Iowa City, Iowa - On Sunday, February 18, Prep Baseball travels to Diamond Dreams Sports Academy in North Liberty to host the Preseason ID-Iowa City and Rising Stars ID-Iowa City. The events will feature over 60 prospects from the class of 2024 through 2028. This collection of players will include plenty of fresh faces as well as returning faces. 

Our staff strategically hosts Preseason ID events throughout the state in search of players who have taken advantage of the offseason, identifying new prospects to add to our follow lists or players our staff is already familiar with who are on the rise.

The Rising Stars events are an identifier for the Junior Future Games, an Invitation-Only event, that will feature the best identified prospects from across the country in a four-day tournament at LakePoint in Cartersville, GA. Participants will compete against other top-level players while representing their respective state. The Junior Future Games will take place at LakePoint in Cartersville, GA. This state-of-the-art facility features 8 all-turf fields. The event features guaranteed pool play games and will include single elimination bracket play to determine a champion in each age group.

EVENT HISTORY

Last year’s Preseason ID saw over 60 players come through the doors of Diamond Dreams with multiple notable performances.

At six-foot-eight, Tristan Augedahl (Caledonia, MN, 2023) can grab attention walking into any event. He’s virtually a space needle when he steps on the mound. That fact alone garnered the left-handed pitcher some notoriety at last year’s event. However, he also was able to run it up to 89 MPH while sitting 87-89 a year ago. He has a high release point and attacks hitters with a sharp down angle. Augedahl is now a freshman at South Dakota State.

Outfielder Caiden Buonadonna (Cedar Rapids Washington, 2025) jumped on Prep Baseball’s radar in his first event a year ago. The uncommitted junior flashed an arm that reached 91 MPH from the outfield and posted a max exit velocity of 95.0 MPH. A stout build, Buonadonna has a very quick barrel at the plate and has fluid movements in the field. These tools are one of the reasons he is currently ranked 13th in Iowa’s class of 2025.

LOOKING AHEAD TO SUNDAY

One player to keep your eye on at the event is Beau Morio. Morio (Cedar Rapids Xavier, 2027) attended a Rising Stars ID event last March and earned himself a trip to Georgia to the Junior Future Games for Team Iowa-Nebraska’s first entry into the premiere midsummer event. An Iowa commit, the six-foot-one catcher maxed out at 89.2 MPH exit velocity at LakePoint’s showcase day. With another offseason of growth and development, Morio should be one to watch at Sunday’s event.

ITINERARY

Date: Sunday, February 18th, 2024
Location: Diamond Dreams Sports Academy
Check-in Time: 12:30pm
Start Time (Position & Two-Way Players): 1:15pm
Check-in Time (Pitcher Onlys): 3:30pm

MORE EVENT DETAILS: PRESEASON ID / RISING STARS ID

PRESEASON ID ROSTER / RISING STARS ROSTER