Prep Baseball Report

2024 Top Prospect Games: Quick Hits


Paul Panaccione
Arizona Scouting Director

On June 8th and 9th, Prep Baseball Report Arizona held the 2024 Top Prospect Games at Grand Canyon university. The Top Prospect Games are an "invite only" showcase accessible to the class of 2024 players in the state of Arizona, granting players the opportunity to be evaluated by the PBR Arizona staff while their tools were analyzed by state-of-the-art technologies on-site.

 

Today, we’ll begin to publish our findings from our first event of the year in the form of this Quick Hits post. In no order, we will state some of our initial takeaways and highlights from Wednesday/Thursday's showcase. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more post-event coverage.

 

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Hitters

Jimmy Diaz SS / OF / Cienega , AZ / 2024

6-foot-2 185 pounds, multi-sport athlete (football/baseball) with an above average build with room to grow. Has some length to his build with loose actions. Turned in a great workout, and had success in game action on both sides of the ball. During the workout, Diaz ran a 6.89 60 yard, moves well for his size with good side to side agility and first step. 84 mph IF velo, arm showed it will be able to play from the left side. His true position is still unknown, there's some potential on the left side with definite ability in the OF. Flashed the leather at SS and 3B in game action. Made all his plays and showed ability to throw off balance and on the run. Took one of the more impressive BP's, posting an event high exit velo of 99 mph, and #2 max distance of 368 feet. His bat path gets to the top half consistently, high % of LD/GB contact. LD gap-to-gap type hitter with some power potential. Diaz turned on a ball very well struck to left center field for a double in game action. High follow prospect with P5 potential. 

1-4 2B, 2 K

Kyle Pettigrew SS / 3B / Desert Mountain, AZ / 2024

6-foot-2 190 pounds, Kyle Pettigrew showed his offensive ability and gap-to-gap power potential during the Wednesday workout. Pettigrew has an above average build with some strength and still room to add. Moves well for his size, ran a 7.13 60 yard. Left side infielder with raw actions in the infield. Offensive upside is impressive. Showed some easy pop in BP rounds, some real power potential if he can tap into his strength and lower half. Swing plane is slightly uphill. Offensive event highs recorded for EV (99) and Max Dist (384). Left the yard multiple times to the pull side in BP rounds. Showed some arm strength from the left side with 82 mph IF velo. Future could be on the corners. Not much results in game play, going 1-4 with an infield single, but the tools were on display during the workout. High follow prospect with offensive upside.

Jake Gorrell SS / 2B / Mesquite, AZ / 2024

5-foot-9 145 pounds, Jake Gorrell is a hard nosed prospect that attacks the game. Simple play style with a jack of all trades skill-set. Ability to play all 3 IF positions with a high IQ. High average/contact type bat that uses the whole field, hits the ball where it's pitched. Simple and short swing mechanics with quick hands, inside path to the baseball. Much room to add to the frame, strength and maturity can be added. Had great success in the 2022 season on both sides of the ball. Consistent with the glove and can turn it over well at 2B. Won't blow up the stat sheet data wise, but the consistency and competitiveness to his game rises him above the competition. 7.2 60 yard, 78 mph IF velo, 85 mph EV, 298 max dist.

Ian Haines C / 3B / Millennium, AZ / 2024

5-foot-10 180 pounds, Ian Haines turned in what could've been the most impressive workout on day 1 of the 2024 Top Prospect Games. Athletic frame at the catcher position, high waist with strength throughout. Moves well for size and position, 7.18 60 yard. Catch and throw behind the plate was the very impressive, 1.88-1.98 pop times with a 79 mph C velo. Ball had very true flight to 2B with accuracy. Took an impressive BP that stayed to the middle of the field with line drive contact. Showed some bat speed with a direct path to the baseball and barrel consistency. Gets to his front side slightly too much in game action. Good presence in the box.

1-3 line drive middle, BB in game action

 

Two-Way

Ky McGary OF / SS / Sandra Day O'Connor, AZ / 2024

6-foot 160 pounds, potential two-way prospect opened eyes both days at the 2024 Top Prospect Games. Ran a 7.1 60 yard, speed plays better than that in the OF and around the bases. 86 mph OF velo with more in the tank. Was top 3 in exit velocity at 98 mph, with a 351 max distance. His direction at the plate is very impressive, everything works back through the middle, putting him in a great spot to hit all pitches at all locations. The bat path is very flat and gets through the ball well. In gameplay, McGary showed he can keep this direction through the middle, had multiple tough at bats, 4-4 in quality at bats with solid contact, a knock, and 2 BB. His base hit was a well struck line drive to right field on a ball on the outer half. He showed a good 2K approach and the ability to go with pitches. Although McGary's future seems to be with the bat, he showed some potential on the mound. Topped at 84 with the FB, SL was 65-66, 75 with the CH. Posted the high for SL spin rate at 2251 rpm. The arm strength is there, and velo should be added with development. This is a guy we can see getting quality innings for his HS team in years to come, and with development could be a potential two-way prospect. 

Johnny Casale 1B / LHP / Brophy Prep, AZ / 2024

5-foot-10 165 pounds, L/L two-way prospect out of Brophy. Still has much room to mature and add strength. Left hander on the mound with great pitch-ability. He was living on the corners of both sides of the plate with some 2-seam action to the FB, max HM -18.7''. FB topped at 83 mph, and he threw 2 different breaking balls, CB sat 67-68 mph, SL was 60-61 mph. He induced 2 GB outs and struck out 2 in 5 hitters. Offensively, Casale is going to give a quality at bat with a line drive approach. Short and simple swing with a simple set up at the plate. Max EV in the workout was 91 mph, with a max distance of 350 feet. Casale went 1-2 with a 1B and BB in gameplay. 

Nathan Carrillo C / RHP / Horizon, AZ / 2024

6-foot-1 170 pounds, two-way prospect with his arm being his best tool. Carrillo posted an event high FB velo of 89 mph, as well as an event high C velo at 79 mph. The ball comes out of his hand with some easy velo and true flight. Carrillo also posted the #2 max IVB number (22.6), and event high average IVB at (19.5). Carrillo's ball some some serious ride to it on the mound and behind the plate. FB can be very effective at the top of the zone, and as the velo rises effectiveness will rise along with it. He has a great frame with still some room to add strength and athleticism. Offensively, the actions in the box are still slightly raw but simple. Swing is flat and gets to the top half. As he gets strength and reps we could see him start driving balls to the gaps. In game action, Carrillo set down 4 of 5 hitters while striking out 3 in quick work. 

 

Pitchers

Cade Shumard LHP / OF / Saguaro, AZ / 2024

6-foot-1 170 pounds, the left hander with a great build showed he's a prospect to follow at the 2024 Top Prospect Games. Easy and clean delivery, ball comes out of his hand smooth. Repeatable delivery from a HTQ slot, FB stays true with 4-seam spin (2180). FB sat 81-82, anticipate a velo bump in the future with the size and delivery. The breaking ball has some downward break and sat 62-65 mph. Strike throwing ability is good. This is a guy you can dream on for now. Shumard has the looks of a Division 1 left hander with the build and arm action, excited to see his development with the FB velo and a true out pitch. 

Griffen Clapp LHP / Sunrise Mountain, AZ / 2024

6-foot-3 195 pounds, highly projectable left handed arm out of Sunrise Mountain High School. Big body and an easy arm. Consistency is going to be the key for Clapp. His stuff showed to be tough on both RHH and LHH, cut through the order in his first inning, and struggled a bit with command in his second inning of work. FB has some life and 2-seam action to it, sitting 82-83 mph with more in the tank. FB should see a significant velo bump as he taps into size/strength/consistency with delivery. Breaking ball showed some promise, sat 68-70 mph. As Clapp develops this could be a high level arm.

Anthony Zadrozny LHP / OF / Chaparral , AZ / 2024

6-foot 160 pounds, Anthony Zadrozny had an outstanding outing at the 2024 Top Prospect Games. Allowing just one base runner via walk, Zadrozny set down 9 of 10 hitters, striking out 2. Not over-powering with the FB, but the strike throwing and pitch-ability was impressive. He used a 3 pitch mix, and showed some feel for the CH. Strike throwing ability is there with some 2-seam movement to the FB. He induced a high percentage of weak contact this outing. Zadrozny is a strike throwing lefty that can keep hitters off balanced with 3 pitches.

FB 77-78

CH 72-74

CB 66-68

 

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Upcoming Events:

SHOWCASE STATE DATE LOCATION
Top Prospect Games: Class of 2025 & 2026 (Invite-Only) AZ 06/20 Arizona State University
Top Prospect Games: Class of 2023 (Invite-Only) AZ 06/27 Central Arizona College - Coolidge, AZ
PBR Junior Future Games NATIONAL 07/26 LakePoint
2022 PBR Future Games (Arizona Invite) AZ 07/27 LakePoint Sports Complex - Emerson, GA