Prep Baseball Report

High School Crosscheck: Week 7


Nathan Rode and PBR Staff

Much of the focus for scouts in North Carolina this year is on college prospects. The high school class isn’t as strong as the past few years and there is plenty to see on the weekends between the ACC members Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State and Wake Forest, as well as mid-majors like Campbell, Elon and UNC Wilmington. However, LHP Blake Walston (New Hanover HS, NC) is generating some buzz among the preps. The North Carolina State recruit is long and lanky at 6-foot-4, 175 pounds and very athletic. He tossed a no-hitter last Tuesday, needing only 97 pitches to get through seven innings. He walked two and struck out 15. He had one bad inning, loading the bases in the fourth on two walks around an infield error, but pounded the strike zone at a 71 percent rate. The fastball was 90-92 in the first, sitting mostly 88-90 after that, though he still touched 92 later in the game. He showed the ability to spin two breaking balls—a slider with sharp, sweeping break at 75-77 and a curveball with 2/8 to 1/7 break at 70-74. He has an easy delivery, coming through a 3/4 slot and gets off the mound with ease to field his position.

Premium Content Area

This article is only available to PBRPlus Subscribers. If you wish to continue reading this article:

Login to the Subscriptions Website.
To purchase a NEW SUBSCRIPTION, please click here to go to our subscription products page.