Utah HS Team Preview: Bear River HS
March 14, 2023
Utah HS Team Previews - Bear River
Opening Day and the weekend has arrived! Jeff Scholzen (Utah Scouting Director) continues the 2023 season coverage with our annual preseason team previews, where we will take notes from coaches, and highlight returning players, newcomers, and some sleepers. Over the next couple of weeks and leading up to opening day, we will be highlighting some of the top programs in the state with our team previews.
As our ardent readers are aware, Team Previews are answered by the Head Coaches of those programs and the scouting reports embedded in the PBR player profiles of the top players, are written by state scouting director Jeff Scholzen, the states only full-time MLB Area Scouting supervisor ever.
With data partners Trackman Baseball, the leaders in measuring the ball flight and its characteristics off the bat for position players and out of the hand for pitchers. No one does it better. Blast Motion captures key swing metrics in evaluating the efficiency of the swing and where a player's swing is good or bad and what needs to be worked on. Swift Performance measures power output as an athlete with the EZ jump mat and collecting not only the 60 yard dash, but the 10 and 30 yard dashes as well. 3M technology measures key pitching mechanics and how the delivery through the body moves in sequence to produce and provide a more effortless and efficient delivery.
This season as in every past season, stats are collected across the state at the end of that week's play, with input from coaches, assistant coaches and ultimately myself in putting together comprehensive player content on a weekly basis with the following.
1. Weekly Utah Power 25 Overall Team Rankings (Monday)
2. Player and Pitcher of the Week, along with other notable player performances (Tuesday)
3. Player Spotlights throughout the spring of top players who are making their mark on the HS scene in capturing college recruiting looks.
4. I will be scouting games throughout the state and posting player videos on Twitter for college marketing purposes on a weekly basis and in some cases where action is flowing and games are staggered, such as the preseason tourneys down south on a daily basis.
Quick Footnote: Only 7% of all HS baseball players will play college baseball and the elite of that group, which consists of only 2% will play at the D1 level. These are the players I’m watching and gleaning information on. This is determined by objective data from events, as well as the subjective eye evaluations, honed from my 30 years at the college and professional level.
Bear River by the numbers
Head Coach: Donald Hawes
Classification: 4A
Region: 11
2022 Win-Loss: 23-7
2021 Win-Loss: 17-14
State Playoff appearances in last 10 years: 10
State Championship appearances last 10 years: 0
State Championships last 10 years: 0
2023 Preseason PBR Ranking: 10
Baseball Gear Day = Baseball Christmas! Let’s go! Making the Big Time Where We Are! pic.twitter.com/oKekgxO96F
— Coach Hawes (@DominateNxt200) March 3, 202
Key Returners with Class/Position
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Degan Rigby, Junior, P/1B/3B
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Gehrig Marble, Junior, 1B/3B/P
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Talon Marble, Junior, SS/2B
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Ryker Jeppsen, Senior, P
Player Analysis
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Degan Rigby RHP / Bear River, UT / 2024Rankings State Rank: 21 / POS: 6
Uncommitted9/17/22
Positional Profile: RHP/3B At 6-4 210 Lbs, Rigby has gone through a growth spurt and it has propelled his velocity forward with more in the tank as he irons out some max effort offerings right now. A strong farm town type kid, Rigby will be the ace of a talented Bear River squad that made a deep run in the 4A State tourney in St. George this past spring. Rigby should be counted on heavily as a junior this next spring and his 85-87 mph FB with a spin rate max of 2249, should take another tick upwards as he continues to tap into his frame and reach his man strength. The CB 67-70 has downward and TQ tilt and is spaced enough off his FB, that it creates a big spacing for hitters to cover both pitches. A flexible high kick to delivery and a loose HTQ arm action with plenty of arm speed to reach the low 90’s over the next couple of seasons, Rigby has received an invite to the upcoming invite only All-State Games and it will be interesting to see how he fares against other quality hitters looking for recruiting coverage and attention.
9/17/22
Positional Profile: RHP/3B At 6-4 210 Lbs, Rigby has gone through a growth spurt and it has propelled his velocity forward with more in the tank as he irons out some max effort offerings right now. A strong farm town type kid, Rigby will be the ace of a talented Bear River squad that made a deep run in the 4A State tourney in St. George this past spring. Rigby should be counted on heavily as a junior this next spring and his 85-87 mph FB with a spin rate max of 2249, should take another tick upwards as he continues to tap into his frame and reach his man strength. The CB 67-70 has downward and TQ tilt and is spaced enough off his FB, that it creates a big spacing for hitters to cover both pitches. A flexible high kick to delivery and a loose HTQ arm action with plenty of arm speed to reach the low 90’s over the next couple of seasons, Rigby has received an invite to the upcoming invite only All-State Games and it will be interesting to see how he fares against other quality hitters looking for recruiting coverage and attention.
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Gehrig Marble 1B / RHP / Bear River , UT / 2024Rankings State Rank: 38 / POS: 2
Uncommitted
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Holden Potter SS / RHP / Bear River, UT / 2025
Uncommitted |
Key players lost to graduation
Ashton Harrow
Hunter Harrow
Hunter Smoot
Alec Callister
Garrison Marble
Who is your X Factor to your success
We have a couple young guys that can play and how they adjust to varsity baseball will be key to our success.
Easton Goodliffe, Junior, P/INF
Kolton Summers, Sophomore, P/OF
Holden Potter, Sophomore, P/INF
Jessie Kidd, Junior, OF/P
Returning players who were named All-Region / All-State
Gehrig Marble 1st Team All Region 24 grad
Degan Rigby All-Region Honorable Mention 24 grad
Talon Marble All-Region Honorable Mention 24 Grad
List players you feel have college baseball potential*
Degan Rigby
Gehrig Marble
Jessie Kidd
Kolton Summers
Holden Pottter
Talon Marble
Coaches Summary and Outlook
We look forward to another competitive ball club this season. We graduated 7 seniors last year that were a big part of our success the past 4 seasons. We return 4 players that got significant varsity playing time last year, that we will look towards for leadership playing in one of the toughest classification top to bottom. Some tough blue collar seniors, mixed with some talented juniors and sophomores should provide us with a solid ball club. How fast our new ball club comes together, with the ability to throw strikes and play catch on the backside of those strikes will be the early story for us.
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Donald Hawes (Head Coach)
RELATED NEWS
JEFF SCHOLZEN (BIO)
Scholzen was brought on as the Utah Scouting Director for Prep Baseball Report after serving 9 years as the Four Corners Scouting Supervisor with the Milwaukee Brewers (2011-2020). Prior to his run with the Brewers, Scholzen worked for the Los Angeles Angels for 11 years (1999-2010), serving in a similar capacity as the Four Corners Scouting Supervisor. In all, Scholzen served as a full-time scout for 20 years. Scholzen also received a 2002 World Series ring for his contributions as a scout.
With the Angels, Scholzen created an Angels Scout Team, in which he coached the likes of current and former major league players: Kris Bryant, Kevin Gausman, Greg Bird, Tyler Wagner, Aaron Blair, Joey Rickard, Donn Roach, Johnny Field, Taylor Cole and Paul Sewald to name a few. During his run with the the Angels, Scholzen served as the hitting coach for the Angels rookie ball affiliate with the Pioneer League Orem Owlz, helping guide the Owlz to the 2005 and 2007 Pioneer League titles.
Prior to becoming a professional scout, Scholzen served as the head coach at Southern Utah University between 1993-1997. At the time, Scholzen was the youngest Division I head coach when he was first hired at 24 years old. The Southern Utah baseball program was dropped after the 2012 season. While coaching at Southern Utah, Scholzen served as the hitting coach for the Alaska Goldpanners in 1995, as they won the Alaska League Championship.
A native of Utah, Scholzen played at Hurricane HS and was twice named 1st team All-State and an AAU HM All-American, before moving on to Utah Valley CC and Eastern Oregon University, earning All-Conference honors on three separate occasions. Scholzen played in the Angels’ organization from 1991-1992.
3/4/23
Since we last saw Rigby at the Utah State Games last October, the FB has taken a step forward and touched 91, with a working velocity of 86-90 T91. The 6-4 210 frame/build, has the makings of a low 90's FB and is in this scouts opinion, a legitimate D1 prospect! The secondary needs to improve and be cleaner, with consistency and K's, but the body, aggressive delivery and arm strength, coupled with now velo and two years of HS left, the best is yet to come from this physical farm boy, that has produced some hard throwers from his HS in recent memory!
10/30/22
Rigby is a big strapping country kid from the upper reaches of the state, but has the frame and natural strength that come with being 6-4 210, to reach back and throw a mid to upper 80's FB now, with plenty in the tank over the next two years of HS. The FB 85-88 at the All-State Games was his best velo to date, since we first saw him at the Northern Utah Open 6-7 weeks ago. The CB 69-74 has TQ tilted depth and needs added spin to create bite, so the pitch will take that biting turn at the end, to create problems for hitters. Playing for a quality state contending program at Bear River HS, and having a former U Utah alum in Donnie Hawes, who also played in the Reds system, helps as he is around a solid HS baseball environment.