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Wisconsin Class of 2021 Rankings: Newcomers

August 30, 2019
By Andy Sroka & Steve Nielsen
Wisconsin Staff

Yesterday, we updated the state’s class of 2021 rankings for the first time since April and detailed the prospects currently sitting in the top-10. Today, we’re going to break down the rest of the top-80, highlighting both the prospects making their ‘21 rankings debuts, as well as the prospects who’ve climbed the highest up the board over the last five months.

The summer between these prospects’ sophomore and junior school years is an important one for many reasons, but considering there are a handful of invite-only, premium showcase events that lead up to the incoming junior-centric PBR Future Games, it’s arguably the most important for us and our team of evaluators.

So, firstly, we’re going to be highlighting this class’ debutants in our Newcomers post. Below, we have notes on all of the new faces ranked on our 2021 board, none of whom are committed, with accompanying notes.

NEWCOMERS

Firstly, from River Falls, is our highest prospect debuting on the board: the two-way prospect Jaden Schwantz. He’s a pretty physical, athletic player who showed well at both PBR Minnesota and Wisconsin events he attended in 2019. Schwantz swings a hard left-handed bat and runs a sub-7.00, which helps him defend on the outfield grass. The left/left River Falls prospect also sits 82-84 mph on the mound, enhancing his overall profile. He comes in ranked at No. 41.

Jaden Schwantz (7/2/19)

Oak Creek’s Zach Peterson is one of many prospects jumping aboard this list coming off fantastic summers. Peterson, in particular, showed very well in front of our staff, both at events and at PBR-hosted tournaments like the Badger State Battle and at the PBR at The Rock Championships. He’s a top-of-the-order second base-type who started for the Knights in the spring as a sophomore, a team that earned its way to state. Peterson also served as a regular spark for the same STiKS team that won both aforementioned PBR tourneys, utilizing twitch across his game – similar to the prospect ranked just a spot below him… 

Anthony Gross (Catholic Memorial) is another twitchy prospect who helped STiKS Academy’s 16U Black squad dominate this summer. His on-field and at-the-plate intellect are instinctual and it helps him in the outfield, especially. He’s another lead-off type with a smooth, quick right-handed swing. Both Peterson and Gross are ranked inside the top-50.

Anthony Gross (7/2/19)

Count Jack Stecker among the budding and bright Blue Dukes growing at Whitefish Bay. Whitefish Bay is rostering one of, if not the, youngest and most talented dugouts in the state and Stecker is entrenched in that mix. His athleticism was on display at The Rock this summer – he’s a good runner with arm strength, which boosts his defensive profile from the outfield.

We caught Bennett Spaeth (De Pere) along the same tournament circuit this summer and he was getting himself on base non-stop with his natural bat-to-ball skills. He hit in the two-hole for ISA Stars in our looks and profiles that way moving forward, as a barrel control type with natural line-drive contact to all fields.

Spaeth’s teammate Braydon Skenandore – both at De Pere and for ISA – also has that innate feel to hit in the right-handed batter’s box. He swings a loose, quick bat that’s able to punish baseballs with over-the-fence results.

Peyton Seebacher (Muskego) has an all-around toolset – he’s an above-average runner with a strong arm, athleticism, and a feel to hit from the left side. His 6-foot-1, 170-pound frame offer some additional upside as well, which has helped him land the No. 60 spot on the ‘21 board.

MORE TO KNOW

+ Anthony Tomczak (Muskego): A reliable receiver with catch-and-throw skills to go along with a strong right-handed bat.

+ Noah Berndt (Winneconne): He’s a really strong and physical 6-foot-2, 215 pounds which he uses well in the right-handed batter’s box. Strong hacks with an all-fields approach.

+ Mason Dado (St. Croix Central): A smooth and easy right-hander with arm speed who sits in the low-80s – reached back into the 84-85 mph range at the Western Wisconsin Open.

+ Owen Anderson (Hudson): A strong and athletic 6-foot-1 righty with a quick arm and a low-80s fastball with jump.

+ Aaron Huibregtse (Oostburg): A smaller-statured right-hander who works with confidence and moxie from the mound. A ¾ slot who mixes in a sinker/slider. 

+ Taylor Brauer (Union Grove): A projectable southpaw who works in the upper-70s to low-80s with a loose arm and feel. He made a solid impression at our All-State Games event.

+ Carsen Stenberg (Webster): The starting center fielder on a state championship Tigers team. A compact left-handed hitter with sound hand/eye skills and a feel to hit.

+ Jacob Hartlaub (Martin Luther): 6-foot-2 two-way prospect with projection. A long and lean frame who moves well on the infield and is a savvy up-the-middle defender.

+ Boone Mathison (Tomah): A true center fielder who runs true routes with instinct. He’s an athlete with a lead-off-type bat.

+ Nolan Rowe (Rice Lake): An athletic and strong backstop, standing in at 6-foot-1, with above-average arm strength and quick catch-and-throw skills.

+ Kale Dietz (Burlington): One of the other under-the-radar prospects who starred for STiKS’s big summer. A lean/strong athlete with above-average bat strength from the right side.

+ Connor Brinkman (New London): A loose and easy left-hander with upside. Fastball comes out clean, with angle, sneaky feel complemented by an above-average breaking ball.

+ Ethan Rothbauer (Bloomer): Another twitchy athlete who earned his spot on this board. A sub-6.70 runner with bat speed and defensive instincts.

+ Matteo Bonnin (Hudson): A left/left outfielder with athleticism as a sub-6.90 runner. A quick left-handed bat with some defensive upside, too.

+ Reece Piontek (Denmark): A projectable left-hander who was up to 79 mph in February. He’s a 6-foot-2, 160-pound slender lefty who just missed last update.

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