Missouri Class of 2024 Rankings: Update
November 30, 2022
With the conclusion of the fall circuit and the off-season underway, our staff has updated the state's 2024 rankings one final time in 2022. Though there's not much shakeup on this new board, we have expanded the rankings by a handful of names, rising and adding a few names as a result.
Below you'll learn more about these updated rankings for the state's current junior class, including more information on prospects that climbed and those who debuted for the first time. w2q3
THE TOP 10
+ Though the top of this list remains relatively unchanged, there is one new name that jumped into the top-10: LHP Brady Kehlenbrink (Parkway South, 2024). Kehlenbrink represented Missouri at the PBR Future Games this past summer and solidified himself as a top-end southpaw in our region as a result. He’ll pitch in the mid-to-upper-80s with his fastball and the 6-foot-2, 195-pound southpaw compliments it with above-average feel for two quality secondaries. Kehlenbrink recently committed to SEC powerhouse Louisiana State and could climb even higher up this list down the road should he continue improving.
RISERS
+ Climbing up a handful of spots in this update is INF Nathan Negre (Berean Christian Academy, 2024; Central Arkansas), who we already regarded as a top up-the-middle prospect in Missouri’s current junior group. Negre has the tools to be a real impact right-handed hitter, wielding a natural ability to elevate the baseball with bat speed and barrel strength. He’s one we’re eager to follow early after another off-season under his belt.
+ OF Lucas Redd (Rockhurst, 2024) was a standout performer at two events this fall. We first saw him at the Missouri Fall Upperclass Games in September, where Redd recorded the day’s second-hardest hit ball (97.2 mph) and arm strength (89 mph) attached to a physical 6-foot-2, 200-pound frame. He raised his peak exit velocity by two ticks (99.2 mph) at the Mac N Seitz Scout Day on October 30th, repeating hard contact (87.3 mph average) up the middle while also running a 7.03 in the 60-yard dash. Redd’s physicality and tools have him trending in the right direction, and he rises a handful of spots up our board as a result.
+ INF Hayden Boyd (Seckman, 2024) rises roughly 40 spots in this update, climbing inside the top-80 prospects after three breakout showings this fall. He was amongst the top prospects in attendance at the Missouri Fall Upperclass Games, the Battle for The Arch, and the Recruits Scout Day. Our most recent nugget on him:
“...proved to be one of the day’s more intriguing two-way follows. Boyd really looks the part in a uniform, standing at 6-foot-2, 180-pounds with present strength and room for more. He’s a savvy defender on the infield with swift feet and soft hands to boot, moving comfortably around the turf while covering ground. He’s projectable at the plate with a long right-handed swing, elevating the baseball to the pull-side with a 341 ft. max batted distance. Boyd threw the final two innings for Team Missouri on the mound, pitching at 84-86 mph with a fastball that featured heavy run and sink. His primary secondary pitch appeared to be a 72-73 mph changeup that stayed on fastball plane and worked down in the zone. Boyd also showed above-average feel to spin a low-to-mid-70s slider at the Recruits Scout Day in early October.”
+ Another winner from the Missouri Fall Upperclass Games and Recruits Scout Day, 1B Nathan Higgins (Seckman, 2024) climbs up a handful of spots in this update. Higgins brings plenty of physicality to the plate, standing at 6-foot-2, 225-pounds with an equal amount of thump inside his left-handed barrel. His power caught our scouts’ attention in Columbia, and we had this to say about him on that day:
“...proved to be one of the day’s most physically intriguing prospects, harnessing strength attached to a 6-foot-2, 240-pound frame. A left-handed hitter, Higgins hammered balls throughout his BP round, elevating hard contact off the barrel to the pull-side. He translated that natural raw power to the gameplay portion of this event, crushing a double that nearly bounced off the right field wall.”
+ INF Jackson De Lautour (Blue Springs South, 2024) is an athletic up-the-middle follow who bumps up more than 20 spots in this update. Built at a projectable 6-foot-1, 165-pounds, De Lautour’s ease at the plate stands out and it’s easy to see him impacting the baseball with more authority once he fills out his frame. We’ve seen him perform in-game too, as he racked up 10 hits at the Midwest Premier Super 16 in late July.
+ INF Noah Scheller-Houska (Oakville, 2024) came away from the Recruits Scout Day as one of its biggest winners, earning a jump up our rankings as a result. He’s a strong 6-foot, 180-pound athlete with loose levers and a clean fast right-handed stroke to pair. There’s power to project on as well and his max exit velocity (90.4 mph) and peak distance (324 ft.) metrics should grow as he continues to physically mature. Houska is also a 7.09 runner in the 60-yard dash and showed soft hands with fluid actions on the infield during his workout. He’s one to follow this upcoming spring season for an up-and-coming Oakville squad.
NEWCOMERS
+ RHP Charlie Spoonhour (Vianney, 2024) oozes projection on a lean, lanky 5-foot-11, 145-pound frame. Spoonhour’s ease and upside caught our attention at the Missouri Fall Upperclass Games, where he pitched in the low-80s with his fastball while generating upwards of 20 inches of horizontal movement at peak. Spoonhour generated even more run on his changeup, a pitch that played at 73-74 mph that averaged 20+ inches of run and peaked at 24 inches, per TrackMan. He also spun a near 2500 RPM breaking ball at 67-69 mph with minimal vertical break and heavy sweep (18.8 inches of horizontal action). We’re eager to see his progress after another offseason and the impact he’ll make on a young Vianney squad this spring.
+ OF/C Sam Sailors (Parkway Central, 2024) was one of the biggest winners from this fall’s St. Louis Open. Prior to that event, however, Sailors enjoyed success on a Parkway Central team that made it to the 5A state playoffs this spring, slashing .318/.405/.449 across 81 plate appearances. At a lean 6-foot, 160-pounds, Sailors ran a 7.13 in the 60 and showed a loose athletic right-handed swing in BP while working to all fields. Defensively, Sailors showed accuracy to the bag from behind the plate, popping a 2.03 on his best bullet.
+ CIF Tyler Ellis (Christian Brothers College, 2024) debuts on this list after a strong showing at the St. Louis Open we ran this fall. At 6-foot-1, 210-pounds, Ellis generated hard contact off his barrel, both on average and at peak. Our quick nugget on him from that event:
“...generated some of the hardest contact we saw at yesterday’s event, both at peak and on average. Ellis utilized the inherent strength attached to a physical 6-foot-1, 215-pound frame to square up his hardest barrel at 94.5 mph, averaging 85.6 mph per batted ball. His top hand (23.1 mph) and bat (74.9 mph) speed marks also finished amongst the event’s leaders.”
+ LHP Clayton Shockley (Belle, 2024) is a highly projectable 6-foot-3, 175-pound southpaw that impressed our staff across two looks this year. We first saw Shockley at the Creekside Summer Championships, where he easily pitched in the low-80s and fanned nine batters through four strong innings of work. He made the trip to Columbia for the Fall Upperclass Games in September and showed similar stuff, twirling two quality innings during the event’s gameplay portion. We highlighted him after the event inside our takeaways piece:
“...built off that summer outing and impressed our scouts yet again in Columbia this weekend. A highly projectable 6-foot-3, 173-pound southpaw who’s a fluid mover downhill, Shockley worked the zone with a low-80s fastball, spinning it at 2,300+ RPM, and he turned to a 68-71 mph slider as his primary compliment. He’s an upside southpaw to follow, especially as he continues to fill out his frame and physically mature.”
+ OF Xander Zumwalt (Summit Christian, 2024) debuts on these rankings after a quality showing at the MOKAN Open. At 6-foot-4, 180-pounds, Zumwalt's physical upside is certainly high, and him hitting left-handed further enhances an already enticing profile. He swings that barrel rather fluidly, staying flat through the zone and on top of the baseball while producing a peak exit velocity of 96.1 mph at that aforementioned event. Zumwalt's still gaining full feel for himself from a physical standpoint and how to control his levers, but there's certainly a ceiling to dream on down the road.
+ Another athletic arm from the Fall Upperclass Games to debut on these updated rankings: RHP Sean Phillips (Elsberry, 2024). Phillips wiry strength and twitchy athleticism showed throughout his brief outing, bumping his fastball up to 85 mph with intriguing spin traits on his breaking ball, too:
“...wiry 5-foot-10, 165-pound athlete with twitchy arm speed, Phillips pitched at 81-84 mph, touching 85 mph with heavy arm-side run. He averaged 17.4 inches of horizontal action per pitch, which was amongst the highest marks of this entire event. Phillips also ripped off a handful of sharp breaking balls at 66-70 mph that spun at 2,300+ RPM with clear lateral break, also averaging 17+ inches of horizontal movement, per TrackMan.”
**CLICK HERE FOR THE UPDATED MISSOURI 2024 RANKINGS**
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