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Team Missouri Futures Games Preview

July 30, 2014

Shon Plack
Missouri Scouting Director

Prep Baseball's Futures Games start tomorrow in Westfield, Indiana.  Team Missouri will be taking the field at 9 am against Illinois.  On Saturday, Missouri will square off against Pennsylvania and Michigan.  Here is a preview of team Missouri.  

Infielders

Tyler Benninghoff (Rockhurst, SS, 2016)
The very athletic Benninghoff stands at 6-foot-3 and weighs 175 pounds.  During the infield drills he showed soft hands, quick footwork and quick exchanges.  He showed a strong accurate arm and had the top infield throwing velocity at 84 mph.  Hitting-wise he starts with a balanced set-up and wide stance.  He uses a simple stride and no hand load.  He has a short bat path, compact swing and bat speed, not common characteristics for long-armed hitters. He repeatedly drove the ball in the middle of the field.  His top exit velocity was 86 mph.  He projects as a 2-way player at the major college level and was the top overall prospect in the event among a group of very talented underclass prospects.

John Brinkman (SLUH, 3B, 2016)
Brinkman is a strong athletic 5-foot-11, 205-pound right-hand hitting third baseman. He ran a 60 at 7.37 and home-to-first 4.82. John throws from a high ¾ arm slot and has long arm action. His throws were accurate and had a lot of life. His position velo was 77 MPH from the infield. Brinkman has great actions with a clean exchange and quick release. At the plate, Brinkman has a closed setup with a smooth load and a long stride. He has good balance and an advanced approach. John produces gap-to-gap line drives and has plus power to all fields. He had an exit velo of 86 MPH.

Chris Cornelius (Vianney, SS, 2016)
Cornelius is a 6-foot 180-pound shortstop. Cornelius had a positional velo of 82 MPH using an over-the-top release.  He showed quick hands and smooth footwook, making clean exchanges and accurate throws.  At the plate, Cornelius uses a controlled leg kick to start his swing and has a level swing path through extension.  He has a gap-to-gap approach, and squared up the ball consistently during batting practice.  He has an exit velo of 87 MPH, runs a 4.56 home-to-first and a 6.94 60.

Hunter Dame (Conway, 3B, 2016) 
Dame is a strong 6-foot-1 185-pound third baseman.  Dame has a clean exchange and make mostly accurate throws across the field.  He has a positional velo of 86 MPH.  Offensively, Dame has a smooth load and attacks the ball with a fast bat.  He has a level bat path through extension with pull power.  Dame runs a 4.88 home-to-first and a 7.84 60.  He posted an 82 MPH exit velo.

Avery Jennings (Rock Bridge, SS/2B, 2016)
enning is a strong 5-foot-11 175-pound shortstop.  Jennings has a positional velo of 86 MPH using smooth footwork and quick ¾ release.  He has a quick, clean glove-to-hand exchange.  Offensively, Jennings has a exit velo of 86 MPH.  He uses an athletic stance leg kick for timing.  Jennings has a level swing through extension with a gap-to-gap approach.  He runs a 4.69 home-to-first and 7.45 60.  

Ross Messina (Staley, SS, 2016)
Messina is a thin, athletic-framed 5-foot-11, 160-pound right-hand hitting infielder.  In the infield he showed some of the best infield actions of the group with quick, clean arm action from a ¾ slot.  He made all strong, accurate throws with a top throwing velocity of 80 mph.  At the plate, Messina starts with a tall set-up and open stance.  He has a controlled stride inline with the pitcher and a minimal, fluid load.  His bat path is short and level.  He showed an explosive lower half and extension through the baseball, driving the ball in the middle of the field.  His top exit velocity was 82 mph.  With the skill set to play shortstop and a frame built to add weight to, in time he should develop into a major college prospect.

Justin Perkins (Francis Howell, 1B, 2016)
Perkins is a physical 6-foot-2 195-pound first-baseman.  Perkins moves with a purpose at 1B, showing aggressive actions to the ball.  He has soft hands and make accurate throws.  At the plate, Perkins attack the ball with a strong lower half.  He produces a fast, level bat path through extension.  He has a gap-to-gap approach with pull power.  Perkins has an 86 MPH exit velo and runs a 4.62 home-to-first with a 7.48 60.  

Kaleb Schmidt (Kickapoo, 3B/2B, 2016)
Schmidt is a 5-foot-10 160-pound third baseman.  Schmidt has a positional velo of 85 MPH, one of the top for the event.  He has a high ¾ release and plays through the ball.  Schmidt has a clean, quick hand-to-glove transfer and makes mostly accurate throws.  At the plate, Schmidt line drive approach with some pop to his pull gap.  He has a minimal stride with repeatable mechanics.  Schmidt posted an exit velo of 80 MPH.  He runs a 4.63 home-to-first and a 7.66 60.  

Outfielders

Jack Duffy (Staley, OF, 2016)
uffy is a 5-foot-10, 160-pound thin, athletic left-hand hitting outfielder.  During the defensive drills he showed quick feet with fluid exchanges.  He throws with a quick, high ¾ throwing motion with his top throw clocked at 83 mph.  At the plate, the left-handed hitting Duffy starts with an open stance, uses a fluid backward load and strides closed, hanging his foot some before striding – his swing has good rhythm and flow.  He has a level bat path and overall line-drive approach with good bat speed.  Duffy’s exit velocity best was 85 mph. 

Jacob Gonzales (Timberland, OF, 2016)
Gonzales is an athletic 5-foot-11 165-pound left handed hitting outfielder.  Gonzales posted a 7.14 60 time and a 4.41 home-to-first.  Combined with his speed, Gonzales posted one of the events top outfield velos at 83 MPH.  He moves to the ball with a purpose and takes good angles to be behind the ball to make accurate throws with carry to his target.  He has a fluid exchange with a quick arm.  At the plate, Gonzales starts in an athletic position with a simple load.  He produces a quick bath with level a bat path and good extension.  He has a line drive approach to the middle of the field, squaring up the ball in batting practice.  He had an exit velo of 85 MPH. 

Tyler James (Lee's Summit West, OF, 2016)
James is a strong 6-foot 180-pound OF.  James has a positional velo of 80 MPH and has a loose over-the-top release.  He has a fluid exchange plays through the ball well, making accurate throws.  Offensively, James starts in a balanced position and creates good bat speed that produces power to his pull gap.  He has mostly a pull approach and has an exit velo of 87 MPH.  James runs a 7.06 60 and a 4.53 home-to-first. 

Ryan Perkins (Francis Howell, OF, 2016) 
Perkins is a physical 6-foot-2, 200-pound left hand hitting OF.  Perkins posted the top velo in the outfield at 86 MPH and made mostly accurate throws.  He has a quick hand-to-glove exchange and showed the ability to play through the ball with aggressive routes.  At the plate, Perkins starts with an open stance and uses a strong lower have to generate power to both gaps.  He has quick hands and level path with good extension.  Perkins posted an event best 91 MPH exit velo, he ran a 4.30 home-to-first and 7.29 60.   

Craig Straws (Liberty, OF, 2016)
Straws is an athletic 5-foot-11 170-pound left handed hitting outfielder.  Straws was impressive with his speed, running a 4.18 home-to-first from the left side and a 6.89 60.  With the bat, Straws starts in an athletic position and uses a toe touch to load.  He has a line-drive approach to the middle of the field and produces an exit velo of 89 MPH.  In the outfield, Straws is aggressive getting to the ball and gets good reads off the bat.  He has a fluid exchange as he plays through the ball, making somewhat accurate throws.  He has a positional velo of 75 MPH.  

Utility

Matt Miller (Oakville, 2B/OF, 2016)
Miller is an athletic-framed 5-foot-10 165-pound SS/2B and was one of the top athletes in the event.  He throws with an over-the-top arm action and has a quick, fluid exchange.  He recorded one of the top infield positional velos at 81 MPH, making mostly accurate throws.  He displayed soft hands, quick feet and the ability to play through the ball.  Miller ran a 7.10 60.  At the plate, Miller creates bat speed with a simple load.  He has a short swing that produces gap-to-gap line drives with power potential.  His exit velo was recorded at 78 MPH.

Hunter Swift (Staley, OF/1B, 2016)
Swift is a strong 5-foot-7 165-pound left handed hitting 1B/OF.  In the outfield, Swift posted throws at 80 MPH with mostly accurate throws and good carry.  He had aggressive actions and fluid to the ball, working behind the ball.  On the infield, Swift showed good feet and a quick hand-to-glove exchange.  He had an positional velo of 78 MPH and made somewhat accurate throws.  He has soft hands and a high 3/4 release in both the outfield and infield.  Offensively, Swift starts with an open stance and uses a small leg kick.  He has a strong lower half and has a line drive approach, mostly in the pull in the gap.  Swift has a level bat path and generates good bat speed.  He runs a 4.31 home-to-first and recorded an 86 MPH exit velo.  

Catchers

Sean Cooley (Staley, C, 2106) 
Cooley is a left-hand hitting catcher.  During bullpens he showed advanced receiving skills. He had the top throwing velocity of all of the catchers at 77 mph with a 2.16 pop time showing quick feet and a short over-the-top throwing motion.  At the plate he has a tall set-up and slightly open stance.  He strides slightly closed with a mini-leg kick and has a smooth load.  Cooley has loose hands and good balance throughout his swing.  His swing is built to deliver gap-to-gap line drives.  His top exit velocity was 84 mph. 

Jacob Matheny (Westminster, C, 2016)
Matheny is a lanky 6-foot-1, 155-pound catcher who showed advanced ability behind the plate. Defensively, Matheny showed solid hands behind the plate, showing ability to receive in all parts of the zone and quick, natural instincts while blocking. His arm action is short and over the top with accuracy to second base, recording pop times of 2.09-2.25. His footwork is quick out of the crouch and his exchange is quick and clean. At the plate, Matheny displays quick hands and a level, line drive producing swing, attacking the gaps. As Matheny continues to fill out his frame, there is some potential for power in his swing.

Pitchers

Tyler Benninghoff (Rockhurst, RHP, 2016)
The very athletic Benninghoff stands at 6-foot-3 and weighs 175 pounds.  During the infield drills he showed soft hands, quick footwork and quick exchanges.  He showed a strong accurate arm and had the top infield throwing velocity at 84 mph.  Hitting-wise he starts with a balanced set-up and wide stance.  He uses a simple stride and no hand load.  He has a short bat path, compact swing and bat speed, not common characteristics for long-armed hitters. He repeatedly drove the ball in the middle of the field.  His top exit velocity was 86 mph.  He projects as a 2-way player at the major college level and was the top overall prospect in the event among a group of very talented underclass prospects. 

John Brinkman (SLUH, RHP, 2016) 
Brinkman is a strong, projectable 5-foot-11, 205-pound right-handed pitcher. He has a high ¾ delivery with quick arm speed. Brinkman has good rhythm throws with some effort. John keeps his shoulders level and finishes in an athletic position. He had a fastball velocity range of 77-82 MPH with run. His curveball was at 68-70 MPH with 11/5 tilt and sharp break. Brinkman’s change-up ranged from 70-73 with fastball arm speed and sink. 

Braydon Cook (Francis Howell, RHP, 2016)
Cook is a 6-foot-1, 190-pound RHP with top vela of 85 MPH on his fastball.  Cook worked in the 81-83 MPH with his fastball thrown from a high 3/4 slot.  He has a repeatable delivery, with easy effort.  His curveball has an 11-to-5 shape with late break at near fastball speed.  Cook’s curveball was clocked at 75-77 MPH.  He showed a change-up at 72-75 MPH with sink.  He had command and feel of all three pitches, with a heavy fastball that resulted in groundouts during the scrimmage.  

Hunter Dame (Conway, RHP, 2016)
Dame is a physical 6-foot-1 190-pound RHP and posted one of top velos of the day.  His fastball was clocked between 83-86 MPH.  He showed excellent command of an 11-to-5 slider at 74-77 MPH with late movement at fastball arm speed.  Dame has an above average change-up with late sink at 74-75 MPH.  Dame has a quick, loose arm action and throws with regular effort.  He has smooth rhythm during his delivery and throws strikes with three pitches.  Look for his velocity to increase as he continues to develop.  

Jacob Gonzales (Timberland, LHP, 2016)
Gonzales, a 5-foot-11 165-pounds LHP had a fastball at 75-81 MPH with slight run.  He has a high 3/4 release and a 1-to-7 curveball at 66-70 MPH.  He has a change up with some arm side release at 68-72 MPH.  Gonzales has a quick arm with smooth rhythm during his delivery.  He throughs with regular effort and shows good command for three pitches in the zone.  

Riley Halley (Iberia, RHP, 2016)
Halley is a 6-foot-6 195-pound right handed pitcher.  Halley throws with some effort and has a fastball that ranges between 84-87 MPH with slight run.  He showed command of an 11-to-5 curveball at 71-73 MPH and a change up with arm side release at 80-82.  Halley in one of the top power pitchers in Missouri.  

Avery Jennings (Rock Bridge, RHP, 2016)
Jennings is a 5-foot-11 175-pound RHP with slight run on a fastball thrown at 78-81 MPH.  He showed good command of an 11-to-5 curveball with sharp, late movement at 71-72 MPH and a change up at 71 MPH.  Jennings had command of the zone with his fastball and curveball, pumping strike after strike.  He has a simple, repeatable delivery with smooth rhythm as he gets down the mound.  

Kaleb Schmidt (Kickapoo, RHP, 2016)
Schmidt is an athletic 5-foot-10 160-pound RHP.  His fastball had hard run and was clocked at 81-85 MPH, one of the highest of the event.  Schmidt’s curveball has 11-to-5 movement with sharp, late break.  He has a 3/4 release, which can allow his curveball to have more of a slider action.  He throws with some deception, hiding the ball from batters.  Schmidt has a quick arm and gets down the mound with regular effort.  Schmidt still has the ability to add velocity to his fastball as he develops.   

Hunter Swift (Staley, LHP, 2016)
Swift is stocky 5-foot-7 165-pound LHP with more room to grow.  He attacked hitters with a 80-82 MPH fastball that showed late life down in the zone.  He used a 1-to-7 curveball with a late break as his out pitch and showed command of a 68-72 MPH change-up with late arm side release.  He has a quick arm and throws with some effort.  

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