Houston Underclass Trials: Quick Hits

May 22, 2017

By Toby Bicknell
Texas Scouting Director

The Houston Underclass Trials took place on Sunday, May 21 at Alvin Junior College. The event was open to all 2019, 2020, and 2021 high school graduates. Here’s a quick recap from some of the top performers.

+ Logan Britt, OF, All Saints Episcopal HS, 2019
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound, Texas A&M recruit showed up to the Houston Underclass Trials and put on an outstanding display of power and athleticism. Britt is currently ranked No. 7 in the Texas 2019 Class, and No. 23 in PBR Overall Ranking. He began the day by running a 6.94-second 60-yard dash, then threw 92 mph from the outfield, and registered an exit velocity of 97 mph. He showed premium bat speed and strength at contact during batting practice with a wooden bat. The right-handed hitter uses the middle-to-pull side of the field and has some lift in his hand path, driving multiple balls to the wall and a couple for home runs. With his long-limbed, athletic frame, look for big things from Britt this summer.

+ Carson Keithley, LHP/OF, Alvin HS, 2020
Keithley was impressive with his arm speed and athleticism in the outfield, topping out at 84 mph. And once he got on the mound, the athleticism transitioned nicely from his 5-foot-9, 145-pound frame. The left-hander has a loose, quick arm stroke with his fastball ranging from 79-81 mph, with more velocity to come in the future. He took a quality round of batting practice, showing a balanced setup with rhythm, short stride, and line drive, level stroke.

+ Drake Varnado, 3B/RHP, Port Neches Groves HS, 2021
At 6-foot-2, 155-pounds, the rising freshman not only looks the part with a projectable frame, but he also impressed with a 7-second 60-yard dash time, threw 85 mph across the infield, and registered an exit velocity of 87 mph.

+ Justin Barnes, RHP/OF, Klein Oak HS, 2019
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound, right-hander showed a strong, quick arm stroke from a ¾ slot with his velocity ranging from 86-90 mph. The ball explodes out of his hand with life on his fastball. He threw his slider for strikes with tight spin, late bite, and 10-4 shape at 77-78 mph. Barnes showed all-around strength, throwing 91 mph from the outfield and posting an exit velocity of 91 mph.

+ Rhett Trlicek, 2B/C, Halletsville HS, 2019
The 5-foot-8, 170-pound sophomore flashed pop times of 1.97-2.05-seconds with a velocity of 78 mph. On the infield, he took good angles with fluid footwork. The right-handed hitter gets started with a big leg-kick and showed some pop to the pull side with extension through contact.

+ Reginald Brown, 3B/RHP, Houston Lamar HS, 2020
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound right-handed hitter took an outstanding round of batting practice with a natural, fluid swing, barrel awareness and strength at contact.

+ Kyle Reece, SS/OF, Cy Fair HS, 2019
Reece has a projectable, long-limbed, high-waisted frame at 6-feet, 165-pounds. The outfielder threw 85 mph with rhythm and athleticism coming through the ball and posted an exit velocity of 84 mph. On the infield he showed solid glove work from an athletic fielding position. The right-handed hitter has an athletic setup with a smooth load, slight leg-kick and an athletic lower half with balance.

+ Bryce Montemayor, SS/RHP, Santa Fe HS, 2019
The right-handed hitter showcased some power to the pull side with a wood bat and exit velocity of 92 mph. He also ran a 6.97-second 60-yard dash.

+ Reed Smith, RHP/C, Cy Fair HS, 2019
The 5-foot-10, 170-pound, right-hander showed pitchability from two slots. His fastball has arm side run and sink from 83-85 mph. His curveball was 71-72 mph, while his slider was 73-76 mph. The sophomore also threw a changeup that flashed arm side fade from 78-79 mph. Smith has an athletic, max effort delivery with good energy as he gets down the mound, the arm stroke is quick and repeatable from both his high-¾ and lower-¾ slot. Smith is currently ranked No. 48 in Texas 2019 Class and No. 295 in PBR Overall Ranking.

+ Christopher Wattinger, C/3B, Bridgeland HS, 2020
The 5-foot-9, 145-pound, freshman flashed elite receiving skills for his class, while his pop times ranged from 1.97-2.08 with a clean exchange and accuracy. The right-handed hitter has a balanced setup with a short stride, flat swing and easy hand path.

+ Mitchell Andrews, OF/RHP, Cy Fair HS, 2020
Andrews has a still-developing 5-foot-10, 145-pound, athletic frame with an easy arm action and all around athletic movements. Look for big things from this two-way player in the future. High academic student.

>>CLICK HERE to view the entire roster from this event.

Look for more in depth reports from The Houston Underclass Trials this week.

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