Team Carolina: Game 3 Recap

Saturday, July 29th was the final day of the 2023 PBR Future Games with Team Carolina finishing their week with a game vs. Team Florida.  To this point, Team Carolina turned in an eye-opening performance on workout day and followed it up with two great games vs. Team California and Team Mid-Atlantic.  Going into the final game, Team Carolina would look to continue its high level offensive performance where they are averaging 8 runs per game.

Davis Cabbage would get the start on the bump, tossing a zero in his first inning and throwing two solid innings.  The athletic righty pounded the zone with a fastball, breaking ball mix, getting swing and miss in the zone off both pitches.  

With the solid start on the bump, Team Carolina would jump out to an early lead in the 2nd.  Xavier McCoury turned in a great at-bat to earn a walk and would steal 2B.  Caden Davidson took his 1 out walk to give Team Carolina 2 on where Zach Bender slammed a fastball off the centerfield wall, scoring both runners.  A Matt McKnight line drive single to center scored Bender.

In the bottom of the 3rd, Andrew Palmer tied for the lead in most home runs for Team Carolina, hitting his 2nd in two days and third in his career at the event.  This home run showed off his speed and athleticism as he hit a fly ball down the right field line that the outfielder dove after.  The ball got past the outfielder and rolled toward the outfield wall.  Palmer used his sub 6.60 speed to round the bases for an inside-the-park home run.

The 3rd continued with Ian Williams walking, moving to 3B on a Brady Gold double, and scoring on a Stow Rogers SAC fly.  Ayden Wall followed with a hard hit single that scored Gold.  The next two hitters McCoury and Will Craddock each singled, plating Wall.

Aiden Vorlick worked a very quick 3rd inning for Team Carolina with a heavy, sinking fastball.   Vorlick, in his second outing of the week, pounded the zone, working up to 86.  Vorlick was followed by William Leahy for the 4th and 5th innings.  Leahy threw a zero in his opening inning, allowing the offense a chance to continue to build its lead.  In his 2nd inning of work, Team Florida put a couple of runners on and forced Leahy to make quality pitches, which he did, limiting any damage while showing an ability to move his fastball in and out while flashing a breaking ball at 69-71 with 2/8 tilt.

Wilmer Martinez put together several good at-bats to close the game vs. Team Mid-Atlantic.  His hot bat continued vs. Team Florida.  Leading off the bottom of the 5th Martinez drove a ball out, and over, the left field wall for a solo HR.  In the 6th, Gold led off with a sharp single to left, stole 2B and moved to 3B on a wild pitch.   With one out, Ayden Wall drove a ball to the right field wall, scoring Gold with the sacrifice fly.

With the lead, Team Carolina turned the final two innings over to Bradley Anderson.  The thin right worked quick with an electric arm, pumping strikes with his fastball, slider, and curveball arsenal.  The fastball worked up to 87, playing higher with the ride and arm speed.  The top to bottom breaking ball kept hitters honest at the top of the zone, and got chase when down, over the plate.  Anderson tossed two zeros to close the game, giving Team Carolina the game three win.

Davis Cabbage, RHP, Hickory Grove Christian, 2025
Athletic frame. 5-foot-11, 165 pounds. Athletic mover.  Quick arm.  Strike thrower.  Fastball and breaking ball created issues for hitters with the movement and ride.  Fastball at 86-89, 2150rpm.  Curveball sat 71-72, spinning up to 2300rpm.  Filtered in a third pitch that allowed the fastball room, with a change-up at 78-80.  Change has some fade.  Easy to dream on the stuff continuing to grow as Cabbage fills out the 5-foot-11 frame.

Aiden Vorlick, RHP, Summerville HS, 2025
Strength present with broad shoulders at 6-foot, 185 pounds. Simple delivery, working level and on-line. Sits on the backside as he works to the plate. Medium arm swing.  Over-the-top release. Arm strength over arm speed. Fastball at 83-87, 1950rpm.  Heavy at times, tumbling into the right handed hitters. Produced ground balls over his two innings of work. Tight, late action at 76-78. Short, darting horizontal movement missed barrels more than bats.

William Leahy, LHP, Heritage HS, 2025
Youthful 5-foot-10, 150 pounds.  Clean delivery and athletic arm.  Showed feel for three pitches, locating the fastball in and out, and showing an ability to elevate the fastball at times. High-¾ slot with average to above arm speed. Fastball played up off the usage of his offspeed and with the ability to pitch in, especially with 2 strikes. Fastball sat 81-83, 2200rpm.  Curveball ranged 69-71, 2000.  Slight hump out of the hand with 2/8 tilt. Some feel for manipulating the depth or horizontal action based on how he is attacking a hitter.  Change-up has good arm speed with some fade at 74-76, 1775rpm.

Bradley Anderson, RHP, Silver Bluff HS, 2025
Thin 5-foot-11, 140 pounds. Electric arm speed from an over-the-top slot. Attacked hitters, working more up and down than sides of the plate. Fastball ranged 85-87, 2200rpm. Slider with late horizontal action at 77-79, worked to tunnel with the fastball.  Curveball works from the same window as the fastball before a late dive down, creating issues for hitters to follow the depth.  Curveball ranged 72-74, 2600rpm. Quick arm drives the arsenal now.  As he adds strength and maturity to the frame, stuff will continue to tick up.

Brady Gold, MIF, Wando HS, 2025
Thin and athletic 6-foot, 170 pounds. Plays low on the infield, moving with some ease.  Good rhythm in the hands and feet. Active feet. Athletic arm is accurate from multiple platforms and angles. Average to above carry across the infield. Right handed hitter is balanced, working with a simple load, staying direct.  Gap to gap approach.  Doubled down the 3B line on an offspeed pitch up on the zone and followed that at-bat up with a hard hit line drive to left on a fastball early in the count.

Ayden Wall, C, Ledford HS, 2025
Tall, slender, and athletic.  6-foot-2, 170 pounds. Right handed hitter showed power potential to all fields driving balls to the pull side gap and opposite field wall throughout the event.  Stays in his legs through his load. Natural lift in the swing.  Above average bat speed. Behind the dish he is still working to stay deep in his hips.  Hands work with some ease receiving.

Xavier McCoury, SS, Providence HS, 2025

Athletic mover with strength present at 5-foot-10, 150 pounds. Good instincts align with his rhythm in his feet and hands.  Arm has plenty of carry to stay on the left side.  Advanced ability to catch, exchange, and be accurate off different platforms, all over the field. Left handed hitter put together quality at-bat after quality at-bat.  Made good adjustments to velocity after seeing it early in the event.  Quality two strike approach.  Strong enough to stay late and still drive balls through the six hole.  Lots of growth and maturation coming to the frame could lead to plus tools as he continues to develop.

Matt McKnight, 3B/SS, Charlotte Chrisitian, 2025
Long and lanky at 6-foot-3, 180 pounds. Moves well on the infield for his size. Solid coverage side to side.  Hands works well.  Stable feet. Arm carries with ease from the left side. Right handed hitter may just be scratching the surface of what he becomes. Tall with an easy load.  Short to average stride. Good weight shift through contact.  Stable head. Average to above bat speed with strong hands through contact. As the body continues to grow and add strength, the swing is setup to produce consistent contact with power potential.  Flashed that power this week with several balls driven into the gaps.

Wilmer Martinez, SS, Ledford HS, 2025
Athletic defender with good feet and a great first step. Stands 5-foot-10, 170 pounds. Advanced defender. More comfortable right now at 2B, but played their throughout the HS season.  Has upside on the left side of the field as well.  Switch hitter had some length from the left side with solid bat speed. From the right side, showed strength through contact, homering in his final at-bat. 

Justin Sheffield, OF, Atlantic Collegiate, 2025

Athletic and lean at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds. Plays with pace.  Fast twitch in the field and from the right side of the plate. Offensively, very simple setup and load.  Works direct. Strong through contact with a flat approach at contact. Outfielder without many reps as he played on the infeld in HS.  Big jumps just in the week with Team Carolina.  Arm plays with carry and accuracy, showing an ability to take coaching after missing a runner dead to rights early in the week, he cut down a runner, and held another from advancing, with throws that 1 hopped the catcher instead of trying to carry the throw the entire way.  Potential high ceiling as he continues to get reps.

Ian Williams, OF, Wake Forest HS, 2025

5-foot-8, 145 pounds, playing above his weight in the field and at the plate. Centerfielder that can cover ground and allow a staff to get offensive with their corner outfielders.  Advanced range. Left handed hitter with strength in the hands. Good understanding of the strike zone. Once on base, enjoys running and working to take the next base. Has probably just outrun the baseball at most levels so there is a learning curve to base stealing as he sees high level pitchers and catchers, but the IQ should make for a quick adjustment.