Tyler
Townsend

2024 Future Games: Tyler Townsend (Sycamore) is an intriguing 6-foot-2, 185-pound arm to know from Team Illinois. Despite battling command issues early in his outing, Townsend showed resilience later in the outing where in his second inning of work, he tossed a four-pitch inning collecting a quick three outs. Working from a stretch-only delivery, he showed explosive quick, compact arm action from a ¾ slot. His fastball sat 82-86 mph (T87), he would also mix in a 69-72 mph slider to round out his repertoire.

Uncommitted. Currently ranked No. 39 in the state. Lean and highly projectable 6-foot-2, 185-pound frame, high waist. Came out of the ‘pen and gave an upside look throughout his outing. Athletic delivery, high leg-kick into balance point, moves well down the mound while working in-line, hides the ball in the back with a short arm action, delivers his arsenal from a high ¾ slot. His fastball cruised around 86-88 mph early, settling in around 85-86 mph with easy life out of the hand. His go-to secondary was a big-breaking curveball that flashed sharp action in the low-70s for swing and miss. High-ceiling right-hander in the state to know.

RHP/OF Tyler Townsend (2026) had a big 2023 in front of our staff, and we expect to see him make a big impact on this year’s Sycamore squad. His brother, Tommy Townsend (2023; Butler) was a threat at the plate and on the mound in 2023, and it seems Tyler is set for a similar career at Sycamore. He has a lively arm on the mound, touching 86.7 mph in our looks, with two above-average off-speed pitches that he’s shown the ability to throw for strikes. At the plate, Townsend looks like a potential power threat, creating easy juice from his right-handed swing (99.1 mph EV/355’ distance). We expect that Townsend will have a major impact on this year’s team, both at the plate and on the mound.

OF/RHP Tyler Townsend (Sycamore, 2026) had one of the more impressive showings at the event both at the plate and on the mound. There’s no shortage of physicality with Townsend, who holds plenty of inherent strength within a 6-foot-1, 180-pound professional look. Townsend showed noticeable bat speed and bat strength, posting an average exit velocity of 89.3 mph, with a top exit velocity of 99.1 mph, which was also an event high. It’s an easy, balanced, and powerful right-handed swing that showed natural lift with gap-to-gap feel throughout his round. Townsend hopped on the mound and showed real two-way ability in front of our staff. He sat in the mid-80’s with his fastball, touching 86.7 mph on his firmest bullet, which paced all of the arms in attendance. Townsend complemented his fastball with a high-spin (avg. 2513 rpm) curveball that landed in the zone 60% of the time, and he completed his three-pitch mix with a fading changeup that played down in the zone. Already a name-to-know prospect to our staff, Townsend heads into the winter with plenty of positive momentum behind him.

Positional Profile: OF
Body: 6-2, 180-pounds. Athletic build with strength.
Hit: RHH. Quiet start. Smooth hand load, short stride, balanced through contact. Athletic, really looks the part. Easy bat speed and strength. Fluid path stays level through the zone with leverage and impact out front. Controlled aggression, easy, middle-of-the-order. 80.9 mph bat speed with 17 G’s of rotational acceleration.
Power: 99 max exit velocity, averaged 89.3 mph. 335’ max distance.
Arm: RH. OF - 88 mph. Short path, tight window, high 3/4 slot.
Defense: Long strides, easy movement, uses long levers for torque.
Run: 7.23 runner in the 60.

Positional Profile: RHP
Delivery: Clean, athletic delivery, high leg lift with coil, drop/drive delivery, works in-line. 
Arm Action: RH. Shorter arm action, 3/4 slot. 
FB: T87, 84-87 mph. Four-seam type with life through the zone. T2025, 1897 average rpm. 
CB: 71-73 mph. 11/5 shape, shorter actions. T2554, 2514 average rpm. 
CH: 77-78 mph. Arm-side action, plays down in the zone. T1926, 1644 average rpm.

RHP/OF Tyler Townsend (Sycamore, 2026) is a legitimate two-way prospect that stood out in multiple areas at the event. Standing in an athletic and projectable, 6-foot-1, 175-pounds, Townsend showed athleticism on the mound with a loose and quick arm with acceleration out front. His fastball was 83-84 mph, touching 84.6 mph with an average of 10.1 inches of horizontal movement. He spun an upper-60s slider well, spinning it at an average of 2431 rpm with 14.7 inches of movement. Townsend threw his change-up for strikes, flashing fade to the arm-side with 13 inches of movement. At the plate the right-handed hitter blistered baseballs almost exclusively to the pull-side, recording a peak exit velocity of 94.7 mph and 354 foot max batted ball. An athletic mover in the outfield, Townsend attacked the baseball and worked in-stride. He showed one of the most lively outfield arms producing a max velocity of 87 mph, the second highest of the event. Townsend is a high-follow prospect in Illinois’ 2026 class.

Positional Profile: RHP
Body: 6-0, 160-pounds.
Delivery: High leg-lift into balance point, drop/drive lower-half, stride works in-line.
Arm Action: RH. Short arm bar into a high 3/4 slot.
FB: T82, 80-82 mph. Plays with cutting action through the zone.  T2385, 2295 average rpm.
CB: 68-70 mph. Slurvy, flashed sharp action. T2669, 2622 average rpm.
CH: 75-75 mph. Sinks to the arm-side.  T2303, 2140 average rpm.

Positional Profile: OF
Body: 5-foot-8, 140-pounds.
Defense: Quick first move, stays low, works to get around the baseball, confident hands.
Arm: RH. OF - 70 mph. Long loose arm action, high 3/4 slot, throws flashed carry.
Hit: RHH. Athletic, tall, open stance, no pre-pitch load, short stride to even.  Quick hands, long uphill bat path, working gap-to-gap.
Power: 74 mph exit velocity from the tee.
Run: 5.33 home-to-first.