Prep Baseball Report

15U at the Rock: Five to Follow | Corner Infielders


By Wisconsin Staff

The PBR Wisconsin-hosted 15U at The Rock Championships took place at The Rock Sports Complex in Franklin, Wis., last weekend and completely lived up to our staff's lofty expectations. There was highly competitive baseball throughout the whole tournament, and with many of the Midwest’s best teams in attendance, it was a great opportunity for us to see some of the top talent in the region.

We have already begun analysis for the event – starting with our loaded Scout Blog featuring well over 100 names, which can be found here. Our staff also published an All-Tournament team, which can be found here. Our day-by-day recaps of the event will also be linked below. 

Day 1 Quick Hits
Day 2 Quick Hits
Day 3 Quick Hits

In the next portion of our tournament coverage, we will begin to highlight the best-of-the-rest, the prospects you need to know after those named to our All-Tournament roster. This article will specifically breakdown the top outfielders in attendance, after the four named to the all-tourney team.

Corner Infielders

Gabe Richardson, 3B/RHP, Eau Claire North (WI), 2022 | SHB Kards
Big strong, athletic, frame, highly projectable. Played third base and pitched for Kards 15U. On the mound Richardson has a smooth delivery, works from a high ¾ arm slot, has loose arm action, in line, lands square. Throws a fastball and slider. Fastball consistently sat at 73mph and slider sat at 67. Slider shows 11/5 shape, presents similar arm speed as fastball. At the plate Richardson hits from a square, balanced set up, short stride, smooth load, shows balance throughout his swing. Has fast bat speed, advanced approach at the plate, short level, slightly uphill bat path, gets extension. Line drive, gap- to- gap hitter, with some power potential in the near future

Nick West, 1B, Verona (WI), 2022 | GRB Rays Green
The 6-foot-0 170lb switch hitter attacks the baseball with a relaxed, easy effort swing. Reached base safely on all three of his plate appearances. Flashed pull side power with an effortless swing from the left side. Drove a 2B to the right center gap that showed some carry. He finished the morning with 2 RBI and a stolen base as well. 

Keegan Knutson, 3B, Milton (WI), 2022 | Hitters Navy
A recent South Carolina commit. 5-foot-10, 150-pound third baseman who batted second in the lineup for Hitters Navy on Thursday against STiKS-Black. Knutson had a hard hit double in the gap which resulted in an RBI. The right-handed hitter has a balanced setup with a quiet load. He has a short, quick path to the baseball and maintains good balance throughout his swing. Final line on Saturday was a combined 4-for-7 with a home run. Knutson plays the game at a different speed then his peers, uptempo and energetic, grinder type with leadership qualities that standout on the diamond. 

Cade Nowik, RHP/3B, Lake Forest (IL), 2022 | Slammers-Coyote
Strong build. Played 3B and batted second. At the plate, balanced setup, leg kick stride, level path to the baseball. Bat stays in the zone for a long time. Found the barrel a number of times, making hard contact in each of his four at-bats against Kards. Finished 3-for-4 with a pair of singles up the middle, a triple off the wall in right, and drove in two runs. In the field, showed fluid footwork and a clean exchange. Long arm action, played accurate across the diamond. Took the mound over the weekend, too. Also took the mound against NEO Elite on Sunday. Rocks into quick-tempoed wind-up, high knee, closed landing. Compact arm circle, quick and loose, high ¾ slot. Fastball, hard and heavy, 80-82 mph, T83 mph. Did not see an offspeed in his lone inning of work. Struck out the side in a 1-2-3 save situation.

Wendell Waukau Jr., 1B, Menominee Indian (WI), 2022 | CBT
6-foot, 230 pound left handed hitting third baseman who batted fourth in the lineup for CBT on Friday against Slammers-Coyote. He went 2-for-2 with two singles and a walk. Waukau has an open set up with a toe tap stride which brings him to a closed position. Above average bat strength was present in his swing.

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