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By PBR Michigan Staff

Michigan Insider: Updated Class of 2018 Player Rankings (August)

With the summer showcases coming to a close, Prep Baseball Report Michigan takes a look at the 2018 rankings. Many new prospects come into the rankings while many prospects have made jumps, some drastically. Below we will take a look at “What’s New At The Top”, “Rising Prospects”, and some of the top uncommitted prospects.

To view the entire list of 155 prospects please click here.

For insider information and scouting notes from the PBR staff during the 2016 spring season visit the 2016 Michigan Scout Blog by clicking here.

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WHATS NEW AT THE TOP

As the summer months went on, 2018 prospects kept improving and one of the highlights of the summer is the improvements of two-way prospect Spencer Schwellenbach (Saginaw Heritage HS, pictured right) who moved from the number 2 spot to the number 1 spot. Mason Minzey (Bishop Foley HS) entered the rankings in the top 10 while Brandon Smith (Saginaw Heritage HS) and Luke Stephenson (Algonac HS) jumped up to the top 10.

Schwellenbach, an athletic Shortstop/Right-Handed Pitcher committed to Nebraska, jumped up to number 1 after sitting 90-92 mph on the mound and continuing his prowess both defensively and offensively.

Minzey, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound switch-hitting Catcher committed to Texas Tech, entered the rankings at number 5 after attending the Future Games and displaying the ability to drive the ball from both sides of the plate as well as advanced catching skills. Soon after his impressive performance at the Future Games he committed to become a Red Raider after graduating high school.

Smith, a projectable Right-Handed Pitcher and Stephenson, a plus-defender behind the plate, both jumped into the top 10 after they impressed at the Future Games. Both have projectable frames with broad shoulders as Smith sits in the mid-80s with his fastball and Stephenson showed some of the best pop-times in front of 100s of college scouts.

The Risers

While Smith and Stephenson saw a rise in their rankings, three prospects took big jumps. OF/LHP Gaetano Vallone (West Catholic HS, pictured right), LHP Cameron Tullar (Brighton HS), and OF/SS Will Morrison performed well in multiple showcases this summer, including all three attending the prestigious Future Games.

Vallone, a two-way prospect who shows an advanced ability to hit, performed well at the Top Prospect Games to earn a spot on the Future Games roster then showed how well he can swing the bat in Indianapolis while also showing promise on the mound with a low-to-mid-80s fastball.

Tullar, a Left-Handed Pitcher, showed a mid-80s fastball with command of a curveball, slider, and changeup at the Top Prospect Games before following up this performance with a strong outing at the Future Games.

Morrison, an athletic and versatile prospect, entered the rankings at number 16. He showed well at three events this summer, including the Future Games where he ran a 6.78 60-yard dash.

Top Uncommitted Prospects By Position:

• Top Right-Handed Pitchers: Brandon Smith, Logan Lee 
• Top Left-Handed Pitchers: Cameron Tullar, Garrett Willis
• Top Catching Prospects: Luke Stephenson (pictured right), Tommy Blitchok
• Top Corner Infield Prospects: Brett Upton, Seth Bogataj
• Top Middle Infield Prospects: Ian Janssen, Noah Miller, Cobe Huizenga
• Top Outfield Prospects: Reese Trahey, Caleb Jackson, Will Morrison, Lewis Beals
• Top Two-Way Prospects: Jacob Erickson, Gaetano Vallone, Keaton Hamilton

For now, check out the Top 155 from Michigan in the class of 2018:

PBR Michigan Class of 2018 Top 155

Rank	Name	State	School	Class	Pos	Commitment
1	Spencer Schwellenbach	MI	Saginaw Heritage	2018	SS	Nebraska
2	John Malcom	MI	Country Day	2018	1B	Vanderbilt
3	Miko Rodriguez	MI	Forest Hills Central	2018	OF	Texas A&M
4	Cole Daniels	MI	Saline	2018	LHP	Kentucky
5	Mason Minzey	MI	Bishop Foley	2018	C	Texas Tech
6	Jacob Erickson	MI	Allen Park	2018	SS
7	Brian Martin	MI	Westland John Glenn	2018	RHP	Michigan State
8	Brandon Smith	MI	Saginaw Heritage	2018	RHP
9	Joey Zontini	MI	Eisenhower	2018	1B	Central Michigan
10	Luke Stephenson	MI	Algonac	2018	C

***** To view the entire top 155, please click here.