Prep Baseball Report

Become a Member

More +

Updated Pennsylvania Class of 2018 Rankings Released

December 20, 2015

By Jacob Gill
Pennsylvania Assistant Director of Scouting

With nearly four months and four events since our last update, it was about time to release an up-to-date version of our Pennsylvania class of 2018 rankings. Ten sophomore prospects have been added to grow the list to 35, a number that should swell considerably following the Preseason All-State Showcase in February. This event annually showcases many of the top college prospects in the state and is a spring board for invitations to participate for Team Pennsylvania at the PBR Future Games in August.

Top Ten

Rank Name State School Class Pos Commitment
1 Dillon Marsh PA Lancaster Catholic 2018 LHP Wake Forest
2 Nick O'Day PA Bishop Shanahan 2018 RHP Texas Christian
3 Brady Devereux PA Malvern Prep 2018 RHP Wake Forest
4 Michael Siani PA William Penn Charter 2018 OF Virginia
5 Connor Ollio PA Butler Area 2018 SS
6 Jake Kelchner PA Spring-Ford 2018 OF
7 Thomas Caufield PA West Chester Henderson 2018 SS
8 Andrew Cossetti PA La Salle 2018 C St. Joseph's
9 Billy Corcoran PA Malvern Prep 2018 RHP Pittsburgh
10 Phillip Dull PA Chestnut Ridge 2018 2B

 

Very little movement inside the top ten, so the most notable item is that, after the verbal commitments given by Cossetti and Corcoran, less than half of the top ten is still on the market.

Notable Additions

Donegal outfielder Kyle Hess ran a 6.64 laser-timed 60-yard dash at the Elite Prospect Showcase in November. The 6-foot, 170-pound left-handed hitter also showed solid arm strength (83-mph) and extra base potential (86-mph exit velocity). He was a full-time starter as a freshman on the Indians PIAA Class AAA state semifinal team.

 

Cocalico shortstop Nicky Lucky and Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic catcher Jack Anderson parlayed strong summer showings into early verbal commitments to Coastal Carolina and Northwestern, respectively.

Like Hess, a number of other prospects performed well at the Elite Prospect Showcase, including:
+ West Chester East SS/RHP Adam Smith, who has room to add plenty of strength to his 6-foot, 155-pound frame. The right-handed hitter ran a 6.84 60-yard dash and showed a willingness to let it fly and attack the baseball during his BP round. He did not pitch at the event, but reports have him a solid performer on the mound as well, with TrackMan recording him working in the low-80s and touching 84-mph this summer.
+ Hempfield Area third baseman Justin Wright has been on our radar for awhile as having one of the more polished swings in the class. The 6-foot-1, 170-pound right-handed hitter continued to show an ability to repeat his swing and play quality defense, while also posting his best across-the-board measureables (93-mph exit velo, 7.11 60-yard dash, 81-mph arm strength).
+ Blackhawk shortstop Michael Turconi showed well defensively with good actions, a quick release and accurate arm. The left-handed hitter ran a 7.22 60-yard dash and exhibited simple swing mechanics, while his offense has a chance to take a step forward when he adds strength to his 5-foot-9, 155-pound frame.

Other Notables

When projecting prospects, especially pitchers, size matters (the average height of a big league pitcher is in the 6-foot-2 to 6-foot-3 range). Of the fourteen primary pitchers in the rankings, ten are listed a 6-foot-1 or taller. Among the 6-foot and shorter foursome, three of them are left-handed, while the righty has committed to a perennial Omaha contender and TrackMan has recorded him topping at 90-mph.

That being said, we have seen a number of noteworthy performances from undersized prospects who didn't make the cut this time around, but will undoubtedly find themselves in the rankings eventually and make an impact at the college level:

+ At the Elite Prospect Showcase, Pocono Mountain East RHP/OF James Balogh worked in the 83-84 range with his fastball and he showed two quality secondary offerings, while his athleticism (6.88 60-yard dash) and loose, clean arm action indicate there is more to come.
+ At multiple events this fall, Dallastown Area RHP/IF Nick Parker showed well on the mound with a low-80s fastball that topped at 85-mph, along with simple approach in the box with solid bat speed and a feel for the barrel.
+ Springside Chestnut Hill right-handed pitcher Aidan Frye earned first-team all-Inter-Ac recognition during a strong freshman campaign in which he showed solid command of a FB/CB mix. At the Elite Prospect Showcase, his fastball jumped a couple ticks from the high school season to 82-83 and he also flashed a good feel for a change-up.

Recent PA News