Jake
Rons

2019 Cathedral Catholic (LBSU) RHP, 6-foot-2 180 pounds. Started on the mound and went the distance for the Dons. Made two mistakes with his first pitch of the outing as he left a fastball over the plate that got punished for a solo home run by Keoni Cavaco and a fastball up and in to Marcelo Mayer for a double. Settled in after that and cruised through the Eastlake lineup. Fastball ranged 86-88 mph and topped at 90 mph. Located his slider away well garnering swings and misses and quick outs. Looked like a solid college pitcher down the line.

RHP Jake Rons is listed at 6-foot-2 180 pounds and is currently uncommitted. Rons has made 5 starts so far this season with a stat line of 26 INN, 1.35 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 220 OBA and 24 strikeouts. Making his first league start against St. Augustine he finished with a stat line of 7 INN 4H 0R 1BB 7K. Continuing his competitive nature Rons attacked the zone challenging hitters to make contact. Had a lot of success locating the fastball down in the zone playing off the pitches natural sink and run that ranged from from 86-88 mph topping at 89 mph. Displayed an inconsistent curveball that was effectively wild ranging from 74-76 mph. At times he slowed his arm down to try and control the curveball which in turn caused glove side pull and a lower and upper half disconnect. When he kept his arm speed consistent with his fastball his curveball featured sharp break with swing and miss capability. Showed a quality change-up a handful of times in the 72-74 mph range with run and fade and the same arm speed action as his fastball. The change-up has potential to be an effective pitch and should be used more and continued to be developed. Rons is having success and is at his best when he works off his fastball, could be the best uncommitted 2019 in San Diego county.

1/19/19- 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, strong pitchers build with plus lower half strength. Competes on the mound and challenges hitters with a four-pitch mix through a repeatable delivery and quick fluid arm action. Displays level shoulders, good balance and tall and drive lower half mechanics. Occasionally flies open causing spin off towards the first base side, which hinders command. 4-seam fastball worked in the 88-89 mph range and the 2-seam fastball ran and sank from 84-85 mph. Displayed a tight slider with swing and miss action at 77 mph and a curveball with depth at 75-76 mph. Further development of the slider coupled with growth and development could make him a power college arm down the line.

1/19/19 - Jake Rons is No. 104 in the state Class of 2019 rankings and could see a jump in that standing with more outings like the one he put together on Saturday. He worked 88-89 with his fastball that was jumping out of his hand with excellent command. His fastball was sharp and showed late break at 75-76 resulting in swing-and-miss or weak roll over contact. Rons flashed a sharp slider at 77 that buckled a hitter. He challenged all hitters by moving the ball in-and-out while also elevating the fastball for strikes making for uncomfortable at-bats. By my count there was one ball that can be classified as being hit hard and that was a late swing by the hitter that shot the pitch the other way.