Prep Baseball Report

Midwest Futures Scout Day: Quick Hits


By: Diego Solares
Area Scout, Illinois & Missouri

On Wednesday, February 15th, the PBR Missouri staff traveled to the Midwest Futures facility in O'Fallon, MO, to host the Midwest Futures Scout Day. Roughly 40 players from the Midwest Futures travel program participated in a pro-style workout in front of our staff, collecting up-to-date stats and unrivaled data with the help of our tech partners.

To see a full roster of the player's that attended this event, click HERE.

Today, after compiling our notes and digesting the day as a whole, we’ve put together these ‘Quick Hits’ to shine some light on some of the day’s top performers. Below you’ll learn more about which players really stood out at this year’s event.

QUICK HITS

+ The day’s loudest performance came from OF Jackson Carter (Fort Zumwalt East, 2024), who showed an explosive power/speed combo. Carter, a member of Team Missouri at the PBR Future Games in 2022, has solidified his status as one of the fastest players in Missouri over the last calendar year. He ran a 6.33 in the 60-yard dash his first attempt at this event and one-upped himself the second by running a 6.30. Carter’s taken noticeable strides offensively, increasing his bat speed this off-season and generating extremely loud contact as a result. He averaged 95.2 mph per batted ball, nearly finishing towards the event high, and he barreled three balls over 102 mph, recording a max of 102.4 mph to pace this event. Carter played an extensive role in Fort Zumwalt East’s state run last year, and the uncommitted junior figures to do so again, heading into the spring with an arrow up next to his name.

+ Another PBR Future Games alum, C Brodie Short (Lutheran St. Charles, 2024) was another big winner from this event. A physical 6-foot-1, 212-pound left-handed hitter, Short’s day started on defense, where he showed arm strength (76 mph), accuracy on the bag, and a quick trigger (1.90-2.01) behind the plate. Short then took an impressive round of BP, almost exclusively working on the barrel to the opposite field, squaring his hardest (96.3 mph) and furthest (336 ft.) ball up that way. After catching several bullpens, Short hopped on the mound and ran his fastball up to 88 mph, sitting at 85-87 mph and spinning a 72-74 mph curveball with conviction. He’s poised to play a big role on a Lutheran St. Charles' team that won 20 games last spring, and Short is one of the top left-handed bats still on the market in Missouri’s junior class.

+ A standout from the Preseason All-State, INF Logan Stewart (Home School, 2024) also put together a strong performance at last week’s scout day. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound switch-hitter swung it well from both sides of the plate, repeating a loose, level path from both and creating hard contact off his barrel. Stewart’s hardest hit came off his bat at 98.8 mph, and his ability to regularly produce hard contact on average (91.7 mph) without much effort was impressive. Stewart flowed well on the infield, working at 84 mph across the infield from a loose quick arm, and he also ran his fastball up to 85 mph on the mound.

+ RHP/INF Evan Fulhorst (Fort Zumwalt South, 2024) put together the day’s loudest ‘pen, sitting at 89-91 mph with his fastball. Fulhorst, who’s an athletic 6-foot, 170-pound uncommitted junior, also spun a 73-75 mph curveball with power and intent, flashing depth on the pitch and landing it around the arm-side corner of the plate. Fulhorst’s athleticism translated to the plate, where he swung a fast right-handed bat that generated loud quality of contact metrics as a result - 99.5 mph max exit velocity, 344 ft. peak. He also ran a 6.96 60 and topped at 86 mph across the infield, concluding one of last Wednesday’s best all-around showings. Fort Zumwalt South has a handful of quality arms at their disposal this spring and we’re expecting Fulhorst to play a key role for his particular squad.

+ Arguably the event’s most polished ‘pen came from LHP Jeter Rupp (Fort Zumwalt West, 2024). Rupp, who stands at a highly projectable 6-foot-1, 147-pounds, worked with ease and tempo throughout, repeating his delivery with consistency. His fastball sat in the low-80s from a loose, clean arm slot, and there’s plenty of reason to believe he’ll tap into more velocity as he continues to mature physically. Rupp spun a breaking ball with depth and occasional late break at 68-70 mph for strikes, and he maintained fastball intent on a 71-73 mph changeup that naturally faded. Rupp’s advanced pitchability is certainly evident, and he’s likely to play a big role on Fort Zumwalt West’s pitching staff this spring.

+ RHP/CIF Aven Weaver (Troy Buchanan, 2024) generated some of the loudest contact we’ve seen all winter. The 6-foot, 180-pound highly physical uncommitted junior repeatedly hammered balls off his right-handed barrel, averaging 96.8 mph per batted ball, which is one of the higher marks you’ll see across all of our events. Weaver peaked at 99.5 mph, finishing nearly towards the top of this event’s leaderboard, and his furthest batted ball traveled 331 feet, per TrackMan.

+ RHP Evan Luke (St. Dominic, 2024) is a physical 6-foot-4, 217-pound athlete with a potent two-pitch mix on the mound. Luke’s slider has the makings of a swing-and-miss offering at the next level. He throws it with conviction and intent from a ¾ slot, creating natural sweeping action at 73-76 mph. His fastball, which held 86-88 mph throughout his ‘pen, flashed life up in the zone, and his slider plays best off it when he throws it to the arm-side corner. Luke has power stuff, and he should be a quality arm for a St. Dominic team that’ll look to make some noise this spring.

+ Two uncommitted junior arms who threw well at this event: RHP Josh Burger (St. Dominic, 2024) and RHP Quinn Redfield (Francis Howell, 2024). Burger is a strong 6-foot-1, 180-pound athlete that worked around the zone with his three-pitch mix. His fastball played in the low-80s, topping at 85 mph, and it came out of a high arm slot with some deception throughout. He also spun a 64-67 mph curveball and worked a 73-76 mph changeup to the arm-side of the plate. Redfield’s cut similarly to his counterpart, throwing his three pitches for strikes as well. He threw his heater at 83-85 mph, with a mid-to-high-70s changeup showing as his best secondary in this look, though he also spun a 63-66 mph curveball with slurvey action.

+ OF/C Sam Sailors (Parkway Central, 2024) was a winner at the St. Louis Open last fall and, once again, left a positive impression on our scouts after this event. Sailors stands at a projectable 6-foot-1, 165-pounds, though he’s athletic in stature with lean strength attached. He swung a fast right-handed bat in BP and was all over the barrel, generating quick rotation out of his load while attacking the inner-half of the plate. He almost exclusively generated line drives, and his 95.7 mph max exit velocity was an 8.1 mph increase from last fall. Sailors average exit velocity (87.2 mph) also saw a noticeable increase from his last event (71.5 mph), and it’s a testament to the improvements he’s made in multiple areas this off-season. Sailors rounded out his day by topping at 87 mph from the outfield on his firmest bullet. He’ll look to build off this performance in the spring on a Parkway Central team with their sights set on a return to Ozark.

+ A pair of physical corner infield bats that strung together loud BP rounds last week: 1B Evan Mannebach (St. Dominic, 2024) and CIF Lucas Pearson (Francis Howell, 2024). Mannebach stands at 6-foot-4, 210-pounds with more room to fill out, though the left-handed hitting junior showed plenty of bat strength at this event. Mannebach stayed on top of the baseball throughout from a flat, simple operation, averaging 88.2 mph per barrel with a 99.3 mph peak. Pearson boasts a strong, thick 6-foot-1, 210-pound frame, and his natural strength certainly showed at the plate. His 99.7 mph max exit velocity finished second on our leaderboard, and his 87.5 mph average mark is noticeably above average, too.

+ INF Landon Young (Fort Zumwalt West, 2024) was another uncommitted junior to catch our attention at this event. A strong 6-foot-1, 190-pound athlete, Young stayed on a level plane throughout BP and kept his barrel in the zone, generating plenty of line drive contact as a result. His firmest barrel jumped off his bat at 96.4 mph, and he averaged 87 mph per batted ball, which are both above-average metrics for someone his age. Young led the event in throwing velocity, regardless of position, as he topped at 88 mph across the infield.

+ 1B/RHP Keller Costello (Marquette, 2025) left a strong mark on our scouts in his PBR event debut. Physical for his age at 6-foot-3, 210-pounds, Costello swung a loose left-handed bat in BP, creating hard contact off his barrel from a simple, low-effort operation that worked on top of the baseball. His average exit velocity (92.9 mph) is one of the highest marks we’ve seen from a 2025 graduate this winter, and his firmest barrel checked in at 95.7 mph, traveling 334 feet, per TrackMan. Costello hopped on the mound and pitched in the low-80s with his fastball, flashing feel for a 65-68 mph changeup and flipping his 65-68 mph curveball for strikes on occasion, too.

+ RHP/INF Carter Perry (Fort Zumwalt West, 2025) was another underclassman that impressed us at this event. There’s plenty to project on Perry’s frame, and the 5-foot-10, 145-pound sophomore is almost certain to add strength over the next few years. He looked the part defensively early in the event, floating around the infield with rhythmic feet, soft hands, and a quick, accurate release to pair. Perry sprayed line drives in BP from a flat, level right-handed swing, and he hopped on the mound with feel for all three of his pitches afterwards. Presently polished with upside and bloodlines to pair, Perry is a name-to-know as his sophomore campaign at Fort Zumwalt West is set to start shortly.

+ LHP Alex Versheldon (Francis Howell, 2026) is a lean, high-waisted 5-foot-11, 150-pound southpaw with present polish on the mound. His loose, easy arm action suggests more velocity will come down the road as he matures physically, and Versheldon’s fastball sat in the mid-to-high-70s throughout this look. He spun a breaking ball at 64-67 mph with high shape and gradual action for strikes, and Versheldon also showed feel to run and sink a changeup at 69-70 mph. He’s a projectable arm to know as his high school career begins next week.

+ RHP Dane Harris (North Point, 2027) was the lone prospect not in high school that attended this event, yet still came away a winner to our staff. Harris is an athletic mover downhill, working with pace throughout his ‘pen and producing high-70s velocity with his fastball from a short, quick arm path. He spun a 66-68 mph slider for strikes and occasionally spotted his changeup down in the zone at 70-72 mph.

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