Merrick
Bostock

Same as the previous report with the addition of his recent stint in CF at the West Coast Games. Will make the move to the OF this next spring at Orem as his athleticism, running speed and instincts play well in the OF. The arm has some unorthodox hinges and played through a hand injury last season that hampered his throwing, though it’s not a strong suit, but this didn’t limit his options to commit. Made a couple of really nice running catches on the last day of the West Coast Games vs Canada, as he took off at the crack of the bat on a deep drive to LCF and made the ice the shoulder running catch and banged into the wall. Should be able to stick in CF after rep upon rep and hard focused work in that area. Upside of a sleeper type prospect, that D1’s will regret not giving more focus to. The bat is the BIG TOOL!

Bostock came into the event with a noticeable change and improvement to his pre-pitch load at foot strike and it has dramatically improved his swing plane and the efficiency of his overall swing. Instead of a lay back open barrel load, Bostock now get to the MLB logo, 45 degree look and has really tightened up his hand path to the baseball and shortened the overall stroke. With good extension out front, a once “let go” of the top hand, now shows a strong dominant top hand, into a quick and powerful two hand finish past contact. The defense still remains consistent and gobbles up balls with soft hands out front and an efficient easy throwing stroke that doesn’t play big, but gets rid of it quickly and is accurate with his throws. This is my pick to click in ‘24, to have a monster year and jump the board as a result and have D1 teams contacting him soon!

Bostock represented Team Utah at the summer’s PBR Future Games and he remains one of the most interesting uncommitted athletes in the region. Listed at 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, Bostock’s right-handed strength resulted in the highest average exit speed (95.5 mph) at the PBR Utah State Games, recording a 100.8 mph max. A report from PBR Utah’s Top Prospect Games (published July 20): “A lean, athletic, physical look, that appears to be still filling out… Has some funk and a different way of hitting, yet has above-average hand/eye to find the barrel with a short compact stroke at contact, and a long through finish. The knack to find the barrel in a quirky way to the naked eye to hit, is fascinating, in that he can hit velo and makes adjustments to offspeed.”

A lean athletic physical look, that appears to continue filling out, the more I’ve seen him. A tall upright approach to hit, from a semi open stance to hit. High hands and takes his hands higher into his load in an unconventional approach in his setup and overall operation to hit. Lays the barrel open on approach to start the hands towards the baseball. Has some funk and a different way of hitting, yet has abv avg hand/eye to find the barrel in a short compact stroke at contact, and a long through finish. The knack to find the barrel in a quirky way to the naked eye to hit, is fascinating, in that he can hit velo and makes adjs to off speed. With a max EV of 100.6 at the Preseason All-State w/a hand speed of 23.4 and max bat speed of 75.5, gives promise that the hands are hitter-ish. At the Top Prospect Games, the BP was solid as he barreled balls at a 70% hard hit rate, while keeping the plane of the bat in direct contact with the baseball at an 86% rate of accuracy. Defensively needs to work on his footwork and his approach to the baseball. Looks to be a more reactive and instinctive type defender that works better on a corner, where he likes to play side to side and not go get the baseball. Could see a more physical 2B type with the bat or is athletic enough to play an OF corner with the bat his carrying tool.

Week 8 (April 24-30) Stat Line

G 4 AB 12 R 11 H 10 HR 2 RBI 13 2B 4 BB 2

5/3/23

This hands down for the week of April 24-30, should have been the PBR Utah Player of the Week! I'm embarrassed to say that I missed this performance, due to his school not inputting their stats on a weekly basis. All Bostock did was absolutely dominate in every phase of the game, and from the plate, was as hot as a hitter can be. But it was worth the snub, as I picked up on it, and was straddling the fence, and Bostock made the decision easy for me, as he will earn an invite and trip to Lakepoint in Atlanta, as part of #TeamUtah, at the 2023 PBR Future Games!

Positional Profile: 3B/SS Young 15 yr mold MIF from a very good HS program at Orem HS. Has present strength to drive the baseball with loft. Has actions in the middle to develop and work from. The arm and speed will come as he gains lower body mass and strength, along with added arm strength. Current level projection is JUCO.
Body: 5-11, 170-pounds. Lean lanky proportioned frame w/considerable room for weight and strength gains.
Hits: RHH. Even prop square stance w/the bat over his back shoulder in a flat setup. lift the barrel back to a 10-15 degree vertical angle for his load. Uses a small lift of his foot and sets his down softly Fires the bat in a slightly uphill tight compact stroke, and impacts the ball out front. Spins through the ball w/an upright posture and whips the bat into a high one hand follow through.
Power: 95 max exit velocity, averaged 84.2 MPH. 361' max distance. Has present strength and can drive the ball deep as he led the underclass group with a max batted ball distance of 361 ft.
Arm: RH. INF-73 mph. Below avg arm right now and should increase as he continues to build overall arm and body strength. Shorter INF type compact arm action. Needs to get his feet set and under him, to better his accuracy on his throws across the diamond.
Defense: Semi aggressive approach to the ball and bends at the waist and knees, and does need to get into his legs better, and get his torso down and over the ball, get into a better sight line. Think back flat, like a table top.