Prep Baseball Report

Preseason All-State Showcase: Outfield Analysis



By Matt Byrd
TN Director of Scouting

The Preseason All-State Showcase took place on February 7 at Showtime Sports Academy in Franklin and proved to be the most talented group of players we have assembled since we began running events in the state in August.

The following is a look at the outfielders, broken down by class, who participated in the event. This is position player analysis only. Those outfielders who also pitched at the event had their pitching evaluation featured in a previous article.

class of 2015 outfielders

Andrew O’Dwyer, Father Ryan HS, 2015, R/L, OF
The 5-foot-11, 185-pound outfielder ran a 6.90 60 yard dash and had an 85 mph position velocity, Defensively, O’Dwyer shows soft hands and fluid footwork, plays through the ball aggressively with athletic actions, has long arm action with a high-3/4 release and good arm strength.  At the plate O’Dwyer has a balanced setup with a short stride, showed fast bat speed with a 93 mph exit velocity off of the tee, is a gap to gap type hitter with power potential, has an aggressive approach at the plate and has a strong/athletic build.

Hal Bishop, Fulton HS, 2015, R/R, OF/3B
The 6-foot, 204-pound OF/3B ran a 6.85 60 yard dash time and had a position velocity of the following, INF-70 mph and OF 80 mph, Defensively Bishop has soft hands and fluid footwork, had a clean exchange and played through the ball, projects best as a corner outfielder at the next level.  At the plate, Bishop hits from an open setup and has a short stride, showed good balance, is a gap to gap type hitter with future power potential, Bishop had an 82mph exit velocity off the tee.

Stephen Smith, 2015, Blackman HS R/R, OF
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound outfielder ran a 7.03 60 yard dash time and had a position velocity of 85 mph, Defensively  Smith showed soft hands and quick footwork, showed good arm strength and quick instincts in playing through the baseball well. At the plate Smith hits from a balanced setup and showed a short stride, showed average bat speed and is a line drive type hitter, Smith had a good approach at the plate and showed the ability to hit to all fields, had an exit velocity of 80 mph.

Gage Seymour, Fulton HS, 2015, R/R, OF
The 6-foot, 180-pound outfielder ran a 7.07 60 yard dash and had a position velocity of 74 mph, defensively Seymour showed soft hands and good athletic ability, showed fluid footwork and quick instincts, has room to improve his arm strength and getting rid of the ball quicker. At the plate Seymour has a balanced setup with a short stride, showed good balance and average bat speed, line drive type hitter, 81 mph exit velocity off the tee, Seymour has a strong/athletic build.

Ryan Caldwell, Ezell Harding Christian, 2015, S/R, OF
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound OF ran a 6.59 60 yard dash time and had a position velocity of 80 mph, Defensively Caldwell had soft hands and quick footwork, showed good athletic ability and quick instincts. Caldwell had to leave for a high school tournament basketball game before participating in the batting practice portion of the event.

class of 2016 outfielders

Trevyne Carter, Soddy Daisy HS, 2016, L/R, OF
The 6-foot-2, 185-pound outfielder showcased his combination of speed, arm strength, and bat speed. Carter ran a 6.56 60 yard dash time and had an 88 mph position velocity, Defensively, Carter had  a clean exchange, showed natural instincts and fluid footwork, Carter’s arm strength and athletic ability stood out the most.  At the plate Carter hits from an open setup, shows good bat speed and a 93 mph exit velocity off of the tee, showed average balance and has a tendency to be out on his front foot too much at times, has a pull approach. Carter’s tools make him a potential high-level prospect.

Ryan Lawrence, Briarcrest Christian, 2016, L/R, OF
The 5-foot-9, 197-pound OF ran a 7.34 60 yard dash time and had a 75 mph position velocity. Defensively Lawrence showed quick instincts, plays through the ball, clean exchange, long arm action with high-3/4 release.  At the plate Lawrence hits from a balanced setup with a slight leg kick trigger, short stride, short/compact swing with quickness in hands , has an aggressive approach and show signs of power potential in the future, had a 80mph exit velocity off the tee, best current tool is his left-handed bat.

Spencer Wilson ,2016, Oak Ridge HS, R/R, OF/C
The 5-foot-9, 155-pound outfielder ran a 7.60 60 yard dash time and had a tee exit velocity of 89 mph, at the plate Wilson hits from a balanced setup and had a long stride, wraps his bat in load creating some length in swing, is a line drive type hitter with gap power potential. Defensively  Wilson had a position velocity of 83 mph from the outfield, plays through the ball using a two-handed approach occasionally, behind the plate Wilson threw pop times of 2.02-2.12 and had a velocity of 72 mph, showed quick footwork and glove to hand transfer.

class of 2017 outfielders

Corbin Brooksbank, McCallie HS, 2017 , R/R, OF
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound outfielder ran a 6.78 60-yard dash time and had a position  velocity of 86 mph, Defensively  Brooksbank showed good arm strength, had fluid footwork and a clean exchange. At the plate Brooksbank has a balanced setup with a leg kick trigger and short stride, showed fast bat speed with an exit velocity off the tee of 91 mph, has good balance and is aggressive at the plate, Brooksbank is a gap to gap type hitter and shows the potential to hit for power as he continues through his high school career.

Easton Cline, Brentwood Academy, 2017, L/L, OF
The 5-foot-9, 180-pound outfielder ran a 7.50 60 yard dash and had a position velocity of 70 mph, Defensively  Cline showed  fluid footwork and plays through the ball with athletic actions, long exchange, short arm action with over the top release.  At the plate Cline hits from a balanced setup and has a short stride, showed fluid rhythm and a short/compact swing, had average bat speed and a 72 mph exit velocity off the tee.

class of 2018 outfielders

Cameon Berry, 2018, Bolton HS, R/R, OF/C
The 5-foot-5, 130-pound outfielder showed signs of potential as he continues to grow and get stronger, Berry recorded a 7.30 60-yard dash time and showed athletic ability, at the plate Berry hit from an athletic setup with a short stride, Berry has average bat speed for his age and is a line drive type hitter, had an exit velocity off the tee of 73 mph. Defensively Berry showed natural instincts , can be more aggressive in playing through the ball at times, recorded a 75 mph position velocity with a long, over the top release from the outfield.