Adam Akin
Director of Scouting


The 2016 PBR Tennessee Unsigned Senior Games took place on Sunday, September 18 at Woody Hunt Stadium on the campus of Cumberland University and included a position player workout, followed by pitcher bullpens.  The original schedule was adjusted, due to heavy rain on Saturday evening. Players were afforded the opportunity to showcase their abilities to the PBR Tennessee staff and college coaches in attendance. The following is our evaluation of every pitcher that was assigned to the Royal Team in Sunday’s action.

 

Jacob Gossett, RHP, Brentwood, 2017
Max FB: 84, FB: 82-84, CB: 70-71, CH: 70-73,
6-foot-0, 165-pound, RHP is explosive on the mound and seems to have an aggressiveness that’s hard to teach, his hands start in a high position together and stay there until his high leg lift reaches them to trigger his separation, gathers well at the top and gets some slight shoulder tilt before heading toward the plate, front hip leads toward the plate and stride leg lands just a tad closed, explodes and almost jumps toward the hitter, arm action was long and quick and used some effort to come through a high ¾ release point, also showed ability to drop down.  Fastball seemed heavy and stayed mostly straight with some slight run, curveball didn’t have a ton of movement but had very sharp and late 11/5 shape, changeup showed slight run.  74-76 from sidearm angle.

Nick Cummings, 1B/RHP, Davidson Academy, 2017
Max FB: 84, FB: 81-84, CH: 73-76, SL: 72-73
6-foot-1, 180-pound, RHP uses a motion with a slower and consistent rhythm that help him to build up to his release, long and lanky build adds some deception to his delivery as he seems to be throwing a lot of body parts at you and gets down the mound quite a ways, hands come up with a higher leg lift and lead to some good shoulder tilt when he gathers at the top, reaches back with his hand to start a long and loose arm action through a high ¾ release point, finishes with a slight fall toward 1B after a slightly closed stride toward the plate.  Fastball seemed heavy but remained mostly straight, slider showed 10/4 shape with some sharp and late break, changeup was a change of pace but could be a little erratic.

Brayden Barnes, 1B/RHP, Rossview, 2017
Max FB: 83, FB: 81-83, CB: 70-72, CH: 72-73,
6-foot-1, 185-pound, RHP uses a very calm and consistent motion in which he stays very connected throughout his release, delivery is easily repeated and looks the same for all three pitches, hands come down on his rocker step and back up with his leg lift to form good rhythm, very slight shoulder tilt at the top and a longer arm action that comes through a ¾ to high ¾ slot lead to an in-line stride and a very balanced finishing position, arm works well without too much effort.  Fastball stayed mostly straight but was controlled well, curveball had gradual movement with 11/5 to 12/6 shape, changeup was a simple change of pace.

James Hale, 1B/LHP, Spring Hill, 2017
Max FB: 81, FB: 77-81, CB: 63-67, CH: 72-73,
6-foot-1, 195-pound, LHP showed a very smooth and rhythmic delivery that likely gets the most out of what he has to offer, worked with good tempo and a connected motion to stay athletic and maintain consistency on the mound, fairly high leg lift helps him to get closure with his front side and to add some tilt to his shoulder alignment, leads with his front hip toward the plate and swings his front foot around to land ever so slightly closed, gets over his front side with a long and loose arm action through a high ¾ release point and falls a little toward the 3B side on occasion. Fastball showed slight run late in the zone, curveball wasn’t his most consistent pitch but did show the potential to be sharp with 1/7 action, changeup was straight.

Zachary Wallace, OF/RHP, Goodpasture Christian School, 2017
Max FB: 81, FB: 78-81, CB: 70-71, CH: 72-73,
5-foot-10, 185-pound, RHP has a lot of energy on the mound certainly uses it to his advantage, begins his motion a little slower paced and under control and leads that into a quick and explosive finish toward the plate, hands begin lower and come up with his leg lift, strides just slightly closed and recoils a little bit upon release of each pitch and swings his back leg around his body, short arm action comes through an over-the-top slot.  Fastball showed run through the zone, curveball had some powerful and sharp 12/6 shape that was kept down in the zone, changeup had quite a bit of arm side run but could be a little erratic.

Daniel Willie, RHP/OF, Ooltewah, 2017
Max FB: 80, FB: 77-80, CB: 62-65, CH: 66-68,
6-foot-2, 160-pound, RHP was mostly the same pitcher we saw at the East Tennessee Prospect Games with a little more polish, threw strikes with the first six pitches of his bullpen and seemed to do it with ease, stays loose throughout his delivery and does a good job of getting down the mound and closer to the hitter, natural arm action comes through that high ¾ slot with low effort and balance in his finish.  Fastball stayed mostly straight but was thrown on the corners for strikes, curveball showed some gradual 11/5 shape, changeup had some fade in the zone.

Maddox Vondohlen, 3B/RHP, Stewarts Creek, 2017
Max FB: 80, FB: 77-80, CB: 70-71, CH: 69-72,
5-foot-10, 185-pound, RHP uses a motion with a slower start and some build up that leads to a quick finish that jumps at the hitter, leg lift gets his front hip loaded and his shoulder line very closed off, leads with his front hip to a slightly closed landing, gets over his front side with a jump toward the plate, arm action drops the ball down and brings it straight back up for a quick release through an over-the-top slot, usually finishes in a balanced spot.  Fastball showed some run that was occasionally very hard, curveball had 12/6 shape and was kept down in the zone, changeup was a change of speed. 

Daniel Holmes, RHP, Lebanon, 2017
Max FB: 78, FB: 75-78, CB: 63-65, CH: 69-71, SL: 65-67
6-foot-1, 160-pound, RHP uses a controlled and smooth motion that leads into a unique delivery at the high school level, begins with normal movements including a higher leg lift and leads to a closed front shoulder and stride toward the plate, long arm action comes through a sidearm slot with some quickness, arm action seems natural, finishes mostly balanced, stays loose throughout delivery.  Fastball showed consistent run and sink through the strike zone, raises arm slot on curveball for 11/5 shape, changeup was straight, slider was his best off-speed pitch with sharp 10/4 action.

Gresham Mosley, 2B/RHP, Stewarts Creek, 2017
Max FB: 80, FB: 76-80, CB: 60-62, CH: 65-67,
5-foot-10, 155-pound, RHP uses a simple motion that doesn’t use a whole lot of wasted movement at all, a rocker step and a quick and short leg lift get him to his point of release rather quickly, alignment stays straight with his stride and even shoulder tilt, long arm action turns quick to catch up with his movement toward the plate through a high ¾ slot, low effort delivery with good finishing balance.  Fastball stayed straight, curveball showed 11/5 shape when he broke it off and was consistently in the zone, changeup showed some late fade and was also thrown for strikes.

Jackson South, LHP, Zion Christian Academy, 2017
Max FB: 77, FB: 74-77, CB: 59-62, CH: 71-72,
6-foot-1, 170-pound, LHP threw completely out of the stretch in a likely effort to stay simpler and more connected, keeps his body almost totally still throughout his leg lift and until his final movement toward the plate, strides in line after an athletic shoulder tilt and leads with a straight front leg into a balanced finish, a shorter arm action remains pretty loose and comes through a high ¾ to over-the-top slot.  Fastball stayed mostly straight, curveball showed gradual 1/7 shape into the zone, changeup was a solid change up pace but didn’t show a ton of movement, all three pitches were consistently thrown for strikes with just a little bit of effort.

Chase Nichols, 3B/RHP, Clarksville, 2017
Max FB: 76, FB: 71-76, CB: 59-61, CH: 69-70,
6-foot-1, 155-pound, RHP works with good tempo and what seems to be a lot of moving parts throughout his motion, lanky pitcher is quite athletic and uses that to his advantage, a high leg lift shows his range of motion and brings his hands up to head level and behind him, entire front side gets closed with his leg lift and leads to a closed stride and landing, explodes toward the plate with a short but loose arm action through a high ¾ to over-the-top slot, finishes mostly balanced with a slight fall toward 1B.  Fastball was mostly straight, curveball showed some gradual 11/5 shape through the zone, changeup had late fade at the plate.

Braden Forrester, LHP, Roane County  (Kingston), 2017
Max FB: 76, FB: 73-76, CB: 63-65, CH: 67-69,
6-foot-2, 190-pound, LHP uses some timing and rhythm in his delivery to build some momentum and get himself headed toward the plate, big lefty showed a fairly high leg lift which led to a little bounce at the top to get gathered, separates by straightening his lead leg and reaching down the mound and landing in line toward the plate, shoulders stay mostly even throughout his delivery, doesn’t use as much of his body as he could and tends to rely more on his arm strength than he should have to, short but pretty loose arm action comes through a ¾ slot and helps him to stay balanced through his release.  Fastball showed some slight but consistent run, curveball had gradual 1/7 to 2/8 movement, changeup showed some slight sink coming into the zone.

Aaron Dittmer, RHP, Centennial, 2017
Max FB: 75, FB: 74-75, CB: 65-69, CH: 67-70,
6-foot-1, 200-pound, RHP uses a simple delivery that can seem a bit mechanical, doesn’t utilize his athleticism as much as he could, leg lift doesn’t quite get his front side loaded up and opens up a tad bit too soon, does stay in a good line toward the plate on his stride and landing, arm action is natural and comes through a high ¾ to over-the-top slot but seems to tighten up just before release, finishes very balanced and under control.  Fastball was straight but was thrown for strikes, curveball showed gradual 12/6 to 11/5 shape, changeup was mostly straight but was a good change of pace and showed some occasional fade through the zone.