By Chris Fuller
Kentucky Scouting Director

The Pre-Season All State Showcase on February 18 saw some impressive pitching performances, as some top prospects from respective classes emerged.  This article will feature the top pitching performances from the class of 2015.  Stay tuned for articles featuring some pitchers to keep an eye on as well as the best of the rest from the event as there were some other solid performances.

1. Zach Hurley, RHP, North Laurel HS
Simply put, Hurley is without question one of the top few class of 2015 pitchers in the state.  He has long and loose arm action through a high ¾ arm slot that produced an 83-86 mph fastball with good life and arm side run.  He showed good feel for his curveball that is sharp and shows late 11/5 action at 69-71 mph.  Hurley flashed what may have been the best changeup of the day with good arm action at 77-78 mph with significant sink and fade.  He also shows good two-way ability as an outfielder which we will feature in an upcoming article.

2. Dylan Givens, RHP, Reidland HS
Givens is a 6-foot-5, 220-pound RHP with big upside on the mound.  He shows repeatable mechanics and long/loose arm action through a high ¾ arm slot that produced an 81-83 mph fastball with good life and arm side run.  He shows good command of a 70-73 mph slider that breaks hard with good 2-plane action.  His also shows good command of a 72-73 mph changeup that shows some arm side run and sink.  Givens shows feel for all 3 pitches and is a definite prospect to watch in the class of 2015 with the potential to be a high-level pitching prospect.

3. Logan Mallory, RHP, North Laurel HS
Mallory is a 6-foot-3, 190-pound RHP with an athletic frame and good projectability.  He uses medium arm action through a high ¾ arm slot to produce an 80-82 mph fastball, touching 83 with some arm side run.  He showed good command and feel for his 12/6 curveball with sharp, late action that sat 69-71 mph.  His changeup sat 74 mph thrown with good arm action with arm side run and sink.  Mallory shows good command of all 3 pitches and is a potential high-level class of 2015 pitching prospect.  

4. Keaton Scruggs, RHP, Hopkinsville HS
Scruggs is a 6-foot-1, 195-pound RHP with long arm action through a high ¾ arm slot that produced an 82-84 mph fastball with good arm side run.  He continued to show better feel for his curveball as his bullpen session progressed.  The curveball sat 66-69 mph with 11/5 action when down in the zone.  He has a tendency to slow his arm speed on his changeup which sat 68-69 mph with some arm side run.  Scruggs is certainly a prospect to watch in the 2015 class.

5. Jacob Kelly, LHP, North Bullitt HS
We have seen Kelly twice and really like his projectability and upside on the mound.  He is a 6-foot-3, 185-pound LHP with long legs and arms.  He shows loose arm action and easy effort through a high ¾ arm slot that produced an 80-82 mph fastball with arm side run.  His curveball shows 1/7 action and is good when down in the zone at 65-67 mph.  He shows good feel for his 72-74 mph changeup that he throws with good arm action.  Kelly is certainly a prospect to watch in the class of 2015 as we expect significant velocity gains in the near future.

6. Anthony Ethington, RHP, Lexington Catholic HS
Ethington is a 6-foot-1, 157-pound RHP with good upside.  He did not light up the radar gun as his fastball sat 77-78 mph with arm side run and sink, but the ball comes out clean and easy and we expect him to see significant velocity gains as he continues to develop physically.  He showed good feel for his curveball that sat 66-68 mph with good depth and 12/6 action.  He also showed good feel for his 69-71 mph changeup with arm side run and throws it with good arm action.  Ethington showed he has the potential to be a high level class of 2015 pitching prospect.