Prep Baseball Report

Wisconsin 2017 Rankings: New Additions



By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Supervisor – Wisconsin/Illinois

Yesterday the 2017 rankings were updated and expanded from 85 to 100. That brought several new prospects into the mix, 21 to be exact and we will highlight some of them today.

The highest newcomer to Wisconsin’s 2017 rankings is no stranger to PBR rankings, but new to Wisconsin. SS Walker Jenkins transferred to Sun Prairie this past fall from Missouri where he was a top 25 prospect in the Show-Me State. Jenkins comes to Sun Prairie with a switch-hitting stick, a big arm across the diamond and a load of athleticism to play the middle of the field. Jenkins instantly made the Cardinals better in 2016 and steps into the top 20 juniors in Wisconsin.

LHP Tanner Halvorson (Eau Claire North) is coming off of a big sophomore year for the Huskies going 6-3 with a 1.42 ERA and a first-team all-conference selection. Halvorson recently showed his stuff at the Madison Preseason I.D. sitting 82-84 mph with three pitch feel. Halvorson cracked the top 25.

Inside the top 40 were three more new additions. OF Ryan Wickman (River Valley) was a huge part of the Blackhawks run to Appleton in 2015. Wickman is a high-end quick twitch athlete who runs a 6.75, threw 87 mph from the outfield, and hit .425 as a sophomore. RHP Antonio Valdez (Riverside University) looked sharp at the Milwaukee Preseason I.D. he showed a polished looking repertoire that had feel for the zone and sat in the mid 80’s. Oconomowoc’s LHP/OF Jonah Landowski cracked the top 40 with a low 80’s fastball and upside athleticism in the field.

A few new arms to the top 100 include RHP Will Conard (Green Bay Preble), Baraboo’s RHP Thomas Ginther and RHP Josh Schattner (Wilmot Union). Conard and Ginther both ran their fastball’s up to 86 mph this winter, and Schattner flashed a swing and miss type breaking ball. All three play for some of the top D1 teams in the state and should have impactful junior campaigns.

Kyle Hammit (Muskego) and Kyle Kosobucki (West De Pere) are a pair of catchers with next level defensive abilities, both of which made the top 70.

A couple of bats to keep an eye on this spring are left-handed hitting 3B Drew Behling (Waupun) and INF Joseph Lipsky (Lake Country Lutheran). Lipsky hit .489 for the D3 champs last year as a sophomore. Both swung the bat well this winter and have the ability to hit at the next level.

Other notable newcomers to the rankings.

Name State School Class Pos
Jake Eigner WI Germantown
2017 RHP
Peyton Henry
WI Columbus
2017 SS/RHP
Cade Curtis WI Ashwaubenon
2017 LHP
Dain Hudson WI Waukesha West
2017 OF
Josh Hock WI Notre Dame Academy
2017 RHP
Sam Zarling
WI Kettle Moraine Lutheran
2017 3B
Noah Duncan
WI Notre Dame Academy
2017 OF
Matt Korman WI Waterford 2017 SS
Zach Carney WI Kimberly 2017 OF

Stay tuned for more content this week on the top risers in Wisconsin’s 2017 class.

For complete Wisconsin 2017 Player Rankings CLICK HERE.

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