On Nov. 13th, thousands of high school baseball players across the country signed their National Letters of Intent to lock in their official commitments to their respective schools, with hundreds of these signings hailing from Illinois.

Over the next few weeks, we will spend some time highlighting the names from Illinois that signed their NLI to play baseball at the Division I level. We’ll do so by breaking these names up by conference, continuing with the MAC today. 

Eastern Michigan 

The Eagles grabbed a handful of prospects from Illinois in this class, starting with CIF Demir Heidelberg (Homewood Flossmoor). Listed at 6-foot-2, 175-pounds, Heidelberg boasts a highly projectable and lean frame with plenty of room to add on more strength in the coming years. He already has present power in his long-levered swing, reaching over the 100 mph mark in-event over the winter. He’s athletic enough to move to the outfield if needed, being a 6.88 runner in the 60. 

From 2/24/24: "1B Demir Heidelberg (Homewood-Flossmoor; Eastern Michigan commit) has an impressive 6-foot-2, 174-pound frame with lean strength and all sorts of projection. He put on a show in BP, utilizing his levers well to create a max EV of 102.5 mph, averaging 95.1 mph with a max distance of 376’. He creates easy bat-speed and natural lift at times, working through the zone with an average bat-speed of 73.8 mph (T77.4 mph). High-ceiling left-handed hitter in the state, also an impressive athlete with a 6.88 in the 60."

Aidan Nohava (Brother Rice) and Phillip Thigpen (Kenwood) are a couple more infield additions for the Eagles. 

Nohava stands in at 6-foot, 193-pounds, and he has put up some big numbers in previous looks; reaching up to 97 mph for his max EV with an average bat-speed of 79 mph (T83 mph). 

From 2/24/24: “INF Aidan Nohava (Brother Rice; Eastern Michigan commit) had a strong all-around showing over the weekend. Athletic build, listed at 6-foot, 177-pounds with round shoulders and strength in the lower-half. The right-handed hitter displayed a direct path to the ball with some extension through the zone, reaching up to 95.5 mph for his max EV with a 337’ max distance. He showed smooth actions on the infield with soft hands and a clean glove-to-hand, pairing with a quality arm across (T83 mph). Looks to be able to remain on the infield at the next level.”

Thigpen is a steady defender on the infield who can also hold his own in the outfield, if needed. The right-handed hitter has consistently hit for our staff throughout his prep career, both in-event and in-game with exit velocities in the low-90s. 

Northern Illinois

The Huskies more than doubled their win total from 2023 to 2024, and they have no plans on slowing down any time soon. 

One big addition in this recruiting class is OF Wyatt Wawro (Downers Grove South). The former Future Games standout is one of the more polished hitters in the state, and he provides quality defense in the outfield with range and the ability to track down flyballs. 

From 8/21/24: “OF Wyatt Wawro (Downers Grove South) continues to show as one of the better uncommitted bats in the state. The 5-foot-9, 157-pound left-left outfielder was on the barrel throughout gameplay - finishing with three hits, including a triple in the final game. Wawro can cover ground defensively as well, taking clean and easy routes in the outfield. He also ran a 6.89 60 during the workout portion of the event, and that speed translated in-game as he also showed to be a smooth runner on the basepaths.”

The Huskies are adding a couple talented arms in this crop in LHP Mason Orton (Mahomet-Seymour) and RHP Connar Temple (Batavia).

Orton, a Senior Future Games participant this past summer, is an athletic southpaw with a loose and whippy arm. He slings it from a lower ¾ slot, running his fastball up to 89 mph while cruising in the mid/upper-80s. He rounds out his arsenal with a curveball, slider and changeup, all with varying velocity ranges. 

From 8/14/14: “LHP Mason Orton (Mahomet-Seymour, 2025) recently made his commitment to Northern Illinois after his trip down to Georgia. The 6-foot-1, 170-pound southpaw has plenty of room for physical development down the road. He’s an athletic mover down the mound with a compact, quick arm, showing fastballs in the 84-87 mph range, but topping out at 88 mph with some arm-side run. He also mixed in a curveball at 74-78 mph, playing with tight horizontal action, as well as a low-80s change-up with slight fade to the arm-side.”

Temple is a trim 6-foot-1, 180-pound right-hander that can work his fastball around the 90 mph mark, and we were able to get a couple quality looks at him throughout 2024. 

From 2/24/24: “RHP Connar Temple (Batavia, 2025) had one of the higher movement profiles on an individual pitch of the entire event. His slider, at 76-77 mph, had the most horizontal movement at peak (-20.2”) and on average (-18.6”) than any other such pitch in attendance. Temple also threw his fastball at 88-89, T89.5 mph, and showed a firm changeup at 83-84 mph.”

Ohio

The Bobcats grabbed a long-levered left-handed hitter out of the northern part of the state in OF Connor Gibour (Crystal Lake Central). Listed at 6-foot-4, 195-pounds, Gibour has a frame you can dream on, and he’s proven to be a tough out at the plate. 

From 6/7/24: “Ohio commit. Currently ranked No. 139 in Illinois’ junior class. Stands in a hard-to-miss frame at 6-foot-4, 200-pounds. Intrigued at the plate with his left-handed swing, taking a well-hit fastball the other way for a single in his first at-bat of the day. Simple approach at the plate, minimal pre-pitch movement, stays short to the ball with extension through the zone. Finished the day at the plate 2-for-2 with two RBI. Gibour continued to swing the bat well and show off his left-handed pop on Saturday in the State Title game, where he tripled to the opposite field.”

Toledo 

The Rockets inked two intriguing prospects in this class, starting with OF Liam Arsich (Lincoln-Way Central). Currently the No. 48 ranked player in the state, Arsich is one of the best runners not just in the state, but the entire Midwest, boasting a 6.57 laser-timed 60. The former Future Gamer uses his speed to his advantage both on the basepaths and in the outfield, tracking down flyballs and covering ground with ease. The right-handed hitter also has an athletic stroke that will take the ball where it is pitched with a line-drive approach.

From 5/6/24: “Toledo commit. Standing in at a long-levered 6-foot-3, 175-pounds. Arsich batted leadoff and started in center field for the Knights. A loose and fluid mover in the outfield, Arsich showed natural and comfortable actions in the outfield, getting clean reads on fly balls; covering ground to both his left and right, while also showing range over the shoulder. The right-handed hitter uses his long levers to create extension out front off of a slightly uphill bat path. He hit the ball hard at times, using the whole field, showing the ability to take the ball where it’s pitched. Arsich finished the day 1-for-3 with a HBP, two runs scored, and a stolen base.”

LHP Henry Johnson (Glenbard West) is a high-ceiling southpaw that showed well a handful of times for our staff in 2024. He has a lower ¾ release with some cross-body action to create deception in his delivery, and he will attack hitters with a sinking mid-80s fastball. 

From 8/1/24: “LHP Henry Johnson (Glenbard West, 2025) It was an upside look at the 6-foot-6, 200-pound uncommitted prospect. Johnson showed a clean and loose arm action with a long, clean arm path to pair. He relied heavily on his fastball that sat mostly 80-83 mph, topping out at 85 mph with some arm-side run. He turned to a slider with 2/8 shape that sat in the low-70s. Johnson is an follow uncommitted arm in Illinois’ 2025 class.”

Western Michigan 

Coming off a 32-win season in 2024, the Broncos are looking to add some depth to their pitching staff with RHP Jake Ross (Andrew). Listed at a long-levered and projectable 6-foot-5, 220-pounds, we’ve seen Ross up to 88 mph in previous looks to go along with a curveball/changeup combination.

Related Content