By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

RHP Keaton Graf (Santa Fe HS, MO) says the summer went well for him, as he traveled to several Midwestern locations with Building Champions, but it’s not quite over yet. Graf will head to New York City this weekend to pitch in the Metropolitan Baseball Classic, a tournament put together by the Mets that will be played at Citi Field, Hofstra and the Brooklyn Cyclones’ MCU Park.

It won’t be Graf’s first time on a big league field—he pitched in Kauffman Stadium as a freshman—but it’s a grander stage and he is still taking the mound without being committed to a college. Graf is considering schools like Kansas State, Missouri State, Nebraska and Wichita State and expects to make a decision before winter comes around.

“The staff, the facilities,” Graf said of the important things on his checklist of what he is looking for in a program. “Also, if I’ll play my freshman year.”

With Building Champions this summer, Graf said he felt he improved his control and worked hard on his secondary stuff. He was a three-sport athlete until this year. He won’t be playing football anymore, but still intends to play basketball, which helps him prepare for the spring.

“Conditioning is a big thing,” he said. “It gets you ready for baseball in the spring.”

Graf has a solid frame at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds and can pitch in the high 80s with his fastball. He threw a no-hitter in the playoffs this spring, striking out 12, while also going 2-for-3 with a double, home run and three RBIs in a game shortened by the mercy rule. He was also one of the summer’s biggest risers, climbing from to No. 80 in the overall rankings.