By Chris Valentine and Dan Machovina
PBR Ohio Scouting Director and PBR Ohio Assistant Scouting Director

Today, we break down the Best of the Rest from the Class of 2014 at the Northern Ohio Showcase in Westlake, Ohio. Previously, we broke down the Top Prospects from the Class of 2014 at the event.

Shane Blankenship, OF/IF, Keystone HS

5-foot-11, 160-pound outfield prospect with average build. Registered 7.73 60. From the outfield, he reached a top velocity of 68 mph using short arm action. Needs to develop crow hop to enhance strength of his throws. In the infield, he shows long actions. Will improve if he plays through the ball more consistently. Reached a top velocity of 68 mph across the infield. Shows a quick transfer. At the plate, he shows partial use of his lower half. Hands drop during his load. Swing will improve with better use of his lower half.

Chaz Bova, C, Brunswick HS

5-foot-11, 192-pound catcher/first-baseman with soft frame. Ran a 8.59 60-yard dash. Threw with 69 mph arm strength from the catcher’s spot and displayed a 2.31-2.43 pop time. Uses wide base for his setup. Will only improve as he shortens length of transfer and quickness of foot work. The right-handed hitter showed a top exit velocity of 83 mph. Swings from a balanced approach that showed consistent contact. Uses toe tap to trigger his swing.

Jake Cole, RHP, Canfield HS

6-foot-2, 190-pound prospect with thick, solid build. Uses long arm action through over the top arm slot. Fastball sits 75-78 mph. Curveball shows gradual 12/6 break at 62-65 mph. Tends to slow down his arm speed on his changeup, which registers at 65 mph. Also shows a 65 mph split-finger fastball with some dive to it.

Matthew Feierabend, 3B, North Ridgeville HS

6-foot, 230-pound corner infielder with solid build. Ran a 7.76 60-yard dash. Left-handed hitter. Demonstrated a top exit velocity of 74 mph. Swings from a balanced approach and showed the ability to make average contact to all fields. Shows potential of pull power. From the field, he was clocked at 71mph from a ¾ arm slot. Showed ability to field ground balls cleanly. Has a tendency to play on his heels and would benefit from playing through the baseball. Needs to improve lateral quickness.

Colin Fitzgerald, OF, Keystone HS

6-foot, 140-pound thin built, defensive oriented- outfielder. Ran a 7.29 60. From the outfield, he shows fluid and athletic footwork. Uses a long ¾ clean arm action to generate 81 mph arm strength. From the right side, he showed a top exit velocity of 76 mph. Contact type hitter, who could improve power by developing some kind of load in his swing, and improve on balance as he has tendency to get out on front side a bit too early. On the mound, he uses a big leg kick and long arm action. Fastball sits 75-79 mph. Curveball shows a gradual 12/6 break at 60-62 mph and knuckleball registered at 62 mph.

Ian Forster, SS, North Olmsted HS

The middle infielder stands at 5-foot-7, 140-pounds. Ran a 7.38 60-yard dash. In the field he threw from a ¾ arm action and showed 73 mph velocity. From the plate the righty had a top exit velocity speed of 70 mph. Uses a balanced setup approach with a smooth backwards load. The contact hitter demonstrated good balance in the box.

Corey Fox, 2B, Barberton HS

6-foot-1, 175-pound second-baseman with lanky build. Ran a 7.53 60-yard dash. From the infield, has tendency to play on his heels and could improve on footwork by working on consistently playing through the baseball. He showed a velocity of 68 mph. From the right-side, he starts from an open-stance. Inside/out type hitter. Tendency to dive. Will get better with overall balance. Contact-type hitter showed a top exit velocity of 75 mph.

Frank Frate, 3B/RHP, North Royalton HS

6-foot-4, 195-pound two-way prospect. In the infield, he shows the ability to play third-base with a clean exchange and average hands. He ran a 7.54 60. At the plate, the right-handed hitter shows some pop. Hits from an open stance. Uses a slight load with his hands moving backward toward shoulder. Showed a top exit velocity of 83 mph. Good use of his lower half. From the mound, he showed four pitches from a repeatable delivery. From a clean ¾ arm action, he threw his fastball at 77-79 mph. His 12/6 curveball was 65-68 mph. His slider was third pitch ranging from 65-66 mph, and his changeup was mostly straight at 69-70 mph.

Nolan Freeman, RHP, North Ridgeville HS

6-foot-5, 220-pound right-handed pitcher with big, physical frame. Uses short arm action through high ¾ arm slot. Delivery requires regular effort. Should continue to add velocity as he better incorporates his lower half and speeds up his delivery. Fastball sits 78-81 mph with some arm side run. Curveball shows 11/5 break at 62-66 mph. Doesn’t show consistent command. Changeup shows similar run to his fastball at 75-76 mph.

Alex Haynes, RHP, Stow HS

6-foot, 170-pound right-handed pitcher. Throws with short arm action through high ¾ arm slot. Delivery requires some effort. Fastball sits at 77-80 mph. Curveball shows late 11/5 break at 62-65 mph while changeup shows good arm side fade at 67-70 mph. Needs to improve arm speed on changeup for deception.

Joey Keleman, 3B, North Olmsted HS

5-foot-10, 210-pound third-baseman. Ran a solid 7.11 60-yard dash. In the field, he threw from a low ¾ arm slot with a velocity of 70 mph. Would like to see arm angle move up to improve throws. Fields mostly on his heels. The right-handed hitter showed good bat speed and quick hands. Registered top exit velocity of 84 mph. Uses short stride with a leg kick. Takes short, slight uphill path to the ball. Finishes with one hand.

Brian Keller, 1B/RHP, Eastlake HS

6-foot-2, 195-pound first-baseman/right-handed pitcher. Big, physical athlete. Ran a 7.89 60. Moves well around the bag. From a clean release, he showed velocity clocked at 69 mph. From the right-side, he swung from an open stance with a short back load. Has balance in swing that shows some power potential. Displayed a top exit velocity of 75 mph. On the mound, he throws from a high ¾ arm slot with short arm action. Fastball sits 76-78 mph with occasional arm side run. Curveball shows early 11/5 break at 67-69 mph. Changeup shows some arm side fade at 68-70 mph.

Kevin Maloney, OF/1B, Avon HS

6-foot-2, 195-pound outfield/first-baseman with tall, lanky build. Ran a 7.28 60-yard dash. From the outfield, he was clocked at 74 mph. Defensively, needs to get through the baseball more consistently as he has a tendency to play on heels. Quickening up his transfer will also improve release time. Has the athleticism to improve upon skills. Could also see him as a more athletic first-baseman type. From the right-side, he showed a top exit velocity of 82 mph. Tendency to wrap his bat in his load. Uses short stride. Takes short, level path. Displays pull tendencies in his swing.

Colin McManamon, OF, Strongsville HS

6-foot-1, 175-pound body with plenty of upside.. He ran a 7.2 60-yard dash. Fields the ball with a stabbing-type motion. Would improve outfield footwork if he played through the baseball and out front more consistently. He showed a velocity of 80 mph. From the plate, the left-handed hitter showed a balanced approach and the ability to be a line drive type hitter. His top exit velocity was at 75 mph.

Dan McMullen, C, Twinsburg HS

6-foot, 180-pound athletic, solid body. Showed one of the top velocities from the catching position at 76 mph. Also, had the top pop time recorded from 2.05-2.13. With continued improvement on footwork, he showed he is one to watch this season. He ran a 7.26 60-yard dash. The left-handed hitter uses a big leg-kick that can throw off rhythm and timing a bit. Will enhance consistency by shortening it up. Shows some pop in his bat with pull tendencies. Displayed a top exit velocity of 78 mph.

Brandon Papp, 1B/OF, Green HS

6-foot-2, 165-pound lanky, projectable bodied outfielder/ first-baseman. Ran a 7.56 60-yard dash. From a short, high ¾ arm angle he showed a velocity of 73 mph. Showed a bit better at first-base with a velocity of 69 mph. Switch hitter. From the right side, shows tendency to bar his arm in his load. Takes uphill path to the ball. Displayed a top exit velocity of 67 mph.

Giovanni Sassano, OF, Walsh Jesuit HS

5-foot-8, 178-pound outfielder. Defensively, he could improve footwork by playing through the ball more consistently. He threw from a ¾ arm slot that was clocked at 79 mph. He ran a 7.25 60. The strong, right-handed hitter swings from a balanced set-up. Uses a little leg kick for power and brings hands back past shoulder for load. Shows present power at the plate. Displayed a top exit velocity of 80 mph.

Marty Schuerger, RHP, Bay HS

6-foot-3, 180-pound lanky right-handed pitcher. The righty used a repeatable delivery to throw three pitches. From a ¾ arm-slot, he threw his fastball at 76-79 mph. Used a slider as his breaking pitch that had 11/5 gradual break. Would like to see improved armspeed with less manipulation on breaking pitch. His change-up was just below arm-speed and showed sinking action at 64-65 mph.

Sam Stager, 3B, Shaker Heights HS

5-foot-11, 160-pound third-baseman. Ran a 7.59 60-yard dash. From the field, could improve footwork by working through the baseball consistently as he has a tendency to field a bit too flat-footed. Throwing from a ¾ arm angle his velocity was clocked at 63 mph. The right-handed hitter starts with an open set-up. Contact type hitter. Reached a top exit velocity of 75 mph. Will improve power with better use of his lower half.  

Eric Szczepinski, 1B/LHP, Lutheran West HS

5-foot-10, 160-pound left-handed pitcher/first-baseman. From the field, the first-baseman was clocked at 65 mph. Ran a 7.34 60-yard dash. The left-handed hitter stands tall at set-up and uses a small leg-kick to generate power. Contact type hitter. He demonstrated a top exit velocity at 76 mph. From the mound, he threw three pitches from a repeatable delivery. From a ¾ arm angle his fastball was clocked at 67-70 mph. Threw a loopy type curveball at 56-58 mph, and a changeup at arm-speed that showed tailing action at 63-67 mph.

Pierce Young, C, Keystone HS

5-foot-11, 170-pound catcher. Showed one of the top velocities from his position at 76 mph and pop times between 2.06-2.23. Shows quick hands. Tends to side step during throws. Needs to improve direction with foot-work. Ran a 7.24 60-yard dash. The right-handed contact type hitter showed a top exit velocity of 84 mph. Production will improve as he shortens up his swing. Hands tend to drift away from body in his load.