Prep Baseball Report

Iser Blossoms Into Premier Prospect



By Rob Sidwell
Florida Scouting Director

Watching catcher Herbert Iser (Miami Killian HS, 2016) from the summer's circuit with the FTB Chandler team, I saw a younger kid with a big body and good tools, a prospect that hadn't quite put it all together yet. At 6-foot-3, 215-pounds, an above-average major league arm, and above-average major league left-handed power, Herbert had some of the better tools in his class, and certainly some of the better tools for that position.

He was playing with older kids and with a highly competitive travel team. That could have added pressure to his approach, or even been somewhat intimidating. But when I saw the University of Miami commit this past October at the WWBA in Jupiter, I saw a younger talent on a loaded Cardinals Scout team starting to put it all together.

Iser played with much more confidence and handled the pitching staff with much more authority. He received well and blocked well. His transition on his release was much more fluid and under control. His plus arm was starting to play. Instead of being a big strong catcher with arm strength, he was becoming a catcher that could throw guys out.

His plus left-handed power was also beginning to play. During the summer, I saw Iser pull off a lot of balls and swing and miss, his best bolts were usually foul. He was working around the ball and the power he would display in BP wasn't coming together yet. However, in Jupiter I saw a much better approach with Iser staying on the ball better and making more hard contact. His power was beginning to play and his hard contact was starting to do damage.

Iser had already verbally committed to Miami, one of the top college programs in the country, but after his display at the WWBA, he has become one of the top amateur catching prospects for the 2016 draft.

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