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PBR Louisiana Preseason ID Recap: Uncommitted Prospects

January 27, 2023
Alex Armand
Louisiana Scouting Director

Our January slate of Preseason ID events have officially come to an end.  Over the course of this month, we had the opportunity to see over 100 prospects, from across the state, at our three Preseason ID events.  We strategically placed each event at different areas across the state (Lake Charles, Zachary, Hammond), in the hopes of casting a wide net, so that we could lay eyes on as many prospects as possible.  The whole goal of our Preseason ID events is to give prospects the opportunity to showcase the gains that they have made over the off-season, but it also helps our staff to identify prospects that we need to get out and see in game action this coming high school season.  There were familiar names and faces who continued to show well, as well as newcomers who have now solidified themselves as must-see prospects for this year.  Below, we take a look at a few prospects, from each of our events, that we are excited to see this upcoming high school baseball season.  Be sure to follow us, across all of our social media platforms, as we kick-off our end to end coverage of the 2023 high school baseball season.  We will soon be coming out with our Power 25 rankings to kick the year off, as well as our patented "Game of the Week" series, which will start in just a few weeks.  High school baseball is back in the boot and we couldn't be more excited to get out and see what this season has in store for everyone!

 

 

Uncommitted Prospects: Baton Rouge Preseason ID

 

2025 SS Brock Laird (Natchitoches Central HS)

Athletic 5'9" 155 lbs. frame, but plays much bigger.  We last saw the uncommitted SS at our State Games in September and it's evident that in just 3 short months, he's made some nice gains.  Always a confident and sure-handed defender up the middle, Laird showed an accurate arm across the diamond with backspin and carry and a positional velocity of 81 mph, a +2 mph gain.  Offensively, he has a simple and repeatable swing with his hands held a little higher working down and through contact, staying gap to gap in his approach.  He also recorded a max exit velocity of 95 mph, a +3 mph jump.  Lair is a good uncommitted infielder for recruiters to get out and see this spring.

 

2025 C Dylan Champagne (Dutchtown HS)

Long and lean 6'2" 160 lbs. frame with plenty of room to add strength.  The Griffins will have to replace a lot of seniors from last season and guys like Champagne will make that easier to do.  Starts slightly open in a tall and upright stance, before using a modified leg kick load and stride to get to center.  Champagne drives his back knee through the ground and delivers the bat head with a direct path to contact finishing flat and level.  A lot of hard contact up the middle and to the pull-side of the gap and as he fills out his frame, the power will only continue to tick up.  Defensively, he received and blocked the ball well during bullpens.  He creates a good target for pitchers and displayed good hip mobility from his crouch.  On the throw downs, he was as low as a 2.01 to the bag with a 72 mph positional velocity.

 

2025 RHP/INF Cade Durbin (Parkview Baptist HS)

Athletic 5'11" 145 lbs. frame with long limbs and room to fill out.  Durbin has been a familiar name in the state's 2025 class with strong baseball bloodlines, and he had a good showing on Saturday.  It's a simple swing from the right side with a flat path and extension to match.  Defensively, he's a fluid defender that showed soft hands with athletic actions and a quick release.  Durbin turned in an event best 84 mph positional velocity across the diamond.  On the mound, is where the Parkview Baptist product really shined.  He's an athletic mover down the slope with a loose and easy arm action.  Durbin showed the ability to command his FB to both sides of the plate at 80-81 mph and that velocity will only tick up as he matures and adds strength.  His CB, however, was the offering that was really exciting, as it showed good late bite down in the zone with spin rates up to 2783 RPM's per Trackman Baseball.  He's got a starter profile and is a strike thrower, which is something that should bode well for the Eagles this spring.

 

2024 RHP/OF Cameron Patterson (Central BR HS)

Athletic 6'0" 175 lbs. frame with a strong lower-half.  Central BR Head Coach Leo McClure needs some guys to step up this spring to replace a few key seniors from last season, and Patterson looks like he could be one of those guys.  Offensively, Patterson showed good bat to ball skills with an inside out path through the ball that produced hard contact up the middle and to the opposite field.  An athletic defender, the Central BR product showed a really good arm from the outfield that resulted in an event best 92 mph positional velocity.  On the mound, Patterson is an aggressive mover down the hill.  His FB showed good ride and life through the zone at 85-86 mph and he paired it well with an "11-5" shaped CB.  Look for the two-way prospect to make an impact for the Wildcats this spring.

 

2024 RHP/OF Cole Connor (University Lab HS)

Athletic 6'1" 175 lbs. with broad shoulders and room to add more strength.  We last saw Connor at our New Orleans Open this past summer and he's another prospect that has spent time in the weight room and it shows.  At the plate, the U-High product works with a steeper and direct path to contact and uphill extension with pop to the pull-side that resulted in a 92 mph max exit velocity.  He also showed a really good arm from the OF, running it up to 90 mph with back spin and carry.  On the mound, he again showed a lot of intrigue.  Connor releases the ball from a 3/4 slot with a long, loose arm action.  He worked his heavier, sinking two-seam FB at 85-87 mph and paired it well with a sharp SL.  The University Lab Cubs should be a favorite heading into this spring with Connor and fellow junior Camden Sunstrom returning as well.

 

2025 LHP Bryce Wilson (Chalmette HS)

Athletic 6'0" 150 lbs. frame with plenty of room to continue to add strength.  The Chalmette product had a very good bullpen session at our Baton Rouge Preseason ID on 01/14/23.  Starting on the 3B side of the rubber and staying there throughout a slower and controlled delivery, Wilson brings the ball down and back up with a longer arm swing and releases from a 3/4 slot.  He sat 82-83 mph with his FB (2250-2374 RPM) with classic arm side sink and run down in the zone.  His 70-71 mph CB had short lateral break with some depth and he also showed a quality 74-76 mph CH.  Wilson is an uncommitted strike-throwing LHP that should see a lot of success this season as a sophomore. 

 

Uncommitted Prospects: Lake Charles Preseason ID

 

2024 OF Dylan Bell (Sam Houston HS)

Physical 5'11" 185 lbs. frame; Bell has continued to trend up in our recent looks and could be a candidate to have a breakout season for the Broncos this spring.  A really good overall athlete, Bell posted a 6.80 (laser) in the 60.  In the OF, he caught everything clean and out front before showing an accurate arm from the OF, getting up to 88 mph.  At the plate, he maintains balance from start to finish and drops the bat head straight to the ball with a classic left-handed uphill finish and a max exit velocity of 89 mph.

  

2024 1B Kennedy Leggett (St. Louis Catholic HS)

XL physical 6'2" 230 lbs. frame.  There were a lot of good BP rounds on Sunday, but the best belonged to the big right-handed hitter from St. Louis Catholic.  Leggett operates from a taller, upright stance and keeps things simple.  His loose wrists allow the barrel to really whip through the zone with a flat and on-plane path to contact and extension to match.  He blistered balls from gap to gap, showing the most power to dead CF, as he cleared the CF wall, into a cross wind on one of his swings that resulted in a max exit velocity of 100 mph.  The St. Louis product is also a good athlete that posted a 7.26 in the 60 and moved well around the first base bag.  Look for Leggett to hit in the middle of the Saints order this spring and have a big junior campaign.

 

2024 INF Bryce Fontenot (Sulphur HS)

We were in attendance during last year's quarterfinal round of the playoffs where Fontenot belted 3 HR's against Zachary HS to help the Tors advance to the state tournament.  The uncommitted infielder had another good showing on Sunday as well.  At the plate, he creates a lot of torque and gets the most out of his frame with present pull-side power that resulted in a personal best 95 mph exit velocity.  On the infield, is where Fontenot showed a lot of improvement, as he fielded everything with soft hands and smooth actions.  Throws were accurate across the diamond with backspin and carry as well.

  

2025 OF Marcus Gradney Jr. (St. Edmund Catholic HS)

Physical 5'10" 175 lbs. frame.  We last saw Gradney over the summer smoke a ball at Rice University for a triple that measured a 103 mph exit velocity and it was more of the same on Sunday.  At the plate, the left-handed hitter, turns the barrel aggressively to contact with an uphill path and uphill extension.  He swung wood again on Sunday and posted a 99 mph exit velocity.  The St. Edmund Catholic product also showed a good arm from the OF at 87 mph.

 

2025 LHP/OF Cole Flanagan (Sam Houston HS)

There were plenty of Broncos to talk about after Sunday, and Flanagan was another guy that caught our eye.  Physical 6'0" 205 lbs. frame.  The Sam Houston product showed well during the defensive portion of the day in the OF, as he caught everything clean and out front and showed off an accurate and strong arm up to 89 mph.  At the plate, a left-handed hitter, Flanagan showed a repeatable and simple swing maintaining balance from start to finish.  The path is on-plane and flat to the ball with slightly uphill extension.  He worked mostly to the middle of the field and to the pull-side, showing some pop that way with a max exit velocity of 94 mph.  On the mound, the southpaw worked 80-83 mph with the FB with a short and quick arm stroke, while mixing in a quality 70-71 mph tight CB and a late-fading 74-76 mph CH.  Look for Flanagan to make an impact both on the mound and at the plate for the Broncos this spring.

 

2024 LHP Nik Toups (Sam Houston HS)

XL, durable 6'3" 230 lbs. frame.  Toups attended our State Games back at the end of September, where he had a successful outing by running low-80's FB down and away to the arm side.  Fast-forward to January and we saw Toups make a nice jump in velocity, which has raised the profile of his stuff overall.  He worked 86-89 mph with his FB, touching 90 mph, with the same arm-side sink and run that made him successful a few months ago.  His CB is still a work in progress, but he showed a really good CH with late fade and sink that tunneled well with his FB.  Toups is a big-bodied left-hander with upside and should be highlighted on everyone's sheet as a guy to see this spring.

 

 

 

 

Uncommitted Prospects: Hammond Preseason ID

 

-2023 RHP Pierce Boles (Fontainebleu HS)

Athletic and physical 6'2" 205 lbs. frame.  The uncommitted hurler is a new face to the state of Louisiana, having moved in from the state of Florida, so this was our first look at him and it was a really good one.  Operating out of the stretch, Boles uses a high leg lift, before moving aggressively down the mound and releasing the ball with a short and quick arm action.  He sat 90-93 mph with his FB and it had good sink and life down in the zone.  His 78-81 mph SL had good shape with late bite down in the zone, and his firmer 85-87 mph CH was a solid third offering. 

2024 C Evan Wright (Fontainebleu HS)

Physical, stocky 5'10" 205 lbs. frame.  The uncommitted backstop performed well at our State Games this past fall and had another good showing on Sunday.  Simple set up from the right side with his hands held above shoulder height; Wright uses his lower-half to aggressively turn the barrel to contact with an on-plane path and slightly uphill extension that produced a max exit velocity of 95 mph. 

-2024 OF/RHP Corey Cousin (Slidell HS)

Athletic 5'11" 170 lbs. frame with broad shoulders and room to carry more weight and add strength.  The uncommitted two-way prospect boasted the best overall tool set on the day.  A really good runner, Cousin posted a 6.69 laser-timed 60.  He moved athletically in the outfield and showed off a big arm, as he was up to 91 mph from the outfield.  Lastly, he hopped on the mound and worked his FB in the 87-89 mph range and complimented it well with a low-70's "12-6" shaped breaking ball.  Cousin is a good prospect to follow moving forward.

-2024 RHP Quinn Smith (Lutcher HS)

Projectable 6'4" 185 lbs. frame with plenty of room to continue to add strength.  We did our team preview on Lutcher HS last week and one of the biggest questions for their team this year, is who is going to compliment 2025 Marshall Louque on the mound, and after what we saw on Sunday, Smith could be the guy.  The arm really works, as he was 89-91 mph with his FB and it had good downward tilt, as he released the ball from a higher 3/4 slot.  His CB and CH are developing secondary offerings that need some fine tuning, but there was no denying the arm talent and upside on Sunday.

 

-2025 C Gavin Panks (Covington HS)

Athletic 6'0" 160 lbs. frame.  The uncommitted backstop announced his presence during batting practice on Sunday, as he turned in a very clean and professional round.  A left-handed hitter, Panks operates from a wider and athletic set-up and uses a simple load and stride.  The swing is very controlled and he repeats it well, maintaining balance from start to finish, while working gap to gap hard on a line.  During bullpens, he received and blocked the ball well, especially for catching arms that he was unfamiliar with.  The Covington HS product is a good 2025 name to get out and see this spring.

-2025 MIF Ryder Planchard (Holy Cross HS)

Athletic, wiry, and still developing 5'9" 150 lbs. frame.  The overall tool-set of Planchard won't jump off the page, but he's a baseball player and continues to trend in the right direction.  During BP, he repeated his swing well with a direct path to contact working up the middle on a line, he produced a lot of hard contact that resulted in a max exit velocity of 86 mph.  Defensively, however, is where Planchard really shined on Sunday.  His actions were smooth and he received the ball with soft hands and athletic footwork.  Throws across the diamond were accurate and he showed a quick release when he had to.  The uncommitted Holy Cross product will only continue to trend up, as he fills out his frame and gains strength.

-2025 OF Clayton Kimball (Central Private HS)

Physical and imposing 6'3" 195 lbs. frame.  Kimball was a member of our Junior Future Games team in 2021 and we most recently saw him at our State Games, this past fall, before getting another look on Sunday.  We really liked the adjustments that he's seemed to make at the plate since the State Games, as he was more upright in his stance with more rhythm in his hands, which allowed him to use his frame to create leverage.  Kimball's hands worked freely, as he made a lot of loud contact during his BP round that resulted in a max exit velocity of 91 mph.