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Top Prospect Games: Team Royal Blue Analysis

June 27, 2013

By Ethan Silverman
Missouri Scouting Director

The Class of 2015 and 2016 Top Prospect Games had a number of players who turned in top level performances over two days. The following is an analysis of the skill and ability of members of Team Royal Blue.

Ian Nelson, MIF, Timberland HS, Class of 2015:
Nelson may have established himself as one of the top middle infielders at the Top Prospect Games. At the plate, the solidly built 5-foot-8, 180-pound left handed hitter shows a balanced stance and advanced approach to hitting. Nelson has quick hands and creates fast bat speed through the zone with a short, compact swing that drives the ball gap to gap with some power potential.  In the field, Nelson displays a good approach to the ball with a clean exchange and a quick release while playing through the ball. His throws are all accurate, with a top velocity of 82-mph across the diamond. Nelson is a player who should garner plenty of attention over the next few years. 

Storme Cooper, MIF, Timberland HS, Class of 2015:
Cooper, at 5-foot-11, 145-pounds has a projectable frame and advanced tools in the infield. He fields everything out in front with smooth fielding mechanics while playing both middle infield positions well. His arm is accurate across the field with a top throw of 79-mph, a velocity that should increase as he continues to fill out his frame. At the plate, Cooper shows some hand speed through the zone, something has progressed since his last showcase. His bat takes a short, level path to the ball and showed ability to hit to all fields. 

Cody Creed, 3B/RHP, Mexico HS, Class of 2015:
Creed is an athletic 5-foot-10, 165-pound two way player who showed well on the mound and in the field. On the mound, Creed comes from a high ¾ arm slot with good rhythm and generates good down hill tilt and momentum toward home plate while showing good command. His fastball sat 79-81 mph, topping at 82-mph with hard sink action down in the zone. He also flashed a 10-to-5 breaking ball thrown in the 61-66 mph range with early break. We wouldn't be surprised to see a uptick in Creed's velocit in the next few years. In the infield, Creed is a sure handed fielder, fielding the ball out in front with sure, soft hands and accuracy to first base. His top throw was 79-mph. Offensively, Creed showed a controlled, level swing with ability to hit to all fields. 

Kyle Vance, MIF, Wentzville Holt HS, Class of 2015:
Vance has a lanky, projectable 6-foot, 160-pound frame and showed well in the infield and at the plate. In the infield, Vance fields his position athletically, with a good approach to the ball showing sure, quick hands and a clean glove to have transfer with short arm action and accurate throws. At the plate, Vance does a good job of keeping his hands back and letting the ball get deep and effectively hitting it to the opposite field. 

Tanner Forck, LHP/1B, Timberland HS, Class of 2015:
On the mound, the wiry 6-foot, 150-pound Forck gets over his front side well while commanding three pitches. While he is not a hard thrower, he looks to be effective on the mound by hitting his spots. Forck’s fastball was thrown 70-72 mph down in the zone with slight arm side action. He also displayed a 58-61 mph breaking ball with gradual 11-to-5 shape and a 66-67 mph change up thrown with near fastball arm speed that has some sink down in the zone. As his frame continues to fill out, he should see an increase in velocity. At the plate, Forck showed ability to make consistent contact during batting practice, slapping the ball to all fields. At first base, Forck fields the ball cleanly with fluid footwork around first base. His arm is loose with accurate throws while coming off the base. 

Justin Dirden, OF/RHP, Ft. Zumwalt North HS, Class of 2015:
Dirden has a very projectable 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame and showcased a strong arm both on the mound and from the outfield. On the mound, Dirden comes from a high ¾ arm slot with quick arm speed and loose arm action. He threw a heavy 83-85 mph fastball on both sides of the plate and down in the zone. His 68-69 mph breaking ball had sharp 11-to-5 break, and when thrown hard was very effective and could be his out pitch. Dirden also showed a 71-mph change up thrown with near fastball arm speed that has arm side movement and stayed down in the zone. In the outfield, Dirden shows good body control and lateral movements to the ball. His arm action is clean and he showed ability to keep his momentum toward his target, recording the top outfield throw of 87-mph. Offensively, Dirden has quick hands at the plate and a long, level swing, showing ability to hit the gaps and to the opposite field. His top exit velocity was 85-mph off the bat. 

Avery Driggs, OF/RHP, Rockwood Summit HS, Class of 2015:
The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Driggs has a projectable body and showed ability in the outfield and on the mound. In the outfield, Driggs finds the ball quickly and has a clean exchange. His top throw was 74-mph, and with some more use of his lower half, could see a few more miles per hour on his throws. At the plate, Driggs has an athletic stance with good rhythm. His bat path stays level through the zone with extension through contact that produced line drives (top exit velocity of 77-mph off the bat). On the mound, Driggs has some rhythm with long arm action. He threw a heavy fastball with run and sink action in the 70-74 mph range. He also showed 62-64 mph breaking ball with a gradual, sweeping break thrown with near fastball arm speed and a 61-63 mph change up with some late fade action, perhaps his best pitch.

Jacob Mitchell, C, West Plains HS, Class of 2015:
Mitchell is a solidly built 6-foot-1, 190-pound catcher who has a firm base and receives with soft hands. Mitchell threw pop times in the 2.01-2.16 range (74-75 mph) with some accuracy in his throws. During game play, Mitchell effectively handled numerous pitchers, and showed quick instincts blocking. At the plate, Mitchell has an open stance with a short stride and uses his strong lower half to generate some bat speed. His swing is long and level, showing some power potential with a top exit velocity of 83-mph off the bat. 

Brock Beacham, RHP, Campbell HS, Class of 2016:
Beacham has a lanky 6-foot-1, 165-pound body that as it continues to fill out makes us want to see more. Beacham has sound, repeatable mechanics on the mound and shows the ability to consistently throw strikes with all of his pitches down in the zone. His fastball, while not overpowering, was thrown 77-79 mph with late, hard arm side action and produced some swings and misses. Beacham’s breaking ball has 10-to-4 shape (61-63 mph) thrown with fastball arm speed and his 70-71 mph change up had some depth down in the strike zone. Beacham looks to be a very effective pitcher who has plenty of room to grow and see a spike in his velocity. 

Luke Matheny, RHP, Westminster Academy, Class of 2015:
Matheny has a very projectable 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame, and showed some of the best command we have seen to date. In three innings of work, Matheny pounded the strike zone with all of his pitches, throwing only five pitches that missed the strike zone. He showed good knowledge of when to throw what pitched and had no problem throwing any pitch in any count. Mechanically, Matheny has deceptive delivery and an extremely quick arm with smooth rhythm and easy effort, the ball looks to really jump out of his hand. His fastball sat 82-84 mph with hard arm side run down in the zone. We think with his body type and mechanics, there are definitely a few more miles per hour in his fastball. His breaking ball had gradual 11-to-5 break thrown 66-68 mph, and while not thrown often, was effective to keep hitters off balance. Matheny also threw a 72-75 mph change up with good depth and looks to be his go to pitch.  At the plate, Matheny shows some bat speed and ability to drive the ball. While primarily a pitcher, he does hit a bit and does not get cheated on his swings. 

Stephen Clark, LHP/OF, Wentzville Holt HS, Class of 2015:
Clark is a strong bodied 6-foot, 195-pound two way player who impressed in his all around game. On the mound, the left handed throwing Clark does a good job of getting on top of the ball with good extension and quick arm speed, while consistently throwing all three pitches for strikes. His fastball was thrown in the 81-83 mph range with late life and hard cut action. He also showed command of a 66-69 mph breaking ball that had sharp 11-to-5 shape down in the zone, thrown with near fastball arm speed. Clark also showed a 71-72 mph change up with some fade action. In the outfield, Clark moves to the ball with purpose, showing aggressive movements and playing through the ball with accurate throws on a line (top throw of 82-mph). Offensively, Clark has some looseness in his swing and does a good job of incorporating a strong lower half. He shows extension through contact with ability to hit the ball gap-to-gap with some pull side power potential. 

Luke Kahle, C, Francis Howell HS, Class of 2015:
Behind the plate during game play, the 5-foot-8, 165-pound Kahle demomstrated ability to receive and stick balls in all parts of the zone. He showed natural instincts and good body control while blocking. Throwing to second, Kahle showed quick foot work with a clean exchange and short arm action to produce accuracy, recording pop times in the 1.97 to 2.12 range. Offensively, Kalhe showed to have a controlled short, compact swing and a good eye at the plate.

David Shepherd, 3B/OF/RHP, Ft. Zumwalt South HS, Class of 2016:
Shepherd is a lanky 6-foot, 160-pound multi-positional player. In the outfield, Shepherd shows quick footwork with quick and aggressive path to the ball with accuracy on his throws. His transfer is a bit slow at times, but it is clean. In the infield, Shepherd shows a good approach to the ball with sure hands and good range to both sides as well a good glove to hand transfer. His throws were accurate with a top throw of 77-mph. At the plate, Shepherd has a balanced athletic stance with fluid rhythm. His swing got a bit long at times, but stayed level. With some more use of his lower half, he should be able to see an increase in bat speed. On the mound, Shepherd’s fastball with thrown in the 75-76 mph with arm side movement. He also threw a late breaking 10-to-4 breaking ball (76-mph). Once again, with more more incorporation of his lower half and continued physical maturity, Shepherd should see a spike in velocity over the next few years. 

Austin Bennett, 1B/LHP, Wentzville Holt HS, Class of 2015:
Bennett is a physically imposing 6-foot-3, 215-pound two-way player who showed to be effective on the mound and have some power at the plate. On the mound, Bennett didn’t seem to have his best stuff but was able to dig deep and effectively change speeds and have his pitches move to record outs, especially ground ball outs.  His 76-79 mph fastball was heavy with good run and sink action, thrown on both sides of the plate. He also threw a 12-to-6 breaking ball (67-68 mph), which when he staying on top of it and released it out in front produced quite a few swings and misses and ground balls. Bennett also threw a 64-mph change up at near fastball arm speed with some arm side run. At the plate, Bennett has a smooth load with a slight tap on his stride for timing. He uses an explosive lower half and strong hands to create fast bat speed through the zone with pull side power. At first base, Bennett moves well around the bag, with sure hands and good body control while turning double plays.

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