Adam Akin
Director of Scouting

The 2016 PBR Tennessee Winter Unsigned Senior Showcase took place on Sunday, December 18 at Showtime Sports Academy in Franklin, Tennessee and included a position player workout, followed by pitcher bullpens.  Players were afforded the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of the PBR Tennessee staff, as well as a number of college coaches in attendance. The following is our evaluation of every position player that was in attendance.

 

Outfielders

Cole Kirkpatrick, OF, Franklin, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.72, Position Velocity:  OF-83, Exit Velocity: 80
6-foot-2, 170-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance with relaxed hands to start, used a longer but early stride and a lay back of the barrel to get loaded, lower half generally gets through but moves him taller at and through contact, bat path is pretty flat through the zone, seems to guide the bat through contact, line drive type of hitter.  Defensively, showed good hands and footwork in the outfield, played around and through the ball well with confidence, longer and athletic arm action comes through a near over-the-top slot, lanky build leaves a lot of room for improvement and development.

Kaden Seymour, OF, Fulton, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.22, Position Velocity:  OF-75, Exit Velocity: 83
5-foot-11, 165-pound, LHH hits from a balanced and even stance with his hands tucked up by his back ear and a slight lean toward the catcher, uses a short stride with hardly any hand movement to get loaded, stride lands closed and doesn’t allow his lower half to really fire and get his hips cleared out, swing plane is pretty flat through the ball and produced some line drives to right field.  Defensively, showed above-average hands and footwork but got thrown off a bit at times, played through the ball aggressively, quick exchange led to a short arm action through a high ¾ slot.

Jon Lynn, OF/RHP, Creekwood, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.45, Position Velocity:  OF-88, Exit Velocity: 75
5-foot-10, 145-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and closed stance with a short and quick bat waggle, uses a short stride and a very slight lowering of his hands to get loaded, lower half still works but pulls him taller as it did at our previous event, bat path is flat but swing can get a little armsy, hard and low line drives are what he does best.  Defensively, showed above-average hands and footwork, tangled himself up by using two hands at times, arm action is long and loose and very strong through a high ¾ slot.

Tristan Greene, SS/RHP, Franklin Comenius School, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.59, Position Velocity:  OF-78, Exit Velocity: 79
5-foot-11, 170-pound, RHH hits from a wider and even stance with some lower hand positioning to start, uses a leg kick and stride with a rotational movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half explodes through the zone, swing plane is mostly flat with some lift at the end, strong swing can get muscly, pull hitter with some gap pop potential can pepper right-center as well.  Defensively, showed above-average hands and footwork in the outfield, caught back on his heels at times and could’ve used his momentum better, exchange and release were quick through a short arm action and a nearly over-the-top slot, also showed ability to play in the infield.

Tyler Ellison, OF, Knox Central, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.59, Position Velocity:  OF-77, Exit Velocity: 77
5-foot-9, 131-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance with the bat just above his shoulder, uses a short and quick stride with a slight lowering and movement back with his hands to get loaded, gets into his lower half but drifts forward on a straight back leg, bat path is a little steep into the zone but flattens out some, could get through the ball better, at his best with an oppo approach.  Defensively, showed above average hands and footwork, consciously played through the ball, tangled himself up by using two hands a couple of times, shorter arm action comes through a high ¾ slot.

Middle Infielders

Derick Junker, 2B/RHP, Blackman, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.58, Position Velocity:  IF-84, OF-87, Exit Velocity: 85
6-foot-0, 160-pound, RHH hits from a wider and slightly open stance with his hands just behind is ear to start, uses a short rhythmic stride and movement down and back with his hands to get loaded, lower half works put tends to pull his body forward through contact, swing plane is pretty flat through the zone and allowed him to produce some consistently solid contact late in his round, strong kid.  Defensively, showed good hands and footwork in the infield, played through the ball well, arm action was shorter but explosive through a high ¾ slot, showed athleticism by also participating as an OF.

Anthony Norman, SS, La Vergne, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.46, Position Velocity:  IF-79, OF-84, Exit Velocity: 83
6-foot-1, 150-pound, RHH hits from a more balanced and even stance than we saw from him at our Unsigned Senior Games in September, uses a short and closed stride with a simple quietening of his hands to get loaded, lower half fires pretty well for how closed he is, bat path comes into the zone a little steep but is able to flatten out through contact, best when he stays up the middle to avoid coming around the ball.  Defensively, showed good hands and footwork in the infield, played around and through the ball, arm action is short and loose through a low ¾ slot, showed athleticism by participating in the outfield.

Third Basemen

Alex DeRiggi, 3B, Mount Juliet, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.49, Position Velocity:  IF-83, Exit Velocity: 95
6-foot-2, 205-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance with loose hands in a higher initial position, uses a fluid rock back into a long stride with a smooth push back of his hands to get loaded, lower half fires to create some initial separation and keeps him balanced but doesn’t always allow his hips to get fully cleared, swing plane is flat through the zone with some lift at the end, very strong kid can drive through the ball with gap-to-gap pop that could end up developing into some real power.  Defensively, showed soft hands and smooth footwork at the corner, played through the ball with confidence, exchange used a glove pat at times, athletic arm action comes through a high ¾ slot. One of the top unsigned hitters still available in Tennessee’s 2017 class.

Bill Hamilton, 3B/1B, Montgomery Central, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.54, Position Velocity:  IF-81, Exit Velocity: 96
6-foot-3, 225-pound, RHH hits from a taller and open stance with some slight hand movement to begin, uses a leg kick and stride with a smooth and subtle movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half fires well but can pull him forward and tall through contact, bat path is slightly up through the zone, topped some balls but really drove the ones he was able to square up, very strong kid could have some serious pop.  Defensively, showed good hands and smooth footwork at the corner, consciously played around and through the ball with momentum headed toward 1B, exchange included a glove pat but led to a short arm action through a low ¾ arm angle.

Braden Lawson, 3B, Sequatchie County, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.83, Position Velocity:  IF-76, Exit Velocity: 78
6-foot-3, 185-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and slightly open stance with some quiet hand positioning to start, uses a leg kick and a smooth movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half creates some separation but seems to drag through the zone at times instead of really exploding, bat path is pretty steep through the zone because of his body’s drift forward, could’ve been stronger through contact.  Defensively, showed average hands and footwork at the corner, fielded a few balls a little too deep and on his heels, exchange used a glove pat and led to a long arm action through a high ¾ angle.

Catchers

Caleb Thomas, C, Antioch, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.71, Pop Time: 1.95-2.08, Position Velocity:  C-77, Exit Velocity: 85
6-foot-1, 160-pound, LHH hits from a more narrow and even stance with some lower initial hand positioning to start, uses a leg kick and a closed stride with a fluid movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half works well and starts to create separation but can’t get his hips cleared because of how closed off he is, swing plane comes steeply in and out of the zone, gets a little boxy and comes around the ball but creates good bat speed. Defensively, showed good hands and quick footwork behind the plate, gets aligned well and uses a quick exchange and short arm action to get rid of the ball through a near over-the-top slot, throws were pretty firm.

Justin Vaden, C/RHP, Gordonsville, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.68, Pop Time: 2.02-2.11, Position Velocity:  C-75, Exit Velocity: 83
6-foot-0, 185-pound, RHH hits from a balanced and even stance with only some subtle movement in his hands before the pitch, uses a longer stride and a slight movement back with his hands to get loaded, lower half pulls him forward and out onto his front foot, bat path comes into the zone steeply but quickly turns upward through contact and finish, best when he stays up the middle.  Defensively, showed above-average hands and footwork behind the plate, short and high exchange led to a short arm action through a high ¾ slot.

Landon Hendrix, C, Lexington, 2017
Home-1^st: 4.71, Pop Time: 2.10-2.22, Position Velocity:  C-72, Exit Velocity: 84
6-foot-2, 175-pound, RHH hits from a wide and even stance with his barrel beginning up over his head, uses a short and closed stride and a slight pushback of his hands to get loaded, lower half fires well and does a good job of getting his hips through, bat path is flat through the zone put gets on top of the ball, could loosen up a little bit to drive the ball.  Defensively, showed good hands and above-average footwork behind the plate, exchange just took too long with too long of a load in his short arm action, short arm action through a near over-the-top slot.