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Florida Preseason ID Showcase: Infield Analysis

January 28, 2015

By Rob Sidwell
Florida Scouting Director

The Florida Preseason ID Showcase took place on Saturday, January 17 on the amazing campus of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.  The open showcase featured prospects from the 2015-2019 classes in Florida.  The Florida Preseason ID Showcase was the first of many PBR events hosted by IMG Academy. Over the next few days we will reveal the top players at each position, and then finish with the top overall prospects from the event. 

CLICK HERE to view complete statistics from the event in PDF format.

Today we will take a look at the top performers in the infield. East Lake's Kevin Lambert (2016) was the most athletic and had the best actions with the top arm at 84 mph across the infield. IMG Academy’s Yuhi Tachiiri (2016) also impressed with good actions and soft hands. Hagerty's Riley Greene (2019) showed good actions at 1B with good hands but his left handed bat raelly stood out. Especially for only being in eighth grade. His exit bat speed was 80 mph. Very impressive young guy.

Let’s take a look at the top infielders from the Florida Preseason ID Showcase

top infield prospects

1. Kevin Lambert IF, East Lake HS (2016)
6-foot-3,180 pounder with a nice athletic frame. Tall loose lean projectable body. Good hit approach. Stays back. Loose, easy swing with bat control. Good path with good hitters hands. Strength to drive ball into gaps with a lot more to come. Will have future power.  His exit speed was 84 mph. His defensive actions were loose and easy with softness in his hands. Can play SS now but eventually will outgrow it and make the move to 3B. Good arm strength. His throws carry when he stays on top. He threw 85 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.05 60 yard dash.Very projectable, athletic kid with a high ceiling and still uncommitted.

2. Yuhi Tachiiri IF, IMG Academy (2016)
5-foot-7, 157 pounder is a smaller framed guy with a stocky lower half. Good defensive actions and soft hands. Took good angles to balls. Enough arm strength but probably more suited for 2B. Threw 75 mph across the infield. Some quickness in bat. Loads early on backside with erect bat. A bit of a toe tap in stride. Good path. Quiet approach. Bat will improve with strength. Ran a 7.4 60 yard dash.

3. Riley Greene 1B, Hagerty HS (2019)
6-foot, 150 pounder with a tall loose lean very young projectable body. Has a very good hitting approach with good rhythm and timing. Loose bat with quickness in hands. Very good extension through the ball. Good hand eye with good hitters hands. Some loft in swing with good leverage. Can drive ball for a young kid. Surprising power for his age. Exit bat speed was 80 mph. Athletic actions with softness in hands at 1B. Loose easy throwing arm. Threw 71 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.7 60 yard dash. On the mound, he had a loose easy working arm with a ¾ slot. Very projectable. FB was 72-74 mph with a lot of life. CV was a ¾ breaker at 59-60 mph. Threw a lot of strikes. Overall game will improve with physical maturity. Hard to believe this kid is only in Middle School. 

Best of the Rest (Listed Alphabetically)

Leyton Barry IF, IMG Academy (2018)
5-foot-7, 135 pounder with a lean loose athletic very young projectable body. Loose bat with some quickness in hands. Good approach with good path. Good hand eye. Stays inside ball and goes gap to gap. Exit bat speed was 68 mph. Bat will improve with added strength. Good actions with solid fielding mechanics. Enough arm, probably more suited for 2B right now. Again, arm strength will improve with physical maturity. Threw 69 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.9 60 yard dash.

Alejandro Garcia IF, St Cloud HS (2016)
5-foot-9, 180 pounder with a stocky body with a thick strong lower half.  Good hit approach. Some quickness in hands. Fairly smooth swing with doubles type power. His exit speed was 74 mph. Good defensive actions with softness in hands. Had enough arm strength with good accuracy. Threw 70 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.15 60 yard dash.

JD Phillips 1B, IMG Academy (2016)
6-ffot-2, 160 pounder with a skinny loose lanky projectable frame. Lacks upper body strength. Wide stance. Good approach. Looseness in bat with a good path. Bat stays in the zone with some length. Bat will improve with added strength.  His exit speed was 81 mph. JD had a loose arm and good carry on throws and good accuracy. His velocity across the infield was 71 mph. Occasionally sits back on balls but has pretty good actions defensively and shows the basic skills needed.  Ran a 7.42 60 yard dash.

Antonio Salazar IF, IMG Academy (2016)
5-foot-10, 140 pounder with a smaller guy with a skinny frame. Lacks physical strength right now. Some quickness in hands with a good path. Stays inside ball with a gap to gap approach. Front side occasionally drifts. His exit velocity was 70. From the infield he showed a loose, accurate arm and threw 73 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.8 60 yard dash.

Jakeub Scheid IF, IMG Academy (2017)
5-foot-11, 150 pounder with a lean loose projectable body.  Good hit approach. Loads up on back side with a leg kick. Loose bat with some quickness. Flat path with some length and loft. Will be able to drive ball with added strength. Occasionally drifts to front side.  His exit speed was 76. Good actions in infield with very good glove presentation. Takes good angles, gets around groundballs. Occasionally fields ball deep under body. Can get better carry on throws with improved foot work. Threw 69 mph across the infield. Ran a 7.95, 60 yard dash.

Serge Ushkevich IF, IMG Academy (2017)
5-foot-7, 145 pounder who is a very young kid with a loose body that lacks physical strength now. He showed a good, balanced hit approach. He stays back and is short to the ball. His exit speed was 71. He displayed some arm strength along with accuracy at shortstop. He threw 75 mph across the infield. On the mound he had a loose arm with a high ¾ slot. His velocity was 73-78 with a small tail and some downward tilt. His curveball flashed occasional late action. Had downward 12/6 type rotation with some occasional depth. Very young guy that will improve with added strength. Ran a 7.8, 60 yard dash.

Jake Waxler 3B, IMG Academy (2018)
5-foot-8, 165 pounder with a very young body that hasn't developed yet. Swing has some length with some quickness and good path. Stays inside ball with line drive gap to gap approach. Exit speed was 76. He fielded the routine ground ball during infield and his throws were around the bag with enough arm strength and accuracy. Ran a 8.3 60 yard dash.

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