West Coast Championships: Day 2 Notebook

IRVINE, CA. - Day Two of the PBR Tournaments West Championships got underway on Friday with teams position themselves in their pool with an eye on the championship round that will get going on Saturday. With a full day of games and many teams back to their full rosters, our team of scouts had a great chance to see a few new players. Teams certainly were playing with one eye on the playoffs as they push towards the championship round. 

Let’s take a closer look at some of the standout players from the day. 

+ 2020 OF Connor Burdian (Santa Margarita HS) Is listed at 6-foot-1, 160-pounds with a frame that can withstand the addition of weight and mass on his squared shoulders and down into his longer legs. Athletic and twitchy, Burdain had a fantastic second inning. In the top he made a very rangy play starting on the third base side of second he sprinted a good 20 yards to make a catch on the first base side of second. It was a very instinctive play that could’ve only been made with the excellent read off the barrel he got. In the bottom half he lead off with a hard hit ball to left (video below), before stealing second a two pitches later. He then got a great read on a ball in dirt to advance to third, before doing the same and scoring two pitches later. He put together a few quality at-bats in the game showing some discipline on pitches just outside the zone along with the ability to square balls up in his zone. Doesn’t possess elite speed but isn’t slow either clocking a 4.32 home-to-first time. 

+ 2020 INF Noah Sudyka (Aliso Niguel HS) is showing himself to be a very toolsy infielder who can do a number of things on the dirt and in the box. An athletic 6-foot, 175-pounds, Sudyka has a strong, durable build that has some potential growth remaining. Instinctive on the dirt where his footwork is fluid and his glovework consistent. Funnels balls out front and shows enough arm for third base. At the plate he appears shorter to the ball with more lift in his swing. He’s attacking the ball and gets extended after contact. 

 + 2023 1B/LHP Brandon Luu (Northwood HS) Six-foot, 180-pounds, large frame with some strength in the lower half in an otherwise still developing body. Luu wasted no time making his presence felt as he drove a ball into the left-center-field gap for a base hit in his first at bat. He would add another single and a standup triple to go with a walk on the day. There’s obvious present power in the bat, but it’s the hand and bat speed that is arguably the most impressive element of his offensive game. He sets up with high hands and weight back with the slightest of knee bends. Gets hands into launch position and really uses the lower half well in the swing to generate the present power.

+ 2023 MIF James Derflinger (Crean Lutheran HS) is a five-foot-10, 145-pound middle infielder with some present wiry strength to his long, lean frame. Had three very good at-bats in the first game, two of them resulting in line drives to left-center-field and clocking a 4.48 home-to-first time with a turn. He shows a simple, relaxed approach at the plate with hands gently rocking the bat. He shows the ability to keep the barrel on plane through the zone while also being able to adjust the plane of the barrel based on pitch recognition. Defensively he shows natural instincts and while I didn’t see him get a chance on a play, he routinely was in the correct position ready to field the ball. 

+ 2023 RHP Carter Elliott (Redlands East Valley HS) showed to be a projectable righty throwing downhill with his fastball that he worked black-to-black at 81-83 mph. Elliott flashed a sharp curveball that showed occasional depth at 69-72 mph. Works quick and from a 3/4 slot with a compact arm in the back. At 5-foot-11, 145-pounds with long legs and high waist, there’s ample room for physical projection for Elliott who shows a clean, loose arm with repeatable mechanics. 

+ 2022 Noah Nichols (Valencia HS) is a long, lean outfielder with some strength in the lower half and plenty of physical projection at 6-foot, 175-pounds. Shows easy, natural power in his right handed swing as the balls jumps off the barrel. Made loud contact routinely. In the outfield he showed off his strong, accurate arm on a throw to the plate that held a runner at third. The throw had some carry to it and was accurate to the plate. 

+ 2022 Delshaun Lanier (North Torrance HS) long, strong, athletic build at 5-foot-10, 160-pounds with plenty of room to add more. Playing center-field Lanier’s athleticism and instincts take shine when he’s charging or going after balls in the gaps. Longer strides in the outfield eat up ground while the arm strength works for now and is easy to dream on getting stronger. At the plate there some controlled violence in the swing; he looks to do damage. Seemingly always makes hard, loud contact. 

+ 2022 MIF Shane Aldridge (Moreau Catholic HS) Five-foot-9, 140-pounds, lean, strong, athletic build with some twitchiness and athleticism in his actions. Aldridge had a big time day going 2-for-3 including the bases clearing triple below. 

--LES LUKACH

+ 2022 Elijah Reber (Santana HS) Medium, frame and wiry strength. Shows a compact line drive swing at the plate as he makes consistent loud contact. He had a great game at the plate going 3-for-4 with two singles and one triple. In his last at bat he one hopped the wall and turned on the burners as he rounded first. At short has soft hands, athletic action and proper mechanics. Did make one throwing error in the beginning of the game where he rushed a throw that got away from him. Could profile very well at second base.

+ 2022 INF Ryan Rivera (St. Augustine HS) Medium/large frame with present strength and physical projection remaining.  Showed a compact swing at the plate as he turned on a pitch and smacked it through the 5-6 hole. Made consistent contact all day and had some quality at-bats. Shows athletic action at second base with soft hands and makes the routine play. Gets good reads off the bat and awareness around him. Flashes some power and has a lot of physical projection remaining.

+ 2022 1B/LHP Trevor Fox (St.Augustine)  6-foot-7, 197-pounds large frame with athleticism, some strength and plenty of physical projection. Fox is an imposing figure when he steps on the field but he still has room to add strength. He didn’t do much at the plate as he flew out twice. Did show some pop as he flew out to deep center in one of his at-bats. His other two at-bats he worked walks fouling off some pitches to keep the at bat going. Showed nice plate discipline and maturity. Defensively shows athleticism at first. Fox is intriguing because of his size and his age allowing him to continue to add strength and power. 

+ 2021 OF/RHP Braeden Ross (Christian HS) 6 foot 3, 185 pounds large frame, wiry strength, long and lean, athletic young body. He had a good day at the plate recording one single but the at-bat was great. He foul off 4 pitches and then worked to an 8 pitch at-bat that culminated in a ripped single. Turned on an inside fastball  ripped it threw the 5-6 hole. Really showed good plate discipline and the ability to foul off the tough pitch. Played first base and showed some nice lateral movement. Works well around the bag but his future might be in the outfield. Intriguing because of his lithe frame as he has projection to add strength.

 + 2020 RHP Ethan Weyer (Great Oak HS) 6-foot-2, 190-pounds, large frame with present strength, young body with a strong lower half. His fastball sat 82-84 and topped out at 85 MPH. Had easy velocity with some run on the pitch. Slider was 65-67 MPH and had a nice sweeping motion. Didn’t throw the change much was 73 MPH with good deception and variation from the fastball. Did record a handful of strikeouts and didn’t surrender a run. 

+ 2022 RHP Eli Gennis (Berkeley HS) 5-foot-11, 155-pound medium frame, wiry strength, athletic young body with room to add mass and strength. Flashed three pitches during the game and showed command of each. His fastball was firm and he was able to throw it from black to black. His slider did record some punch outs will get stronger as he continues to mature. Did throw a curve that was a bit inconsistent at times, would not spin it. Could be an effective pitch. Did seen him throw one changeup in warmups. On friday morning he gave up 2 hits and 1 earned run. Had a strong feel for the zone as he was able to command the strike zone early. 

+ 2020 INF Chris Wada (South Torrance HS) 5-foot-7, 135-pounds small frame, athletic body with some strength. Flashed a nice compact line drive swing. Appears to favor the pull side as in his first two at-bats he smacked a triple down the third baseline. He then went on to record a single when he turned on a middle-in pitch to put it through the 5-6 hole. At short he showed athleticism and an ability to make tough plays. Quick feet and good instincts. Has a strong arm and can make all the throws. Might be more suited for the other side of the diamond. 

+ 2020 INF Noah Yi (West Torrance HS) 5-foot-7, 140-pounds small frame, athletic body with some strength.  Flashes a compact line drive swing and a up the middle approach. In his first two at-bats he recorded a walk and a single. He then went on to smack a single up the middle. Flashes strong and consistent lateral movement. Strong arm and carries through the ball. Does have the arm to play short but is more suited to play 2B at the next level. 

--RUSS MORGAN