on the mound, Swanson’s loose and quick arm produced an 89.38 max fastball velo at the Chicagoland Open last August, exclusively sitting at 88-89 mph throughout his pen.

+ Keep an eye out for sophomore SS/RHP Dominic Voegele (Columbia), who’s a name we’ve heard some intriguing reports on and will be making his PBR debut at this event next Wednesday.

Plenty of talented athletes from Missouri are scheduled to attend, as RHP Joe Ruzicka (Webster Groves), OF Nicolas Neal (Pattonville), and 3B/OF Ian Wolff (Wright City) are some of the top names on this roster:

+ Standing at a strong, well-proportioned and projectable 6-foot-2, 185-pound frame, Ruzicka is the 24th ranked prospect in Missouri’s junior class. He works with relative ease on the mound and his heater comes out of a short, tight arm window at 86-89 mph, touching 90 mph this past February.

+ A former PBR Future Gamer, Wolff’s strength and athleticism separate him from his peers. He put up rather impressive TrackMan numbers last summer, recording a max exit speed of 93.35 mph and a max estimated fly ball distance of 347 ft. at the MO Underclass Prospect Games. His average exit speed (86.52 mph) and average fly ball distance (286 ft.) are also noteworthy, as all four of those batted ball metrics ranked towards the top of that particular event’s leaderboard. He’s a 6-foot, 195 pound switch-hitting infielder that we’re excited to see again on Wednesday.

+ This’ll be the first time we’ve seen Neal since October, as the 6-foot-2, 182-pound left/left outfielder is currently slotted at 47th overall in Missouri’s ‘22 ranks. He’s an upside athlete with a short and simple stroke that looks the part of a potential top-of-the-order type bat. 

CHECK-IN PROCESS

In an effort to continue and develop a simplified, contactless check-in process, upon arrival, players will scan a QR Code with their smart phone camera that will lead them to a Google Form. On that Form, players will enter their name (matching the spelling on their PBR profile) and hit submit. Upon submission, players will be prompted to click a link that will direct them to their jersey color and number, located next to their registered name. From there, players will be instructed to the area where they’ll pick up their designated jersey color and number.

SCHEDULE

9:00 AM - Position Player Check IN

9:00 AM - 9:15 AM: Stretch and Intro

9:15 - 11:00 AM: Position Player workout.

11:30 PM: Team 1 vs Team 2

Pitcher Onlys check in one hour before scheduled game time. 

*NOTE: Games are simulated to regulate pitch counts and innings played.

MORE EVENT DETAILS

Click here to learn more about our tech partners that have enhanced our players showcase experience. Partners TrackMan, Blast Motion, Driveline, and Vizual Edge will enhance the players’ data collection both in-event and post-event. These technologies will assist our evaluation process, while providing players with insight on their own skills in addition to areas of improvement for the betterment of their abilities.

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