By Adam Akin
Director of Scouting

The 2017 PBR Tennessee Top Prospect Games took place on Tuesday, June 13 and Wednesday, June 14 at Hawkins Field on the campus of Vanderbilt University and included a position player workout, followed by three 9-inning games each day. Players were afforded the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of the PBR Tennessee staff and many college coaches in attendance. The following is our evaluation of the top corner infielders to compete in this year’s event.

 

THIRD BASEMEN

Zach Boze, 3B, Station Camp, 2019
H-1B: 4.77, Position Velocity: 79, Exit Velocity: 80
6'2, 160-pound, RHH continued his run of standout performances at PBR events, as he put together one of the best rounds of BP in the event.  Boze is very balanced at the plate and uses a flat swing plane to consistently square up line drives into the outfield.  He can hit the ball to all fields and shows some doubles pop when he’s able to turn on one.  With a frame still looking to be filled out, Boze could make some huge jumps with added strength and footspeed.  Defensively, he showed soft hands and the ability to move smoothly around the bag at 3B.  He plays through the ball with confidence and makes firm throws with good carry across the infield.  Boze also catches and would be a very good defensive 1B if the opportunity arose.  He smoked a double in game play and threw together a few other good at-bats.

Matthew Joslin, 3B, Spring Hill, 2018
H-1B: 4.61, Position Velocity: 76, Exit Velocity 89
6’0, 180-pound, RHH has a very strong and athletic build and came off as the guy with the most raw strength in the event.  Joslin begins very loose and relaxed but can tense up a little just as he’s starting his swing.  Strength in his hands helps him really drive through the baseball and produce some real gap power.  Joslin seems to like to pull the ball and is able to get the barrel to the ball in any location.  Defensively, he showed good hands and footwork with obvious experience around the corner.  Arm action is a little jerky and his throws could have had a little more on them, but he was accurate.  Joslin plays very hard with a winner’s mentality and finished 2-3 with a double and a walk in game play. 

Mason Landers, 3B, Shelbyville Central, 2020
H-1B: 5.02, Position Velocity: 77, Exit Velocity: 84
6’0, 190-pound, RHH has a well-build frame and a very strong lower half for his age.  Landers has some natural baseball skill and put together a very solid round of BP with some pop and simplicity.  Seems to have a good approach at the plate and a tremendous feel for the game.  Defensively, he showed good hands and got the ball across the infield with some solid carry.  Plenty of room for improvement in his footwork and may turn into a very good defensive 1B at the next level.  Landers hit a couple of balls very hard in game play, but wasn’t able to find a hole.

Charles Addison McNeely, 3B, Lipscomb Academy, 2018
H-1B: 4.88, Position Velocity: 79, Exit Velocity: 79
6’3, 205-pound, RHH was one of the most physical players at this year’s event and was able to show some athleticism at the same time.  McNeely stays tall and could do a better job of utilizing his lower half in the swing, but was able to find the barrel the majority of the time and squared some balls up into the outfield.  His swing is very armsy, but can reach some good extension through contact.  The ball comes off his bat with more authority than his 79 mph recorded exit velocity would suggest.  Defensively,  showed the ability to make all of the routine plays, uses a short arm action to get rid of the ball with decent backspin and carry across the infield.  Quickness could improve, but certainly moves well enough, laterally, to stay at 3B for now.  Finished 2-3 with a walk in game play.

Caleb Pearson, 3B, Brentwood, 2018
H-1B: 4.47, Position Velocity: 85, Exit Velocity: 86
6’2, 193-pound, RHH was one of the most impressive players in the entire event and competed at a high level in all 3 facets of the game.  Pearson is strong and athletic and showed the ability to really drive through the ball in BP, displaying some gap power a sense of confidence in the box.  His bat path is simple, easily repeatable, and flat through the zone with some lift at the end.  Defensively, he showed good hands and footwork around the corner with arm strength that allows him to make a number of plays that most cannot.  Pearson has a very good feel for the game and is able to use that to his advantage in the box, in the field, and on the mound.  In game play, he finished 1-3 with a walk.

Shawn Wallwork, 3B, Independence, 2018
H-1B: 4.31, Position Velocity: 79, Exit Velocity: 85
6’1, 165-pound, LHH put on a show with one of the best rounds of BP we saw in the entire event.  Wallwork starts tall and relaxed and uses a big leg kick and some big movement with his hands to get his entire body engaged.  He attacks the ball while staying behind it and getting the barrel through the ball, consistently.  His bat path is flat to slightly up through the zone and can really generate some drive on balls left up.  Wallwork is athletic and has room to put on some muscle in the next couple of years.  Defensively, he plays around and through the ball smoothly and with confidence.  Plays the hop better than most kids at this level and gets the ball across the infield with efficiency.  Wallwork finished with one of the best in-game performances, finishing 3-5 with a triple.

Morgan Willis, 3B, Ensworth, 2020
H-1B: 4.60, Position Velocity: 74, Exit Velocity: 83
5’10, 160-pound, RHH came off as one of, if not the most polished 2020 graduates in the event.  Willis knows his way around the field and makes some things look easy.  At the plate, he stays very balanced and flat through contact.  His lower half could get a little more aggressive, which would produce some additional bat speed and power.  Willis currently uses a middle approach and did a good job of producing low line drives from gap to gap.  Defensively, he made every play and showed easy actions through fielding the ball and his release.  Willis will improve tremendously with some added strength and foot quickness that should come with age and maturity. 

 

FIRST BASEMEN

Elijah Brooks, 1B, Ensworth, 2019
H-1B: 4.65, Position Velocity: 75, Exit Velocity: 82
5’10, 190-pound, LHH once again showed a well-rounded game and ability to compete.  Brooks showed a little less movement at the plate than we’ve seen from him in the past, but was still able to get the barrel through the ball on a slightly uphill path through the zone.  Taking away some of that pre-pitch movement has reduced the rhythm in his swing.  Short but strong frame generates some strength through contact and can show gap power from time to time.  Defensively, a solid 1B with good footwork around the bag.  Picked a number of balls thrown by middle infielders and made a few plays of his own in game action.  Brooks 1-3 with a triple and 2 walks in game play.

Landon Lewis, 1B, McCallie, 2020
H-1B: 4.95, Position Velocity: 76, Exit Velocity: 84
6’4, 180-pound, RHH was a guy that continued to catch our collective eye on a number of occasions throughout the day.  Lewis has a tall, lean, and athletic build that leaves a ton of room for growth and development throughout the next three years.  He’s loose in the box and uses a smooth stride to generate some consistent rhythm at the beginning of his swing.  Long arms get some good extension through contact and could produce some serious power down the road.  Defensively, makes the plays and works well around the bag.  Could improve his footspeed to make himself a little more versatile. Went 1-4 in game play.

Chase Nelson, 1B, Hendersonville, 2019
H-1B: 4.57, Position Velocity: 79, Exit Velocity: 85
5’11, 185-pound, LHH is loose and confident at the plate.  A solid player with strength and some physical maturity, Nelson showed some gap power during his round of BP.  He is very balanced in his approach and uses a leg kick and stride with good rhythm to get himself moving into the swing.  Nelson looked smooth and showed the ability to hit line drives to all fields .  Defensively, he showed good hands and a feel for working around the bag.  Nelson picked a number of balls in both game play and throughout the showcase work for middle infielders.  Being a LHP, as well, his arm strength is more than sufficient for the 1B position and could probably play LF if need be.  Nelson had one hit during game play, but threw together a couple other solid at bats.

Jack Sisk, 1B, Ravenwood, 2018
H-1B: 4.93, Position Velocity: 84, Exit Velocity: 88
6’3, 215-pound, RHH has a very strong and commanding build that grabs your attention from the start.  Sisk participated in the 2016 Future Games and has continued to improve in every area since then.  He starts from a wider and very strong position at the plate and uses some good lower half movement to generate bat speed.  Sisk has a slightly uphill bat path through the zone, which allows him to drive through the ball with some strength.  He gets in a lot of good positions and good turn his current gap power into home run territory any day.  Defensively, he’s sufficient, and has showed good footwork in everything required of him in the field.  Sisk is athletic and moves smoothly through his transition to produce firm throws across the infield.  He finished 1-4 in game play with a couple of hard hit balls.

Kyle Spurlock, 1B, Sycamore, 2018
H-1B: 4.79, Position Velocity: 82, Exit Velocity: 89
6’0, 205-pound, RHH showed some development at the plate that has allowed him to barrel the ball more consistently and provide a little more power.  Spurlock stays pretty tall throughout his swing, but drops his hands into a slot just before attacking the ball.  He can get a little long at times, but when his timing is right, he can drive the ball in the air with some gap pop.  Defensively, he is sufficient at 1B and has the ability to make the routine plays.  Spurlock went 1-3 in game play.