Prep Baseball Report

Early Look at Pennsylvania's Class of 2021


Greg Williams
Pennsylvania Director of Scouting

On a yearly basis our initial player rankings for those in their freshman year of high school is released following the completion of the high school baseball season. While most freshman spend their first year in a high school uniform as members of their school's freshmen or JV rosters, some get the privilege of dawning a varsity uniform. An even smaller percentage actually have the opportunity to affect the outcome of varsity games in their initial year of high school.

With highly talented underclassmen making college announcements earlier and earlier, we have decided to begin the process a bit earlier for the Class of 2021. Following we take a look at a handful of freshmen statewide that are likely to make a name for themselves this spring. We will make our next update to the 2021 rankings following the Preseason All-State Showcase in late January and will then follow up with an additional update after the completion of the high school season.

An update to the current PBR Class of 2021 overall rankings is due before the end of the year.

Wagner Tops the Initial Rankings

Cole WagnerWhile he has yet to play a high school game, Red Land LHP/1B Cole Wagner has garnered more than his fair share of attention on the national stage through youth and travel baseball. The 6-foot, 190-pound left-handed hitter and thrower broke onto the national scene as a 13 year old while leading the Red Land Little League team to a United States championship. Wagner has continued his physical maturation, currently sitting in the mid-80s while running his fastball up to 87 mph. The No. 5 ranked prospect in the PBR Class of 2021 overall rankings continues to showcase advanced power and is a legitimate two-way prospect. Wagner announced his commitment to Georgia earlier this fall.

RANK   NAME STATE SCHOOL CLASS POS COMMITMENT
1 Cole Wagner PA Red Land 2021 LHP Georgia
2 Nick Bitsko PA Central Bucks East 2021 RHP Virginia
3 Nick Kurtz PA Manheim Township 2021 LHP Wake Forest
4 Joe Jaconski PA Springside Chestnut Hill 2021 SS North Carolina
5 Sam Contacos PA Penn-Trafford 2021 C


Team Pennsylvania

The PBR Future Games is the top event in the country for uncommitted rising juniors every summer. While it is not uncommon for a few rising sophomores to dot the rosters representing the various PBR states at the event, it is not the norm. This year's Team Pennsylvania roster is in the infancy stages of its development, but if past history repeats itself, a number of Class of 2021 prospects will be included on the final roster. 

The Future Games is an event for the top uncommitted prospects in the country which means that four of the current Pennsylvania prospects ranked in this class will not be up for consideration. A full lineup of winter events will play a major role in sifting through the top underclass prospects in the state over the coming weeks and months.

First Look This Winter

Following is a look at prospects from the Class of 2021 currently registered to participate in a winter PBR event in Pennsylvania. This list will grow significantly over the coming weeks leading up to the bulk of the scheduled events in January.

PBR Measurables & Evaluation Showcase - 12.30.17

NAME STATE SCHOOL CLASS POS
Michael Cunningham PA Spring-Ford HS 2021 RHP
Dylan DuCharme PA Spring-Ford 2021 OF
Brady Faust PA Blue Mountain 2021 3B
Luke Holman PA Wyomissing 2021 RHP
Zack Kramer PA Cumberland Valley 2021 OF
Gavin Neal PA Palmyra 2021 2B
Ethan Phillips PA Red Land 2021 3B
Chase Renner PA Brandywine Heights 2021 RHP
Asa Wilson PA Exeter Township 2021 C


Preseason Preview - 1.13.18

NAME STATE SCHOOL CLASS POS
Landon DiBeradin PA Norwin 2021 C
Jack Price PA Spring-Ford 2021 RHP
Tim Quinn
PA Franklin Regional 2021 2B


Preseason All-State Showcase - 1.27.18 & 1.28.18

NAME STATE SCHOOL CLASS POS
Ben Chase PA Octorara 2021 SS
Brian Finn
PA Springside Chestnut Hill 2021 SS
Eric Genther
PA The Haverford School 2021 C
Jack Giovenco PA Parkland 2021 C
Peter Kern
PA Malvern Prep 2021 OF
Andrew Muraco
PA Franklin Regional 2021 SS

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