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Illinois Unsigned Senior Showcase: Quick Hits

February 9, 2022
By Illinois Scouting Staff

On Sunday, February 6th, the PBR Illinois staff hosted the Unsigned Senior Showcase at The MAX in McCook, Illinois. This event served as one final look for members of the 2022 class, who are still uncommitted, to showcase their talents in front of our staff after the off-season. 

For a look at which players were in attendance, click HERE. 

We’ll begin our post-event process today by rolling out some of the day’s takeaways inside this Quick Hits piece. Throughout the week we’ll have more content coming out from this event, including a Statistical Analysis and a multitude of tech-related pieces. 

Read below to see some of the day’s standouts. 

QUICK HITS 

BIGGEST WINNERS

+ One of the day’s biggest winners was 5-foot-11, 165-pound OF/LHP Jaden Coleman (Lincoln Way East). Coleman started his day by bumping his fastball up to 84 mph on the mound and followed it by cruising to a 6.67 in the 60-yard dash. Offensively, Coleman displayed a loose, athletic left-handed stroke with pull-side leverage and caught barrels that way throughout, too. Coleman generates plenty of juice from his athletic profile alone and that’s evident in his batted ball profile, all of which were towards the top of this event’s leaderboard - 96 mph max exit velocity, 87.1 mph average exit velocity, and 380 ft. peak distance. Defensively, Coleman showed swift athletic feet and efficient routes with a loose, accurate arm to pair that topped at 89 mph. 

+ RHP/OF Jake Kohanzo (Barrington, 2022) showed true two-way potential at the event. The physical, 6-foot-2, 215-pound, two-way prospect has long been known for his arm strength on the mound but his bat showed equally as well, if not better, at the event. The right-handed hitter, has a presence in the box, advanced bat speed (73.5 mph average bat speed) and repeated his short, quick swing while staying on balance throughout his rounds. Kohanzo has middle-of-the-order potential thanks to the force/whip he creates in his swing and raw power in his bat; 101.8 mph max exit velocity and his furthest batted ball traveled 386’. Kohanzo also moves with rhythm in the outfield while utilizing athletic footwork, pairing with a strong arm that delivered strong/accurate throws (topped at 89 mph). On the mound, he works from an over-the-top slot and powerful drop/drive delivery. Kohanzo’s fastball worked 86-88 mph with natural horizontal movement while also filling up the zone with strikes. He went to two solid off-speed offerings throughout his pen; the first being a short 11/5 curveball, thrown with intent at 70-73 mph. The second being a changeup that worked 80-82 mph with some feel and arm-side sink. One of the more physical, impressive prospects still on the market in Illinois.

Another physical position player at the event was, CIF Tommy Stricklin (Mundelein), who put together one of the loudest BP rounds of the day. Built at a sturdy, barrel-chested 6-foot-2, 215-pounds, Stricklin displayed advanced bat strength in BP, consistently making loud contact off the barrel. His 103 mph max exit velocity, and 90.8 mph average exit velocity, were amongst the day’s best statistical outputs. He has a short and quick swing that he is able to repeat. There’s certainly middle-of-the-order upside at the next level given the pure strength he possesses. 

ARMS

+ LHP Nolan Larson (Lincoln-Way West, 2022) works from an athletic 5-foot-11, 160-pound frame, with plenty of room to fill out. The southpaw pitched exclusively out of the stretch, utilizing a drop/drive lower-half down the mound with the ability to repeat his delivery while working downhill. With a short, high ¾ slot, the left-hander worked 79-82 mph, reaching back for 83 mph. He displayed a curveball in the 63-65 mph range, working off a 1/7 plane with some depth. Larson went to a 70-73 mph changeup to pair off his fastball, fading naturally to his arm-side and showing feel for the bottom of the zone. 

+ RHP/OF Daniel Alworth (Geneva, 2022) gave our PBR staff an intriguing look during his bullpen on Sunday. The highly projectable 6-foot-3, 185-pound right-hander uses a long/loose ¾ arm to deliver a running fastball that topped out at 85 mph, sitting 83-84 mph. He featured two breaking balls; the first being a slider in the 72-74 mph range, possessing slurvy shape and some depth. The second breaking ball he featured was a 69-71 mph curveball, working off 11/5 shape. Alworth displayed a sinking changeup at 74-76 mph, kept down in the zone with some feel. Follow right-hander for 2022. 

+ RHP Miguel Cantu (St. Rita, 2022) provided our scouting staff with an intriguing pen on Sunday. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound right-hander possesses present strength within his athletic frame. Cantu works with a drop/drive lower-half down the mound, remaining tall at foot-strike and striding in-line with the plate. His fastball sat comfortably in the 80-82 mph range, showing arm-side run to the inner-half of the plate. He showed two distinctly different breaking balls; a slider with short 11/5 shape at 68-70 mph and a curveball at 69-70 mph with depth off an 11/5 plane, both showing some feel for the zone. Cantu went to a diving changeup at 74-75 mph, thrown at fastball arm-speed and kept in the lower quadrant of the zone. 

+ LHP Cormac Ryan (Lyons Township, 2022) is a projectable 6-foot-2, 185-pound southpaw with plenty of room for additional strength. His arm is loose and fluid while working from a short ¾ slot. The fluidness in his arm translates to his overall delivery, maintaining noticeable rhythm while working with a flexible drop/drive lower-half. Ryan’s fastball sat 77-79 mph with some horizontal movement and ride through the zone. He featured a sweeping curveball with a large 2/8 shape and feel for the zone. He rounded out his repertoire with a changeup at 71-72, working off his fastball with late arm-side fade. Overall, Ryan possesses three quality pitches and should continue to gain velocity in the coming years with added strength onto his effortless delivery.

RHP Logan Kottmeyer (Kaneland, 2022) provided an upside look attached to a lanky 6-foot, 160-pound frame. From a loose and fast arm, Kottmeyer pumped his fastball up to 87 mph, sitting at 85-87 mph throughout at a 2,233 RPM average. Kottmeyer’s breaking ball flashed sharp action off an 11/5 plane and he spun it at an above-average clip, ripping it off at a 2,500+ RPM average. 

POSITION PLAYERS

+ INF/RHP Blake Stempowski (Geneva, 2022) displayed a relatively loud skill-set at Sunday’s event. A strong 6-foot, 185-pound athlete, Stempowski started his day off by running his fastball up to 83 mph and followed it up with a 6.66 mark in the 60-yard dash, good for the event’s best time. He found the barrel often in BP, reaching a peak exit speed of 98.2 mph and an average exit speed of 89.9 mph to pair. Stempowski’s max batted distance was also amongst the event’s leaders, sending his furthest ball 364 ft., per TrackMan. Stempowski’s Blast Motion metrics were also really impressive, averaging 26 mph of hand speed and 75.6 mph of bat speed, too. 

+ C/INF Francis Muraida (Reavis, 2022) was one of the better all-around players at Sunday’s event. Offensively, the left-handed hitter works with a compact/repeatable swing, producing easy bat-speed with intent to lift the baseball. Muraida registered a max exit velocity of 93.2 mph and a max distance of 325 feet to cap off his batting session. Behind the plate, the 5-foot-10, 160-pound backstop recorded a pop-time as low as 1.98, pairing it with a strong/accurate throwing arm and clean/quick actions out of the crouch. 

+ C/SS Owen Anderson (Geneva, 2022) was another catcher from Sunday’s event that showed well on both sides of the ball. At the plate, the right-handed hitter starts with a wide/crouched stance, creating separation at foot-strike and then working level through the zone with a 91.1 mph max exit velocity and 327’ max distance. Anderson possesses confident receiving actions behind the plate, transitioning into a quick/clean transfer with a strong/accurate arm and recording a best pop-time of 2.06. 

+ 1B Mateusz Gapinski (Lake Forest, 2022) showcased some physicality and bat strength during his round of BP. The right-handed hitter starts with a wide base before moving into a loose/level path through the zone, creating extension after contact. The Lake Forest senior recorded a max exit velocity of 92 mph with a max distance of 348’, a top-five distance in the entire event. At first-base, Gapinski moves well around the base for his size, showing feel for the position and fluid footwork around the bag. 

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