By Brandon Hall
North Carolina Director of Scouting

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Tuesday July 25th brought about the first outdoor invitation event with Prep Baseball Report in North Carolina.  A roster of over 50 elite players, mainly from the 2018 class, with a few 2019's sprinkled in, met at Boshamer Stadium on the campus of the University of North Carolina.  The all-star event was attended by college coaches and pro scouts as well as national crosscheckers from PBR.

Each player ran through a full workout, including multiple rounds of BP on the field and exit velocity testing in a cage area.  Defensively, players were put under the spotlight, working out from their primary position.  Players, divided into four teams, then played in a controlled scrimmage, facing live pitching.  Each player was filmed and video, along with the updated statistics and an evaluation, will be added to the player's PBR Profile page.

The corner infield group in attendance presented with a good mix of physicality and athleticism.  Coaches and scouts in attendance, with a need for a corner guy, may have their pick of players based on different needs and wants. 

Corner Infield Analysis

 

Red Team CIF

 

Kyle Ehlers 3B / OF / Broughton, NC / 2018 Athletic frame at 6-foot-1, 190 pounds.  Tall base and early load from the right handed hitter.  Long stride, hands load down and in, and works to a bat path with some uphill leverage.  Wants extension with the above average bat speed.  Exit velocity peaked at 91 mph.  Ran a 4.81 down the line.  On the infield, average hands work to funnel to the midsection.  Clean exchanges and long arm action get to an over-the-top slot.  Feel for accuracy is present.  Average carry at 78 across the diamond.  Front side and head clear early to make room for the slot.

 

 

Cameron Roof 3B / SS / Apex , NC / 2018 Some strength is present in a 6-foot-3, 195 pound frame with length in the levers.  Room for continued strength to be added.  Advanced glove with soft hands and fluid feet.  Good rhythm and feel for the speed of the game on defense.  Clean exchanges, working from athletic positions.  Easy catch, funnel, exchange.  Long arm action has some stiffness working to a high-3/4 slot.  Occasionally short arms the ball.  Average accuracy with limited carry at times.  Positional velocity measured at 78 mph.  Right handed hitter starts balanced.  Waggle for rhythm and loads the bat head to a vertical position.  Casts his hands away from the body some as the bat works flat through the zone.  Peppers the pull side gap.  Good rhythm and looseness.  BP transferred into the game.  Exit velocity measured at 93 off the barrel.

 

 

Gold Team Analysis

 

Nicholas Caldwell 3B / 1B / Wesleyan Christian Academy, NC / 2018 Strength in present in a 6-foot-3, 205 pound build.  Room to continue to add strength to the frame.  Right handed hitter works for extension with looseness.  Ball jumps when on the barrel, with an exit velocity of 91.  Better than average bat speed works flat through the zone, with rhythm, staying gap-to-gap.   Leg kick loads the body from an athletic stance.  Long, aggressive stride allows for weight transfer up against the front side.  At times, thin through the ball if he catches the ball too far out front.  On the infield, long arm action has some stiffness as it works to an over-the-top slot.  82 across the diamond with average carry.  Clean exchanges as he caught the ball deep in stance.

 

 

Will Palinkas 3B / RHP / Providence, NC / 2018 Intriguing athlete at 6-foot-4, 200 pounds.  Plenty of room for added strength and seems to have maturity left in the body.  Right handed hitter works from a tall base and slightly open.  Leg kick loads the body back.  Aggressive stride as the hands pinch toward the body.  Better than average bat speed works flat through the zone, staying in the middle of the field with looseness.  Good feel for the barrel.  Exit velocity peaked at 92.  Defensively, has active feet and the ability to work from multiple slots.  Long arm swing showed carry and accuracy from the different angles, ranging from high-3/4 to low-3/4.  81 across the infield.  High at times with his hips, and funneling to a vertical position with the body, the hands work with some softness as he plays through most balls.  On the bump the fastball sat 80-83 from a ¾ and low-3/4 slot.  Can dream on the ability to lower the slot further if needed.  Two seam presented run to the arm side while pounding the zone.  Breaking ball comes from a higher slot with gradual 10/4 shape at 68-71.  Flashed harder tilt at 71 and showed feel for the strike zone with the spin pitch.  Worked through his outing missing barrels and limiting stress.  Long arm action and low leg kick.  Stays level and in-line, finishing with an athletic posture.

 

 

Koty Proctor LHP / 1B / Wesleyan Christian Academy, NC / 2018 Mature frame at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds.  Effortless catching the ball at first base.  Fluid feet and soft hands.  Ball works to the middle of the body for clean exchanges.  Loose arm works through a long arm action, showing an ability to throw from several slots, based on the play.  Moved off the bag well, setting his feet and showing accuracy.  Positional velocity of 80 mph.  Left handed hitter showed strength with an exit velocity of 93 off the barrel.  Swing is geared to line drives right now, but may mature to a lofted angle with age.  Better than average bat speed as the bat starts in a flat position, loading to a vertical position.  Balanced and tall in the setup, there is fluid rhythm throughout.  Average barrel awareness, there was some swing and miss in game situation but showed an ability to compete in at-bats.   On the mound the lefty works with an easy effort sitting 78-83 from a ¾ slot.  Long arm swing is loose.  Works level and on-line, attacking the zone with three pitches.  Change-up touched 69, getting swing and miss and setting fastball to look harder. Slowed the arm some on change, pushing it at times, but controlled the zone and hitters reacted to fastball on the pitch.  The breaking ball has 2/8 shape at 65 mph with a slower arm speed.

 

 

Blue Team CIF

 

Bryceson Hernandez 1B / OF / Panther Creek, NC / 2018 Loose, direct, and flat through the ball from the left side.  Showed an ability to find the barrel in BP and carried over to live game action.  Surprising strength in the 5-foot-10, 165 pound frame.  Exit velocity of 82 played better in games.  Works from a balanced setup with a short stride.  Good bat speed and a whippy bat through the zone.  Fluid, staying gap-to-gap.  Hammered three balls in the live scrimmage, accruing four hits on the day.  Worked out at 1B, catching the ball consistently, although deep at times.  Long arm action worked through some stiffness to an over-the-top slot.  Showed accuracy off the bag and from a deeper positioning, 71 out of the hand.  Athletic enough to hold his own in the outfield.  Showed decent quickness on the bases.

 

 

Alex Sniffen 3B / RHP / New Hanover, NC / 2019 Strength shows from the right side of the plate.  At 6-foot-4, 220 pounds the frame has maturity with strength throughout.  Balanced in the box the rhythm between the back side and hands does not always sync.  When it does the ball explodes off the bat, hitting one off the top of the scoreboard in BP at Boshamer Stadium.  Average bat speed, strength creates the exit velocity of 95 mph.  Works for extension, shows a pull side tendency in a level swing.  Swing may loosen some with age.  On the infield, fluid footwork, with rhythm in short spaces.  Plays high through the hips but funnels to the midsection to soften the hands.  Clean exchanges get to a long arm swing and an over-the-top slot, showing accuracy.  Average carry at 81 across the diamond.

 

 

Gray Team CIF

 

Caige Clayton 3B / RHP / Orange, NC / 2018 Average 5-foot-11, 175 pound frame.  Open stance from the right side.  Uses a waggle to create rhythm, loading down.  Short stride, dives back to an even base.  Better than average bat speed works with some uphill leverage and a pull tendency.  Occasionally sits and cuts across the zone.  High finish with the hands and average barrel awareness.  Fluid feet on the infield, playing through balls.  Inconsistent catch, but clean on exchanges.  Arm action can be manipulated by the play.  Over-the-top slot with a feel for accuracy.  Average carry at 79 mph across the field. Right handed pitcher sat 76-80, occasionally cutting the fastball.  Over-the-top slot with average arm speed.  Works with good rhythm, staying level and in-line.  Easy effort.  Two different breaking balls.  Curveball sat 63-65 with early, gradual 12/6 action.  Lacked some feel, burying the ball down in the zone, but on line with the glove.  Slider may have been cutter, at 73, with a late darting action.

 

 

Justin Wernoski 3B / 1B / East Chapel Hill , NC / 2018 Average build at 6-foot, 170 pounds.  Right handed hitter works from a balanced, athletic setup.  Good barrel awareness, working the middle of the field and producing an exit velocity of 84 mph.  Above average bat speed works level through the zone with good rhythm.  Short stride does dive towards the plate slightly.  Swing worked with some uphill leverage in game situations.  On the infield, tends to be direct to the ball and sit at the catch point.  Deep with his hands works to a long arm arc.  Some stiffness through the exchange and release.  High-3/4 slot measured 76 mph across the diamond.