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Illinois 2016 Rankings Updated

March 2, 2016

By Drew Locascio
Illinois Scouting Director

Taking into consideration the late fall, winter season and national events such as the Super 60 scouted over the last couple of months, we have updated the Illinois 2016 rankings once again. This crop of seniors features plenty of high-end national talent along with impressive overall depth.

Over the course of the last four months, the depth has continued to strengthen. Since our last update of the rankings, the final Unsigned Senior Event for 2016 graduates took place and brought a handful of new faces and names to the table.

Looking at the Top 10, some reshuffling has taken place in Illinois. The No. 1 player held steady in C Cooper Johnson (Carmel Catholic HS) but SS Tyler Fitzgerald (Rochester HS) jumped up to the No. 2 spot. The Louisville commits rise to No. 2 is largely attributed to the impressive showing he put on at the Super 60 in February. He added strength in the winter and it showed during batting practice as he flashed impressive bat speed and made consistent strong contact. RHP Brenden Heiss (Jacobs HS) is another one who jumped up a spot and now sits at No. 6 in Illinois. The Arkansas commit set the Super 60 record for highest fastball velocity at 96 mph. Heiss has a bit of an unconventional delivery but the electricity in his arm is undeniable.

Top 10

Rank Name State School Class Pos Commitment
1 Cooper Johnson IL Carmel Catholic 2016 C Mississippi
2 Tyler Fitzgerald IL Rochester 2016 SS Louisville
3 Drake Fellows IL Joliet Catholic Academy 2016 RHP Vanderbilt
4 Ben Brecht IL New Trier 2016 LHP UC Santa Barbara
5 Cal Coughlin IL Lake Forest 2016 RHP Texas Christian
6 Brenden Heiss IL Jacobs 2016 RHP Arkansas
7 Jordan McFarland IL Waterloo 2016 OF Arkansas
8 Sam Ferri IL Notre Dame 2016 C Arizona State
9 Jack Suwinski IL Taft 2016 OF Indiana
10 Joey Polak IL Quincy Notre Dame 2016 3B South Carolina

 
CLICK HERE for complete Illinois 2016 Rankings.

RHP’s Tyler McAllister (Waterloo HS) and RHP Christian Camacho (Elk Grove HS) were two of the biggest risers and both now find themselves in the Top 25. McAllister, a Missouri State commit, has a clean, quick arm and has been up to 91 mph this winter. He will help lead a loaded Waterloo HS squad this spring. 6-foot, 165-pound Camacho, committed to Auburn, is an undersized right-hander who was up to 91 mph in Jupiter this fall with a swing-and-miss breaking ball.

Another RHP who rose in the rankings was Northwestern commit Nick Cauley (Alton HS). Cauley jumped up 27 spots into the No. 36 slot. The right-hander from the St. Louis Metro area has made a big jump in velocity over the past year and can now run his fastball into the low 90’s.

In January we held our last Unsigned Senior Showcase for 2016 graduates and some of the Top Prospects from the event have made the updated Illinois Rankings for the first time. Catcher Jett Wedekind (Princeton HS) was the top catcher from the event and is now ranked No. 169. Coming in at No. 171 is another newcomer to the rankings RHP Noah Dressler (Mascoutah HS). Dressler made a big jump from late in the summer and now sits 83-85 mph. Dressler has a long and lean frame with a loose arm.

The top infielder from the Unsigned Senior Showcase was SS Jack Lombardi (Loyola HS). Lombardi now ranked No. 176 is one of the top right-handed bats still available in the 2016 class. He also showed an improved 60 time, running a 7.13 this January.

Keep an eye out over the next couple of weeks as the updated 2016 overall rankings will be coming soon.

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