Prep Baseball Report

The Best of 2020: No. 1 Top Story


Brandon Hall
Executive Director of Scouting, PBR NC

Prep Baseball Report is committed to bringing the news of amateur baseball to our readers and subscribers.  Throughout the year PBR's staff will report on players, teams, events, tournaments, the draft, and general baseball news.  With the setup of PBR being a "boots on the ground" approach, with scouts in states and territories, allowing the ability to skew reports and news to the readers of that area.  Below we take a look at some of the top stories of 2020, based on web site views and social media popularity.

 

NO. 1 TOP STORY OF 2020 -- Rankings

 

 

The number one email received by PBR of NC is "When are Rankings coming out"... The number one comment / issue with players when talking to PBR Scouts, "What can I do to increase my rankings".  Without much surprise, the No. 1 Story of 2020 is Player Rankings.

PBR is setup to know small territories and then grow that knowledge into a national base.  The rankings work from state to state, allowing national scouts and cross checkers to build the Overall Rankings.  In 2020, tens of thousands of coaches, scouts, players, parents, and fans flocked to the PBR website to see updated Rankings.

In North Carolina we have a very detailed process that involves player grades, confidence ratings on the grades, and a blind sort to set our initial rankings on each update.   One of the big secrets to the rankings is a lot of player grade out very similarly, creating a lot of dialogue, and even arguments in the PBR offices.  Eventually an order has to be set, but one of the big take aways is there has to be a player at each number, there are not any ties in the rankings, and someone has to make a final decision.  While PBR scouts are proud of our work, and every player in the rankings can be justified, it is one list.  Players can get better, and at times players can regress.  Rankings are very fluid, but as we get closer and closer to a graduating class' draft date, the more confidence the PBR Staff has in the list.

Overall Rankings

North Carolina Rankings

Our staff looks forward to finding the next gem to add to the above lists.  Evaluations come from PBR Events, PBR Scout Days, PBR Tournaments, Practices, Workouts, Game Coverage, and Video.  Best of luck to all players as we get ready for a great 2021!