CROSBY, TX - Cooler weather and cloud cover cleared the way for a beautiful day in the Houston Area with lots of sunshine and light breeze. Thirty players in the 2021-2022 grad classes were on hand for the Future Games Trials to try and earn a coveted spot on the PBR Texas Future Games team that will compete at the beginning of August. Only the top twenty uncommitted underclassman in the state will earn an invite. Last years Future Games Team was a huge success with much of that club having already chosen a college. Here is a quick look of what we saw on Sunday.

2021 RHP/OF Jacob Guzman (Alice HS) is already committed to Texas-Rio Grande Valley and is currently ranked No. 54 in the Texas 2021 Class with an athletic frame at 5-foot-10, 165-pounds. On the mound, the right-hander has a quick arm swing from a high-¾ slot and the fastball jumps out of his hand at 84-86 mph. Curveball has good shape and rotation at 69-71, while his changeup has quality arm side fade at 75-76. A right-handed hitter, Guzman has a balanced setup with simple rhythm that allows him to repeat his hack with a short, direct path and quick hands producing hard contact and line drives through the middle of the field.

2021 SS/RHP Tyler Abrego (Argyle HS) had a solid all around day and has a seasoned presence about him. The right-handed hitter drove the ball from the middle to oppo gap with an inside-out path and quick hands. Handles the ball really well at shortstop, can start and finish the pivot in the middle and knows how to throw from different slots with a quick exchange and easy arm swing to make accurate throws with a top velocity across the diamond of 84 mph. On the mound, the right-hander has a smooth, athletic delivery with a clean arm swing. His fastball topped out at 81, sitting mostly 79-81 mph and throwing a quality changeup at 72-73 mph.

2021 RHP/3B Cole Brady (Central Heights HS) has an aggressive hack that produces hard contact with lift and strength in the barrell. On the infield, he shows the actions, glove play, and arm strength that should allow him to stay at third moving forward. On the mound, he pitched at 80-82 mph with his fastball and threw a plus splitty for strikes with late drop off the table at 71-73 mph.

Batting practice was really solid for such a young group, and there were plenty of hitters that showed that they can handle the bat, including 2022 OF Noah Pate (Sweeny HS) who laced line drives through the middle of the field from gap to gap with a top exit velocity of 86 mph off the tee. 2021 C/1B Matthew Drabbant (Dayton HS) uses a simple toe-tap to create good timing and generate leverage with ease as he drove the ball through the middle of the field with loose hands and strength in the barrel. 2022 RHP/3B Garrett Nail took an outstanding round during BP. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound left-handed hitter was on the barrel and hit the ball hard from the middle to pull side. Two other left-handed hitters took a solid round of BP, including 2022 SS Tristan Zarella (Clear Falls HS), and Jett Moszkowicz (Klein Cain HS). Zarella ran a 7.14 60, while Moszkowicz ran a 7.11.

2021 C Kenneth Deck has an already strong frame at 6-foot-1, 170-pounds. The right-handed hitter has an aggressive hack with quality rhythm and loose hands. He hammered the ball around the yard and posted the top exit velocity of the day at 93 mph. Deck also threw 74 mph from the crouch and threw strikes to second base with plenty of carry in the arm and pop times ranging from 2.1-2.19.

2022 OF/RHP Carson Queck (Woodlands Christian Academy) has a big, strong, muscular frame at 6-foot, 190-pounds. The right-handed hitter made hard contact during BP as he squared it up on the barrel, launched a home run and posted an exit velocity of 91 mph. Queck also threw 88 mph from the outfield.

2021 1B/RHP Joshua Barnhouse stands 6-foot-5, 210-pounds with an already projectable frame and plenty of upside that should put him on a ton of colleges recruiting radars as the velocity is likely to jump in the next calendar year - and he wears a size 16 shoe. The right-hander works from a high slot with a clean arm swing and an athletic delivery and good hip turn down the mound. He shows feel for four pitches with tilt on his fastball at 77-79 mph, a 67-68 mph curveball, a 72-73 mph slider, and he has a solid changeup that he throws for a strike with arm side run at 72-73 mph.

2021 RHP/1B Trajan Lee (St. Thomas) is already 6-foot-2, 190-pounds but still has room to fill out. The right-hander topped out at 83 mph on the bump, sitting mostly 80-82, spinning a 65-68 mph curveball, and throwing his changeup for strikes at 66-70 mph. The right-handed hitter starts from a tall setup, using a slight leg kick for timing that allowed him to be on time and on the barrel during BP with gap power and lots of carry. He stroked balls to the left-centerfield gap and posted a top exit velocity of 90 mph off the tee.

I like the way 2021 SS Reece Parrott (Newman Smith HS) swings the bat. The right-handed hitting infielder shows feel for the barrel with a good sense of timing and rhythm that should allow him to draw the attention of college recruiters early in the process. Starting from a slightly crouched stance, he loads smooth as he triggers his hands back, landing with separation and creating a leveraged hack with loose hands that keep the barrel in the zone a long time. Could say the same thing about 2021 SS/C Gerardo Salinas (Milby HS) who has a high-waisted, long-limbed frame at 6-foot-1, 180-pounds. The right-handed hitter has a balanced setup with good rhythm as he triggers his hands, landing with separation and getting the barrel through contact with loose hands and easy effort. At shorstop, he makes an excellent first step on ground balls, keeping his chest and shoulders stacked over his feet as he cuts distance. Really like the way he stays in his legs as he starts the double play, and he can throw on the run.

2021 OF/RHP Josiah Lewis (HSAA) ran the fastest 60 time of the day at 6.82-seconds, and has a long-limbed, lean-muscular frame at 6-foot-1, 175-pounds. His fastball sat 82-84 mph, while his curveball was 70-73, and he also mixed in a changeup at 78-80. 2021 OF Lawson Knight (Round Rock HS) ran a 6.96 60-yard dash and showed a quick bat that produced hard contact with lift and a top exit velocity of 87 mph. 2022 SS Collin Coker (Sweeny HS) has a long-limbed, projectable frame at 6-feet, 160-pounds, and does a nice job of playing low through the baseball with soft hands out front. 2022 SS Dylan Yanes (Langham Creek HS) has an athletic, twitchy frame at 5-foot-7, 135-pounds and has a quick first step at shortstop.

The youngest player in attendance was 2023 C/SS Dillon Lester (Deer Park HS), and this was our second time seeing him in the past 6 months. He has the skill set right now to compete with guys several years his elder. The switch-hitter can handle the bat from both sides of the plate even though his right-handed hack is more polished, he still shows plenty of promise from the left side. Athletic defender at two premium positions, he plays catch at a high level with clean transitions, soft hands, and quick footwork with game speed tempo, moving with a bounce in his step and confident demeanor. It’s not just his skills that suggest that this youngster has played up with older teams, he has a seasoned presence, and communicates at a high level.

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