By Chris Fuller
Kentucky Scouting Director

Some very talented players in the Class of 2013, 2014 and 2015 from Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois had an opportunity to showcase their abilities at the Northern KY/Cincinnati Prospect ID Showcase on December 30. Today we breakdown the top catching prospects from the showcase.

Nick Lubanski, C, Class of 2014, Turpin HS (OH)
Lubanski is a 5-foot-10, 177-pound catcher with a stocky build.  He shows good arm strength from the crouch at 78 mph and quick pop times that ranged from 1.89-1.97.  He showed good receiving and blocking skills in bullpen sessions.  At the plate, he hits from a slightly open stance and squares front side well.  He uses his lower half to generate bat speed into the zone.  He continues to get physically stronger and exit velocity jumped 5 mph from previous PBR event to 83 mph.

Matthew Matthaes, C, Class of 2014, Olentangy Liberty HS (OH)
Matthaes is a 6-foot, 170-pound catcher with an athletic build.  He shows good arm strength from the crouch at 79 mph with pop times of 1.99-2.12.  He shows a good glove to hand transfer and has room to improve pop times with quicker release.   He showed good athleticism behind the plate in bullpen sessions with solid receiving skills and good lateral blocking ability.  At the plate, he uses a balanced, athletic set-up with a big load and long stride.  He uses good lower half torque in his swing that generates good bat speed and barrel whip through the zone.

Anthony Hummel, C, Class of 2013, South Dearborn HS (IN)
Hummel is a 6-foot-1, 200-pound catcher with solid, athletic build.  He shows good arm strength from the crouch at 79 mph and quick pop times of 1.91-1.97.  He showed good athleticism behind the plate in bullpen sessions with good lateral blocking ability.  At the plate, hits from a slightly open stance with a pull approach.

Chase Boling, C, Class of 2015, Lexington Catholic HS (KY)
Boling is a 6-foot-2, 220-pound catcher with a solid build and strong legs.  He shows good arm strength from the crouch at 76 mph with pop times of 2.13-2.25.  Pop times will improve with quicker footwork and glove to hand transfer.  At the plate, he uses a wide set-up and uses his strong lower half well to generate good bat speed through the zone.  Boling is a big, strong kid with some projectable power.  He registered the second best exit velocity at the event at 87 mph.