The premier winter scouting event in North Carolina took place on Sunday January 28^th at On Deck Academy in Pineville, NC.  The beautiful facility allowed PBR to conduct a full pro-style workout while it was pouring outside.  For the second year in a row, the event sold out, with over 60 of the top players in North Carolina on hand.

Each player went through a full workout, updating statistics for their PBR Profile page as well as adding a new evaluation and video.  Pitchers threw a controlled bullpen, understanding it is still January, where they were asked to continue with their build-up process for the spring. 

PBR’s staff included three former D1 coaches and recruiting coordinators as well as a number of coaches with a tremendous back ground at various levels of baseball.  Also, on hand were several pro scouts, working to get an early look for the spring.  The event was broadcast live through Twitter and Periscope, allowing PBR to hear from coaches from as far away as Arizona.    Video was taken of each athlete and the video will be cut into short clips, highlighting their performance on the day.

The outfielders featured a group of developing young players with strength and quickness present.  Several projectable bodies posted standing broad jumps of above 10-feet, while also running sub-4.00 thirty yard dashes. 

North Carolina State commit, Zack Michael (OF, Apex HS, 2019) shined in the cage and on defense.  The frame is athletic hiding the power that exists in the arm and off the bat.  Vance Anderson (OF, Lake Norman HS, 2019) has projectable length and quickness that stood out in the cages.  The ball jumped off the barrel with a loose swing.

Uncommitted Jade Bobbitt (OF, Edenton Holmes HS, 2018) may be the player that made the most of his day.  Posting top 5 statistical finishes in exit velocity, positional throws from the outfield, thirty yard dash, 5-10-5 agility shuttle, and standing broad jump.  At 6-foot-2, 170 pounds, there is still growth to come in an athletic frame.

Today we take a look at each of the eleven outfielders from the Preseason All-State event.  Each evaluation covers each outfielder’s complete day, with links to their video.

2018 Preseason All-State: By The Numbers

• 64 Players went through the workout at On Deck Academy
• By Class: 6 SR, 39 JR, 18 SO, 1 FR
• 19 players ran a 4.00 or better in the 30 yard dash. 
• 19 of 26 infielders charted a positional velocity of 80 mph or better. 
• 5 arms registered 88 mph or better from the outfield. 
• 4 of 6 catchers flashed advanced carry with a position velocity, out of the crouch, of 74 or better
• 13 hitters registered an exit velocity, off the barrel, of 90 mph or better. 
• 32 hitters were better than 85 mph. 
• 12 pitchers worked at 83 or higher. 
• This event featured 30+ players that have attended a PBR of North Carolina event in the past year and a half. 

Click Here for the full roster of players that attended the Preseason All-State

Click Here to see the complete statistical breakdown from the Preseason All-State

Outfielder Evaluations

 

 

Vance Anderson OF / RHP / Lake Norman, NC / 2019 Rankings  StateRank: 70 / POS: 7   Athletic, projectable build at 6 feet 1, 165 pounds.  Long limbs.  Quick, and at times explosive.  Impressed posting numbers at 3.83 in the 30-yard dash, 4.22 in the 5-10-5 agility test, and 10-6 in the standing broad jump. Athleticism plays in the outfield playing through the ball with fluid feet and soft hands.  Long, loose arm swing is repeated working to a high-3/4 slot.  Advanced arm strength, touching 89mph from the position.   Right handed hitter, Uses a slightly open athletic stance. Smooth load back with a short stride.  Good balance in the swing. Line drive approach with a short bat path getting extension through the zone. Fluid swing with average bat speed and exit velocity of 85mph.  Strength over bat speed at this time.  Above average barrel awareness.

 

 

Colin Belvin OF / 1B / SouthLake Christian, NC / 2019   Average build at 5 feet 8, 155 pounds. Swings from the left side with a balanced athletic setup. Uses a weight shift in his load, small stride, and maintains balance throughout his swing. Simple setup and execution, produces above average barrel awareness.  Pull type hitter with a short level swing. Exit velocity peaked at 78 mph. Recorded times of 4.14 in the 30yard dash, 4.71 in the 5-10-5 agility, and 8-7 in the broad jump. Fluid with quick exchanges from the outfield.  Feet work with rhythm getting the body on-line, producing accuracy on throws with a positional velocity of 78mph.

 

 

Gavin Birkhimer OF / 2B / South Mecklenburg, NC / 2018 Rankings  StateRank: 225 / POS: 45   Surry CC commit. 5 feet 9, 180 pounds, average build. Offensively, works from the right side with an open, athletic stance.  Short stride, back to even.  Bat head works to a vertical slot.  Generates above average bat speed from a smooth short load getting his lower half through balls producing an exit velocity of 90mph.  Pull approach with a level swing that gets long at times. Average barrel ability.  Defensively, plays through balls with average hands and a clean exchange. Arm works behind the body line.  Some effort getting to an over-the-top slot.  Shows carry on throws with the arm topping at 81mph from the outfield. Recorded times of 4.05 in the 30-yard dash, 4.57 in the 5-10-5 agility test, and 9-6 in the standing broad jump.

 

 

Jaden Bobbitt OF / RHP / John A. Holmes, NC / 2018 Rankings  StateRank: 224 / POS: 44   Lanky, projectable build at 6 feet 2, 170 pounds. Great workout, posting top 5 numbers in most testing categories for the day.  Right hand hitter works from a slight crouch and athletic setup. Utilizing a leg kick in his load, gets to a level bat path.  Works for extension, producing length through the zone.  Barrel awareness and bat speed exist.  Exit velocity peaked at 92mph.  Quick feet in the outfield playing through the ball with a quick exchange. Long arm action generating accurate throws with good carry. His arm topped at 88mph from the position. Athleticism shined in testing, recording times of 3.74 in the 30yard dash, 4.07 in the 5-10-5 agility test, and 10-5 in the broad jump.

 

 

Shemar Dalton OF / SS / South Stokes, NC / 2020 Rankings  StateRank: 48 / POS: 7   Average athletic build at 5 feet 10, 170 pounds.  Offensively he works from the left side using a leg kick from an athletic setup. Uses the lower half well, generating above average bat speed and an exit velocity of 88mph. Line drive approach.  Can gets long at times.  Maintains extension out front. Right handed thrower works to a clean high-3/4 release with the positional velocity peaking at 86mph from the outfield. Cautious exchange, handling the ball cleanly.  Accurate with average carry.  Quickness played with run times of 3.88 in the 30-yard dash, 4.35 in the 5-10-5 agility test.  Good agility in the lower half posting a 9-7 in the standing broad jump.

 

 

Nate Essick OF / SS / Forsyth Country Day, NC / 2019   Strong athletic build at 5 feet 11, 170 pounds. Projectable athlete who recorded times of 3.78 in the 30-yard dash, 4.64 in the 5-10-5 agility test.  Extremely impressive 11-2 in the standing broad jump. Right hand hitter starts in a balanced, athletic setup using a smooth leg kick to load the weight back.  Bat head launches from a flat position.  Good bat speed.  Exit velocity peaked at  89mph off the barrel. Good barrel awareness.  Stays fluid through his swing with good balance. Defensively, possesses soft hands.  Quick, clean exchanges to a long arm swing and clean release from a high-3/4 slot.  Fluid actions playing through ball.  Easy transition at the waist.  Accurate, the positional velocity peaked at 79mph.

 

 

Tafton Hensley OF / South Iredell, NC / 2019   Projectable, athletic build at 6 feet 1, 170 pounds. Length in the limbs.  Right hand hitter with bat speed generating an exit velocity of 91mph. Works with a tall athletic setup and short stride. Gets big at times with his barrel working uphill.  Strength in the swing.  Works to get the barrel out with a pull emphasis. Shows arm strength in the outfield, posting a positional velocity of 87mph.  Athleticism plays on defense.  Works through balls with quick, fluid feet and clean exchanges leading to a long arm action. Accurate with carry. Athleticism and quickness showed in testing, recording times of 3.71 in the 30-yard dash, 4.45 in the 5-10-5 agility test, and 10-2 in the standing broad jump.

 

 

Matt Hill OF / SS / South Mecklenburg, NC / 2019 Rankings  StateRank: 90 / POS: 8   5 feet 9, 165-pound build. Offensively, right handed hitter works with an athletic, balanced setup. Short smooth load using his lower half.  Good balance in his swing. Quiet hands and a short path produce a line drive approach. Has good feel for his swing staying, advanced barrel-ability.  Fluid, gets extension through the zone. Ball off his barrel peaked at 82mph. In the outfield, works to play through the ball with quick feet and average hands. Shows some accuracy using a long arm action and high-3/4 release.  Positional velocity peaked at 77mph. Quickness exists, running times of 4.00 in the 30-yard dash, 4.40 in the 5-10-5 agility test.  Impressive standing broad jump of 10-0.

 

 

Max LeCroy OF / 2B / Christ School, NC / 2019 Rankings  StateRank: 108 / POS: 11   Long, lanky athletic build with room to fill out at 6 feet 2, 150 pounds. Shows arm strength from the outfield topping at 86 mph. Accurate arm with carry. Quickness exists, running a 3.86 30-yard dash, 4.26 5-10-5 agility test.  Strength hand power evident with an impressive 10-4 in the standing broad jump. Shows a good approach from the right side with a smooth load and short stride. Barrel works short to the ball getting good extension producing line drives. Stays fluid and balanced throughout his swing. Off the bat his exit velocity peaked 79mph and will improve with added strength.

 

 

Zack Michael OF / Apex, NC / 2019 Rankings  StateRank: 17 / POS: 2 OverallRank: 383 / POS: 63   North Carolina State commit. Strong, athletic build at 5 feet 10, 165 pounds. Room to continue to fill out.  Hand strength and quickness in the body is advanced.  Premium arm strength from the outfield with the left-handed thrower peaking at 91mph. Soft hands with quick fluid feet playing through the ball with a quick clean exchange. Long, loose, accurate arm. Balanced setup from the left side with a smooth short load. Bat head begins flat, loading to a vertical position with some lag.  Repeats the launch position as each round progressed.  Short stride, working to the front side with some uphill leverage.  Gap to gap approach with premium bat speed. Good extension out front. Average barrel awareness.  Hand strength and quickness allow the frame to produce power.  Exit velocity of 89mph off the barrel.  Impressive testing numbers with a 3.86 in the 30-yard dash, 4.21 in the 5-10-5 agility test, and 10-9 in the standing broad jump.

 

 

Kyle Ziefert OF / OF / Butler, NC / 2019 Rankings  StateRank: 133 / POS: 16   Athletic 5 foot 6, 135-pound frame and a strong lower half. Showed speed running a 3.96 30-yard dash and 4.18 5-10-5 agility test. Recorded a 9-5 in the standing broad jump. The left-handed outfielder shows good hands with quick fluid footwork playing athletically through the ball. Clean exchanges with an accurate arm that peaked at 81mph. Hits from the right side with good balance in an athletic setup. Uses a smooth leg kick and gets his lower half through the ball well producing above average bat speed. Line drive approach with a short path getting good extension through the ball. Fluid swing with an exit velocity of 79mph that will improve with added strength.