By Brandon Hall
North Carolina Director of Scouting

On Sunday May 21st Prep Baseball Report traveled to South Mecklenburg HS in Charlotte, NC to evaluate the Five Star Baseball Scout Day.  Five Star is a new program to North Carolina, kind of.  With much of the roster and staff coming from 2016's Team Rawlings, Five Star is a national brand with a North Carolina team.  The Five Star teams have evloved from the Chain organization in past years.  Over the coming days, PBR will dive into the Scout Day with reports on each player in attendance.  Today we concentrate on the primary infielders that worked out at the Scout Day.

PBR Scout Days allow players to update their PBR profile page with updated and verified statistics, a full evaluation, and video.  The evaluations are performed by PBR staff members with a history of college and professional scouting.  All of the information will be hosted on the PBR platform, connecting players to over 800 colleges and universities, and every MLB team.

5 Star Baseball - Infielders

 

 

Jake Craver 3B / 1B / North Davidson, NC / 2019 Thick build in the 5-foot-10, 180 pound frame.  Right handed hitter works from a balanced setup, loading back, barring the lead arm slightly.  Short stride works to produce average barrel awareness with a level swing, working inside the ball, shooting balls to the opposite field.  Exit velocity topped at 81 mph.  Ran a 7.61 sixty.  On the infield, funnels to the right hip with average hands.  Long arm action has some shoulder restriction working to an over-the-top slot.  Flashed accuracy on throws touching 72 mph across the diamond.

 

 

Johnny Guarantano SS / 2B / RJ Reynolds, NC / 2018 Rankings  State Rank:155 POS:30 Athletic in a 5-foot-9, 155 pound frame.  Ran a 7.07 sixty, playing with quickness.  Balanced setup in the box, from the right side.  Loads back, rocking to his front toe, but lacking a full stride.  Lower half works through the ball allowing for better than average bat speed.  Direct, simple, and balanced.  Produced a lot of barrel throughout the BP rounds.  Level, shoots line drives through the middle of the field with a fluid stroke.  Power may never be plus, but there is an ability to see balls getting into gaps.  Exit velocity topped at 82.  Soft hands and a fluid style on the infield.  Clean exchanges work to a long arm action with a high-¾ release.  Showed some accuracy, topping at 71 mph from short.  Arm may limit some positional decisions in the future, but the glove produced an easy catch on most balls.

 

 

Archie Herring SS / 2B / Northern Guilford, NC / 2020 Fast twitch in a small frame with some length in his legs.  Ran a 6.70 sixty.  Showed good hands and quickness on the infield.  Soft and fluid, caught the ball with ease, funneling to the midsection.  Quick, clean exchanges work to a long arm action with some stiffness and an over-the-top slot.  Arm measured 75 mph from shortstop.  Working to become a switch hitter.  More advanced from the right side where he starts open and strides to even.  Vertical bat head at launch, staying direct and short to the ball.  Barrel awareness can improve.   On the left side there is some stiffness as the swing becomes a little longer and the back side does not fire.  Exit velocity topped at 73 mph.

 

 

Noah Love SS / RHP / Jay M Robinson, NC / 2018 Good athlete in a lean frame that can handle additional strength with maturity.  Right handed hitter works from an open stance, loading back to an almost barred front arm.  Average stride and quick bat.  Aggressive, the ball jumps, producing an exit velocity of 89 mph off the barrel.  Level swing, that can get long if the hands get too low, there is a heavy pull emphasis.  Ran a 7.33 sixty.  Plays with average hands.  Feet tend to get a little heavy for his athletic set, playing through balls.  Long arm swing to a high-¾ slot with carry at 81 mph from shortstop.  Exchanges were clean, although a little low which may have led to some accuracy issues.  Aggressive demeanor and confidence show in workout settings.  Projectable in many ways.

 

 

Parker Ledford OF / Ardrey Kell, NC / 2018 Lean and athletic.  Moves well, running a 6.81 sixty with a 6-foot-2, 180 pound frame.  Long arm action has slight stiffness working through the arm swing to a high-¾ slot.  Average carry, showing some feel for accuracy.   Right handed hitter, tall in the box, loads back with a short stride, carrying the hands below the shoulder line.  Level, gap-to-gap approach.  Lacked consistent rhythm which affected some contact points, producing some topspin.  There is some strength on the barrel, with an exit velocity of 84 being recorded.

 

 

Grant Lovelace 2B / SS / Northside Christian Academy, NC / 2018 Thin build with whip and quickness in the body.  Listed at 6-foot-1, 158 pounds, there is plenty of room to add strength.  Ran a 7.33 sixty and recorded an exit velocity off the barrel at 89 mph.  Balanced stance, lacking a load, and using a short stride.  Level swing is geared to the pull side.  A little stiff the barrel can sweep through the zone.  Ball does jump when on time.  Infielder worked around balls with clean exchanges and a long arm action to a high-¾ slot.  Arm showed carry and velocity at 81 mph across the infield.

 

 

Cameron Mills SS / 2B / Ledford, NC / 2018 Lanky and projectable at 6-foot, 168 pounds.  Ran a 6.96 sixty.  Chance to stay on the left side, showing an ability to catch and release with consistency and accuracy.   Soft hands, quick, clean exchanges working to play through the ball with active feet.  Loose and easy catching ability.  High-¾ slot has rhythm and a feel for the speed of the game.  Ball has carry at 82 mph from shortstop.  Right handed hitter works from a slight crouch, loading back with a weight shift.  Average plus bat speed works flat through the zone, wanting extension.  Stayed in the middle of the field with solid barrel contact throughout BP.  Exit velocity topped at 80 and could increase as the barrel becomes more direct and the body works with better rhythm.

 

 

Austin Mitchell RHP / SS / North Gaston, NC / 2018 Solid player that produced a solid day across the board.  Ran a 7.22 sixty.  Produced an exit velocity of 86 mph off the barrel and showed arm strength measuring 77 mph across the diamond.  Right handed hitter works from an athletic setup, loading back with a short stride.  Average bat speed works flat through the zone, showing a pull emphasis with fluid rhythm.  At times long as he can be rotational with the swing.  Produced plenty of barrels in the BP rounds.  On the infield, works loose, with active feet and an easy arm.  Feet can get flat and mechanical at times, but hands worked to catch the ball consistently, funneling to the midsection.  Long arm swing showed an ability to manipulate the release point based on the play, floating from high-¾ to low-¾ slots.  Some accuracy and carry to the throws.

 

 

Hayden Ridenhour SS / 3B / Glenn, NC / 2020 Open and tall from the right side, using a bat head waggle to set his load.  Short stride produces average bat speed, working to the pull side heavily.  Rushed at times the bat head can be in different launch positions.  At 5-foot-9, 160 pounds, there is still growth in the frame.  Exit velocity topped at 82 mph, showing an ability to drive the ball for his age.  Ran a 7.87 sixty.  On the infield, works with a mechanical nature and average hands.  Feet are active and fluid, but will need to quicken with age.  Clean exchanges produced a loose high-¾ slot with better than average accuracy.  Arm measured 74 mph across the diamond.

 

 

Alex Rodriguez SS / 2B / Southeast Guilford, NC / 2020 Slight frame at 5-foot-11, 150 pounds, but still a young build.  Solid across the board and fundamental in many aspects.  Listed as switch, but hit right only in BP, working with a balanced stance, wide base, and smooth load to a short stride.  Better than average bat quickness through the zone produced an exit velocity of 79 mph.  Level bat path has a pull tendency.  Simple and direct, a lot of barrel was produced in two rounds.  Hands work direct.  At short, works easy, with good hands and accurate throws with average carry at 81 mph across the infield.  High-¾ slot, showed an ability to adjust his feet and arm swing based on the play.  Exchanged low at times, but no bobbles or accuracy issues. Ran a 7.46 sixty.  Interesting follow as the body continues to mature.

 

 

Nick Shoffner 3B / RHP / East Surry, NC / 2019 Right handed hitter has some aggression and barrel awareness.  Balanced setup, with a barred front arm.  A long aggressive stride produces average bat speed wanting extension with a pull tendency.  At times the barrel drifts in the load position, laying off away from the body.  Exit velocity topped at 79.  Thick build at 5-foot-9, 175 pound infielder worked direct to the ball with average hands, catching the ball deep as he worked to play through the ball with his feet.  Rushed at times.  Clean exchanges loaded the feet  to a long arm action and high-¾ release point.  Some accuracy.  Arm speed measured 73 mph on positional throws. Ran a 7.86 sixty.

 

 

Luke Welch 3B / 1B / Mount Airy, NC / 2019 Left handed hitter has some strength producing an exit velocity of 84 mph off the barrel.  Balanced with a crouch, loads the body with a leg kick working to a short stride.  Better than average bat speed works for extension, with a pull tendency.  A little stiff, there is good head discipline throughout.  Ran a 7.33 sixty and works with average feet that can get heavy when catching the ball too deep.  Wants to play through the ball, using a long arm action to a top slot.  Arm measured 71 mph across the field.