Daniel Has Grown To Love The Game Of Baseball

CINCINNATI - Early in life Conlan Daniel was not a big fan of baseball. With the help of his father, Cary, that has all changed.

“Growing up I was pretty good at football and wanted to do that,” the Moeller junior reflected. “But once I got to high school I realized how undersized I was and started to focus more on baseball and my development and I started to love the game.”

Fortunately his dad, who played collegiately for two years at Indiana and two at Cincinnati before hooking up as a free agent with the Indians’ organization, had kept Daniel involved in baseball all along.

“I appreciate that my dad stayed on me to not give up on baseball when I was younger,” Daniel noted. “Now I love playing it. I love the competition, facing new guys and seeing different recruits. I see some of them and if they’re going D-I, I know I can get to that level.”

The 10th-rated 2023 outfielder in Ohio has only recently been getting college interest.

“There’s not been a lot of contact,” Daniel explained. “At the start of summer I emailed coaches but only got some camp invites until the end of summer. That’s when I started talking to NKU. I went to a camp in the fall at NKU and after that they came and watched me play a week or two later.

“I also just had a phone call with Ball State. Coach (Blake) Beemer (the recruiting coordinator) was great to talk to. I went to a camp there last weekend and we had a good call after that talking about me being a good fit. He said he wants to see me more.”

Jordan Chiero, PBR Ohio Director of Scouting, is confident in what Conlan can bring to the next level.

“Why Conlan is so highly rated is his combination of present skill set, upside and baseball IQ,” Chiero explained. “From a tools standpoint, he's a sub 7.0 runner, with an upper-80s arm and 80-plus miles an hour bat speed. He has ball skills in the outfield and barrel accuracy in the box.

“As impressive as those tools are, he's still far from his physical ceiling,” Chiero continued. “At 6-foot, 165 pounds, he has the frame that could still add substantial strength and as he becomes more physical expect those numbers to jump. He's also a coach's son so he knows the ins and outs of the game. He’s a low risk, high reward prospect.”

Those that have been in contact with the fourth-ranked uncommitted outfielder in the state have liked what they have seen.

“For most, what stands out is that I’ve developed a lot over the summer,” Daniel related. “At the beginning of summer I didn’t have my mind set on it. Then I began to love it and put more effort into it. I’ve added strength and begun seeing a speed and agility guy. I’ve also been hitting the weight room.”

After being part of Team Ohio at the Future Games, the 16-year-old now looks to do more PBR events to help with his exposure.

“When the next one comes up I hope to put up some brand new stats to look better to college coaches,” Daniel said. “PBR does a lot of twitter and I hope to stand out and get some college coaches eyes. That helped in the past after the Future Games and some of the other events when coaches noticed me and got in contact with me.”

The 67th-rated junior in Ohio has high aspirations when it comes to his future in the game.

“I’m not done growing and projectively think I’ll be a top D-I outfielder,” Daniel said. “I track balls well and never let anything drop if I can help it. My attitude is I want to compete and I want to be the best.”

Sport management and business are majors being considered by Daniel, who carries a 3.89 GPA midway through his junior year at Moeller.

“Not that I want to be too far away, but I wouldn’t mind going to some place in the south where it’s warmer,” noted Daniel, whose older brother Keelan, a senior, recently committed to Findlay to play baseball. “But I’m good to go anywhere. I’m not looking at too big or too small of a school, a mid-major type school would fit what I want.”

Daniel is hoping more interest ahead brings a commitment in the near future.

“I want to be decided by maybe the June area,” Daniel said. “But my dad wants me to wait until summer to hopefully get some more looks.”