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The summer 2018 Western Pennsylvania Showcase event schedule got underway on June 20th with the Western Pennsylvania College Prospect Showcase in Erie, PA. 35 prospects gathered on the campus of Penn State Behrend College to put themselves on the recruiting radar.  Today we conclude our analysis of the prospects in attendance by taking a look at those who participated from the Class of 2019.

+ For complete results from all prospects in attendance - CLICK HERE.

Top Prospects

Noah Ross, 2019, Cochranton, C/3B

Defensively, glove hand is soft and quiet in framing and receiving. Ross shows asoft wall, solid trunk angle and lateral quickness in blocking. Hands and feet are quick, transfer is clean and throwing motion is short. Mechanics and an accurate 79 mph arm out of the crouch played to pop times of 1.87 to 2.0.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with lift-and-replace stride. Weight shift is passive followed by an aggressive hip turn. Shows quick, loose hands. The back elbow leaks in front of the hands creating drag.  An intermittent compromised release of the backside results in difficulty completing hip turn through the baseball. Barrel feel was evident in squaring of multiple balls during round of BP while flashing pull side power. Ross posted impressive measurables of 93 mph bat exit velocity and a 6.81 60-yard dash.

Lance Baldensperger, 2019, Warren, OF

Defensively, takes direct routes and is decisive in reads. Routinely gets behind ball, plays through and stays in line on throws. Attacks ball on ground with soft glove hand and appropriate technique. Actions are athletic and quick twitch skills are evident in running of event best 6.75 60-yard dash. Registered arm strength of 79 MPH.

Offensively, initiates swing from open set up striding to neutral without gaining ground. Weight shift is aggressive with substantial separation achieved in working away from hands. Hands are tight. Hip turn is passive and there is limited backside release. Considerable length is present. Baldensperger would benefit from loosening of hands allowing knob to work toward catcher in load as well as utilizing a more aggressive hip turn. A bat exit velocity of 83 mph was registered.

Jimmy Colvin, 2019, Cathedral Prep, OF

Defensively, shows adequate hands in funneling from bottom up and out front. Colvin would benefit from keeping his feet active to the ball. Transfer is clean and throwing motion is short. Registered arm strength of 82 mph on throws across the diamond.

Offensively initiates swing from neutral set up with aggressive leg kick, back side stack and stride to neutral. Aggressive weight shift away from hands results in substantial separation. Hands drop slightly prior to slotting resulting in intermittent uphill swing path. There is considerable head movement in conjunction with lowering of height. Colvin swings with intent, flashing solid hand and hip speed. Barrel feel is evident in consistent squaring of ball during round of BP. An 89 mph bat exit velocity was registered. 

On the mound, works of of a high-3/4 arm slot with short arm action and a repeatable delivery. There is tendency to get over front side early with arm being subtly late. Arm quickness is evident on FB sitting at 81-82. CB sat 64-65 flashing moderate depth with 11/5 shape. SL at 67 had tendency to back up. CH was thrown with good sell and arm side fade at 69 mph.

Carter Chinn, 2019, Grove City, OF/LHP

Defensively, actions are athletic while getting behind ball, playing at it's height and playing through. Shows decisiveness in reads and takes direct routes. Demonstrates proper technique and soft, confident glove hand in attacking ball on ground. Arm strength of 77 mph was registered.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with controlled stride staying neutral. There is slight dropping of hands and subtle front side softness following heel plant lending to an uphill swing path. Weight shift is passive. Chinn would benefit from a more aggressive weight shift followed by releasing into a firmer front side. A bat exit velocity of 83 MPH was registered.

Kullen Crosby, 2019, Coudersport, 3B

Defensively, works bottom up and out front with soft, confident hands and solid footwork. Transfer is clean while throwing motion has length. There is good lateral range. Arm was accurate on throws of 78 MPH across the diamond.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with short stride staying neutral. There is balance and rhythm. Weight shift and hip turn are solid. There is subtle reaching with stride leg lending to slight uphill swing path. Crosby showed excellent barrel feel in routinely squaring ball during BP round. A bat exit velocity of 87 mph was recorded.

Dylan Hetrick, 2019, Mercer, OF

Defensively, shows fluid, athletic actions in outfield. Hetrick tracks well, is decisive in reads and takes direct routes. He showed commitment to getting behind and playing through the ball. Proper technique and confident glove hand are demonstrated in playing ball on ground. Arm strength of 76 mph from outfield was registered.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with short leg lift and stride staying neutral. Swing has balance and rhythm. Separation, weight shift and hip turn are solid. Hands are loose, quick and direct in achieving a short swing path. The bat is on plane early and late spending extended time in hitting zone. There is good plate coverage and ability to use the whole field. Overall Hetrick projects as a solid next level offensive player. A bat exit velocity of 87 mph was registered.

Robert Kusinsky, 2019, Penn-Trafford, RHP/3B

Defensively works to and through the ball demonstrating adequate hands and commitment to working bottom up. Kucinsky consistently follows throws. He would benefit from reducing the length of his throwing motion from the infield.

Offensively, achieves good separation while flashing advanced hand and hip quickness. Weight shift is aggressive followed by early front knee lock and very limited back side release. The result is blocking of the hips with decreased ability to turn through the baseball. Hand and hip speed project to next level power potential with mechanical adjustments. An impressive 96 mph bat exit velocity was registered.

On the mound, working out of a mid-3/4 arm slot demonstrates excellent balance, rhythm and ability to repeat delivery. There is moderate effort to delivery. Shows efficient use of lower half with solid backside load, separation and timing. FB sat 80-82 with consistent late run and sink. CB at 70 MPH had 1/5 short, slider-like break and limited depth. Changeup at 73-75 was thrown with good sell and downward movement.

Regan Schleicher, 2019, Cathedral Prep, OF

Defensively, Schleicher is decisive in reads and takes direct routes to the baseball. He routinely gets behind the baseball both in the air and on the ground. Glove hand is confident.

Offensively, initiates swing from open set up with knee-to-knee leg kick, barrel tip and stride to neutral. Hands drop slightly in slotting lending to uphill swing path. Weight shift and hip turn are aggressive. Separation is solid. Hands are loose and quick. There is obvious athleticism and barrel feel in squaring of baseball during round of BP. A bat exit velocity of 81 mph and 60-yard dash time of 6.80 were registered.

Remainder of roster (in random order)

Alexander Baldi, 2019, Cathedral Prep, OF

Defensively, is tentative in reads and tends to catch ball flat-footed having to reestablish momentum on throws. Baldi, aggressively plays through ball on the ground with confident glove hand and good technique. He stays in line and follows throws with developing arm strength of 84 mph registered. 

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with subtle knee-to-knee leg kick and controlled stride staying neutral. Separation, weight shift and hip turn are solid. Hands are loose and direct to the baseball. Intermittent compromised backside release lends to an uphill swing path. A bat exit velocity of 77 MPH was registered.

Paul Causgrove, 2019, Cathedral Prep, OF

Defensively, aggressively gets behind ball taking direct, decisive routes. Actions are athletic and glove hand is confident in playing through ball on ground with appropriate technique. Registered 78 mph arm strength.

Offensively, initiates swing from open, wide set up with reverse stride to neutral. The back knee drifts outside the back foot during load. The reverse stride markedly compromises weight shift. Hands work well to baseball and athleticism and barrel feel resulted in squaring of multiple balls during round of BP. An 85 MPH bat exit velocity was registered Causgrove would benefit from avoiding allowing back knee movement outside the back foot during load as well as implementing a greater weight shift.

Defensively, glove hand is adequate in receiving and framing. There is a soft wall and good trunk angle when blocking. Loomis would benefit from consistently staying square when moving laterally. Feet and hands flash quickness in recording pop time of 2.22 on throw of 79 MPH from the crouch.

Matthew Cervik, 2019, Cathedral Prep, SS/2B

Defensively, works bottom up with soft, confident hands. Attacks and plays through baseball creating appropriate angles and hops. There is intermittent tendency to play the ball deep. Transfer and throwing motion are clean. Arm strength of 74 mph across the diamond may precipitate move to right side.

Offensively, initiates swing from open set up with short, controlled stride to neutral. Weight shift is adequate while staying behind ball and achieving good leverage. Weight shift is passive. Cervik would benefit from more aggressive weight shift and subsequent backside release into firm front side. A bat exit velocity of 82 mph was registered.

Matthew Clark, 2019, Brockway, C

Defensively, at third base footwork remains work in progress with a tendency to move from a narrow base. Hands are adequate in funneling and transfer is clean. Arm strength of 67 MPH was registered on throws across the diamond. 

Defensively behind the plate shows soft, quiet glove hand in framing. Presents good target with low, wide base. Demonstrates soft wall while maintaining solid trunk angle in blocking. Transfer and throwing motion are long on throws of 67 MPH from crouch. Pop times of 2.31 to 2.41 were registered.

Offensively, initiates swing from closed set up with short stride staying closed. Separation is compromised by passive weight shift and hip turn. There is subtle top half drift. Clark would benefit from striding neutral and releasing backside, thereby allowing a more fluid turn through the baseball. A bat exit velocity of 78 mph was registered.

Jake Commens, 2019, Quaker Valley, LHP

Primary pitcher works out of mid-3/4 arm slot demonstrating the ability to repeat his moderate effort delivery. Front side softness during arm acceleration reduces lower half contribution to arm speed. It also results in limited use of 6-foot-4 frame to achieve an optimal downhill plane to pitches. FB showed progression now sitting 73-78 with arm side run. FB command away continues to be a strength. CB at 61-62 had 1/7 shape and rolling action. CH at 59-61 flashed consistent arm side fade while being thrown with slowing of the arm.

Colin Kelly, 2019, Cathedral Prep, OF/RHP

Defensively, demonstrates ability to get behind and play through ball while staying in line on throws from the outfield. Attacks ball on ground with proper technique and confident glove hand. Registered arm strength of 79 mph.

Offensively, initiates swing from open set up with knee-to-knee leg kick and stride to neutral. Separation is adequate. Weight shift is passive followed by an aggressive hip turn. Solid leverage is achieved through staying behind ball and working into firm front side. Swing path is uphill and there is length. A bat exit velocity of 83 mph was registered.

On the mound, works out of a high-3/4 arm slot with hip coil contributing to deception and lending to efficient use of lower half. Delivery is moderate effort and there was some difficulty consistently repeating on this day leading to spotty command. FB sat 77-81 with subtle arm side run. CB, thrown 61-64 mph, at best featured moderate depth and 11/5 shape. SL at 67-68 MPH demonstrated short 11/4 break with little tilt. CH was best pitch sitting 61-64 while being thrown with good sell and downward movement. 

Drake Petrillo, 2019, Jeanette, 1B

Defensively, Routinely works bottom up and out front. Hands are adequate and feet play well around the bag. Transfer is clean and throwing motion has length. Registered 76 MPH arm strength on throws across.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral set up with moderate stride staying neutral. Separation is compromised by subtle leaking and dropping of hands.There is intermittent front side softness following heel plant. The back elbow drifts in front of hands creating drag. Petrillo would benefit from working into fimer front side and connecting directly with the back elbow. A bat exit velocity of 79 MPH was registered. 

Blake Simmers, 2019, McDowell, C

Defensively, shows soft, quiet glove hand in framing and receiving. Simmers presents soft wall with maintenance of appropriate trunk angle in blocking. His feet are quick and work well on throws. Pop time of 2.31 is reduced by 66 MPH arm strength and length of transfer.

Offensively, initiates swing from neutral, wide set up with no stride, heel raise and hip inward turn. Balance and rhythm are present. Separation is reduced by early hand leak. Weight shift and hip turn are solid. Hands, intermittently work away from body lending to length. Barrel feel was present in squaring of multiple balls during round of BP. A bat exit velocity of 73 mph was registered.

 

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