Prep Baseball Report

Top Prospect Games - Catcher Anaylsis


By: PBR Georgia Staff

PBR Georgia hosted the annual Top Prospect Games at LakePoint Sports in Emerson, Ga. on June 7th. This yearly invite-only event for the top uncommitted rising seniors in the state brought together nearly 50 prospects for a pro-style workout and live game play.

In the days that followed the event, we produced post-event analysis that includes performance highlights inside of our Quick Hits story and a look at the traditional stats measured within our Statistical Analysis piece.

Today, we will begin our post-event process by rolling out the individual scouting reports of the day, starting with the catcher position. We will work our way across the diamond over the following days.

Although small in number, this was an especially strong group of backstops. It was a difficult process to narrow down the top catching prospect list, with all five backstops being worthy of recognition.

Top Catching Prospects

Daegan Strickland, Savannah Christian Prep (GA), 2023
Positional Profile: C/3B Middle of the order bat that provides some serious HR potential from backstop position. Something that is always valuable to a college program.
Body: 5-foot-11, 195-pounds. Thick lower half w/ broad shoulders
Hit: RHH. athletic bend in knees, wide stance w/ the barrel resting on shoulder  Quick trigger w/ barrel flip. Short leg lift w/ minimal gain in ground. Hard line drive/fly ball contact. Lofty swing path due to hands getting extended at separation
Power: 96.4 max exit velocity, averaged 87.9 mph. 372’ max distance. Pull-side/middle of the field HR power. More use of lower half during load will result in him gaining more power in hips through rotation. Violent, yet controlled barrel.
Arm: RH. C - 76 mph.  Quick 3/4 AA. Short arm swing
Defense: 1.97-2.06 pop times. Quick transfer. Short gather step allowing for quick release. Accurate throws w/ some carry
Run: 6.97 runner in the 60.

Sebastian Collender, Dominion Christian (GA), 2023
Positional Profile: C/3B
Body: 5-foot-11, 210-pounds. Strong, sturdy build, physical throughout.
Hit: RHH. Open setup with weight on back-side, hands start low with a flattened barrel, loads hands back and brings barrel vertical, short stride, good balance. Gap-to-gap type hitter, short barrel path to the zone, aggressive through the zone with an uphill path, looks to elevate and drive.
Power: 87.6 max exit velocity, averaged 75.1 mph. 309’ max distance. Strong hands, big power potential.
Arm: RH. C - 74 mph.  Short, quick arm action, comes out of a 3/4 sot, throws carry and are accurate.
Defense: 1.96-2.04 pop times. Fields position athletically, flexibility in the lower half, plays through the ball, ultra quick hands on exchanges, makes them clean and gets to release, clean actions throughout. Receives and blocks wells.
Run: 7.31 runner in the 60.

Nicholas Ford, Blessed Trinity Catholic (GA), 2023
Positional Profile: C/1B Refined defensive backstop w/ projection to hit for some power
Body: 6-foot-1, 200-pounds. Med. size build. Broad shoulders, thick lower half
Hit: RHH. Balanced lower half w/ barrel resting on back shoulder. Gradual shift in weight to backside. Quick trigger in wrists flips the barrel upwards.  Slight dip in upper half bringing the barrel down creating some wasted movement. Sprayed to all fields
Power: 89.7 max exit velocity, averaged 84.4 mph. 342’ max distance. Natural lift to the ball w/ adjustment in barrel position just before launch. Projection for more power w/ frame and raw swing.
Arm: RH. C - 75 mph.  Short, quick arm circle w/ overtop arm action.
Defense: 1.98-2.02 pop times. Lightning-quick transfer w/ quick gather step before throwing to get balanced.
Run: 7.42 runner in the 60.

Carson Royal, Winder-Barrow (GA), 2023
Positional Profile: C/1B Tough backstop with plenty of power potential in the bat.
Body: 5-foot-10, 185-pounds. Strong, physical build, wide shoulders
Hit: RHH. Balanced setup with medium base outside shoulders, slightly closed upper half sits over backside. Well paced flow in hands, knee angled inside back foot helps hips get out of the hole for good timing. Toe tap signals hip shoulder separation. Very connected swing - short quick path where barrel spends adequate time in the zone.
Power: 91.9 max exit velocity, averaged 83.9 mph. 350’ max distance. Big time pull-side juice with backspin.
Arm: RH. C - 74 mph.  Short, straight from the ear overhand AA. Low accurate throws on bounce.
Defense: 2.02-2.13 pop times. Thumb works under ball with patient receiving, good direction to 2B on throws. Quick exchange.
Run: 7.11 runner in the 60.

Walker Moncus, Vidalia (GA), 2023
Positional Profile: 3B/C A real potential power-hitting catcher
Body: 5-foot-10, 200-pounds. Smaller build w/ stocky frame and tree trunks for legs.
Hit: RHH. Wide base w/ bat resting flat above shoulder. Quick stride w/ minimal gain in ground. Barrel gets vertical at foot strike.  Barrel position at foot strike results in natural lift in swing path. Lightning quick hands
Power: 95.3 max exit velocity, averaged 87.8 mph. 369’ max distance. Real power potential. This all happening with little to no weight shift into the backside.
Arm: RH. C - 77 mph. INF - 83 mph. Quick stab at bottom of hand separation. Overtop AA.
Defense: 2.00-2.07 pop times. Catcher looks to be his most comfortable position. Quick transfer with solid footwork that keeps him in line to second base. On the infield, fields out front, breaks down early, clean on exchanges, some feel for glove.
Run: 7.15 runner in the 60.


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