HOUSTON, TX - On November 4th & 5th, we traveled to the University of Houston for the Hunter Pence Scout Day. The weekend started off on Saturday with the 2026 and 2027 scrimmages then continued on Sunday with the combine portion in the morning for all classes followed by the 2024 and 2025 scrimmages. The TrackMan pitching data was collected during gameplay and the TrackMan hitting data was collected during BP in the cages. Below, we take a look at the standouts from the weekend, starting with some of the upperclass players from Sunday, be on the look out for part two.

+ FULL STAT SHEET

Kaleb Steiger SS / 2B / Home School, TX / 2025 We had Steiger a couple weeks ago at one of our events, and looked sharp. This weekend he looked even better. The home school shortstop shows all the tools.  He is a good runner, running a 6.79.  He is smooth with the glove at short and shows good lateral movement. He has a plus arm, topping out at 92 mph across the diamond. At the plate, Steiger has a lot of bat speed and strength in his swing.  He had some good swings in gameplay and just missed leaving the yard. As he gets more consistent in the box, Steiger will be one of the most sought after players in the Houston area.

McClane Helton OF / 1B / CYPRESS WOODS H S, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 53 / POS: 7 The senior from Cypress Woods continues his ascent as one of the top hitters in Texas. The sweet swinging lefty showed his barrel to ball skills on Sunday with multiple good swings. Helton has good strike zone awareness, doesn’t expand the zone and is willing to use the whole field.  He continues to get more physical and the power has taken a step as well.  Helton has a plus glove at 1st, but he continues to show value in the OF.  His speed has taken a jump and he is consistently in the 6.9’s.  Helton also hopped on the mound for a few batters and showed off his improved arm strength. His fastball topped out at 87.5 mph with some sink.  The McLennan recruit is poised for a monster senior season.

Chase Fuentes C / OF / The Woodlands Christian, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 167 / POS: 19 Fuentes is a plus defender behind the plate, and it stands out right away. The arm is plus at 83 mph and he had a pop time of 1.93 sec. The Tyler JC commit also shows some power potential at the plate, as he had a max exit velocity of 95.6 mph. It can be tough to find a good defensive catcher with offensive upside, and Fuentes offers both.

Seth Sloan SS / 2B / Willis, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 178 / POS: 30 Sloan recently opened up his recruitment, and he put his skills on display on Sunday. He is a plus defender at SS, with good range and a reliable glove.  His instincts on the field really standout, he always seems to be in the right spot. He is a good runner, as he ran a 6.96 60. At the plate, Sloan is a switch hitter who profiles as someone who can do a little bit of everything at the plate. He handles the bat well, and ‘shows a good LD swing. He has gotten stronger and the ball jumped off the bat with more authority than it has in the past.  Sloan is one of the better gloves left in the 2024 class.

Trenton Buckley OF / RHP / Magnolia West, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 107 / POS: 22  The Louisiana Monroe recruit has one of the best arms in Texas and showed it off on Sunday during the showcase.  The Mag West product got everyone’s attention at 8:30 am when he threw 99.4 mph from the Outfield. Then he went to shortstop and was 94 across the diamond.  Buckley has the athleticism to play on either the dirt or outfield at the next level.  Buckley also had a nice swing during gameplay, where he showed plus bat speed. Where Buckley may have the most upside is the mound.  He topped out at 92.3 mph later in the day on the mound, and he is just scratching the surface.  When it is right, he can throw a high spin fastball with his IVB north of 20’’. He also throws a mid 80’s slider that shows potential. Buckley has the potential to really open some eyes this spring if he is in the strike zone.

Jose Arteaga RHP / 1B / Porter, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 150 / POS: 31  Arteaga showed off a big arm on Sunday on the mound. The uncommitted Senior from Porter had the 2nd highest FB velocity on the day with a max of 90.2.  The arm speed is impressive, and the fastball really played up at the top of the zone. He has a longer arm action, and can be a little inconsistent but when he is synced up, the fastball really plays. He throws a harder slider that flashed average, but has potential to make a jump as he tightens up the arm action. Arteaga is a good athlete and I think he has another velo jump as he tightens up the mechanics.

Austin Marlin OF / OF / Barbers Hill, TX / 2024 The 6’4 uncommitted outfielder oozes upside and tools. He ran a weekend best 6.7 second 60. He is an easy runner with his long strides. At the plate, he shows good bat speed and really started to barrel baseballs up this fall. There is some power potential there to go with some speed.  There is still some rawness to the swing, but he gets the barrel to the ball consistently. Marlin’s best baseball is ahead of him, and some college will be getting a steal with this one.

Chase Connell RHP / 1B / CYPRESS RANCH, TX / 2025 The 6’5 Jr. showed well on Sunday and should have plenty of college coaches attention. His fastball really stood out. He sat in the upper 80’s with it, and he showed the ability to really sink it. It also had a lot of run on it, getting north of 20’’ of HM.  He also throws a slider and changeup.  The slider is more of a stay off the barrel pitch right now, but the shape has potential to turn into a S/M pitch. The command of the change was inconsistent but it flashed good movement and he showed the ability to really kill the spin on it. Connell has the frame and the fastball to get plenty of coaches attention, and he is poised for a big 2024.

Ethan Muniz C / RHP / Cinco Ranch, TX / 2024 The Grayson recruit does a little bit of everything on the field.  He can catch, pitch, and handles the bat well also. He is smart behind the plate, and is a good receiver of the  baseball. He knows how to call a game also, showing his baseball IQ. He has a good arm and his pop times are at the 2.0 mark. He had some good swings and gameplay and barreled the ball up. He also hopped on the mound and flashed a good mix with a fastball that topped out 88.6. He also sprinkled in a mid 70’s slider that showed some bite.  Muniz is a good player, who does a lot of things well. He makes your team better.

Daniel Ontiveros 3B / RHP / Pearland, TX / 2024 Rankings  StateRank: 163 / POS: 9 One of the more impressive outings belonged to Ontiveros. The Alvin CC recruit had one of the better two pitch mixes on the day. He threw an upper 80’s fastball that showed good carry through the zone, and complimented it with a cutter/slider that comes out of the same window as his fastball. He threw it in the mid 70’s and got multiple swings and misses on that pitch. As he learns to throw that pitch harder, he should be able to rack up the strikeouts at the next level. Overall, a really good day for the Pearland righty.

Aiden Juarez OF / OF / Floresville , TX / 2025 One of the louder days belonged to Juarez. The Jr. from Floresville really stood out. He started his day by showing off his plus arm from the OF with a best bullet of 92 mph. Later in the day, he showed off his arm talent on the mound. His fastball topped out at 88.2 mph and he complimented it with a low to mid 70’s slider.  It is a clean arm, and he projects for more velo as he gets stronger.  Juarez also took the title for best exit velo on the weekend. He topped out at 99.6 mph and had a sweet spot % of a 100.  Juarez has a lot of tools, and should be followed closely in the spring.

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