By Mike Penn
Michigan Director of Scouting

Today we look at the last group of players from the East Coast Prospect Showcase: the pitchers.  Several young arms who possess upper level talent attended.  Most notably, Malcolm Harris (Henry Ford Academy, 2017), Caleb Scoles (Gull Lake HS, 2016) and John Baker (Hartland HS, 2016) were impressive young prospects.

Here is a look at those players who signed up with pitcher as their primary position.

Top Prospects

1. Caleb Scoles, RHP, Gull Lake HS, 2016
Scoles was one of our favorites.  The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder already has a good frame with a bigger stronger lower half.  We expect him to add velocity in the near future. On this day he was 82-84mph with a smooth inline delivery. He has an advanced downer 12/6 breaking ball. 

2. Brendan Schmitz, RHP, Dakota HS, 2015
Schmitz didn’t get much attention last year because Dakota was so senior laden but expect this 6-foot-4, 175-pounder to contribute in a big way to his Dakota program.  The right-hander still has work to do in terms of smoothing out his delivery but he has a good foundation.  His fastball worked between 84-86mph with a loose arm.  His slot is a over-the-top and a bit inconsistent at this point.  His secondary needs polish but shows signs of having good feel.  He flashed a 74mph breaking ball that had good rotation.

3. John Baker, RHP/3B, Hartland HS, 2016
Big 6-foot-2, 205-pound sophomore with a good foundation.  On the mound may be his best upside but he can swing it as well  81-84mph fastball.  H3/4 slot with smooth mechanics.  Relatively straight at this poing.  Breaking ball has 12/6 bite (65-66mph). Did a nice job keeping arm speed near his fastball on the change (70-71mph).  Developing power arm in the making.  Easy velo.  At the plate has pop in the bat.  Gap-to-gap pop.  Longer arm action in the infield. 80mph across the diamond. Threw the ball accurately.  Made all of the plays. 7.48 runner. 

4. Malcom Harris, OF/RHP, Henry Ford Academy, 2016
Despite being one of the youngest players at the event, Harris was one of our favorites.  For us he drew comparisons to a young Sterling Sharp.  Harris has a projectable 6-foot-1, 155-pounder has lively athletic actions. A 7.01 runner he was 81mph from the outfield.  At the plate he had a fast bat for his age. He has quick twitch movements.  On the mound he ran it up to 81mph but he certainly will gain velocity in the near future.  High follow.

5. Alec Seipenko, LHP, Detroit Catholic Central HS, 2016
A 6-foot, 165-pound sophomore from Catholic Central.  Arm works well. Velocity to come soon.  Long on the backside with easy  arm action.  78-81mph.  Breaking ball has slurvish action but spins well (63-65mph). Really liked him.  Another projectable kid.

6. Aaron Leasher, LHP, Mt. Pleasant HS, 2014
Big 6-foot-3, 180-pound lefty who remains unsigned.  Fastball 81-84mph.  Shows good breaking ball with sharp tight bite 72-73mph.  Change stayed down in the zone with good feel. 74-75mph.  Repeatable mechanics makes throwing strikes easier.  Shorter arm action from 3/4 slot.  Needs to find a place.  Definitely will get outs.

Best of the Rest (Alphabetically)

Brett Dziura, RHP, Dakota HS, 2015
5-foot-10, 150-pound junior.  Interesting prospect.  Not a hard thrower at this point 75-76mph but should see an increase in velo over the next year.  Over the top slot.  Quick arm and smooth delivery.  Breaking ball spun well and was sharp at 62-63mph.  Change has good armside run with some feel.  Needs to make a jump in velocity but projects to be a smaller school kind of player.

John Foxen, RHP, Forrest Hills Central HS, 2014
Unsigned senior with more in there.  5-foot-11, 170-pound RHP.  Crossfire mechanics.  Ball pops out on a hitter.  Looser arm action from 3/4 arm slot produces quite a bit of sink. Breaking ball spun well.   Change needs to be come more consistent.  Smaller school kind of player but has some upside.

Nameer Hanna, LHP, Cousino HS, 2015
5-foot-8 lefty.  Underneath the fastball a bit caused the ball to stay up in the zone.  73-74mph on his fastball.  Slider sweeping action on breaking ball.  Arm stays in lower slot L3/4.

Connor Jackson, RHP, Rockford HS, 2015
Very interesting RHP from good Rockford program.  Has a funky delivery that gives some deception but ball was hidden very well.  Ball popped out of his hand.  Fastball at 83-84mph although it stayed armside quite a bit.  Needs to learn to locate away from armside.  11/5 breaking ball that should get outs.  Change has good feel.  Arm side run and kept hand speed near fastball.  (70-73mph)  Definite follow.  Interested to see if he makes another velocity jump.  Should get outs.

Ryan Paul, RHP/3B, Lansing Catholic HS, 2015
6-foot-1, 205-pound bigger bodied junior from Lansing Catholic.  Longer arm action 75mph.  7.82 runner.  Open stance at the plate.  Level path.  Drops hands early in load.  On the mound fastball was down in the zone 73-76mph.  11/5 gradual break on his CB (59mph).  Good balance point and stays inline.

Travis Peterson, LHP/1B, Monroe HS, 2014
Unsigned Senior 6-foot-2, 180-pound from Monroe HS.  Soft hands at first bas.  Quick clean exchange.  Longer arm action. Made all of the plays. 7.18 runner is evidence of good athleticsm.  At the plate shows developing gap power.  Short strider.  Slow pull.  On the mound fastball ranged between 75-77mph with some cut.  Sweeping breaking ball 63-64mph.  Armside run and down on his change but a touch erratic.  Slinger lefty that is all arms and legs.

Adam Regueiro, RHP/SS, Forrest Hills Central HS, 2014
Unsigned Senior who is a good athlete. 7.12 runner.  Long limbed lanky athlete.  Big frame at 6-foot-2, 195mph.  Moved well laterally.  Projects better as a 3B.  3/4 arm slot.  Some accuracy across the diamond.  74mph across the diamond.  Shorter path at the plate with fast bat.  Athletic. On the mound fastball ranged between 79-80mph with some cut.  Raw mechanics.  Good JUCO candidate.

Jerryl Thompson, RHP/OF, Clintondale HS, 2016
Smaller 5-foot-4, 134-pound RHP/OF  with quick twitch movements.  Had a good motor.  73mph from the outfield.  Shows softer hands and a shorter arm action in the outfield.  At the plate he starts with an athletic stance. He works uphill a little bit.  Contact hitter. On the mound had a quicker arm.  Fastball ranged between 72-75mph.  Secondary stuff needs to improve.  Breaking ball shows gradual break at 65-67mph.