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Building Champions Scout Day: Quick Hits

June 21, 2024
Eliott Wilk
Central Region Operations Director

On Monday, June 3rd, the Prep Baseball Kansas staff traveled to the Shawnee Mission East HS in Prairie Village, KS, to host the annual Building Champions Scout Day. This event, which is in its sixth year, was open to all Building Champions 2025-to-2028 prospects with 90+ names in attendance.

All of our events offer players the opportunity to update their recruiting resume and showcase their talents in front of our staff. We also use these events as identifiers for future invite-only events, like the Preseason All-State, our summer Top Prospect Games, and the prestigious Prep Baseball Future Games that takes place at the tail end of the summer. To see what our events offer, click HERE.

Earlier, our staff rolled out the day’s statistical standouts in leaderboard format within our ‘Stat Story’, which you can find HERE. Today, after combing through our notes from the day, we’ve compiled some of the event’s standouts within these ‘Quick Hits’. Read below to learn about 21 names that popped to our staff from Monday's trip to Prairie Village.

QUICK HITS

PITCHERS

+ Featuring one of the most explosive fastballs in the region, RHP Nate Schlote (Shawnee Mission East) is a name to know uncommitted 2025 in the state of Kansas and a must see arm from this event. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound senior ran his fastball up to 93 mph from a loose, whippy, high ¾ arm slot with 2,500+ RPM spin and developing feel for the zone. With that, he paired a tight spinning curveball at 72 mph that tunneled well off of his fastball.

+ Another must follow arm from this event, LHP Brandon Neis (Mill Valley, 2026) showed complete command of the zone with all three of his pitches, working both sides of the plate with ease. Featuring a 5-foot-10, 155-pound frame with plenty of room to add both strength and size, the junior sat 81-83 mph with his fastball, topping out at 84.3 mph on the day. Additionally, the lefty spun a loopy curveball at 65-66 mph and a changeup at 72-74 mph to pair.

+ After a breakout spring season, LHP Tucker Thompson (Gardner-Edgerton, 2026) continues to prove that he is one of the top left-handers in the state. Featuring a fastball that he ran up to 87.9 mph from a near side arm slot, Thompson makes it tough on hitters with a unique arm angle and plenty of arm side run. With that fastball, the lefty pairs a changeup at 76-78 mph with depth and fade as well as a slider at 74-76 mph that moves horizontally across the zone. At 5-foot-11, 160-pounds, with plenty of room to add on, Thompson looks poised to breakout on the national level this summer. 

+ RHP Brenden Lee (Shawnee Mission Northwest, 2025) had a loud showing on the mound at Monday’s event. With plenty of projectability at 6-foot-4, 190 pounds, Lee showed a big jump in velocity, topping out at 91.8 mph while consistently sitting from 88-90 mph with his fastball, averaging 2,198 RPM spin with developing feel for the zone. Off that, he showed a slider at 81-82 mph and a changeup at 80-85 mph.

POSITION PLAYERS

+ OF Chase Porter (Kearney, 2025; Louisville commit) continued to show why he is a top-10 player in Missouri’s 2025 class. One of the fastest players in the nation, Porter posted a 6.45 60 yard time to lead all players at the event. The switch hitter put on a show from both sides of the plate as well, producing triple-digit exit velocities, reaching 101.7 mph at his peak and showed some sneaky pop, sending his best ball 359 feet. Porter wrapped up his day by posting a 82 mph velocity from the outfield.

+ A top-25 prospect in Kansas’ 2025 class, INF Brody Shinkle (Blue Valley Southwest) put together an all-around impressive day at Monday’s event. Featuring a short, quick stroke at the plate with natural lift, Shinkle posted a peak exit velocity of 97 mph while barreling his best ball 354 feet and spraying line drives all over the field throughout his round. Defensively, the senior showed advanced actions on the infield with smooth, reliable hands and a 84 mph top velocity. Shinkle also ran a 6.81 60 for good measure. 

+ Fresh off an impressive performance at the 5A state tournament, INF Brady Stewart (St. Thomas Aquinas, 2026) put on another strong showing at this event. Featuring a mature approach in the box, Stewart put together a loud round of BP, spraying line drives to all fields with a top exit velocity of 93.8 mph and showing a strong feel for the barrel. Packed with athleticism in his 6-foot, 175-pound frame, Stewart also posted a 6.82 60 time and fired a 87 mph bullet across the infield. 

+ INF Blake Jay (Mill Valley, 2026) is a 6-foot, 165-pound upside athlete to follow from this event. With plenty of room to add strength and size on his projectable, lean frame, Jay is polished and balanced from the right side, repeating a short, rhythmic right-handed swing with consistency. Those polished movements transferred over to the infield where he showcased clean, fluid fielding actions and no shortage of arm strength with a 88 mph top velocity.   

+ One of the most projectable athletes in the state, OF Benjamin Burton (Olathe East, 2026) is a 6-foot-4, 178-pound athlete that looked the part on both sides of the ball on Monday. At the plate Burton swings a loose, long-levered barrel that flashed pullside pop during his round of batting practice. With plenty more power to come, Burton posted a peak exit velocity of 86 mph in this look. From the outfield, he fired a 81 mph bullet and also ran a 6.95 60 to pair.

+ One of the top catchers in the Missouri class, C Carter Jeffries (Summit Christian, 2026) put together a loud round of BP in this look. With a powerful stroke from the right side, Jeffries swings with intent, producing exit velocities upwards of 96 mph while creating natural loft to drive balls in the air pullside. His 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame played well behind the plate where he produced 1.84-1.89 pop times and a 79 mph top velocity to go along with a 85 mph velocity on the infield. 

+ C Andrew Maultsby (Staley, 2027) was another backstop that showed well at Monday’s event. A top-5 ranked player in the state of Missouri, Maultsby shined on the defensive side of the ball, generating 1.83-1.99 pop times, a top velocity of 82 mph behind the plate, and a 92 mph mark on the infield for good measure. His performance at the plate was nothing to disregard, where he posted a peak exit velocity of 92 mph and used his 5-foot-11, 165-pound frame and quick swing to drive balls to all fields, flashing some pullside power along the way. Additionally, the sophomore ran a 6.78 60.

+ 1B/C Wyatt Ducos (Crest Ridge, 2025) is as physical as they come with strength throughout his  6-foot-5, 230-pounds. That strength is evident at the plate where Ducos produced loud contact throughout his batting practice round, driving the ball with power to all fields, sending his best ball 384 feet at 99.6 mph. He also produced a strong average exit velocity of 92 mph on the day with a 57.1 % hard hit rate. Defensively, the senior showed a feel for footwork around the bag and fired a 83 mph bullet across the diamond as well. 

+ 2023 Junior Future Games alum OF/RHP Warren Robertson (Rockhurst, 2027) was a winner from Monday’s event. Built with plenty of leverage and projectability in a 6-foot-3, 190-pounds, Robertson found the barrel to consistently produce loud contact throughout his BP round, squaring his firmest ball up at 97 mph. Robertson’s long-levers also carried over to the outfield where his peak velocity was 88 mph.

TWO-WAYS

+ INF/RHP Hank Blackburn (Liberty, 2026) is quickly becoming a two-way name to know out of the state of Missouri, flashing tools on both sides of the ball. At the plate, Blackburn peppered line drives to both sides of the field, showing feel for the barrel with a loose, easy swing. His arm played true across the diamond, producing a max velocity of 87 mph and also ran a 6.87 60 yard time. That arm strength carried over to the mound where Blackburn used a loose, easy delivery to run his fastball up to 83 while showing feel for the zone with a slider at 67-70 mph and a changeup with heavy fade at 71-73 mph.

+ OF/LHP Kyler Schuessler (Shawnee Mission East, 2025) continues to emerge as one of the top two-way prospects in the state. Packed with physicality at 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, Schuessler possesses loud, game changing tools on both sides of the ball. Using his strength to generate effortless power to all fields at the plate, the righty posted the top exit velocity of the day with a 103.7 mph mark and 96.7 mph average while sending his best ball 397 feet. That strength played in the field as well where he fired a 87 mph bullet from the outfield and also ran a 6.75 60 yard dash. To wrap up the day, Schuessler hopped on the mound and pitched in the mid-80s with his fastball (2,400+ RPM spin) while commanding a curveball/slider/changeup mix for strikes as well. 

+ One of the top two-way prospects in the nation and a top-10 player in the Kansas class, INF/RHP Milo Burton (Olathe East, 2026), looked the part on both sides of the ball at Monday’s event. The 6-foot-3, 189-pound junior started the day by putting together a loud round of BP, using his long levered, compact swing to reach exit velocities upwards of 98 mph with ease. Defensively, he showed clean, athletic actions on the infield to pair with a 83 mph infield velocity. Burton then wrapped up the day on the mound, throwing his fastball at 86-88 mph, topping out at 89 mph with a peak spin rate of 2,264 RPM. With that he paired a 2,300+ RPM horizontal moving slider at 70-73 mph and a changeup at 77-79 mph with arm side fade.  

+ At 6-foot, 165-pounds, OF/LHP Owen Hughes (Rockhurst, 2027) is as projectable as they come. With plenty of room to add strength and size, Hughes stood out on the mound with an easy, controlled, repeatable delivery that saw him throw a fastball that jumped out of the hand in the mid-80s mph, topping out at 87 mph. With that he also had a feel to land an impressive curveball/changeup/cutter mix for strikes at 70-71 mph, 74-75 mph, and 80-81 mph respectively. His athleticism and arm strength played in the field as well, where he posted a 88 mph outfield velocity and put together a round of batting practice that saw him spray line drives all over the field.

+ A premier arm in the Kansas class, RHP/INF Max Hamilton (Olathe West, 2026) had another impressive showing at this event. On the mound, Hamilton effortlessly ran his fastball up to 89 mph with a considerable amount of late life through the zone from a low ¾ arm slot. Paired with that was a slider at 73-74 mph and a tumbling changeup with depth at 75-77 mph. Although he is known more for his work on the mound, the junior also put together a strong round of batting practice, sending his best ball 88.1 mph off the bat while running a 6.97 60 for good measure as well. 

+ RHP/INF Cooper Grace (Hayden, 2025) continues to show why he is a top uncommitted name-to-know in Kansas’ 2025 class. The 2023 Future Games participant is packed with tools on both sides of the ball in a 6-foot-2, 196-pound frame. On the mound Grace showcased a three pitch mix, featuring an explosive fastball at 87-89 mph, a slider at 76-77 mph, and a changeup at 75-76 mph. At the plate, the senior uses a compact right handed swing to drive balls through the middle of the field with natural loft, reaching exit velocities upwards of 101 mph. 

+ A top-20 prospect in the Kansas 2026 class, INF/RHP Drew Yockey (Mill Valley) followed up a strong spring with an impressive performance at Monday’s event. A 6-foot-3, 210-pound athlete, Yockey used smooth actions and an inside-out swing to drive the ball to all fields in his BP round, producing a max exit velocity of 93.4 mph. On the mound, Yockey pitched in the mid 80’s with his fastball while commanding a curveball/changeup mix for strikes. 

+ Another standout two-way performance came from RHP/C James Forgy (St. Thomas Aquinas, 2026). Listed at 6-foot, 174-pounds, the junior’s strong set of tools was on full display in Monday’s look. Forgy was consistently on the barrel throughout his BP round with a short, inside-out swing. From behind the plate, the junior posted a 79 mph velocity to go along with 1.89-2.11 pop times and a quick clean transfer. On the mound, Forgy wrapped up the day by running his fastball up to 84 mph while having the aptitude to spin a slider/curveball/changeup mix for strikes.

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